When you are a mother, you are never really alone in your thoughts. A mother always has to think twice, once for herself and once for her child.

Despite what many would have you believe - or truly do believe themselves, Celestia is not a fool.

She is naive. She can be foalish, cruel, borderline inequine at times - She is fallible. Some claim that Celestia is the best of them, and she is - but she is also the worst of them. Celestia is many things - all of them oxymoronic in their contradictions, but one thing that she is not - is a fool.

She knows of the happenings in her world. She is well aware that her nation - the Shining Jewel of Aezilan, as it's sometimes called in a mocking and genuine way - is rotten. A cancerous growth forms along its underbelly, a tumor that's spread deep into the heart of the nation - and to cut it out would be to gut the nation itself. The work would be grisly and long - and by the time she was done, the bleeding guts of Equestria would be out in the open, left bare for the world to see - and to pick and feed on like birds of carrion.

It does not, however, stop her from cutting away what she can. Princess Mi Amore Cadenza's golden, honeyed words placate those who lust and greed for power. Threats to her ponies are stamped out under the skilled tact of Master-COmmander Steelshy Blade, while the threats from within are found by Head Researcher Ivory Chaser and burned away by Judicator Goldspur. While the four heads of state and the Diarch remain - friendly, there is a certain closeness between the Judicator and the Head Researcher.

The Head Judicator is something of a legend. Nearly as tall as Celestia, with a rippling set of muscles to match - while Celestia remains unrivaled in raw power and unicorn magic, Goldspur has proven to be her equal time and time again - if not her superior. Some claim him to be immortal - his strength absurd, his durability doubly so. Yet, very few have seen him underneath his impressive set of armor - a clinking, clanking tank as the plates of heavy steel seem almost fused to his flesh. Only those closest to him have caught glimpses of his brilliant red mane or his soft, butter-colored coat.

He carries no weapons. He is the weapon.

Of the two, the Head Researcher is the less physically imposing. He is a stallion - a beautiful stallion. His coat is a brilliant white, his mane a silky dark red that runs down his head in cascading curls. He is slightly effeminate and a full three hands shorter than his compatriot. He is, in fact - slightly above average in terms of height. His eyes are a deep sea-green and show a glimmer of his curious nature - reflected by the book on his flank. He enters the room and takes a seat.

They are good ponies. Stallions with strong wills and even stronger morals - even where they disagree, they can respect their differences.

"Why does the honeybug lie?" Ivory queried as he lifted a book in his telekinetic grasp, flicking through the pages. His voice was melodic, the voice of a singer.

"Because it is in their nature to do so." His voice was gravel - much like Zarrat's, but there was a twinge of something in there. A slight accent - his words a bit thick.

Ivory leveled a dangerous look at the stallion. The corona around his horn began to glow more intensely.

"Ah’m not going to say it," Goldspur grumbled.

Ivory smiled sweetly. "Say what?"

Goldspur turned his head to the side. "...Because - the honey tastes - amazeballs." He grimaced slightly and was thankful for his full-head helmet.

Ivory slammed the book shut with a clap. "You're aware of the necessity."

"Of course ah am," Goldspur grunted. "Doesn't mean ah have to like it. Not even remotely. Just - amazeballs?"

"It's something that you would never say. No honeybug would think of it." Ivory shrugged.

"We've never discussed the possibility of you being one of them, y'know." Goldspur's eyes narrowed slightly under his helmet. The movement would be imperceptible to any but Ivory.

Ivory chuckled. "If they were able to fool you, then there would be no hope for Equestria. Surely, we would all be doomed."

The Judicator snorted as he stood up, trotting over to the window with slow, heavy hoofsteps. "The topic of discussion."

"You lay it as a question, but say it as a statement." Ivory noted.

"Your point being?"

"My point is that you are aware of the topic of discussion. You merely want me to broach it first. Truly - does the girl unnerve you?"

The Judicator turned his head to the side. "...Ah'm loyal. Ah - am. Doesn't mean ah don't question if Celestia's got her head on straight, sometimes." He grunted. "She gave us everythin', y'know. Our land over in Ponyville - the deed down south in Appleloosa. The Apples have always been loyal to the princess. And as far as ah see it, we always will be. T'wouldn't be right if it was any other way."

"But," Ivory started.

"But," Goldspur agreed. "That girl ain't right. Steel's daughter - the way she described her. The way that the staff speak 'bout her in - riddles. Like she's something out of legend. There's somethin' wrong with her. You ever meet Wind Burst?"

"No, darling. I did not have the pleasure to meet anyone by that name." A shake of the head.

"Displeasure." Goldspur corrected. Ivory made a soft oh. "He was a good colt. 'Mean it. Strong, fast - there was a captain in the making in him. Loyal to a fault, too. If Celestia asked him to jump, he wouldn't ask how high - he'd jump as hard as he possibly could. Y'know what happened to him?"

"I do not," Ivory lied. Goldspur flashed him a look.

"So you know, then. That the girl melted him. Overpowered his hold, turned him into a molten pony that Celestia herself had to scoop up and dispose of. T'aint right." He shook his head.

"And what did you tell his kin?" Ivory placed a hoof on Goldspur's shoulder. The Judicator flinched.

"...The truth, 'course. Your type of truth. One of those - lies of omission. Hate it. Hated it with all my heart. But - ah couldn't bring myself to let them know. Ah told them - that he died doing what he thought was right."

"You're stronger than I am, Goldspur." Ivory whispered. He curled his forearms around him and locked the stallion in a tight hug. The two friends stood like that for a while until Ivory parted.

"Yer not as smart as y'might think, Ive." Goldspur's accent came on a bit more thickly layered - even with all his time in Canterlot; it came down a little harder in times of stress. "T'aint like yer' the princess. Ah can see straight through ye." he grunted. "Yer here to deal with her. Behind her back."

"Hardly anything so barbaric as you seem to be implying, Head Judicator." Ivory Chaser arched an eyebrow. "Tell me - do you think that Lady Celestia is moral?"

"Course," Goldspur responded instantly. Not a moment of hesitation.

"Again, please. With a bit less of the zeal."

"...She does her best. But she's - still equine. Makes mistakes. Yeah, though. Ah'd say she's damn well moral."

"In the days when Berzerkiel's corpse still burned, did you know - that she, along with her sister, and Lady Beollyssurth, broke the wings of every dragon that was involved with Berzerkiel? Crippled them, so that they might never rise up against her."

"Yer lying."

"You know I'm not." Ivory shut his eyes.

"...Didn't." Goldspur shook his head. He stared out the window.

"It was moral, for the time. She's ageless, eternal - she's not like us. She's - greater, in a sense. Yet - she stays grounded. Fluid. She changes with the times, she shifts, she morphs. How, do you think?"

Goldspur glanced at Ivory - who had a glint in his eyes. A dangerous glint, sometimes referred to as the Ivory Sheen- when he had an idea. Goldspur gulped and shook his head.

"She has friends." Ivory Chaser said with a wide grin on his face.

The Odari jungles of Panthera are rather aptly named - for where else would a Panther make its home, other than Panthera? A race of enigmatic creatures - once slaves to the Deerfolk, but now reclusive from the rest of the world. They remain sealed off, isolated from the world - locked to the more tribal and brutalist ways of the past. Despite this, Panthera is a strange place that makes its home to a rather diverse spread of cultures - most notably, the thestrals that worship the Eldest Daughter.

In the precious few days that Kesmera, or - Viola, at the time, walked the world, she tore the False Sky down. All those who gazed upon the Starless Beyond were driven mad - and the nocturnal pegasi subspecies of thestrals, active solely at night, were driven to insanity beyond repair. They speak in ancient tongues as they cut open their young, feeding their entrails to the Panthers who tentatively allow the thestrals their home in the Jungles.

They're not the only cult there, amusingly enough. The Church of the Nightmare lay there - for a while, the Terror-Touched Embodiment lays dead, dormant in the False Moon - her consciousness wanders, dreaming. Those who receive the privilege, or perhaps the curse of brushing up against her mind, travel to the continent of Odari - and often lose their lives in the arduous quest to the jungles. Ponies, minotaur, sphinxes, Abyssinians - creatures of all breeds with no history of madness throw away what little they have to worship the Glory of the Nightmare.

At a broad level, their politics are complicated. There are vying factions, zealots, and militants. Yet, if you were to examine those in positions of power - you'd find them more like-minded, agreeable. They lack the zeal they had as they carved their way through their small city to get to where they are today.

General Shadow Sprint is an imposing mare. A pegasus mare, allegedly raised by griffins, wolves, panthers, or dragons, depending on who you ask - but she adopts traits from all of them. For example, she solely eats meat because she enjoys the taste and the message it sends. Her feathery wings are lined with steel, and she keeps her hooves capped with blades at all times. She's tall, scarred, muscular - her blue coat so dark it looks black in most lights. A streak of Fuschia runs through her white mane, matching the color of her eyes.

Archmagus Starlight Glimmer is significantly less imposing. The same height as the other mare, yet never seen without her flowing navy cloak and hood - and only rarely seen without her shadow following in her footsteps. Yet, power flows from her - she has earned the title Archmagus and earned it well.

They are proud mares, yet both bow to the Grand Zealot as they give their report.

"The Skypirates have proved to be - negotiable, for the time being. Our efforts have forced them out of Equestria and Panthera, and they proclaim that - until the dust settles, and our Lady rises from the ashes, they will stay out."

"Truly? Honor, amongst pirates?" The Grand Zealot inspected his yellow-ochre hoof. "'Tis uncommon."

"Their leader was-" She turned her head to the side. "-she owed me a favor. I saved her daughter, once." Shadow Sprint said flatly.

"Hm. Speak of the Wolf, Archmagus."

"He's proven - resilient. Our spells seem to slide off of him. But he is wearing down, bit by bit. With more time-"

"Time, Archmagus." The Grand Zealot spoke very, very softly. "Is something we cannot afford. You will break him - and you will break him tonight." The muscled stallion slowly turned in his chair before plunging a dagger into the desk.

The stone desk.

Starlight Glimmer nodded slowly. "Yes, Grand Zealot. I shall."

Until earlier this year, Starlight Glimmer was the most powerful unicorn since Starswirl the Bearded - she thought. In truth, she was the second most powerful unicorn since Starswirl the Bearded: but considering that Sunset Shimmer was very, very dead, she wasn't something to take into consideration.

She had earned the title of Archmagus. It was claimed that one of her spells had blown the head off of a grown, elder dragon - in truth, it was a sea serpent, but the entire thing was rendered to ash: not just the head.

And yet, this - wolf, was proving to meet her match. A torrential stream of energy came gushing from her horn with such vigor that she felt as if it might shatter if she mishandled the energy - casting the most powerful sleep spell that had been cast in centuries.

Frost tilted his head back and let out an exaggerated yawn. "At this rate, you might manage to knock me out in a few years." He grinned smugly - despite being bound, his flesh at the wrists and ankles burnt off to the bone, and dozens of lances sticking into his body painfully. He barely seemed to register the pain.

"Do you feel pain?" Starlight stepped forward towards him, a few lengths away from him.

"What fucking kind of question is that? Of course I feel pain, dumbass." His face contorted, half of it beginning to twitch violently as he snapped at the air. His eyes had turned green for a moment, Starlight noted.

"How needlessly vulgar."

"Your mom is needlessly vulgar." Frost grinned wolfishly at her. Starlight didn't so much as arch an eyebrow.

"Everyone describes you as the most dangerous being in the universe. And yet - in all your time here, you've done little more than cuss and snap at the air like a feral dog. I expected more."

Frost snorted and tilted his head back. "Life is full of disappointments, isn't it?"

"Were you always like this? Always this - insane? You speak words that have no meaning, talk to yourself - and act like an adolescent child with the width of your vocabulary. It's almost embarrassing."

Frost's eyes narrowed slightly. His mouth opened up.

"Is this the part where you swear at me, or come at me with some childish insult?"

"No, Starlight Glimmer," Frost spoke in a much deeper, much different tone. His eyes were green again - and Starlight realized that she had never told him her name before. She stepped backward instinctively. "This is the part where I educate you."

"I am old. Oh, so old. I have seen things - that you could not possibly comprehend." The catwalk began to tremble as it was enveloped in a deep blue glow. His chains began to tremble as he strained against them - his flesh beginning to regenerate as blue sludge oozed from within his bones rapidly.

"I stood by the side of She-Who-Ruled as your ancestors crawled out of the cosmic sludge that I spat there. I have killed more and saved more than you could ever know in a thousand lifetimes, I have been the Conqueror-Lord and God-Hero." His voice was a low snarl. His chains were slowly covered in a thick coating of ice.

"I have seen beasts that could devour whole galaxies. Creatures so large that they would shatter your puny comprehension. I have fought against the Sultan of the Sun. It is I and I alone who was deemed worthy of wielding the First Blade, and it was I who plunged a spear through the heart of the Scourge." His voice was twisted now - something strange, and old - beyond nature. Starlight's eyes were wide.

"I have committed atrocities that you could not possibly comprehend in the name of goodness! I have prevented the Ruination time and time again, I have lived through the Flesh-Engines consumption of the very planes itself!" It was at this moment that the wolf tore free from his chains and began lumbering towards Starlight.

"I am FRAEZEN! Fraezen Frost Arcados, World-Soul of She-Who-Ruled and Son of the Eldest Daughter! I am greater than you can possibly comprehend, and I-"

And while Frost was monologuing, Starlight's sleep spell tore from her horn and struck him square in the jaw. He stumbled backward, his eyes wide.

"...am easy to distract." Starlight Glimmer finished softly.

Frost's eyes narrowed - before they shut, and he fell to unconsciousness.

Frost's dream world was a barren wasteland. The world was ash underneath him as he sat there, cleaning blood from his sword as his lucidity slowly came to him.

Hooves touched down behind him. He barely heard them impact the ash.

"Nightmare Moon, I presume." Frost spoke dryly. He glanced over his shoulder - finding a midnight blue alicorn with teal eyes and a flowing, ethereal mane.

"Please, grandfather. Call me Luna." The Alicorn of the Night smiled warmly.

Frost stared at her for a few long moments.
"...huh," he spoke dumbly.

Celestia didn't believe in coincidences. So it was certainly no coincidence that four fillies had been born on the same day - the same day that Twilight Sparkle broke the moon.

Fluttershy was truly a sweet darling. The maid staff adored her and doted on her - even if she found their attention - uncomfortable, at times. Celestia had, on more than one occasion - caught her sneaking out into her gardens, dangerously close to Discord's statue - but she seemed far too at peace with the animals, that Celestia couldn't bring herself to reprimand her. On top of that, Twilight seemed to like her - as much as the filly had liked anything other than Celestia.

Rarity Chaser-Belle, on the other hand, was truly a seamstress in the making. While she didn't have the burning curiosity that drove her every action like her father, she did have his sense for fashion - and her mother's skill with telekinesis. Ivory showed off the blankets that she had knitted - and Celestia had to admit that they were quite soft.

Applejack was much like her father. Quiet - large, for a filly her age. A bit of an accent - not quite as bad as her father and his improper pronunciation of self-pronouns, but getting there. Honest - honest to a fault, actually. She was one of the few, along with Twilight - who had accidentally insulted Celestia straight to her face. Not that Celestia had acted out against it - fillies were more than welcome to insult her, especially if their parents were friends.

Still, though. Thoughts of Applejack made Celestia sad. That young, exposed to such tragedy - she couldn't imagine...

Led along by her mother, Fluttershy entered the private section of the Royal Gardens. She had only been here once before, for her brief meeting with Twilight a little more than a month ago. It was slightly traumatic, as such - and she hid behind her mother's form...but couldn't help but stare in wonder at the beautiful fauna and flora that decorated the gardens. She caught glimmers of animals just at the corner of her vision - but she couldn't truly admire them, for they were always gone when she turned.

The flora, on the other hand - her mother had to grip onto her tightly and drag her away from. She couldn't help but oo and aa over the beautiful shades mixed in such delightful patterns - flowers that she had never seen or only heard of in books. Eventually, though, her mother dragged her to their destination.

There were two other girls there. A white unicorn filly sitting down on a rather plump pillow instead of the grass - her hair, violet curls that went down her neck. There was a rather large, wheat-colored earthpony with beautiful green eyes chewing on a piece of wheat - a tan stetson sitting on her head.

"Good-afternoon, Mrs. Blade." The unicorn stood up and bowed, while the earthpony just nodded at Steelshy.

Steelshy rolled her eyes. "Fluttershy, meet Rarity -" she gestured at the unicorn, "and Applejack. Your parents ditched you so soon, huh?"

"Mm." Applejack nodded. Steelshy winced slightly.

"Said we should get to know each other better." Rarity rolled her eyes. "Applejack hasn't exactly been the most talkative of company - but I'm fairly certain we're on the same page."

"That you would rather do anything else?" Steelshy grinned. "Good, Flutters. You'll fit right in." She winked at the pegasus filly. Fluttershy blushed slightly and pawed at the ground. Steelshy kneeled and pressed her head against her daughter's. "Be good, kid. Make some friends." She poked at her ribs lightly, causing Fluttershy to recoil backward and let out a high-pitched whine - but Steelshy promptly left with a few flaps of her wings.

"Fluttershy, is it? A pleasure to make your acquaintance. I am - Rarity Chaser-Bell-"

"Rarity." Applejack turned to look at her.

"Yes, darling?"

"I ain't yer' darling. Can't y'treat the filly like - a filly, instead of one of yer' fathers - friends?"

Rarity tilted her head up and let out a soft hmph. "Father has always taught me to carry myself with some form of grace. Unlike you."

"Mhm." Applejack nodded and shut her eyes. She let out a long, deep sigh before glancing up at Fluttershy. "Sorry. Our dads leave us together all the time. They don't get that we-"

"Have absolutely nothing in common with one another." Rarity finished with a soft smile.

"Really? I was gonna say hate each other, but ... I guess that works."

"That was more or less what I said." Rarity arched an eyebrow.

"Yeesh. Just different languages, I guess. Noble-ese, I call it."

"um...do you - two...also not have any friends?" Fluttershy spoke very, very softly. A strong gust of wind would've overpowered her words.

Rarity opened her mouth, but Applejack interrupted. "Nah. I like being by m'self. Rarity has a whole buncha - friends, but she hates all of them."

"I do not hate all of them!" Rarity crossed her hooves and leaned back in her pillow.

"Really, then? Name one that you don't."

Rarity was silent for a second. "It's important to be social - even with those you don't like-"

"Ye' hate all of them." Applejack rolled her eyes. "Jeez. I don't get how you and y'dad deal with all that - noble-ese. Sayin' what you want to say with a thousand words instead of getting t'the point. Don't make no sense."

"It doesn't make sense." Rarity corrected. "What you said was a double-negative."

"A double-whatsit?"

"Um. It's - when you say something negative, but you describe it with a negative term. Like - he didn't say nothing. Ponies say it instead of he didn't say anything, but it actually means he did say something."

"Huh." Applejack said dryly. "So. Fluttershy. Yer' a lot calmer than I thought you'd be."

"Um. sorry?"

Applejack snorted while Rarity laughed lightly. Fluttershy pawed at the ground. "What I think Applejack is trying to say, darling - is that you're a bit more - timid, than we'd expect from you. Considering your mother, and all."

"Oh. yeah. I guess." Fluttershy nodded. "sorry."

"Y'don't have to apologize. Just the way you are." Applejack shrugged. "Whaddya like?"

"Um. I like - animals. Nature, I guess. I hope - I hope I get a mark for one of those." She smiled lightly. It really was a light smile - bringing brightness into the world.

"Nature, huh? I like that. Nature's - strong, y'know. Honest. What you see, what you get." Applejack nodded. "M'dad has a mark in Justice. Scales. I'm hopin' for the same. But if not - nature t'wouldn't be so bad."

"Ah! Common ground." Rarity smiled warmly at Applejack. "While I'm not too big on the whole - dirt and filth aspect of it - there are sights in nature that I would give anything to see. Oh, such vibrant shades of - ochre, vermillion, chartreuse-"

"Ogre? Vermin-lion? What - yer' just makin' noises." Applejack squinted.

Rarity rolled her eyes. Fluttershy quickly explained. "they're - um. fancy names, for shades of colors. Ochre is - orange, kind of. Vermillion is red, and chartreuse is green."

"At least one of you has some form of class." Rarity smiled at Applejack.

It was at this moment that Celestia and Twilight appeared with a pop of golden energy, causing Fluttershy to flinch while Rarity and Applejack stumbled backward at the surprise.

"Apologies, that we were so late - my little ponies." Celestia smiled warmly at the three fillies. "We ran into a small bit of a snag. Twilight forgot to eat breakfast." Celestia repressed a shudder as the memories of the filly eating a piece of raw dragon steak more than twice her size in a few minutes resurfaced. She promptly pushed them back down. "Be good, my little star." She scratched behind Twilight's ears - and then promptly disappeared.

There was a beat of silence.

"O-oh. um - h-hi, Twilight."

"Flut...ter...shy." Twilight said slowly. She turned to look at her. She smiled, but it didn't meet her eyes.

"Huh. Why y'talkin all funny like that?" Applejack tilted her head to the side.

Rarity let out a soft gasp. "Applejack!" She smacked the earthponies' arm with her hoof. "You can't just - say that!"

"Whaddidido!?" Applejack grumbled out as she rubbed her arm.

"Fine. Talk-ing...hard. Mind, fast. Words - aren't."

"She has a bit of trouble speaking." Fluttershy explained, a small amount of steel entering her voice. "Her mind moves faster than her mouth can keep up, so she has to focus to get her words out." The pegasus mare stood up and walked over by Twilight's side.

"Oh. Um. Sorry. Didn't mean t'affend."

Twilight shrugged. "Is - fine. Don't get why - ponies don't say - what they mean."

"Someone's speakin' my language." Applejack rolled her eyes.

"Hmph. Still - it's rude to ask that to someone. Well, hello - Twilight, is it? You're - um." Rarity glanced at her. "Certainly - something. I'm Rarity, this is Applejack - and you seem to have met Fluttershy before."

"M-hmm." She slowly turned to look at Fluttershy. "Friends." She said slowly. Fluttershy's eyes widened - before an inkling of a smile spread over her face.

Twilight's eyes wandered over Rarity - whose own eyes were locked on Twilight's strange, black eyes, and her equally dark hooves. Her father had mentioned in passing that one of the fillies she would be meeting with was - unique, but she hadn't quite expected that. Twilight slowly turned to Applejack - and then sniffed a few times.

"You...smell - like dead." Twilight tilted her head to the side. Rarity and Fluttershy paled. Applejack snorted.

"Like dead?"

"Y'watched...someone - die." Twilight whispered.

Applejack nodded. "Mhm. M'mom died a few weeks after I was born. Messed up my dad, and everyone treats me like I'm fragile 'bout it. Long as y'aint rude about it."

"My - mom - died...too." Twilight stepped forward.

"I thought yer mom was the princess." Applejack arched an eyebrow.

Twilight shook her head. "N-no. She - found me. When I was - born. Mom - died."

It was at that moment that something struck the ground by Twilight. She was sent flying into a tree - Applejack hurtling backward into Rarity, the two colliding with a sick thud. Fluttershy's vision blurred as her ears began to ring - the flora were beginning to burn, and the animals were screaming-

A dark laugh filled the air. It was wheezing, it was grating - it sounded similar to Twilight's voice, but more - sickly, almost. Twisted. The air seemed to bubble and darken, pop and roll in waves- the unicorns felt the Wrongness first, with Applejack and Fluttershy feeling it only a few moments later.

The ground continued to shake and tremble as more of those things that had struck by them initially in the distance - bombarding against the castle, into the city. Fluttershy could smell and see the smoke from the gardens.

A mare with a matted velvet coat stepped out of the brambles. She was covered in thin lacerations but oozed more of a pus than actual blood. Her eyes were gouged out of her skull - and there was a constant dribble of black fluid coming from the gaping hole in her stomach.

"N-no, m-monster. I didn't die. You k-killed me." Twilight Velvet's corpse smiled.

There was a lurch in the air as her horn darkened with sickly red energy. "Let me r-repay y-your ‘gift’."

Red energy tore from her horn - and two separate, bloody halves of Twilight Sparkle fell to the floor.

-

Author's Note

Thanks to iAmSiNnEr for editing.

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