A Different Kind of Love: The Untold Chapters

--------------- Life of a Tyrant: Ajax – Part 3 ---------------

“What about the nitrogen content in their blood?” Ajax asked. The first question he had made all day. Lily blinked at his sentence, her mind obviously running fast.

“That’s… A really good question. Hang on.” They had been poring over the same three books over and over the past year, all of which had been spent on the run. Ajax and Lily had jumped from home to home, feeding from Trottingham citizens, killing them when their cover was close to being blown. They were running out of time, though. Each new couple they killed did not go unnoticed by the Trottingham guard, nor the head librarian, the one who had driven them to kill the first time.

Eleven months of running, killing, hiding, waiting… They were on the cusp of winter again. Ajax was unsure how much more he could take, shivering in cold homes at night, infiltrating the library again and again… “Here it is,” Lily said, pulling a chart across the table. She tapped an entry, and Ajax considered it.

“So… It’s the same as a deer?”

“Is it?”

“Yeah, four-point-two-two… That’s the same we use for a deer, isn’t it?” Lily’s brow drew down as she concentrated.

“So it is. Huh. I guess there’s hope for you yet, Ajax.” She said softly, smiling at him. Ajax grinned in response, though in the back of his mind, he envisioned smacking her across her smart little mouth. It wouldn’t have been a smart move, thanks to the same magi that had passed by four times since they had dug in down in the old archives. The same one that had been pestering them for a year now… He was there every day, it seemed like… Ajax began to fear he was making a connection between the killings in the city, and whomever was visiting this section of the library. Each time he approached, Lily and Ajax would give a cock-and-bull story, then disappear and take over a new couple…

Ajax almost enjoyed the game, though… Infiltrate, impersonate, eradicate, move on… Like a dance with four really easy steps. Step one, take over someone’s life. Step two, come to the library as much as they could and study. Step three, kill them. Step four, fly around until they spotted a new family to impersonate. Still, in the dozens of families they had killed and impersonated, Ajax was beginning to wonder if there were even any left in Trottingham. Ajax peered over the top of the dusty scroll he had been peering over as the magi chasing them peeked around the corner again. He came back and advanced towards them. The soft sound of his footsteps made Lily pick her head up, both of them looking at the man.

“Are you finding everything okay?” He asked, smiling down at them. Ajax returned the grin in a perfect display of changeling trickery.

“Perfectly fine, thanks. You have a lot of tomes on genealogy down here. I was studying about my uncle,” he glanced at the nearest name in the book he held in his hands. “Windswept, captain of the weather team.” The look on the magi softened but didn’t flee.

“You’re Windswept’s nephew?” He asked, smiling down at Ajax. The changeling smiled and nodded, then furrowed his brow and rolled his hand.

“Distantly… And only through marriage.”

“I knew Windswept. He was good friend of mine. Long ago, he and I served in the guard together. Would you like to hear some of our old stories? I dare say they’re worth it.”

“Uuh-“ Ajax scrambled in that moment, looking between Lily and the imposing magi. In a split second, he did the one thing changelings were meant to do. He lied. “Of course! Hon, you can finish up here?”

“Yeah, I’m digging a little deeper… I think I just found Megan’s father.”

“Wait, Megan…”

“Frazer.” Lily bluffed.

“Ooh! Good job! I’ll leave you to it, then.” Ajax smiled and kissed the top of her head as he stood, folding the chart he had surreptitiously been studying within the genealogy book he had been using for cover. “Lead the way, Mr…?” Ajax and the magi slipped away, around a corner, out of earshot of Lily.

“Sparkle.” The magi said with a smile, offering a hand. Ajax took it, shaking firmly. “Eclipse Sparkle.” The whole situation was remarkably uncomfortable. Ajax did not feel good being around this man. This man who constantly hounded him and Lily, no matter what form they were in. Time and again, he had confronted them when they infiltrated the library, forced them to move on… They had killed more than enough people because of him. Ajax’s mind raced as they walked out of the old archives and into a more mainstream part of the library.

“I’m sorry, mind if I use the restroom before we talk? Sitting down there in the dark, I guess you forget about those sorts of things.” Ajax made the weak excuse as Eclipse paused in front of him. He couldn’t see the magi’s face, but he had to be struggling with the new development. The moments stretched on, threatening to extend into the uncomfortable. Ajax pressed him on. “Excuse me…?”

“You and your partner are not to return to the library.” Eclipse said suddenly. As the magi turned around, Ajax saw his eyes glow mysteriously, his hands clenched into fists. Ajax swallowed at the look he got. It was legitimately frightening. “If I ever see a couple in the old archive again, I will immediately have you turned over to the guards for questioning.” The man stepped forward, the act almost completely gone. Ajax couldn’t say he wasn’t surprised. This was the man who had reliably chased them out twice a month for the past year. He was smart. He was a threat. Ajax just grinned at him.

“The bathroom?” He said, his own eyes flickering with a devious display of mischief. Eclipse stared him down for a few more long moments before gesturing vaguely down a hall and slinking off, straight back towards the old archives. After a moment’s pause, Ajax turned down a different hall and made for the nearest exit. Lily was on her own, and he had to make it back to their latest home to kill the most recent two…

“There’s only one solution.” Lily said later on that evening. They had just used the money they had taken from the last couple to rent a hotel room for a night while they thought about where to live next. Ajax peered at her from under his towel, damp with the leftover of his long, hot shower. The first, it felt like, Ajax had taken in weeks. He plopped on the edge of the bed as Lily looked out of the window at a dark Trottingham skyline.

“That is…?” Ajax said, watching Lily turn around.

“We have to steal those books. There is no way we’re going to complete the research without studying more, and we can’t keep getting caught by him each time. I left almost immediately after he took you. I almost thought he was going to turn you over to the guard. We can’t keep cutting it close like that, Ajax… We need those books, and we need them by tomorrow.” Ajax pondered her words as she spoke, thinking at them from all the angles he could imagine.

“Alright.” He said at last. “How do you plan on taking them?”

“You got a good look at him, right?” Lily said, tapping her finger on her arm. Idly, Ajax nodded, paused, then he caught the drift of her plan.

“Wait… You don’t mean…?”

“That’s exactly what I mean. You need to impersonate that man, get past the guards, get the books, and get out.” Lily said softly, her vision still distant, almost like she was still hashing out the details…

“The old archive books can’t be checked out. We tried. That also means they’re not allowed to LEAVE the old archives section. It’d take a lot of balls to walk past the guards with them.” Verse countered.

“Who do you think restricted that section? Or who’s putting the guards in place as we speak?” Lily said quietly.

“… Alright,” Ajax said. “I disguise myself as our favorite little pest, slip into the library, bold-facedly take three sensitive books from a restricted area, and walk right out the front door. What if he shows up right as I walk in? Or walk away? What then? Or what if they have a pass phrase, or a code, or what if he suspects were changelings already? What then, Lily?”

“We’re going to have to take that risk, Ajax. If all else fails, let the guard take you then slip away when you can. I’ll be watching. I can help if need be.” She said at last. “We can’t continue this research without those books. And you know what happens if we fail Chrysalis. Especially since this is your first assignment.”

“We’ll do it. I know we will.” Ajax said tiredly. It had been a taxing day… Particularly beating the last two people they had been with… That had really taken it out of him. That, and they had just barely beaten the guard out of the house. News of their recent attack would be all over the papers the next day. Which was only going to make their job harder. With a heavy breath, Ajax pushed himself fully onto the cool sheets of the bed, pulled the covers over his head, and drifted off…

This is crazy. Absolute, bat-shit, completely and utterly crazy… Ajax smiled despite his thoughts. If rumor served, Eclipse was actually a friendly guy. Hard to believe, given the cold look and the implied threat he had given both him and Lily the other day. Still, Ajax forced a smile as he ascended the steps to the Trottingham library, waving at someone who looked as if they recognized him. This was very, very bad… If anyone recognized him and even remotely struck up a conversation with him, Ajax was screwed… He didn’t know the first thing about this man’s life. Problems all changelings suffered from when impersonating someone. There came a time when the one they fed off of began asking questions… Began having suspicions… Ajax was thrust straight into the most awkward scenario he could imagine… Impersonating someone of importance. He smiled and waved at the receptionist, who cheerily returned his wave.

“Mr. Sparkle!” He almost didn’t stop when someone behind him called his fake name. Ten damn steps from the stairwell leading to the old archives, too… Damnit… “So glad I caught you. Do you have your answer for my proposition?” The person, a young man who looked no older than twenty, smiled down at Ajax, who was currently shifted into Eclipse Sparkle as he jogged towards him. Ajax scrambled, his mind racing.

“Aah, yes. I have it on my desk.” Ajax said as the man came to a halt before him. “You’ll have to forgive me, though. I have some important business to handle in the old archives. Could you meet me by my office in an hour?” Ajax smiled and patted the man on the shoulder. “You understand how busy it can be around here sometimes.” The man gave a slight chuckle and nodded, returning the pat kindly.

“Of course. I’ll see you in an hour. Oh! Are we on for dinner with the missus this weekend?”

“You know it,” Ajax gave an ambiguous answer as he slipped away. “I’ll see you in a moment.” He slipped into the stairwell, smoothly walking down two levels. Huh. So Eclipse Sparkle had a family… Shame. Lily was going to run into some difficulties with her distraction, then…

Early that morning, Lily had assured Ajax that she was going to help out as much as she could, in that she would attempt to distract Eclipse before he arrived at the library, giving Ajax the time he needed to retrieve the books and leave before the real head librarian entered. Hopefully, by the time any of the library workers or guard had realized the early-morning Eclipse had been an imposter, he and Lily would be halfway to the city limits, and moving fast. The winding stairs led him down to the dank underground of the library, down to where the restricted section was. Rounding the corner, Ajax saw that the man he was posing as had, indeed, posted a guard. They snapped to attention as he approached, and without a word, parted their spears. He smiled at them warmly before pushing the doors open and entering the now-restricted old archives. He knew the path almost by heart… Fifteen shelves in, two shelves down, third row from the top, fourteenth book from the right…

“There you are.” With the spines jutting out maybe a half an inch, there were the three tomes he and Lily had been studying. One of them was an old text about naga physiology, the other a list of important bloodwork of all amphibious creatures in a certain time period, the one that the naga had existed in, and another that had the complex magical diagram for the nullification spell. Smoothly, Ajax took all three, holding them in the crook of his arm as he left the restricted area. The guard, however, called out to him.

“Done already, Mr. Sparkle?” He asked. Ajax paused for a moment before turning around to smile at the two guards at the entrance to the restricted archives.

“These three volumes are due for some much-needed restoration. I just need to deliver them. Thank you, gentlemen. Long night?” He asked. The guard chuckled and nudged his friend.

“Our relief hasn’t shown up yet. We’ve been here since you posted us yesterday night.” Ajax listened to them, then made a show of acting appalled.

“That’s ridiculous! I’m going to go see about getting you two relieved right away!”

“Th-thank you sir!” Both guards snapped to attention and saluted as Ajax spun on his heel and walked away quickly. Smiling all the while. Up the stairs, Ajax paused at the threshold to the dark stairwell… Here was the tricky part… He hadn’t even really thought this far ahead. The receptionist couldn’t be allowed to see him exiting the library with books… If it was Eclipse Sparkle, she would want to say goodbye… If he was anyone else, she would accost him for trying to steal books… Then he saw it. His opportunity. In through the door came a mousy-looking woman carrying an armful of books. She wore an outfit similar to the one Ajax had shifted into, signifying she worked at the library. What’s more, she was walking straight towards him! In the darkness of the stairwell, Ajax set the three books in the shadow, stripped the upper half of his robe off, and waited… The woman advanced towards the dark stairwell, looking preoccupied with what appeared to be a list resting on top of the stack of books. Just as soon as she entered the darkness of the stairwell, Ajax pounced.

“HMM!” She managed a somewhat loud moan, not loud enough to carry, but loud enough to make his heart hammer. His arm quickly shot around her neck, wrapping it into the crook of his arm. He squeezed hard, cutting off her air supply as he kicked her knees out from under her. The books she was carrying tipped over, but didn’t clatter or fall, or even make much noise. Smooth and slow, Ajax choked her until she was still. He used his clothes to bind her nice and tight, her hands and ankles tied together, and a wad of fabric stuffed into her mouth to keep her from making too much noise. Ajax smoothly shifted into her, smiling as he gathered her books. No one had noticed. No one would know until she was either discovered dead or awoke. By then, Ajax would be long gone. This whole episode would be over.

The receptionist barely even glanced at the woman as she slipped back out of the stairwell, looking like she had just forgotten something. Ajax didn’t get a second look as he exited the library. He smiled to himself as he rushed down the wide front steps. Across the street, there was an ambulance… Given the flurry of movement and emotion Ajax was suffering from, he’d rather not pay any attention to emergency personnel… What they could be doing, though, intrigued him… Ajax clutched the stack of books tight as he turned right and walked away from the scene, the library, and towards his freedom…

“Ajax.” Lily’s voice came to him from an alleyway, two blocks from the scene.

“Lily?” He answered cautiously, peering into the shadowy entrance. The soft cloud of white, chill breath betrayed Lily’s presence from behind a nearby trashcan. She straightened up, gesturing for him to duck into the alley with her. He glanced up and down the street before slipping in.

“Did you get them?”

“The one on top, and the two on bottom…” Ajax said, hefting the stack of books.

“Kill anyone?”

“Not sure… I definitely knocked her unconscious… We need to move, and fast.”

“Well our little detective won’t be an issue anymore,” Lily shuffled the books around as she extracted the three they needed from Ajax’s grip. “How was I supposed to know the fucker lived right across the street from the library?”

“Wait,” Ajax said, looking at her with wide eyes. “That was you?” He glanced over his shoulder at the ambulance that was still flashing it’s lights down the street two and a half blocks away. Lily just gave him a quick look before extracting the three they needed. Her hands were shaking. Bad. Ajax grinned and nudged her shoulder.

“You did what was right. Chrysalis would be proud.” The only thing he got in return was a slight ‘Hmmph’ before Lily shifted so wings sprouted from her back. She flapped hard and went up over the roofs. Both of them, it seemed, were keen on getting out of there quickly. Still, Ajax couldn’t help but glance over his shoulder at the ambulance as they flew away… Unless he was mistaken, they were wheeling black bags out to the ambulance. Grinning, he turned his sights forward and followed Lily’s lead over the rooftops of Trottingham… They were headed south. Back home. Back to Chrysalis.

“Not tonight, please, Ajax…” Lily said softly, batting at his hands. They were camped out in some small wood inbetween Canterlot and Ponyville, which they would fly over on their way back to Chrysalis. Their fire burned happily, popping and crackling as the night slowly began to darken.

“Oh? Why not?” Normally, Ajax would have insistently taken her, whether she liked it or not. Tonight, though, he would humor her. Tease her. Women liked to be teased.

“I need to focus. Look, I think I’m about to do it.” She had been religiously reading the three books they had stolen in an attempt to unlock the mysteries of the naga before they arrived back with the horde. Ajax reluctantly stepped back and watched Lily as she furrowed her brow in concentration. Despite his own physical desires, their orders were concrete. He would really like to hand over their findings to Chrysalis as soon as they arrived. It was dangerously close to the year-long deadline they had been given to research the naga.

“Woah!” Ajax stepped back as Lily’s form abruptly changed. In a brief flash of changeling magic, Lily shifted from her regular form straight into a large, undulating mass of reptilian flesh. Ajax stared in wonder as she stretched out in front of him, her entire form easily thirty feet long… Her belly was covered in thin, lighter-colored scales, while all along her back were thicker, spined scales that looked like they could be inches thick in places… After about twenty-five feet, though, her long, sinuous body flared out into a somewhat human torso. It was scaly, like a reptile, but had two arms, a human head, and even a somewhat slender waist… Ajax had seen the drawings before, but seeing it for real was just… Odd.

“Huh…” Lily lifted her arms, each tipped with a wicked claw, looking herself over as best she could. “I think… I got it…”

“I’ll say…” Ajax said, looking her over. Lily slowly undulated, experimentally moving about in a wide circle around the fire. Ajax watched her movements, so graceful… Like water flowing across the ground. She moved smooth, easy, and surprisingly quick… “How does it feel?”

“Powerful.” Lily said, her tone thin… Shifting into a naga had changed her voice, too… “Like… It’sss… It’sss like I can feel everything… The ground beneath me… The ssstrength in my body…” She smiled, a wicked, pointed-tooth sort of affair. “It’sss addictive.” She smoothly shifted back to her real body, clothes and everything. “Really not that difficult to get usssed to… Guh.” She had been drawing her ‘S’ sounds out, like the hissing of a snake. Ajax chuckled at the slip of the tongue as Lily adjusted to being in her own body again. “Okay, as long as we’re here, let’s get you used to changing into one. I think I can coach you through it. And if I can get you to do it, we can both get Chrysalis to do it.” Ajax grinned at her as he relaxed his muscles, let his mind go blank…

“Alright,” He said softly. “Show me.”

------- Notes from the Author -------

I wrote this chapter actually kind of depressed… So I’m sorry if it isn’t what it should be. But this wraps up Lily and Ajax’s Trottingham exploits. In the next 4 chapters, we’ll see Ajax’s role in the Canterlot invasion, straight up to his involvement in A Different Kind of Love.