As the damaged airship goes about their slow operation of recovering not only their hypothermic survivors, but also their cold and mangled dead, the other centuries continue to conduct the damage assessment. Meanwhile, the princess who bore witness to the horrors of the not-yet identified creature makes an emergency summons for the royal family, not only to deliver her progress, but a warning of what she's encountered.

Her brothers, Agamemnon, Eros, and Xerxes, along with her father, attend through means of transmission sphere, producing several holographic figures in the room along with her. She regales them with her deadly confrontation, along with the update of growing casualties.

Her father is not pleased in the slightest. "Let me understand something here. You ran into what you say is the Doctor's 'previous miracle'?" Her younger sibling questions.

"I don't know how many more times I have to go through this fucking story again! Are you deaf, Xerxes!?" Obviously distressed from the harrowing image of those under her command being snuffed before her eyes, where only inches divided her from herself and the faces of her straining subordinates.

However, her brothers seem to write off her hysterics for her usual dramaticism. "Zenobia, dear sister, it's only fair that we assume you to be irrational." Eros comments.

Agamemnon cosigns with his fellow maternal sibling. "You haven't quite been the gleaming pillar of stability in our family."

"The doctor has acknowledged me and my accomplishments! You can go─"

"Zenobia." The emperor swiftly dismisses any motion of his daughter to throw out insults to her brothers.

While begrudgingly obeying his warning, she also offers a retort to him directly, a calm one to not invoke a wrathful response. "Father, you yourself said that this is a matter of extreme precedent."

"Yes, and I know what your ambitions are." He answers dismissively.

Xerxes, on the other hoof, shows little regard for the religious intent of the assignment, "I don't care for any of that, is that dragon with them!?"

"I haven't confirmed it personally, but I do know that the ship was seen leaving our docks over in Hayfling. And that was the location one of their emissaries wanted them to know about, so much so that it was quite literally written in blood on the walls of the waterway."

The emperor, still unamused, brings up a damaging point. "And they escaped under your watch?"

"They only escaped because of the one thing I've mentioned, who transformed from some unicorn to the image of one of the legendary creatures."

The emperors eyes wander to the princess, as though the mention has some merit for his interest. Agamemnon questions her. "What legendary creature did they transform into?"

"Let me guess, a draconequus? I bet it's one of those." Eros answers in a mocking manner.

Still believing she's being ridiculed, she returns with a serious reply. "No. It transformed into one of the ones that gifted us alchemy, the root of our weaponry."

The emperor, previously slouched in his throne, sits up straight at the news. The scarred prince shows his disbelief. "I beg your pardon?"

"Consider who you beg the pardon from, Agamemnon." Eros jokes.

She ignores the constant jabs from the lavender-streaked prince, focusing on her father in her reply. "He even dared to mock our weapons, saying something odd. He said they were 'so 1776'. Like what the fuck is that supposed to mean?"

The emperor tilts forward, placing a hoof to his chin in thought. "Better question: How would the Equestrians know about the long-legs anyhow? There's literally no recollection of them in any tome of their history, we're the only ones who have the technology we have. We could mass an army against the world and our nation would clear the playing field with each and every skirmish."

"Then what do you make of it, father?" Xerxes asks.

"It seems that the Equestrians are withholding more than we anticipated." He concludes.

"It still makes little sense how they could coordinate a rescue effort so quickly and quietly. I've burned their airship, I've crushed their communications, and we've killed every last one of their traveling party but the holy mother and that damned dragon." Xerxes notes.

"It's easy to escape when you have a mare performing the operations a prince should be in charge of." Eros adds condescendingly.

The princess lashes out at the stallion for having mocked her unchecked. "You fucking prick, I would─"

"Zenobia." The emperor calls to her, putting her to silence as he waits. Only then, he gives his response. "As provocative as Eros can be, you cannot overlook the fact that the holy mother has escaped our shores under your pursuit. Naturally I would deem you to return home and allow for Xerxes to carry on with the hunt. But seeing how matters have complicated now with this 'rogue apostle' being a factor, it only makes sense to broaden our fronts instead of keeping them divided and small."

The ambitious prince eagerly volunteers himself. "Father, I will leave Agamemnon to the west─"

"And let you have all the glory!? Not this time, Xerxes!" Agamemnon shouts, much to the high prince's chagrin.

"Excuse me! Know your place!"

"I know my place, Xerxes! And you are well beneath it!"

The crown prince shouts down the combative sibling. "I'll parade your head next!"

"Why just the head? I'm parading your entire miserable corpse for the countryside to see!"

Ever the sideline instigator, Eros offers a faux complaint. "Always the violent. What would poor Stefanos say if he saw this putrid display of infighting?"

"Nothing, he's dead!" Agamemnon calls out.

"And you've who signed your goons for him!" Xerxes snipes back.

"He insulted me, it's old news! And it's not like you have any room to talk with the way you've culled off Adelphos! You're just as murderous as I!"

The emperor finally breaks the ground between his two sons. "And a temper like yours, you'd claim death and destruction for the empire, which is why I've entrusted Xerxes the mantle of my succession."

The ambitious prince happily bows his head. "Father, your wisdom is far too much."

The scarred prince scoffs at the display. "Foolishness."

"Either way, we can't afford for another logistics collapse, much less an account of dubious foundation. It's not that Zenobia can't be trusted, but the account leading to this failure seems far too improbable for this to make any traction. A two legger, in our world, thousands of years after their initial sighting, and that's one of our most-kept secrets. I don't believe that's in any way plausible." Zenobia is taken aback by her father's words as he offers a change in the assignment. "But in the event that it is, Xerxes, please aid your sister in her pursuit. You may bring whatever airships you need for this endeavor."

The ambitious prince inquires of his boundaries. "Father, I only think it's fair to consider a pursuit should they cross back into their boarders, what are our limitations should they prove to be too evasive in the waters?"

"You admit your failure long before it's manifestation, bold of you to demand anything past a capture at sea. Guess you aren't as worthy of your crown─"

"Agamemnon, you will be silent!" The emperor lashes out loudly, startling Eros and Zenobia alike. "You ask for permission to pursue into their borders, knowing that war would come with the thought?"

The ambitious prince follows his proposal with several arguments to his favor. "Father, I have seen their airship capabilities, and they are barely able to sustain flight. They cannot travel a seven hour trip without making it an eleven hour slog. They have no wares like ours, no function beyond their own magics. They can't even protect themselves! It was so easy to destroy the Equestrians stationed here, and these were supposedly some of their best that we've laid waste to. If they declare war, what stops us from simply overwhelming them?"

The emperor grows favorable of Xerxes' talking points, but shares another notable concern. "Valid logic to have, but I should note that they still have the threat of Lord Tirek. What's to stop them from freeing him and allowing him to feast on our magic users?"

"And what, run the risk of them being consumed by his greed as well? They would never dare to be that foolish."

The emperor tacks on yet another objective. "Then if you would make for a deep run within their borders, I would have you eliminate that avenue, should they ever wish to take it."

Quickly feeling the situation escaping her, Zenobia speaks out. "Father, if I may."

"Zenobia, you may be the first of us, but you are nowhere near as important."

"Agamemnon." The emperor silences his short-tempered son once more before giving his daughter the floor. "Speak, girl."

"This creature, the long-legs, it concerns me that this may be the first one they've encountered, much less what it could bring to them."

Xerxes promptly speaks against his sister's concerns. "Okay, let's entertain the idea of them having this supposed two-legger on that ship. Who's to say that the one they have is of any significance? The ones that graced us over a millennium ago were the offspring of an alchemist. Who's to say theirs wouldn't be a mere carpenter or baker? And who's to also say that stallion isn't merely depicting the image of a long-legger, or if it's just a draconequus in disguise? We cannot discount any of these possibilities."

"But equally speaking, we can't discount the possibility that they may have more than what we've been made aware of in our mechanics. What if their technology dwarfs ours by a clear mile and we know nothing about it?" Yet again Zenobia raises valid concerns.

"I only go along with this because father wants me to play nice, so I'll pretend to have the fanatical imagination you have, sister." Replies Agamemnon. "Say they do have a long-legger, and not a draconequus in disguise. How long have they been introduced? What all do you think they've managed to manufacture, and why haven't those abilities been implemented in their airships yet? Their airships have little to no defensive capabilities. Our cannons would decimate them within the minute."

The emperor turns to the intrepid prince. "Xerxes, are you sure that is the limit of their machinations?"

"If they were any more powerful, they would not be as intimidated as they were when we arrived to their shores the first time." He states confidently. "The advantage is ours."

"Then I want you to prove their inferiority." Agamemnon calls out. "Since they're so weak that they don't match any of our capabilities, you'll only need one airship. Take it into the heart of their capital city, abscond from them one of their sculptures, statues, whatever, and return to our shores. Do so unscathed, and I'll bow before you in earnest, and hail you as the true crown prince."

"And if they declare war?" Zenobia questions.

"Then we'd simply make quick work of it." Xerxes dismisses. "I shall take to Foalsom with haste."

The emperor reclines back into his seat, finalizing his decision. "Then it is settled. You and your sister will join forces together and pursue this ship, the holy mother, and this other creature claiming to be the Doctor's 'last miracle', I'll call him what he feigns to be, a rogue apostle, to the ends of the earth, beyond all boarders and boundaries. Take them both, I give you full consent to defend yourselves should there be violence. Show no mercy, if need be."

"Ah, it's about time father's looking to let us cut loose." Agamemnon says as he dismisses himself from the conference.

"If only we could simply love them into submission." Eros mutters. "But I suppose I have other concerns to mind. It seems that one of my eyes over in Hayfling, the century Zenobia was too busy playing games with, has given me a useful but saddening update. Dear sister Hestia Aphrodite has defected. And being that she aided the foreign entity in their escape, I suppose she will be swiftly dealt with. These lesser-bloods are always about making their own brand of noise, not even realizing that their screams always fall silent when the blade comes down on their necks."

"Then deal with the issue as you've done the others." The emperor commands.

"At once, father."

As Eros removes himself from the conference, the emperor remains as he watches his daughter quietly, seeing how sour her face has turned over the passing moments. "You're still here?"

"I need to know if I carry on with this, am I going to get any kind of prominent position." She asks.

"If your brother proves useful to you, I may simply place you just below him." He responds, hardly giving thought to his change. "If your intent now after hearing that is to step aside, I would understand."

"You... cheating prick."

The emperor shows a slight smirk at the mare. "Your brother will beat you to Foalsom if you're going to stay there sulking. I'd suggest you'd be the one to meet him there instead, take the initiative. Your brother becomes emperor, your next offspring may be his first in line, provided that the existing requirements are properly met. Consider it, girl. A secondary position is far better than none."

In hearing how she'll be used, she vehemently lashes out towards her father. "You promised me─"

"I promised you the crown position if you succeeded. You have failed. Now you have another chance, but at the trade for being your brother's minor, possibly his loophole around the breeding issue. If anything, your mother would've loved this for you." The princess grits her teeth, biting a bit of her cheek in the midst of her stewing anger. "Take it or leave it."

As much as she wants to call her father every insult imaginable, she knows that doing so would probably run the risk of him looking to have her removed. She considers her options, being life as an embarrassing lesser to her brother or death. "I want nothing less."

"At least you know where you stand, girl." He smirks. "Don't fail again."

The hologram of her father fades out, the mare is left to her lonesome in the room. She starts to hold herself back from destroying everything in sight, in spite of her already reaching for an empty bottle of vodka to throw at her mirror. But as she's about to take her first fling, a white whisp appears in the looking glass. "She's beauty, she's grace, but I can assume there's a scowl on that face."

Seeing the scroll with a soft glow, and the candles lit beside it, she recognizes that it's her deity speaking to her through the mirror's surface. "I apologize, your immanence. I meant to bear no harm to you."

The whisp eagerly whispers. "No, no, by all means... tell me more about this 'rogue apostle'."

Elsewhere The Morning After...

I don't sleep too well with the waves tossing and churning the ship. It also felt like we ran into a few close calls out in the water throughout the night. I'm sure that no one's really in any mood to celebrate our success in avoiding capture, not after seeing what it was that was kept hidden from the world about Nondis. I never would've suspected something like that from him, coming from beneath his feet, but now I at least understand a portion of what they ran into seven years ago. The only comfort I had while my head was bumping against the wall was that he's not our enemy. And just as long as we have that, we should be good to go.

I easily lose track of time over the course of the night, so much so that I walk into the hallway and see that the sun is starting to come up. Guess I don't get the luxury of having a good night's sleep, not that I deserve to at this point. I walk on and mosey into the dining area, where I'm startled by the appearance of Nondis sitting in a chair. "Holy shit!"

He's not surprised over my shout in the slightest. "Sneaking around my ship ain't gonna do you any favors if you want to avoid cardiac arrest."

"Sorry. Things kinda have me on edge these days." I reply.

"You scared, of what?"

A lot, you at the moment. "I don't know, it's just so much. I can't tell what's gonna go down now."

"I'll tell you what's gonna go down. We get you over to Silvie, you cross the mirror, take a detour through my world, and you'll be back in Canterlot within the hour."

I'm assuming he means we'll take the portal from Silver Shoals. If so, then I guess that cuts down on the travel time even more. "I guess that works for me..." I plop myself down at the table, looking at the fairly young sunrise. "I guess being stuck in one castle is better than being stuck in another."

He takes notice of my quiet demeanor, prying a bit into what's concerning me. "I know that look, Spike. You trying to face something you don't wanna look at? What's on your mind?"

I shake my head, remembering the moments after that whole thing went down seven years ago, the memorial march he led, the flowers he gave, the multitude of others that shouted insults at him as he gave his apologies for the ones that were victimized. "I remember that parade you had, wasn't really much of one. But you manned up and showed poise. How'd you do it, breaking the news to the families of the victims time and time again? You could've just had a huge parade to help everyone forget about it, but you kept it somber and respectful... and honest." I still wear the necklace of tags on my neck, never really finding any incentive to take it off just yet. "I got about forty families that'll be looking for answers, how do I make good on that?"

"Bow your head, give your best, take whatever they throw at you." He answers straightaway, not even hesitating. "They're going to be grieving, it's going to be emotionally charged no matter what you do. Some are going to blame you exclusively, let them. Let them get it out so they can heal, don't deny them that. And don't argue back, that'll really piss 'em off. The point is to be humble and sincere. Responsibility is the goal, not the boogeyman."

"I bet it's happened so much that you have a protocol for it now." I say back to him.

"You have to." He admits. "Some part of you, you have to cut it off in order to get through it. You want to hurt for them, that's normal. But that's too much pain for one person to feel at times. So you have to compartmentalize it, turn off your emotions in some places. Then when the party's over and the doors close, you can turn it back on again." He levitates the necklace off of my neck, giving the names a quick glance. "You'll need to release those emotions for yourself too. That's just as important. So whenever you feel ready, scream out into the void one of these nights. Hell, I might bring you a drink and we'll do it together."

"I guess." I'm a little reluctant to agree, not sure if I'm ready to just go into a full breakdown in front of him just yet. But I suppose he's willing to help me out. Can't really refuse the invitation. As I sit with that thought, however, he summons a tendril from his shadow, pulling out a musket. I break from my inner thoughts to ask him about it. "Isn't that one of their weapons?"

"Yeah, pretty cool. Always wanted a musket, not just for irony's sake but it's a pretty nice souvenir. Plus these things are loud. Always wanted to fire one, just to feel the power behind it."

"Yeah, I've been meaning to ask you about those."

The man chuckles in response. "Ask me? I'm the one who has questions for you, Mr. Princess Slayer, emphasis on that L."

I takes me a brief moment to understand his joke, but I piece it together. "Who told you that?"

"Trust me, I know obsession when I see it. And ol' girl is obsessed with whatever you've got going. By the way, nice collar." As soon as he points that out, I immediately remember that I still have the damned thing on. "You done good, but for future purposes, I'd avoid sticking any phallic objects in anything that has a 'crazy' tag on the side of it."

"Didn't you marry one of those?" I point out.

"That's different. I was anointed a crazy tag in life. I got to the point where I no longer had issues, but discussions, that's prior to service by the way. You're not quite there yet, there's still time for you." He answers.

I roll my eyes at his response and move things along. "Anyhow, what's your question?"

He lays the rifle on the table before us. "What do you know about these guys? Like did they just recently produce these weapons or have they been using them for a while now?"

"Um... apparently they had some humans that were summoned there, a pair of alchemists sometime a thousand years back. Some sort of dragon brought them there."

"Huh... that's different." He mumbles under breath.

"What?"

"Nothing, thinking." He dismisses. "So humans were summoned a thousand years ago to Ponyland, and I guess they introduced them to gunpowder. Strange, I figured these guys would be a little further along than this if they had access to gunpowder for over a thousand years. Guess they haven't cracked the code for nitroglycerin yet."

I'm not exactly aware of what nitroglycerin is myself. "Uh, what?"

"Clear, viscous liquid, extremely volatile, has some medicinal purposes too if you don't believe me. But the liquid itself is extremely volatile, only a little bit is all you need to make some shit go boom." He lifts the musket to his face, looking down the darkened bore. "And they didn't think to rifle the barrel of these things yet? Their aim must be pretty shit with these."

"Uh, I thought you weren't supposed to look into the barrel of a gun." I call out, reminding him of one of the many safety courses he and his brothers led.

"A loaded gun, no. This is about as loaded as a blade of grass." He says as he lays it back to the table. "But yeah, even with sleight-of-hand, you're looking at a whole process of about twenty seconds between shots."

"That's a long time to be in the fray of things without any bit of defense."

"Yeah. And these things are wildly inaccurate. Powerful, but inaccurate. If you want to maximize your confirmations, you'd need about a few more of these firing with you at the same time. Otherwise, you're not hitting much. And you'd have to get so close, 100 yards is a travesty. You'd be better off with a longbow."

"That bad, huh?"

He spins the weapon around, observing the craftsmanship. "Look, these things can take chunks out of your body, not gonna lie to you there. But with no proper boring of the rifle, the bullet is subject to even greater air resistance, tumbles off course, miss target. The only saving grace is that if it does hit something, that something you hit is basically gone. You're lucky they don't know how to put nitro into a tiny bubble."

After that skirmish in the throne room back in Midnight Castle, I can't help but agree. "I guess it's a good thing they haven't discovered that yet."

"They might've discovered it now though." He replies.

"How so?"

"Because your Ponyland friends are literally camped out in the hallway." He answers as he taps his fingers onto the table. A shadowy tendril slowly reveals itself, it reaches as far as the hallway. As soon as it pops out of the ground, we hear a pair of voices shriek in horror. "Guys, my shadow is an eldritch horror from beyond the grave, it covers the entire ship. So if you're gonna sneak around, at least try not to walk on the ground."

The imperial pair promptly enters the room, not wanting to discover more of that fact for themselves. "Uh, is that last part about you real?" Hestia asks with a tremble.

"Did you not see how I warded off that alicorn lady?" He deadpans towards the young princess.

Amor shudders with the thought, but also stares at the weapon laid on the table. "So... I guess from the part of the conversation we walked in on, not exactly a gleaming review of our weaponry, is it?"

He tells the young prince a brutal truth. "Nah, your shit sucks by my standards. But for this world and it's relatively slow progress, it's fine for an overkill."

"You wouldn't be an alchemist, would you?" The prince asks.

"Fuck no! I barely know enough of the shit to not get myself blown up, same with magic."

Hestia sits at the table, looking to at least pretend things are at a relative normal. "I didn't think I'd be seeing one of the legendary creatures walking among us." Then again, maybe not.

"Yeah, Imma need an explanation for that."

Amor begins. "Well, a thousand years ago─"

"Yeah yeah, alchemist kids blew up some shit, shared how to make it, you guys took it and ran... well, walked considering how undeveloped this shit is." Nondis concludes.

"Well yeah." The prince appears disappointed that he didn't get the chance to regale him in the story of Ponyland's ancient past. "I'm surprised you put that all together so quick."

"Not hard to fill in the blanks." He shrugs.

Hestia looks at the weapon on the table, seeing how the deadly item is written off as inferior in the man's eyes. "So... how advanced are you 'humans' these days?"

"Go to this one place in Canterlot, it's called the Corrotto District. Go at night." He says, not giving any concrete example pertaining to the weapon itself.

"If that's what you'll want us to do, then I can safely assume that you will be guiding us there then?" She asks.

"NO. THANK YOU." He denies quite emphatically. "If you want someone to give you a tour, get Stanton or Alex, maybe even Blue to do it. Kali ain't gonna go near that place without any real incentive, and I've had my fair share of the place way back when. I'm good."

"You know, there's another way we could answer your question. Let's ask another way." I propose. "Hey Nondis, when was gunpowder created in your world?"

"Let me consult the oracle." He says, summoning his phone to quickly look up the information. It takes him less than ten seconds. "Huh, it was discovered in the year 808 AD in a search for a life-extending elixir. That's interesting, but that's also pretty fucking old and sad."

The imperial pair stares at the device in Nondis' hand. The move to get closer to it. "What is that 'oracle'? Does it do anything special?" Asks the young princess.

He dismissively discloses the technology of his home world, probably disregarding at great length the limitations Twilight imposes on us whenever it comes to international travel. "Well it contains all of the answers to life's seemingly limitless questions. It also serves as a pretty good flashlight."

The stallion quirks a brow. "Okay, strange tablets and slates aside, what does the year '808 AD' mean?"

"Well for reference, our current year is 2022 AD."

Hestia screams out in shock, but also catches herself. "Great doct─I mean... good gracious."

The man chuckles as he closes his eyes. As soon as he opens them, he tilts his head back at her with a Cheshire-like grin. "Oh, do be careful, missy. You don't want that guy walking through the door." The smile snaps back off of his lips as he blinks. He blankly stares for a moment before shaking himself. "...OKAY. The fuck."

It seems that some of his crazy might have slipped through a bit. I check in on him. "You alr─"

"I'm good, just... yeah. Disregard." He says as he rubs his eyes for a moment. "So we'll be making a small pit stop in Foalsom, get a refuel so we can hit the waters again. How fast do you think your airships are in communicating information?"

"Well probably just as fast as the transmission orbs will allow. I know something like that can take up to a few minutes to conjure up, and then there's the whole process of making sure you're hailing the right orb─"

"In that case, we're good then." He promptly dismisses, knowing that a phone does that same thing in mere seconds. He rises from his seat and walks towards the hall. "I'm gonna go relieve the wife from the helm. She may make breakfast today, if she's not still upset with me for yesterday's outing."

The young imperial mare looks back with questioning. "Princess Celestia cooks?"

"She's going to eternally ruin pancakes for you." I warn.

"Ooh! Sounds like fun." Amor chirps with interest.

I give him another warning. "Oh yeah, rubbing your cheeks helps with the reactionary response. Thank me later."

Meanwhile in Canterlot...

The night sky glows an unusual color, a rosy hue from the unusually pink moon sailing high in the sky, raining it's light onto much of the kingdom. Many couples throughout the town take the opportunity to use the atypical scenery to carry on with their romantic plans.

However, it does not alleviate the accumulating thoughts of those who's work draws them both to and from the castle grounds. With the passage of the press conference from the prior day, attention has been brought to the royal administration and their looming laundry list of decisions. As far as many are concerned, whispers of war burn the ears of many guards on post, the politicians grow anxious of the new suitors potentially replacing the Royal Friendship Ambassador. The list grows to a few potential candidates, many seeming to be just as ready to compete for the prime position.

One such candidate, who now sits in the moonlit garden before the statue of three infamous villains, sits beneath the rosy moonlight. Her eyes, reflective in their nature, glint up towards the middling figure of the three, the changeling queen herself. She quietly reflects on her situation, as well as the troubling implications that the situation carries.

"So... interesting situation we've got here." Her eyes fixates to the figure of her mother. "I remember how years ago, you thought that trying to upend the Equestrian chain of command was the way to fully realize your power of all of Equestria. Turns out you were wrong. All you had to do was play nice, wait around a bit, and become a possible choice to replace the second seat to the throne."

The changeling appears crestfallen at the idea.

"Who would've thought that your baby hatchling would've cracked the formula. Now it's me that's looking to take power, while you're sitting pretty in that stone case you got there." Ocellus sighs with some distress. "I'm just fortunate to know that Twilight accepts my proposal to fill the position of her emissary, all while splitting the powers from that and being her true-to-groom successor. Because Celestia knows I don't need that kind of power, not with your blood flowing under my carapace."

The changeling doesn't even flinch as the much-larger alicorn lands beside her. Along with the princess comes another notable figure, the king of the changelings. Twilight takes notice of the young mare speaking with the statue. "Guess my choice to have you as a candidate is eating at you pretty bad."

"What makes you guess that?" Ocellus asks.

"Well, I notice that you're not exactly hurling insults at her like you usually do." Thorax comments before greeting the statuesque figure. "Hey, mom. Still holding out hope that somehow being stuck here can change you for the better."

"You know that's a lost cause." Ocellus grumbles.

"I can still try." He replies. "We're changelings, it's in our very nature to change the way we live our lives, be it for better or worse."

"Yeah, and you saw how that panned out when Starlight offered that same chance to her." Twilight adds. "Sadly, my time under Celestia has taught me that while a lot of creatures can be saved from the circumstances they're in, there are more than a few who are happy with the way things are with themselves."

"And meaning that they are a changeling, doesn't mean that they're willing to change for the better." Ocellus concludes as she looks back to her mother. "I bet if we just free her by the head, the first thing she'll say is that there's a lot of love in the air and how she intends to feast on it all."

Thorax glances back to the moon. "I suppose it is a pretty night that calls for some non-platonic bonding. It's a pretty interesting choice, given the circumstances."

Twilight shakes her head, glancing back to the celestial object. "I have absolutely no control over this. I didn't even know it was possible. But I do know that it's possible in the human world by means of a refraction of light reaching from their sun, skimming the horizon of their planet, further highlighting the orange and pink hues of the atmosphere. So I guess there's that."

"Yeah, but it's the first time I've ever seen the moon like this." The changeling king responds. "Plus, you just outed the fact that there's no written record of this ever happening in Equestrian history."

"That's still up for debate." The princess answers confidently. "...I really wish Spike could see this."

"Take a picture, it'll last longer." The changeling mare replies.

The idea made in sarcasm quickly turns literal in the mind of the high princess. "Actually, not a bad idea in this case." She summons for her phone, taking the picture, and make a quick post about it on her media site.

Hmm... I don't remember planning this one. But I'm sure there are many who enjoy it like I do.

RoseMoon #themoonispink #pinkmoon #unexpected

"Huh, guess it would be trending pretty high right now." The princess comments as she sees similar posts on her timeline. However, another thing that seems to be trending are a number of conspiracy theories about how the moon is a distraction from the fact that a war with Ponyland might be on the horizon. Her brief moment of happiness fades back into the reality of the present. "I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised that some may see this as a distraction for everything going on right now."

"Even if unintentional, I think it's needed." Thorax comments. "We need a reminder that the world isn't completely drowning in despair. Plus there's an immense amount of love in the air, it's so heartwarming and pleasant to take in. The feeling of feeding and giving back, it's a pretty virtuous cycle but with a lot of rewards." He takes a deep breath, smiling from all the love energy permeating across the entire city. "This moon really is a blessing."

"Careful, don't wanna get too greedy." Ocellus warns her brother. "Too much of a good thing, and you might end up like mom here."

The changeling king scoffs at the idea. "No thank you. I'm fine with our hive and it's quirky ways. I'd like to keep building on our new traditions, not go back to the old ones."

The changeling closes her eyes, thinking of the dragon in a far-off land. "I miss Spike and his sarcasm sometimes."

Twilight looks over to the changeling mare and smiles. "Well, you might not have to miss him for long. He's made it onto the ship and he's on his way back now."

Ocellus nearly jumps out of her skin as she shows her exuberance. "SERIOUSLY!?"

"Yeah." Thorax confirms. "We actually brought you over because while we were originally staging you to be his replacement, we also wanted to surprise you with the news."

"Although..." The princess chimes in. "I do think that our system might need some reinforcement. This incident did show me that I had absolutely no plan for a replacement already in place. So I may need to outsource some of that over to someone else, but only if Spike isn't able to be present and accountable."

Thorax leans into his younger sister. "I know power isn't really a preference for you, but at least you'll be able to foster good relations on behalf of Equestria. It's really no different than what you've done for us changelings back when these three were running around!"

Ocellus looks back to the statue, remembering the way she and her friends coordinated an effort to reunite all of the creatures of Equestria to face against the Terrible Trio. "...You know what, I'll take it." Just as Twilight and Thorax looks to commend her for her choice, she interjects with her own terms. "─But under two conditions: Spike gets a month off from this, and you don't ever send him to do anything this dangerous again... And you keep his schedule relatively free by sending someone else in his place, even if it has to be me."

"Those are three conditions." Thorax points out.

"They're my terms. Take it or leave it." She sternly calls out to the pair.

Twilight, seeing no real reason to refuse, agrees to the changeling's proposition. "You really are the antithesis of your mom."

"That's the point." She says as she glances over to the statue. "Piece by piece, we'll undo the damage our kind has done to all others."

Her brother smiles warmly at her. "Thanks, Olla."

"Sure thing─HEY!" The changeling's cheeks turn red, it's hue amplified by the pink glow of the moon. "You don't get to call me that! Only Smolder calls me that!"

The king laughs happily as Twilight smiles over the young changeling's better demeanor. "Well, I'm sure that you'd want to go home and tell everyone the good news, right?" The princess inquires.

"Ha! I can do you one better─"

Thorax quenches the changeling's horn before she can think to summon her phone. "Actually, you should just tell them in person. The moment means a lot more if you give them the good news instead of taking the easy route."

She rolls her eyes at her brother. "Fine."

The Harbor of Foalsom... "Sniper Shot"

Hardly any mistake about our landing in the port. Our ship seems to be the only one that's as white, as updated, and as modern as ours. It seems that even the local dockworkers are confused about which section of the harbor we go into because of the ship's large build for a privately-owned vessel. But when we get off the ship at last, our esteemed captain makes a note to the workers that the vessel is in need of a refuel.

However, it doesn't quite go as planned. "Sorry, but we don't sell liquified natural gas, only diesel for the class you own."

Nondis reasonably assumes his equine form, trying to bargain with the loaders for his fuel options. "Seriously, you know how rich that stuff burns, not to mention how dangerous it is for the marine environment? I don't do diesel because that just causes way more problems for the fish!"

"Sorry sir, diesel only. Take it or leave it."

"Ugh... okay. Diesel it is." He begrudgingly accepts the offer, offering a substantial sum to the overseer for his refuel. As soon as the manager departs, he flags us off of the ship for the refueling process to take place. As soon as we get off, we can hear the sounds of seagulls cawing around us, the bells ringing in the distance, the mooring lines creaking as the ship rocks calmly in at the dock. Nondis makes a quiet call to all of us. "Land ho."

Celestia makes a brief comment on the gentle breeze that cuts through her sweater. "It's a bit nippy here."

"That's to be expected. We are up north." Amor comments as he rubs himself to keep warm.

I face the young prince and ask him about the town. "So this place here, seems like a busy little exchange here. What's the deal?"

"Well, this is the inbound port that works in conjunction with the one at Cloud Castle. That one there is an out-only because of the immense shipping demand placed on the area. Since we're in the eastern part of the country, agriculture is rich in quantity and quality. And if you're remotely interested in demographics, Cloud Castle happens to have our largest standing population of a city because of how much it sprawls. Foalsom and Cloud Castle forms like a bit of a megaplex, serving over forty-million residents between the two towns." Holy hell, that's fucking half of Equestria's equine population!

"Forty million?" Nondis questions. "Nah, this place ain't nearly that big to be sporting off those numbers. I don't see a tower over three-hundred feet in any direction near here."

"It's because most of the population that's up top are all beneficiaries of those who serve in the core, work the markets, own the stores, or they're just straight-up rich." Hestia adds. "The top end is about a tenth of what the real population is."

"Top-end?" He asks. "You mean these ponies are sleeping in some sort of undergrowth?"

"Underground, more specifically." She clarifies. "Our towns aren't like Manehattan, where they build up to solve their density issues. We build down several tiers and sprawl out from there. For generations, it was safer that way because of the constant threat of siege. Now, it's a reflection of the working class doing what they can to keep the foundations of our cities on solid bedrock."

"It's also how we keep our mining economy stabilized. Basically anyone who isn't topside, they're already accustomed to life underground. So some are sent to the mines to work, retrieving precious minerals and items to eventually use for our industrial sectors."

"Ain't no way." The disguised man chuckles at the absurdity. "There ain't no way in hell the population of Tokyo, Japan is sitting, shitting, eating, sleeping, breathing, and living underneath one fucking castle. I refuse to believe that's a thing that happens here, much less these places serving as mining colonies."

"That's how it's always been for our country." Hestia states. "It's not something I'm proud of, but it's something that my father doesn't seem to mind much of. As long as it's out of sight, it's out of mind for him. And he can pose the country to be this bastion of natural beauty and technological advancement."

"There is no beauty in a life under the constant threat of collapsing peril." Celestia comments. "Trust me, our nation's wealth sits largely abandoned because of the dangers it presents."

"Don't let our father hear that." Warns the young princess.

As the hose is brought to the ship, the overwhelming smell of diesel filling the air, my senses dull around me for a bit. The odor of the fuel causes me to temporarily flash back to the night of our escape. The world drowns out as I hear the sounds of the fire roaring around us, the sensation of the burning leg trampled under my feet. My eyes are brought back to the pile of dead, their names still swinging from around my neck. Their charred faces each look to me, waiting for some answers of why I couldn't do anything for them.

A sudden beam of magic to my stomach zaps me from the memory. "Hey, stay solid! We got shit to worry about." Nondis calls out before addressing the group in general. "Now let's lay some ground rules. I'm just going to get some food stocks, you guys sit tight while they fill her up. Should be a few hours before we get to a fairly decent level for us to ship on out with. We can get back to the open sea as quick as possible, no bullshit. And since the ice floe wasn't that bad coming in, shouldn't be too bad going out." He addresses his wife exclusively. "Tia, I'll need you to keep an eye out for any keen-eyed observers, don't need them peering into what we've got going on. And if anyone looks to question you guys any further than a casual greeting, let them down gently."

"You mean kindly put them to sleep, because I'm not going to put unwary ponies under a blade."

He shrugs at her response. "Do you. Just make sure we don't get impounded."

Celestia jabs back at him. "And you make it quick, don't need you starting trouble in town. We don't need a repeat of yesterday to bring us anymore attention."

"Yeah, I gotcha." He answers as he walks off.

Managing the number of spurs in his budget, he levitates the brown sack and openly counts to himself how much he's able to purchase. After having budgeted the total fuel cost, he murmurs over the uninspiring number he has to work with for the day.

"Damn, guess I should've pressed their little asses harder than what I settled for. Groceries are expensive as shit here." He looks around the town, seeing a pair of young foals running with a ripped sack, a few potatoes falling from the hole. He continues to walk, offering a tendril to quickly snag the vegetable and plug it back in their sack. The carrier pauses as he feels a tug, turning around to see the potato poking out, but not the tendril slither away into the shadows. "Forty million ponies, huh? Guess I'll be competing with them over the remaining stock. And here I am with bumfuck-Alabama savings in a place with New York City prices. At least they grow food in bumfuck-Alabama."

He wanders through the market, seeing a sign reading out 'FOALSOM FOODS'. But the entrance is merely a marked doorway that seems to staircase downward. As he descends down the stairs, he comes across an opening in the wall, offering a glimpse into the general life of a Ponyland citizen. He pauses for a moment, taking in the view.

Crude wooden bridges suspend between varying access points, a dark cavern filled with the occasional speckling of torchlight. Mountain-like columns of stalactite descend downward, housing hundreds, even thousands of residences and businesses. Narrowing ravines are just as freckled with life, such as the one he descends into. While even jaded by the modern glass monoliths of his home world reaching heights that many see from miles away, his interest is more piqued by the otherworldly appearance of a sprawling metropolis crudely built into the earth, descending far beneath the abundantly-lit surface.

While rickety in their design, the wooden bridges host a considerable traffic load. It's as though he looks into a busy street, seeing carts and wagons move their freight in either directions. They operate much like the roads back home, hosting multiple lanes of pedestrian freight towed in rows of six. Pegasi fly by, inspecting the structures to make sure that they are kept to working standard. Some of the buildings themselves are well-arched, but only for the top few rows of life. Many that fall further downward are much less so, and just as crudely carved as primitive dwellings.

Nondis quietly sneaks his eyes around, summoning his phone and taking a picture for his own interest. After snapping the image, he looks back to the stony urban center once more to appreciate it's construction before moving on to present tasks.

"Okay, I'll admit, this place is kinda cool." He says as he passes by a pair of mares greeting him at the door.

Upon walking in, he's brought to a counter with a plainly mare with a stocky build. She greets the stallion with warm welcome, while also boasting something akin to a Russian accent. "Welcome, comrade, to Foalsom Foods! You order, we make, you eat, you pay." She furrows her brow at that final detail.

The disguised man wince at the mare, seeing the massive unibrow on her forehead. "Oh, wait, this isn't a grocery store?"

"Nyet." She firmly answers. "What do you think this is, topside marketplace?"

He kisses his teeth with a little frustration as he voices his intent. "I'm so sorry, didn't mean to mistake this place for that. I just saw the sign and thought it was a good place to shop."

"Cyka blyat, you see sign! It says 'FOODS'! Does not say 'grocery', does not say 'market', does not say 'produce!' Here, we feed, you eat!"

"Shit, my bad." He apologizes. "Well I'm not looking for trouble, just trying to get some food for the long voyage ahead. That's all."

"You want food for long voyage?" She questions sternly.

"No, not..." Realizing that there's probably no means to get out of this without any attention drawn, he thinks of a way to satisfy both himself and the tavern manager. "Do you take fire rubies?"

"Fire rubies are highly sought after! We take, we take!" She answers emphatically.

Nondis breaths a sigh of relief as he summons a sack of jewels. "Oh well then, bollies will work. I guess I won't have to stress too much about budget then. You guys do deliveries?"

"Nyet. You sit and eat food while hot." She firmly answers. "Respect chef. Babushka work hard to make good food, you enjoy it better when hot."

"I wanna feed some kids. Saw some little munchkins running around with a hole in their sack, lord knows what else they've lost. Make sure they get taken care of." He says as he slides over three large rubies for the mare to accept in payment. "This enough?"

"You funny guy." She says before offering the stallion a smile. "And young. Too rich to be from around here. Where you from?"

"Let's just say I'm from a land far away, just passing through on my ship, looking to fill rations before heading back out to the sea."

"In icefloe, this time of year? Must be pretty big boat." The mare slides closer from over the counter. "Nights are still chilly, you may need some help. Perhaps I would be willing to take a little holiday."

Catching her subtle cues, he kindly backs away. "Well ma'am, I'd love to, but I'm spoken for. Got a princess in my own little castle─" He feels his progress impeded as a body stands steadfast against him. The mare at the counter immediately shifts her attention to the figure behind the unicorn. Nondis turns around to address the pony he's bumped into. "Oh, sorry sir! I didn't expect to ram you..." As he sees that the figure has both wings and a horn, he also notices that the figure is indeed a male. "...t-there."

The intrepid prince grimaces as he dusts himself off, looking to his centuries for confirmation. "Did some wandering, low-level peasant just come in contact with me?"

Nondis clears his throat and puts on an act of groveling to the alicorn stallion. "I-I apologize sir, I-I-I assure you it won't happen again! Promise!"

The stallion smiles as he passes by the sniveling display of submission. "Well then, seeing how you know your place as well as you dirt-dwellers do, I'll be willing to let this one go." Nondis feels a warm aura lifts his chin, the alicorn prince looking down to him with a smirk on his face. "Provided that you'd offer me a service with that pretty face of yours."

In the blink of a moment, a terrible event flashes in his mind. The image he once felt locked away resurfaces, the sensation causes him to instinctively tighten his tail against his backside. A vitriolic anger bubbles to an immediate boil as he wants to give a very unsavory response. "Ah, leave the putrid flea alone." But before he's offered the opportunity, another alicorn stallion reveals himself. This one bearing scars on his face. "It's not like he meant to shake you for your imperial wares."

Distracted by the appearance of his brother, the intrepid figure furrows his brow to the scarred prince. "Agamemnon. You're supposed to be down south!"

"For what reason? The fun's all here!"

"Father sent me to come here! Which means you should be taking your forces elsewhere!"

"And let you get all the credit, as usual?" The scarred alicorn laughs boisterously. "You'll rue the day you dumb me down for spare spurs, Xerxes!"

As the words are exchanged between the pair, their own accompanying squads raise their weapons with intent to protect the prince of their allegiance. Xerxes offers a warning to his brother. "Tell your forces to stand down!"

"And yours!?" He shouts back.

"I didn't come here to fight with an impudent brat!"

"Aw what's the difference, we're only a few months off, you and I?"

As the siblings and their respective squads line up their muskets to possibly make a scene of things, Nondis shakes off his past traumas and gets off the ground. He vies to sneak away, getting back to his intended run of errands. "I'm just gonna go."

As he starts to sneak off, Agamemnon calls him out for trying to desert the scene. "You, flea! You'll serve as our witness! By imperial law, I decree it!"

He turns to the mare at the counter. "Uh, if you could help me out here, I'm supposed to be a witness for what exactly?"

The scarred prince summarily answers the stallion's question. "For this!" He raises a smaller flintlock pistol to his brother, making sure that all can see his murderous intent.

"YOU DARE!?" Xerxes pulls one out of his own, matching his brother's deadly gesture.

"I CALL YOU OUT TO A DUEL! I WANT MY RIGHTS TO THE DREADNAUGHT! I'LL SCOUT THAT SHIP TO THE ENDS OF THE WORLD!"

"IT'S NOT YOURS TO SCOUT, YOU IMBRED LESSER!"

The scarred prince chuckles. "JUST FOR THAT INSULT, I'LL TAKE CREDIT FOR THE DRAGON TOO!"

Nondis grimaces as he starts to warm his horn for a teleportation spell back to his ship. "Look, don't know about your sibling rivalry, but you guys can have it, I'm out."

Both of the princess pull their weapons over to the stallion, shouting their demand. Xerxes adds on to the wager. "In fact, whoever wins this duel will get to decide on what to do with this worthless filth here." The intrepid prince turns to the stallion with his intended thoughts unsheathing from beneath him. "You should cheer for me, it's not often you low-lifers are bestowed with the imperial splendor."

Nondis stares back at the prince, his shadow slightly expanding beneath him. "I'm sorry... W̶h̷a̴t̵?̵"

As the airship is brought into the repair bay, the corpses of the fallen are finally given their final rights and laid into wooden caskets. After they are closed, a flag of the country is gracefully laid upon them. A small golden plaque names each of the departed centuries upon the foot of the caskets as they're rolled into formation.

The princess oversees the memorial in progress, her stomach still twisting from the sights and sounds of that moment where as many as twenty were held helpless before here before their necks were simultaneously crushed. The profound horrors on their faces as the tendrils coiled around them before that final moment, their struggling cries snuffed silent, the multitude of their faces going numb from the shock and the human's smile, they cause her to shudder in immense discomfort.

"Princess." Nausea looks to set in, but the sound of her maid calling her distracts her from the thousand yard stare. "Your highness, I apologize in interrupting such a somber moment. But a ship matching your description has been sighted in the harbor. It appears it's undergoing a refuel."

Zenobia offers her thoughts in regards to the fallen. "I know that they're to be replaced, that they shouldn't matter to us, but it's different knowing that their lives were mine to save, yet I was able to do nothing to save them."

"It couldn't be helped, your highness." The maid replies. "The situation we entered into wasn't forecasted. A danger seen is half-avoided, but an unseen danger can't be avoided if you don't know what to look out for. This was not your doing, nor your responsibility."

Hearing the words of reassurance, Zenobia quickly moves on to more immediate matters. "So this ship in the docks is the one that matches the profile?"

"According to local management, the maritime vessel E.S.S. Sunshine took to the local moorings at approximately 9:42 this morning. It's currently noon."

"And so they've took to the docks as per the refueling protocol. Was there a dragon among the waiting party?"

The maid nods sagely with confirmation. "Yes, the dragon you seek is sighted there, among the others. Both Prince Amor lesser-blood, and Princess Hestia lesser-blood are with them, along with the holy mother. However, there also appears to be an unidentified alicorn present as well."

The princess turns back towards the maid with curiosity. "An alicorn, you say?"

"Yes your highness, an alicorn mare to be more apparent." As soon as she confirms the presence of yet another alicorn, Zenobia takes to her wings and departs the hangar. "Princess?"

"Tell our forces to hold our positions, we need no more casualties than what I can afford. It's not like my father will allow for me to replenish ranks without having to go through him, and I severely doubt that he'll grant me such a mercy." Zenobia grits her teeth as she makes a resolution within herself. "Now let's go see this 'prettier alicorn' of yours." She whispers under breath before giving her orders. "I'll go at this one personally. If there are any other airships in the area, do not relay our intel. Once everything's all done here, which shouldn't be for long, make quick pursuit for my position. You'll know exactly where I'll be."

"Yes, your highness." The maid confirms as the princess departs with a mighty gust under her wings.

Zenobia puts the hangar, her ship, and her servants well behind her, her mind ablaze with determination for the stallion that's embarrassed her and her forces. She pins her hooves to her body, increasing her speed to meet with the fugitive party. Only one objective runs through her mind.

"We'll see if you'll be singing that same tune when I'm done with your 'prettier alicorn'... you broken bastard."