Simplified

"Bandages! We need bandages for the wounded!"

"Clean up the streets! Make way for any injured!"

"The wagons need access to the road, clear the debris for our runners!"

Trotting through the panic-ridden streets of Midnight Castle, Nondis takes observation of the mess taking place. He marches through a city coated in broken glass and bloodied bodies looking to treat the severely wounded. Carriages dart past him, hurrying to varying locations housing the injured. He marches as though none of the harrowing scenery bothers him. In fact, he appears completely indifferent to the suffering of the citizens of the proud nation.

With a hum, he passes through the city gates, making his way towards a large pine tree in the far distance. The sounds of the chaotic scene passes as he looks back to see a city full of manic ponies rushing about. But instead of looking to mend the injured, he sees ponies flailing about for nothing. Windows once broken and littering the streets of the city are held intact, the homes and the victims unharmed. The screaming still persists as the field of their illusionary Armageddon hold true. But to him who has left the city walls, it's much ado about nothing.

He reaches the pine tree, seeing a thick cloth reclined onto it covered in snow drift. He yanks the cloth, revealing a well-maintained motorcycle safe from the snowy elements. He walks the bike out of the built mountain of loose snow and onto the better kept path. As he ventures away from the city with the motorized bike about his current size, he hears a notification ding on his phone.

He summons the device to his view, seeing a digitized draconequus dancing on his screen. "Well I'll admit, that little stunt you pulled was quite the show for the entire city. I can safely say that it might have caused some delicious chaos among the unassuming."

"Yeah, I'm just glad I had the help to make it possible." The disguised human replies. "Between what I did in the throne room, and maintaining that illusion for as long as it's lasted, plus the area it takes up, I don't think I would've held it for as long as I've gotten the chance to leave the city without you. You're a lifesaver on that front."

"Anything to stir up a bit of good trouble, all for the sake of making sure that Fluttershy doesn't have to worry too much about any of these matters. It should serve as a warning."

"I didn't think it was possible at first. I'm used to doing rooms, a few city blocks. But when you told me about that magic formula they had cooked up for the back end of the mountain in Canterlot, I couldn't refuse the opportunity to blow it up to cityscape. Thought about using it on the city once, but I thought it would've been too chaotic for the population. Ran it over Silver Shoals a few times just to see if I could artificially extend the daylight hours by a few minutes. That's about all I could by with my own power. Didn't take long for Tia to find out what I was doing and I had to lay low for a bit, lest I angered the wife. First time I've expanded it to this scale, and with your help, ran it as long as I did."

"Well it was better than actually going with the other option." The creature replies as he brings up a picture of a nuclear explosion onto the screen.

"Yeah, plus those damn things are nigh impossible to get a hold of, even in the illegal trade markets back home. Like seriously, who the unholy fuck would be willing to sell nuclear warheads? There's so much shit you have to do to prevent disaster, even an orphan radioactive incident from occurring."

"And I don't think that a large explosion happening in the upper atmosphere would be ideal for your vehicle."

"No kidding, would've knocked out the circuits from the resulting EMP." Nondis replies as the magic field around the city dissipates, the amplified dimensional distortion spell losing all power and reverting the city back to it's original state. "Looks like I'm working against time now. They'll be hunting me down since I've tricked the bastards into thinking I did all that crazy shit for real. Probably even worse is that they'll want me to create a nuke for them, which is something I'm far from being able to do. My name is neither Einstein nor Oppenheimer. And like hell I'm gonna try to recreate those conditions with fucking magic of all things."

Horns sound from within the city, each of them joining in to sound like a warring fanfare of an oncoming army. "Looks like they're on the move now."

"Yup. Time to rev and go." He replies as he transforms back into his human shape and mounting the bike.

"If something happens to you, what should I tell your wife?"

"I'll be running home late." He says as he starts the engine.

"In the event of you getting captured?"

"I'll be running home late for dinner." He says, revving the engine and kicking up dirt before taking off at a high speed.

"If they keep you for a few days?"

"Depends. Do they have Senior Crispy back in the flesh or something?"

Discord hums in thought, knowing his own abilities and how he was able to reclaim King Sombra from the Aether. "They could still try. While it's a lost art, it's only a matter of time before they discover a method on their own."

"I'm not too worried about that anyways. If he so much as breath air, I'm putting him right back in a furnace where I can cook his lungs again."

"Still, best to be careful."

As Discord finds himself diving into another application, Nondis thinks back to the information conveyed during the meeting with Spike. His mind runs amok with possibilities, each manifesting into a number of successful methods to reclaim the necroterrorist for the living. He sighs heavily. "Too late for that shit now, but at least I've got a backup plan in case that starts to be a thing again."

As an airship starts to rise into the sky behind him, he looks back to see a growing fleet raising their spotlights to the outskirts of the town. He revs himself to a higher speed, looking to cut tail and disappear beyond the wintery snow of the night.

"Spike, I hope you're doing your homework."

Meanwhile in Canterlot...

The three cloaked alicorns quietly enter the city past it's main gate, seeing a bustling world of pedestrian traffic. A train speeds past upon leave, the other moving slow in it's arrival. A group of adolescents giggling with their phones out, pointing at what amuses them on their post. News stands promote their take on varying issues, their criers each claiming to have the latest on issues like the looming war, the newest hot gossip with the friendship advisor and the Ponyland princess, some guys touting the newest developments with Princess Twilight's love life and their promotions of her looking for an eligible bachelor, sports, and local developments.

A kirin foal playing with a changeling youth gallop past, the kirin nudging past Xerxes, who raises a foreleg with disgust. The two are soon joined with a pegasus pointing them to a nearby food stall. The buildings that line the street appear to be unicorn themed high-rises, with purple and white paint, coming to a climax with Arabesque spires and rotundas.

Agamemnon issues a comment on the bustling city. "So... These are the streets of the crown jewel of Equestria? Their structures are impractical."

"Stylish, I'll admit." Eros replies.

"There's no style in having streets littered with the unworthy." Xerxes complains as he wipes his foreleg with the outside of his cloak. "Everything these other creatures touch exudes impurity."

"I understand your frustrations, Xerxes, but let's keep those words tempered to thoughts... and preferably those alone." Eros warns.

The disgusted prince snorts in response. "The sooner we are done here, the better."

A cyan unicorn mare with orange and yellow hair with purple undertones trots past, seeming to be in a rush to get to her workplace with fabrics in tow. The one-eyed prince is caught by her beauty and starts to veer slightly off from his brother's united path forward. "I'll admit, some of these mares are a good choice for a night's debauchery."

"That's if you settle for plain." Eros pulls his brother back in with his magic.

"Well 'plain' as it may be, plundering is for the many. Proposal is for the few."

Eros gives the mare a passing glance. He eyes her shape, her eyes, her face, her gait, and even the manner which her tail sways. As she turns a corner, he gains a better look of her face, but is disappointed by the lack of shape her flank takes. "Speak for yourself. I risk my seed to be spilled in only the most visually gripping candidates, Anything less is considered an affront to our standard of birthright. And that one, she has the hips of a cesarian recipient. Can't trust that to bear my children accordingly."

"Just be happy if it produces something worth keeping. Even if I sire a foal with some random hussy and it carries the birthright, I'll just merely take the foal and leave the mother right where she is. It'll be one less mouth to feed." Agamemnon suggests, much to his facepalming younger sibling.

"So cruel."

"And what, parade any stupid selection that I'll never want to lay into again?" He argues before looking back at Xerxes. "I'm far too gracious to carry myself in father's manner in that regard."

Xerxes seems to steam with anger as Eros points back at Agamemnon. "You at least have his dominant chin."

The one-eyed prince smirks as he glides his hoof along his jawline. "Just a miniscule of the grace afforded by our prestigious birthright."

As he chomps down with affirmation, a pair of mares snicker as they walk past. One whispers in a low voice. "He's a rough looking one."

"Yeah, that silver eye looks sharp and dangerous. Pretty though."

"Just a total bad boy vibe with him. Can't bring him home."

Agamemnon quirks a brow at the mares' comments. Almost taking their critiques as a challenge to his ego, he dusts past his brothers and approaches the pair directly. "Good afternoon ladies. How has your day been?"

"Oop!" The first mare seems shocked that he'd approach so boldly. "Aggressive!"

"I know. Confident too. Wouldn't have even dared tried that." The second comments before addressing him directly. "Oh it's been good! Totally good! How's yours?"

Eros tries to stop his brother, only to get his cloak skirted by the flirtatious male's magic. He also does the same to Xerxes, causing him to fight against the invasive auras. The pair fights to keep their wings hidden as Agamemnon drives home his approach. "Just coming in from out of town. I'm just getting a look at the sights. Pretty good thus far."

"Ooh, foreign accent." The first mare notes before continuing. "Well if you're really interested in seeing around town, you should try the Corrotto District at night. All sorts of awesome stuff there, they even have a few resort hotels that way."

"Well what if I said I would resort to visit those sights a lot more often?"

"Cute but terrible puns. Witty though." The second mare comments.

"You two based around here?"

"Ha, I wish!" The second mare calls out. "Actually, we're visiting ourselves. We're here on an emotional support trip, just looking after a friend.

The first mare taps the second's shoulder. "You know, he could be perfect for her."

"You know... I think you're on to something... yeah, let's try that." She confirms before readdressing the prince in disguise. "So, you busy this evening?"

"I might have a little bit of a schedule, but I would love to fit you lovely sights into my agenda."

"Total flirt." The first snickers.

"Bingo." The second says as she whips out a pen and notepad, writing an address on the paper and issuing it to Agamemnon. "Canterberry Suites, room 532, Looking to cheer a friend up, but we're down for a little extra fun of our own, maybe you'd get a little more than a few drinks."

"Well, don't mind if I do." He proudly accepts, cutting his magic and allowing his brothers to recover at long last.

"Would be pretty cool if those other two could tag along." The first mare suggests.

"Nah. Bastards are total prudes." He says as he gets his own cloak yanked back, pulling him away from the pair.

"You idiot, get your sorry self moving!" Xerxes chides loudly.

"See? Prudes."

"Well if you can, anytime after nine would be neat." The second mare says before waving her hoof back at the stallion. "See ya!"

Agamemnon nods proudly. "I might actually find some enjoyment on this venture."

Xerxes grabs him by his chin, angrily yanking him over to meet with his eyes. "Keep your mind focused on the mission. Not some sleaze you're going to prod into next."

Eros dusts himself off as he speaks. "While I don't mind you getting a little fun in, it would be advisable to not forget what we're here for."

Agamemnon taps the horn of his enraged brother, quenching his magic. "You shouldn't complain, Eros. After all, I just got some pretty valuable information of a pretty decent tourist destination."

"Which means the locals would probably shun it for elsewhere." The lavender eyed prince replies.

"And one such local would be the holy mother." Recounts the red-eyed stallion.

The silver-eyed prince promptly flips his logic on the matter, trying to appease the other two. "Either way, we do happen to learn a lot about a town's economic focus points when touring places of financial interest. It would make for a good scoping out to see if the infrastructure could be easily crippled."

Eros takes a moment to ponder the possibilities. "Hmm... A crippled financial destination would demoralize many of the local populace. Hit that and their tourism funds dry up for a considerable time during a rebuild. Not too substantial of a target, but it does decrease morale."

"And none of this has anything to do with our mission." Xerxes juxtaposes, showing his disagreement.

The lavender-eyed stallion tries to issue a compromise to his stubborn sibling. "Xerxes, why don't we just see what this place is about before we crush it? I'm sure you would find some brilliant chess players over that way. More tourists, more minds and egos to crush."

Again, the avaricious prince denies the idea. "You dare me to challenge a bunch of filthy peasants, and for what? There's no information that could be gained in entertaining the peasants with my show of genius."

Agamemnon chuckles back at his brother. "Yes, your show of genius, the astounding show of split-second decision making that got numerous airships blown out of the sky─"

Eros ears perk from overhearing a conversation nearby, his horn sparks to life and silences the pair as he nudges his head to his left, urging them to listen in. "─And I couldn't believe what I was seeing! Like I heard that they have the latest in human technology these days, but actually seeing it for myself."

"Yeah, there's a reason that whole district screams the human world. They helped rebuild it after that whole underground syndicate crackdown from seven years ago. Plus there's a real estate billionaire owning most of that part of town anyways. She got paid part of that huge payout for the victims of that terrorist incident, then got paid for her part in shutting it down, then she started the whole exchange program with that one other human too. It shouldn't even be a surprise at this point that it's flipped upside down."

"I mean you're right, but I didn't know they were that advanced!"

As the conversation fades, Xerxes' ears perk up at the main topic that grabs all of their attention. "Human technology?"

Agamemnon adjusts his mane and clears his throat. "Guess this is my time to show my usefulness." The stallion steps out from the group and boldly encounters the pair of middle-aged mares who had the conversation. "Good afternoon, ladies."

"Oh, aren't you a looker."

"Well I would consider my looks a fraction of the beauty you wake up with."

The pair look at each other before turning back to the prince. "Careful now, flattery alone won't get you too far, young buck. I do have an age requirement before you get to enjoy this bit of vintage."

"I'll keep that in mind." He grins back. "Could you tell me more about this district with the human stuff?"

"You don't sound like you're from around here. That accent is awfully posh. Where are you from?"

"The West." Agamemnon answers confidently. "The far west, if you will."

"Exotic. So you probably never even heard of humans, have you?"

"Can't say I haven't." He answers.

The gray mare speaks. "Well they aren't many, there were the ones who were all cited together at the time, and that was for the huge wedding of the former princess."

The yellow mare sighs longingly. "I would kill just to be around one of those guys, I hear that their world is so revolutionary."

"And they're so tall. I wonder what's in the water over there."

"They don't run very fast though, I guess it's because of the two-legged thing they've got going on."

"Apparently they wouldn't need to do that. Remember Captain Nondis and his roaring motorized bicycle?"

"Oh gosh, we were all crushing hard after the guy back when he first got started. It was like a fad to go after the human then, but after it was discovered that he and Princess Celestia were an item, that whole thing got tossed aside. Didn't make it any better that his brothers didn't show any interest in mares."

"They don't know what they're missing."

"Still, would've loved to have a chance with the former captain. And obviously, he didn't have much of a discrimination for older mares either, especially with that age gap. Guess everyone said it's better to not even try, too high of a standard when you think about it."

"Poor Princess Twilight, dumped him in public, only for him to hook up with her former instructor. Now she's looking for love and haven't found a spark since."

"I know, right!? Well that goes to show you that you should never take for granted what's right in front of you." The yellow mare pats the stallion on his chest. "Let that be a lesson for you, dear. Don't you lose opportunities chasing what's beyond the thing in front of you. You miss out on too much operating that way."

"Thank you, ladies. Your insight has been very educational."

"Now don't be charming everypony you meet now, especially with those mesmerizing eyes of yours."

"I'll do my best to remain humble." He replies as the two depart along their day. He turns around and return to his siblings with the added information. "So we know that the two-leggers founded that district. But one of the ones that helped in it's redevelopment was none other than the rouge apostle.... Who also seemed to have some romantic history with the current princess of this land."

"Scandals? In their castles, no less?" Eros smirks as he grows even more interested. "Now that's a tea I'd love to sip on."

Agamemnon glances at Xerxes. "Majority rules then. So what now?"

"Unanimity is better." The red-eyed prince complies, albeit with different motives. "I'd say we play the part of curious tourist, and see what all they've brought into this world."

Meanwhile in Ponyville...

The hanging door bell of the Carousel Boutique jingles as I enter into the venue with two items secured in a travel bag. As I step inside, Sandbar greets me warmly. "Hey Spike, looking like the fairly-relaxed version of yourself."

"Oh... it's been trying." I sigh, laying the two bags onto the countertop.

"Really, couldn't tell. Looks like you've been going pretty nice about your day. I've definitely seen worse from you."

"Yeah, my day sucked, honestly. All this talk about war and my phone notifications are still blowing up about Princess Zenobia. And it's not in the way I would've preferred."

"Yeah, I saw that press conference. Seemed pretty abrupt and thrown together for what you'd normally do."

I scoff with a chuckle. "You have no idea."

"In speaking of which, did she ever enjoy the dress?" He inquires.

"Oh yeah, she loved it... that was until Ember got a hold of all the jeweled accents."

The stallion winces with understanding. "Ooh, those are gonna be hard to replace."

"Meh, a trip to Maud's and a few licks of the tongue will tell me whether or not I can send in the gems to the jewelers for cutting. I knocked that out yesterday before I got through giving her what she's been wanting."

"What she's been wanting?" Sandbar cocks his head in confusion.

"Dragon Lord wanted me to be dragon dad. And she was being bratty about it too. Don't believe me, just open that bag right there."

The stallion unzips the bag, seeing a partially burned dress with no jewels in the metal casings. "This isn't the one we sold you. Is this like a custom?"

"From Rarity herself."

"OOOF!" The stallion immediately facehoofs in response. "Oh that's rough. I'll give it to Yona and have her give it a once-over. If you got the jewels, we should be able to throw them back on there, no problem."

"Hell, now that I think about it, I should've done the same thing for my tux. Ember got a hold of those accents too. And those were some tasty emeralds. Not the best, but they were pretty good quality."

"I guess it's not easy having Rarity's designs around the home with the Dragon Lord around."

"It's not." I shake my head slowly, the defeat reigniting pain in my soul. "Never mind that. How's business been?"

"It's fine. Yona's been on edge since the war was all but declared."

"Give it some time, we're dressing up the situation even now. Once this is all over, we can go back to daily scheduled programming. Shouldn't be a problem as long as matters don't escalate."

The stallion's eyes glance to my shoulders, noticing the claw-shaped indents starting from there. "Yeah. So how have you been this week?"

"I've been fine, outside of Friday." I shrug.

"Nah, not from what Ocellus told us." He replies. "She said you've been in and out of some strange books. You've definitely been losing sleep. And you haven't been the consistent romance partner either."

"How much did she tell you?"

He immediately clarifies himself. "Well, she hasn't told me directly. More like she's talked to Yona. And you know the girls talk just as much as we do, if not more."

I notice that his eyes are still wondering to my shoulders. "Hey, wanna take a look at my back?"

I turn around, letting him see the scars that run all the way down my back. I spread my wings so he can get a better view of the carnage. "Yeouch! What happened there!?"

"Ember and Smolder. Ember thought she could mark over Smolder's scratches. So Smolder then thought she could freely dig in extra deep to make sure that her marks stay for a long time. Dragon mating habits, the one thing that steers me clear from my own identity."

"Yeah, rough and harsh isn't exactly what I'd go for these days." He cringes.

"I can imagine why. If Yona goes all out with you, it would be your funeral we'd have next weekend."

The bell rings another time. We turn to see an orange pegasus stallion walking in with a pair of saddlebags on his back. "Hey boys."

"Strapping Lad, how's it been?" Sandbar inquires.

"Ah, you know, coming in from visiting the familia in Monterrey. Come back to some chulos dropping bombs about some war brewing up between us and the other international big boy."

"Damn, I know that messed your day up."

The pegasus leans to me and taps me gently. "¿Ay Spike, qué bien güey? ¿Tú bueno?"

"Más o menos." I reply as best as I can in his secondary language. "I'm trying to make things better. I promise nothing bad will happen as long as I do my part."

"I'm not worried about what you do, güey. It's what they've got cooking is where I gotta put my nose to. You can't stop others from doing what they wanna do. And if they wanna start some shit, they're gonna do it."

"Well I'm doing my best to make them not do it." I reply, still trying to practice the confidence that our country won't be going to war.

"You know that's a dangerous game to play. Sometimes it can be better to let it happen the hard way. It's not like we don't have answers." He suggests.

"Yeah, but our country isn't quite to their standard of armament. From what Nondis says, it's like they're in the 1700's."

"Oh, so they on some conquistador-type shit. Well whatever the fuck they give to you, you wash that shit before you sleep in it."

Now I'm the one cocking my head to the side with curiosity. "I don't follow that reference."

"Some conquerors from Spain would gift the natives blankets filled with all sorts of diseases their bodies couldn't fight off, diseases that the invaders had gotten used to. In short, a lot of natives died while the conquering armies had to barely lift so much of a finger. That's why you always clean your gifts before you lay them on you, otherwise they'll be the last thing you'll lay in."

Sandbar glances over to me with a sagely nod. "Sounds familiar."

My eyes bulge momentarily at the initial shock. "Why do I not like how ominous that warning is?"

"History is light written in darkness, you either take that light and learn to see ahead. Or don't, and stumble like the ones before you." He snaps his attention back to Sandbar. "¡Ay, papi! Got any threads for a human male?"

"Oh yeah, Rarity always made sure that we have her human line on hoof for any visitations. So we'll always have something for you and the family, doesn't matter the form."

"Good lookin' out." He says as Sandbar guides him to the back room for his clothes.

While they go about their way, I quietly ponder the statement Rickey made. "So... History is light written in darkness, huh?"

In the Corrotto District...

An electric trolley hums off to the distance, leaving a throng of creatures to at last explore the main square of the plaza. Many wide-eyed tourists scamper off with the ambition of exploring as much as possible. However, the three princess walk cautiously in their awe. Their heads turn about slowly, marveling at the change in architecture, how more of the buildings seem to have so much of an otherworldly look about them. While their tops resemble that of the other buildings in the city, their fronts contain much more metal, glass, and marble. The buildings clustered in this one spot seems to be taller than most of the other buildings in the city, what's usually the norm of ten to fifteen stories high is dwarfed by twenty to twenty-eight story buildings. And each reflects a status of life that they didn't dare dream was possible outside of the likes of the more internationally known destinations.

The front of the buildings are lined with active LED screens, each advertising a number of products, venues, and hotel chains. Some even give off a 3D illusion of a pony looking over the screen, waving at the visitors below.

Agamemnon is captivated by the sight. "There's... no possible way."

"The trains here run on diesel-less engines, the lights are so bright that they blind you, these structures are like taking the current theme of the city and just adding an abundance of glass and geometric shapes, and everything is abound with prismatic colors!" Eros praises. "There's no way that one two-legger could bring this much to Equestria."

Xerxes' eyes is brought to a large statue in the plaza, each of the figures standing on two legs, posed with their weapons and elements, the tallest being placed in the middle. "Not just one... Six."

The other two take notice of the intrepid prince's observation and gather towards it. A number of tourists all pose from varying perspectives. They ignore them upon getting closer. "Well we couldn't get any more intel about our enemies even if it were cased in bronze and sat in the middle of a town square." Eros notes sarcastically as he starts to read to himself a plaque commemorating the ones on display.

In service to the greater good, the six unlikely heroes seat themselves in place among the greatest heroes of all of Equestrian history. With strong bonds of friendship and the deepest courage to face terrors unmatched, the six element bearers stood tall against a troubling menace that has tortured the city of Canterlot for five hundred years. And while they saved both our world and theirs, they do so without ever being thanked by their own. This statue is dedicated to the memory of that proud moment in which they defended those who never asked or knew to be saved. These brave heroes, these brave humans.

The Human 6

"Element bearers? Do they possibly mean the fabled gems of legend, the Elements of Harmony?" Agamemnon asks.

"Seems like it." Xerxes confirms.

"But I thought those items were an old mare's tale."

"Hardly." The intrepid gazes back to his wings, wishing to fly closer to the leader's face. "Father had always showed disdain for Equestria on the account that they had exclusive access to these magical trinkets. So easily and readily available to apply against all of their magic overlord problems. They were even used against Lord Tirek back in the yonder ages of his prime. It was the only thing that stopped him cold, while our weapons merely had him turn tail to reapply his sinister plot to these lands. Had it not been for their use, Ponyland would've been conquered under Tirek's name, but by means of Equestria's banner." Xerxes looks towards his brothers. "An alicorn family descended from the rumored curator of the cosmos. And the powers to boot, couple that with such legendary weapons and you'd see an overwhelming advantage this country has always had over ours in the past. But now that we've mass produced what we've gained from our two-legged legends of millennium's past, we've nothing to fear."

"I wouldn't go as far to say that." Eros comments as he points to the weapons the humans hold. "This statue is a telling reason why."

"Six two-leggers, humans, and they change the very fabric of an area with their influence. Equestria has more than held out on it's negotiations." Agamemnon comments. "I fear the weapons they now have."

"They've always kept their best hidden from us." Xerxes complains as he turns his attention away from that statue, walking across the square. "I feel that a little more time in this place would yield a better understanding of what we're up against. Perhaps it wasn't a fool's errand to go touring about. Maybe we needed to see this, a warning of what all they could bring."

As the trio moves through the square, the one-eyed prince stops at another statue overlooking the plaza. "Agamemnon, we're going." Eros warns his unmoving brother. "What are you staring at now?"

The prince's expression is one of pure bewilderment, his jaw agape as his eyes jump back and forth from a plaque and the face looking back at him. "This is a statue of a stallion."

Xerxes rolls his eyes. "Are your eyes confused? That's a mare. Keep walking."

"You may want to look at this plaque before you assume that."

Eros glances at the face, then the plaque reading a statement of the deceased figure. "I'm sorry, what?"

The eldest brother grimaces with initial disinterest. "I ask of you, what was the purpose of this distraction?"

Agamemnon cracks a smile as he stifles a chuckle, seeing the feathers ruffle under Eros' cloak. "Five. Four. Three. Two..."

"THAT'S BULLSHIT!" Aware that he cannot make himself fly, he uses his magic to levitate himself to the face of the deceased figure. "YOU THINK YOU'RE PRETTIER THAN ME!? I'M ONLY PRETTIER THAN ME! YOU GET TO SIT THERE WITH THAT SMUG MUG ON THAT BEAUTIFUL FACE! HOW DARE YOU SEAMLESSLY TREAD THE LINE BETWEEN SEXES WHERE THERE GROWS TO BE NO TRUE DIFFERENCE! THE SMILE, THE EYES, THE MANE, HOW YOU HAVE SUCH FEMININE FEATURES WITH MALE KEY!? I SLAVE OVER A HOT MIRROR EVERY HOUR TO MAINTAIN MY STANDARD AND YET YOU GET TO BE DEFINITION OF VISUAL EPIPHANY! HOW DARE YOU BE SO GORGEOUSLY ANDROGYNOUS AND DEAD! YOU DEPRIVE ME THE RIGHT TO MY HONOR, YOU COWARD!"

While Agamemnon laughs, Xerxes stops cold and stares at the statue for even longer, getting lost in the figure's face and shape. "That's a stallion?"

"Apparently so." Eros spits angrily.

He looks down to the plaque, reading it for himself. His ears instinctively fold upon the conclusion. "And there's a death date...."

Agamemnon laughs even harder as he takes in the look of his defeated brothers. "What's wrong? Feeling robbed?" He asks of his older sibling.

Xerxes turns himself around quickly, taking a deep breath and using his cloak to hide his growing interest. "We should keep moving."

Eros disrespectfully spits at the foot of the statue. "Absolute bullshit!"

"Careful, Eros. Your envy is showing almost as much as Xerxes' penis." The laughing stallion pulls him along.

"Now I want to know who the fuck has bred something that flawless. Do they even have siblings?"

"Enough! We move!" Xerxes calls out, trying to keep himself concealed until he softens.

Agamemnon sniffles after laughing himself to tears. "Absolutely ridiculous. Oh this is a good day."

Later that Evening...

As one of the last few trains to cycle through Ponyville for the day, the Emerald Line happens to carry the most modern rail service that's been implemented in all of the land. It's heavy rail system allows for a much smoother riding experience, especially for many passengers who have complained about some of the jerkiness of the rails approaching Mt. Canter. However, the line carries a lot more safety implementations to ensure that there's little to no discomfort for riders with rudimentary motion sickness. So many who often ride can fall asleep, or watch the world go by, eat their meals on the go, drink their coffee, or even read in peace.

Unfortunately for me, I'm not exactly reading up on peaceful topics. Instead, I invest myself more on the developments of how a young mortician who's caught up in a world of war and corpse disposal get so morbidly innovative to the point of controlling the deceased.

Ocellus especially takes notice of my continued literary investment. "You know something, Gabby did tell me that you had a bad habit of being a total workaholic whenever the time gets dire, or your schedule gets hectic."

"I know I should be resting. It's just hard to shut everything down when things gets going." As I finish, she snatches the book from my grasp. "Hey!"

But as the book leaves my grasp, it leaves from hers just as quickly. The book phases through her hoof, landing onto the ground. She reaches back down to pick it up, only watching as the book sinks in and out of her grasp. "What the─?"

"Never seen that before." I comment before picking it up myself. It feels just as solid as it looks. I bookmark the page with my thumb and give her a light bop on the head. "Yeah, solid and tangible. Don't know what that's all about."

She reaches for it, knocking it away while it's still in my claws. We both reach to pick it back up again, her hoof filtering through as though it were a ghost, while I grab it perfectly as normal. She grunts with minor frustration. "Yeah, I'm not even going to entertain that bullshit. What the hell are you reading anyways?"

"Classified information." I answer in a low voice.

"On a public train?"

"Not like anyone else can read it." I open the book from where I was, holding the pages wide open for her to observe. "See for yourself."

For her, the pages are nothing but black bars and boxes. "Okay, that's pretty obscure. And you're able to discern what that shit says?"

"Yup. Twilight gave me clearance."

"Oh, about that?" She asks.

"Yup."

The changeling rolls her eyes and pleads with me. "Okay. You can close that book now." I flip it back my way, only for her to further enforce her request. "Just do what I say and close that stupid book, please."

I do as she says, even placing it back in my travel bag. "There, it's gone. Happy?"

"More than thirty seconds ago." She comments while sitting in my lap.

"You're just like a cat sometimes."

Ocellus snickers. "You should ask Smolder, I'm always like this when something's got her attention away from me. Especially when it's a day she said she'd dedicate it to me. I'm just holding you to a standard."

"Yeah, standards are good to have." I cosign as I start to lightly tickle my claws against her neck. "So, what exactly do you have us doing over in the city?"

"Going back to the club. I figure we need a different environment aside from being around the bantering banshee back home."

"Zenobia's not that bad." I try to defend her, knowing damn well that I'm lying. But in the process, I only end up correcting myself. "Okay, she can be a bit overwhelming and codependent."

"Yeah. Plus I made a promise to Hestia too. She said that she wasn't entirely comfortable with all the debauchery taking place over the course of these past two days. So I promised to take our sexual adventures elsewhere for the night. The walls are soundproof, that's a given. The doors... not so much as that."

...Well that's embarrassing. Guess I have to look into changing that up. "Ah, gotcha."

Meanwhile...

With the sun long gone from the sky, and the lights of the Corrotto District being that much brighter, Prince Agamemnon walks through the district on his own, holding up a piece of paper given to him earlier in the day. He repeats the address to himself incessantly, looking at each street he passes for context. He happens upon a street name given to him by many locals, and gazes at a twenty story hotel. As he looks to the bold black letters labeled above the lobby main entrance, he reads out Canterberry Suites.

The stallion draws a sigh before walking inside. "This seems to be the place."

Upon entering the lobby, a bellhop walks past him with a number of suitcases. He looks around the lobby, seeing that most of the decor seems to be so substantially oversized. Couches that fit entire families, and single chairs that comfortably sits two like a love seat, the items with stools on standby to aid many who wish to partake, they stand as a scaled display of the human size difference. Agamemnon gawks quietly as he blindly walks forward, not seeing that he runs chest-first into the front desk. The attendant politely acknowledges him. "Hello, I see you've been caught off guard by the display. Not the first of the day, I tell you that. So what can I do for you, sir?"

The stallion coughs away his embarrassment. "I'm a guest of a mare in room 532, can you point me to an elevator?"

The attendant looks at him for a moment and reaches for the phone at the counter. "Um... can you hold for a bit?"

As the attendant dials in a code, Agamemnon looks at a cylindrical advertisement wrapping around one of the large pillars supporting the weight of the upper floors. The advertisement shows a purple flash and zooms out of the uniform of a buckball player. The moment cuts into an energetic montage of goals scored, defensive stops made, and passionate celebrations made by the players of that uniform. Then the ad wipes into a static screen with a popup cue of the team name and the next few dates of their games. A slogan cuts into a black background with white and purple words. 'Carve into GREATNESS' fades into the black. "What an overt method to advertise a mere children's game." The prince mutters.

"Sir?" Agamemnon snaps his attention back to the front desk, the attendant hanging up the phone. "Yeah, I want to say sorry for the wait. As per policy, we're not allowed to give you access to the elevator without purchase or deposit. Just a safety precaution. But I did call up to the room and they confirmed you. They're on their way down now to meet with you. Now they are available to escort you to that room if they choose to. It's just a disclaimer for responsibility, incidental situations, all that other jazz."

The prince raises his brows, not even upset with the security precautions made. In truth, he shows admiration for their stringent practice. "Understood. Thank you for elaborating." He turns away back to the advertisement. "Huh, just a minute here and I've already experienced far better security than the centuries back home. I could probably stay here for a while."

"Hey, there's our winner of the night!" The voice of the mare from earlier dances ever closer to him. "So glad you came through!"

"You ask, I pro..." As he turns around, he notices that the pair of mares have but a third partner in their group. A creature that confuses him with her unfamiliar appearance. "...vide. Forgive for asking, but what is that creature?"

"Oh, this is Larvae, she's our best friend! Total sweetheart, one of the nicest changelings you'll ever meet."

For a moment, he stares intensely at the purple changeling, her orange pearlescent eyes shifting shyly from him to her friends. She immediately sees the scowl of confusion on his lips and resorts to hiding behind her friends. "Changeling? That's a changeling?"

The creature reclusively whimpers. "Good to meet you, sir."

"Walk with me, talk with me, hun!" The mare sees how uncomfortable the two are in seeing each other and pulls the prince away for a moment to speak with him. "You know, Larvae is going through a rough patch, we just thought that we could drag her around for a bit and make her forget about her issue. Sensitive topic, can't go into detail, but if you can help us make her night..." She smiles as she gets in closer, brushing her chest against his while teasing him with the prospect of a kiss. "I promise to make it worth your while." She glances back at her other two friends. "All of us especially. It'll be a night you'll never forget, babe. Just as long as you're willing to play along. 'Kay?"

The stallion grunts as he feels the heat of her breath brushing against his lips. He glances back to the other mare, mentally blocking out the changeling hiding behind her. "The things I'd do to see these two beneath me tonight." He starts to convince himself of his methods to negotiate around the issue of the unwanted party. Even making a mental note to relegate the night to a simple drunken affair where his time with the changeling could simply be cast as an error made in an inebriated state. "Well... I don't usually do things like this, but... A promise is a promise, and I plan to make good on that."

As he leans in for a kiss, the mare prances with joy, completely curbing him aside to join back with her friends. "Hell yeah!" She pulls them both along, especially shoving the changeling into him. "Then let's go and start the party, baby!"

"Skeewee!" The other mare shouts excitedly.

The changeling looks up to the unnerved stallion, backing off immediately. "I'd rather just... be to the room. Thanks for the offer, girls."

The first mare shouts vehemently, dragging the changeling mare along for the journey. "Bullshit, you're with us! Bring that fine ass over here and let's hit the scene! We got a full schedule at the club tonight! And you know the one we got reservations for! So let's get moving!"

The second mare giggles as she plants the changeling between her and their escort of the night. "Don't get too shy now, hun! We know you're gonna be the worst out of all of us!"

"Girls!" The changeling whimpers.

"You might wanna be careful, mister." The first mare warns the prince. "She doesn't have an off switch once she gets going."

The prince lowers his head with shame. "I swear if either of my brothers see me right now."

As the four make their way through the district, Agamemnon occasionally looks to his side, seeing the changeling gulp quietly and distance herself from him. But in retaliation to her sudden withdrawal, one of her friends doubles back and drag her beside the prince anyways. The prince tries not to show his visible disgust, but his second mind inducing him to inch away from her in retaliation only reminds her that he's not comfortable with her being around. The other two continue to feed their brilliant energy into the pair, never once letting the night turn sour for the sake of the other two who experience the unease.

Upon reaching the club, they skip past the line and talk to the bouncer at the door. The three dump their ID's to him as he questions them of their reservation. "Name?"

The two mares snag the changeling and shoves her up front, who's eyes bulk at the tall stallion. "We're the party of Larvae, party of three." And they promptly drag the cloaked prince up front. "Plus our security escort for the night." Agamemnon eyes the changeling who shuffles a few inches away from him out of instinct.

The guard glances towards the prince, who appears to be a good five inches higher than him. The two unicorns proudly tout his physique. "He's a real tough guy. You can tell from the bod. Guy's built like he's war ready."

"Okay, whatever you say." The bouncer lets them through the door, much to the complaint of everyone else in line. He ignores them and their extended waiting periods while standing idle as the four ventures further within.

The first mare hoof bumps the second. "Told you I'd get him in for free."

The changeling, probably the first time she actively issues a show of complaint, questions her other friends. "Uh, can I ask why this reservation was made in my name?"

"Just a bonus perk of your visit. You know the owner is a total sweetheart to those coming into town looking to pick up on the news of their loved ones not coming from that expedition across the water. Makes no sense in having all of us over here for just bad news and no pick-me-up." The second replies.

The first sighs exhaustively. "Sad that it takes something like that to get an opportunity like this. Best to take the opportunity, not many tends to come around."

Already in the hallway of the club, the music pulses even louder and louder, until the door to the main area opens and reveals a myriad of lights, sounds, and activities for the four to get involved in. The prince winces as he folds his ears down to mitigate some of the sound for the time being. "What is this place!? Why is it so loud!?"

The first calls out triumphantly. "A brief journey into the world of humans!"

"We weren't already in that when we arrived!?" Agamemnon asks.

"Hardly!" The second counters with a brimming smile. "This is the real human world experience! C'mon! Let's go hit up the bar and see what all they got!"

The first cheers on. "Nothing like the Goose to get you feelin' loose! That's what the humans say!"

The first take notice of the changeling gawking around, feeling more and more out of place with everything. She starts to quietly backtrack towards the door when the first mare grabs her. "You too, Larvae! Let's move that ass you love to shake so much!" As they reach the bar, they start to assign seats for the themselves. Agamemnon parks himself towards the wall, but the pair of unicorns plant the changeling next to him. The other two take the seats perpendicular to theirs around the corner of the bar. "Perfect! Now you two can really hit it off together!"

The changeling keeps her eyes glued to the countertop, not even trying to look him in the eye. The prince lets his eyes wander around the club, they fall to every other place except to the creature next to him. The changeling mare winces as she finally dedicates herself to satisfying her friends and their constant rooting for the two to get things rolling. "Hey."

The stallion sulks in disappointment, hoping that the bartender would come by soon. "Greetings to you."

The bartender takes a little more time tending to some patrons down the line, who are all flooding in from the dance floor as slow selection blasts through the speakers, allowing for many couples to get their moment on the floor. The changeling glances towards the dance floor, seeing a bunch of creatures dancing with their partners. Some come with the intent to hook up, some are out with their significant others, the rest are just around to hang out. But for her, she sees the shadow of a figure that appears familiar to her. It makes her eyes widen for a moment, then water. She quickly soaks up her emotions as the words start to be sung over the speakers.

Late at night when all the world is sleeping
I stay up and think of you
And I wish on a star
That somewhere you are thinking of me too

She takes a deep breath, clearing her throat as she finally directs her eyes to the stallion next to her. "So... some way those humans live, huh?"

"It's new to me, I suppose." He leans in, appearing depressed that his night will probably be spent trying to play nice with a changeling the other two are forcing on him.

In a moment of emotional outbreak, she candidly speaks to the prince. "...So... You lost family too?"

~~~~♦~~~~♦~~~~♦~~~~♦~~~~♦~~~~♦~~~~♦~~~~♦~~~~♦~~~~♦~~~~♦~~~~

Agamemnon's memory flashes to a moment of shock. He blanks out in the present time to let his mind refreshes the sight of a teenage alicorn colt gagging violently on the ground. Xerxes wipes his lips as he watches the young prince struggle on the ground. It only takes a few moments before the colt's body finally stops trying to cling to life, subsiding from the painful struggle into a quiet rest.

His eyes, for the first time in his life, watched as the life is truly quenched from his brother's eyes. The sibling he knew and trusted outside of his own branch, the one who even put Xerxes in his place, once a promising figure to take the throne. But as that promise faded, so too did the light from his dying eyes.

~~~~♦~~~~♦~~~~♦~~~~♦~~~~♦~~~~♦~~~~♦~~~~♦~~~~♦~~~~♦~~~~♦~~~~

The stallion shakes his memory from his mind, glancing back to the changeling. "What do you mean?" He lies.

She jolts up and realizes that she might have said something to the stallion to make him even more uncomfortable. So she emphatically gives her apology to him. "I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to dump on you like that!" She whimpers for a moment and glances back to the dance floor, realizing that what she was seeing was another changeling on the floor dancing with her partner of the evening. "Don't mind me. I'm just... working through some things."

The stallion glances towards the changeling mare, seeing that she's undergoing some emotional duress she's also trying to keep suppressed. His hoof lifts for a moment, but a voice calls out to his mind. "Calm down." He chides himself within his own head. "Changelings are known to be emotionally manipulative creatures, they feed on love by whatever means, and they'll pose as your dead loved ones if it means they'll get something out of you. Stay diligent. Don't let her goad you into helplessness and vulnerability. She's just playing you." He takes a slow exhale, make a concerted effort to separate himself from the emotional moment she's clearly displaying. "Seems like you need a drink more than I do."

"Yeah... but..." She mutters before silencing herself. "Don't worry about it. I'll get something eventually."

Her friends don't like the idea of the changeling continuing to hold out. So they do what they can to keep her from disassociating too much. "Larvae, what you want girl!?"

"It doesn't really matter." She answers a little more honestly.

"Bartender!" The second mare calls out loudly. One of the stallions behind the counter drops back from serving the group of dancers and at long last gives attention to the party of four. She points her hoof at the changeling, herself, her friend, and then the prince. "Can we get a strawberry daiquiri for her, a Long Island ice tea for me, a blackberry mimosa for my friend annnnd..."

Agamemnon speaks out for himself. "I'll take a double shot of your hardest drink." He slams his hoof into the counter, demanding the beverage for the sake of building his excuse of being inebriated, to reinforce his being irresponsible for his compliance to entertaining the changeling.

The bartender smirks and reaches below the counter. "Double shot of Everclear, coming right up!"

"Everclear, what's that?" The prince asks.

The bartender breaks out a cup, pouring out two-shots worth of the American-based rectified spirit. "Strongest shit they sell legally in the state of Texas, apparently. Illegal in seventeen states too. Flammable, colorless, odorless, 190 proof." He slides the cup to the stallion, offering a word of warning. "Don't drop it down all at once. Just cause the name's Everclear doesn't mean your vision will be."

"Wow, that must be some strong stuff then." The second mare replies.

Agamemnon takes a sniff, hoping that the smell would probably entice him to hulk back the drink. But after running his nose over the cup, he grows displeased. "I thought this was supposed to be strong?"

"Strong enough to clean engines and surgical equipment alike." The bartender responds. "It's pretty much fumigated diesel at this point."

The prince dismisses the bartender's claims. "Fumigated diesel." He disregards the bartender's warning and lets it hit his mouth with none left to spare in the cup itself. But the prince quickly discovers that his mouth and hubris are now cashing out with the blistering burn locking his jaws in place. The burn is so strong that he fears swallowing all of it in one go. "Mmmmm!? (What!?)"

The bartender lets loose a hardy chuckle. "Next one's on the house if you can hold for sixty seconds."

"Is it really that strong?" The bartender quietly pours a half-shot for the curious mare. He slides the cup over and allows her to take her own sample. Her reaction is much of the same. "Mmnmm MMMMMPH! (Holy SHIT!)"

The bartender hollers out loudly to the group of four. "Place your bets everyone! Who spits first!?"

The orange unicorn mare appears ready to grab her cup and spit it back out, but her friend encourages her to stay strong. "C'mon, Jewel, you got this!"

The mare's eyes look over towards the changeling, who appears to be downcast again. She taps her hoof to the counter and shoves the cup before him. "You want another one?" She nods in reply to his question.

The bartender obeys the mare's request, but she raises the cup and presses it to the changeling's lips. "Hey, wait a─" Her mouth immediately catches fire as she pounds her hooves into the counter in painful protest. "Mmmm!? Mmmn mmmm!? (Why!? Why meeee!?)"

"Got a third in this race!" Let's see who wins!" The bartender cheers the group on, looking to make a spectacle of the moment. C'mon, you got this!"

The changeling gulps her partial drink. Feeling the burn as it goes down her throat. "Blech! That was terrible!"

"Gluah!" The orange mare shudders throughout her entire body after she swallows. "Humans drink that!? That's insane!"

The bartender isn't as entertained after having watched the contest turn so one-sided. But he quirks a brow at the prince who patiently taps his hoof against the counter in a means to time himself. "Oh.... Going for the whole sixty, huh?"

"Oh my gosh! You're so brave! I couldn't, could not be me!" The orange mare says as she checks in with her changeling friend.

"Everything's so spinny." Her cheeks start to flush red almost instantly, showing her weak-willed nature in terms of alcoholic beverages.

The prince counts his last second with an emphatic slam and gulps the rest of his drink, feeling the burn go down his throat. "RAAAUGH!" He roars with triumph and proudly points to the cup. "That's a drink, that's a real one!"

"Winner, winner!" The bartender and the others applaud the prince. He gives an appreciative bow. "So, tough guy, how about we get you something a little lighter to the tongue?"

"A bourbon would be nice, though I doubt I'd be able to taste it now."

"Just as promised! On the house!" He calls out, grabbing a cup to place his ice and beverage into.

"Respectable." The prince turns to the changeling, seeing her double over in her seat. A small window of hope opens in his mind. "I take it she not used to drinking?"

"Oh she's always like this on the first one. It's the fifth one we have to worry about. Changelings don't really process alcohol too well. But once they get it in their system, it's all about the dopamine hunt then." The dark gray mare replies. "We've been friends since our run over at SoFri down south, School of Friendship. But since then, she's been stuck back at the hive. For the longest, we've been shooting letters back and forth since changelings aren't really allowed to have phones apparently. But we're catching back up this weekend since she's in town. She'd always be a bit of a party animal after a little while, but for some time she's always been a bit of a recluse. All it takes is one good night though, and you're in."

The prince's window of optimism subsides once more into disappointment. He hopes that the drink in his system kicks in before his inherent desire to abandon the night does. "Understood."

The two unicorn mares teases the prince over his displaced attitude. "So formal. How do we even warm up to you when you're so cold?"

"You never gave me names." He points out.

The two look at each other dumbfounded, realizing that they skipped a crucial step in to know each other. The mares each giggle at their own mistake. "Oh that's right! We totally fucked up there! Maybe we should start back from the top."

"My name's Crown Jewel, Jewel for short."

"The unicorn next to me is Amethyst Shadow, we call her Shadie. And the changeling to your right is Larvae. She's an adorable little love bug who's fairly shy about most anything, but when you get her fun-meter going, oh it's on."

The prince scales his eyes towards the creature placed beside him. "And forgive me for asking, why does a changeling look like... that?"

The creature eyes widen with pain as Agamemnon's words seem a bit harsh. Looking to save face on the night, Jewel jumps in. "Oh, you're must really not be from around here at all! Oh my gosh, I just threw you into the fire without explaining anything! Disaster! Oh let me get this right so we can all be on the same page here. So I take it that the changelings you've ran into haven't reformed yet. I can see how you're a bit guarded with that in mind. But she's from the main hive, you know, the big one that Queen Chrysalis used to lord over. That one has completely undergone a radical paradigm shift towards being a more open and caring species. Thus they don't feed in the tyrannical manner that they used to do. I mean yeah, they do the 'feed on love' thing, but they also give love back in return. And because they've become less of a parasitic-natured species, and more of a mutually beneficial codependency, like every other creature in society. Also, they're great for understanding you!"

"Understanding me? Understand me how?" The prince squints with doubt.

Shadie walks around to give the changeling a warm and embracing hug. "Like emotionally! She's been our rock throughout high school, anything that hits us hard, she's always there for us to lean on. But this time she needs the reinforcement. So tonight we're doing our best to return the favor. Even if she needs a little bit of a push to get things going."

The stallion still holds his biases and life-long experiences with some changelings infiltrating the ranks of the guards throughout the core. But seeing the one next to him acting so timid and dependent brings doubt to the equation of his long-manicured thoughts. He continues to cast doubt for the time being. "So the changelings have reformed?"

"Incredibly so." Shadie reaffirms, using her purple magic to turn the two directly towards one another. "You should try talking to her. See for yourself how wonderful she can be."

The poor changeling looks almost on the brink of collapse, and with the two sets of eyes judging him, he knows that the night would only end as a waste if nothing goes further than what's already been done thus far. So with a grimace and a determination to see his lustful ambitions to the end, he takes a hard swig of his drink and forces himself to play nice. "So... why are you here exactly?"

"Oh um... I..." The changeling starts to shed a few tears. She wipes her eyes, trying to keep herself together as best as she can. "I'm sorry."

Jewel tries to coach the prince on his approach. "Heavy topic, babe. Let's shift to something else."

The prince grimaces with a bit of frustration as he changes his line of questioning. "Okay... so... what caused you to deviate from the hive?"

"Still touchy. Maybe steer it a bit more elsewhere." Shadie nudges her head to the left, trying to prompt him to try yet another avenue.

He looks around to pick out a topic that would be easy for her to answer. "Um... so this place. It it always this loud?"

With their own disappointment growing, Jewel and Shadie draw a collective sigh. "Uh, something tells me he's not really great at carrying the conversation."

"Drying up fast. And not just the talking either."

The prince cringes to himself, realizing that he's losing his chance and fast. But hearing them speak as though they've already made their decision to leave things be, he gets further motivated to push things along. "I'll show you." He chants to himself as he resigns within himself that he'll have to genuinely act like he cares. "Ms. Larvae, tell me more about yourself and what you aspire to be."

Jewel is surprised by his sudden forwardness, Shadie is more worried that the matter would only get worse from here. "Wow... really just diving headfirst into the ice here."

"I'm..." Meanwhile, Larvae is a lot less worried about the night and more about trying to fight back her own pent up emotions, further exasperated by the alcohol. "I'm sorry. I'm just a mess."

"Then let's talk about it." Agamemnon knows that he's still very much aware of his actions, the drinks hasn't quite buzzed him to his liking yet. So he's actively trying to force himself to care. "What's got you hurting on tonight?"

Shadie facehoofs. "Did I say head-first, I mean horn at a 90 degree impale."

The prince rolls his eyes at the judgmental mares, he continues with his more sympathetic approach. "If you feel like you need to talk about it, I can listen. I'll be an ear."

"I'm sorry..." She apologizes once more. "I'm probably just being a downer for you and the others. I shouldn't even be here right now."

"You're not a downer, you're in pain, and you shouldn't ignore that. I know this is the place to not be that way, but sometimes you need to get it out of your system, no matter where you are." The changeling gazes up to the prince, hearing his words of affirmation. Agamemnon looks away, turning back towards the bar. "Barkeep! I'd like another double of that antiseptic of yours." He summons a pouch full of gems and lay a few of them on the counter. The bartender does as requested and slides him yet another cup. The prince braves the burn of his beverage and lights his horn to drag the changeling's seat closer to his side. "I've got the night, and you've got a shoulder to bury into. Start digging."

The changeling nearly breaks at that moment. "I don't mean to be─"

"How much longer of this can I take?" He comments mentally, trying to stay as committed to the cause of the night as possible. "You're fine. Do what makes you feel better."

Larvae sobs as she starts to get closer. "I don't wanna do that. You'll end up a mess if I do."

"I swear if this changeling slimes on me... she's going to. All the more reason I got another drink to wash this night away. I'll just start over the next time." He closes his eyes, already resigning himself to defeat. Turning back to the changeling, he opens his hooves and snags her into his chest. "I'm going to regret this." He thinks to himself while reassuring the mare. "I'm all yours to mess up."

Larvae pauses in her emotional breakdown, realizing she's being embraced by the very creature who appeared to not want anything to do with her the entire night. Shadie and Jewel gawks in disbelief, but also smile in response to the stallion's consideration for her. "Ice: Bombed." The dark gray unicorn comments.

"Bold and compassionate. Wow, I almost got the forbidden fever there." Jewel cosigns.

Larvae clenches her hooves around and sobs into his chest, the prince grimaces from the moistening sensation on his chest, growing even more by each mournful wail. "Changeling slobber... I'm not drunk enough for this." He pats the back of her head. "There there. We're all here. Let it all out." The changeling screams into his chest, her powerful outburst of emotions flow throughout her body, causing her wings to pop out and sparkle immensely. The prince jumps back at the surprise, but not by much due to her tightened grasp on him. "What the─!?"

"Whoa!" Shadie gasps at the new development. "Major changeup!"

Jewel also comments. "I remember back when we were in SoFri that changeling wings can glow when their emotions overwhelm them, I never thought I'd see it so up close and personal! It's... magical, but also sad."

The changeling mare continues to scream into the prince's chest. He nods quietly, trying not to instinctively shove her away like he'd normally do. But his persistence shows reward in an unlikely form. A trio of fruity drinks are presented to him. "I didn't order these."

"I know. These are on me. Just make sure you save the lady at least two." The bartender turns to the pair of unicorns. "You two should run around a bit. Have fun. They'll be here when you get back, I'll keep my eyes on them."

Jewel nods as she realizes her night is probably not going to go in the direction she wanted it to go. She then elects to leave the bar and take to the dance floor for a partner. The mare relinquishes the night to her changeling friend. "Let's give them some space. We'll check back in after a bit."

"Sounds like a plan." Shadie says as she looks back to her mournful friend. "Poor Larvae. I didn't know she was holding back that much."

The mare comments to the prince. "Please stay here a little longer, we'll be back to check on you. I promise we will."

45 minutes later...

What was once an atmosphere of slow music and dancing couples is replaced by the sound of pulsing music, sweating bodies, strobing prismatic lights, and creatures showing their best moves. Not much has changed for the bartenders, staying just as busy as always.

However, the mournful cries that were once drowned out by slow music is replaced by relentless laughter. The prince, who was previously skeptical of the changeling is now more outgoing to her. His ears and cheeks are far redder than usual, and his smile just as boisterous as his usual self. He regales Larvae of stories of his journeys and adventures, namely the moments from just earlier in the day. "And then I told the bastard that he shouldn't be so jealous of the damn statue!"

The changeling mare shares a squeaking laugh, coupled by a few amusing snorts that prove infectious. "Wow! He was really about to fight the statue over how pretty it looked!? That's crazy!"

"Yeah, pretty wild. Never thought I'd see him get so wound up over someone looking prettier than him, but he was! My other brother thought it was a mare, popped a chub in the public square too."

"Oh no!" She cackles, doubling over in near absence of breath. She slaps the counter where there are about another five empty glasses, waiting for the bar staff to collect. She takes a sharp breath and leans drunkenly into the stallion. "Oh my queen, that's so wild! I can't even breathe!"

"Careful now, don't need you passing out before your friends get back." He warns her. "They'd probably make sure I'd never see the light of day again!"

The changeling mare giggles throughout her recovery, catching her breath and holding her aching sides as she looks around the dance floor for her friends. They're nowhere to be seen in immediate capacity, so she clears her throat and leans towards the stallion.

"So you're not from here, are you?"

"Not in the slightest! I've never seen changelings that aren't black, hissing, and looking to make a meal of me!" He jokes.

"Wow, those guys are really hard-stuck on old school." She answers with a giggling snort. "I could totally make a meal out of you, but I'd always ask first. The better question is would you be down to be a snack?"

"As long as I don't get drained to a pruned state like they always do, I suppose so." He replies.

"Okay." She playfully brushes her hoof against his chest. "So what all would you like to know more about us changelings, more specifically the one in front of you?"

"Eh, everything, I guess! I suppose I could use the intel."

"You're so funny!" She smiles, hopping out of her chair, pulling at his foreleg to join with her. "Well, this changeling really likes dancing! Do you like dancing too?"

The stallion slowly stumbles from his stool. "I'm a bit of a dancer myself. Just never in this kind of environment."

The mare pulls him again, guiding his stumbling self to the dance floor. "C'mon! Let's go cut a rug!"

The stallion accepts her guidance, barreling through the crowd to find an open space. But he bumps into a large looming figure, one that's significantly taller than many of the other creatures in the room.

"Oh, sorry!" I comment, not trying to stir up trouble with the very inebriated stallion.

The purple changeling takes full responsibility for having led her friend into me. "No, it's my bad! I didn't see you, and I thought we had an opening!"

The drunken stallion looks back at me and groans a barely intelligible grunt. "Eh?"

Ocellus immediately jumps in the way, trying to diffuse the situation before it can start up. "Sorry, sir. We won't be in the way. Me and my boyfriend are headed to the bar. You two have fun."

"Boyfriend?" It seems that the changeling girl is also a bit buzzed. "Wow, a changeling and a dragon? We really do find love in all special ways!"

"I know, right!? And he's fun to be around!" The two start to strike up a conversation.

But I take a page from her book and pull her away so that we don't stir up the ire of her drunken partner. "Ocellus, they're trying to have fun. Let's not hold them up."

"Oh right!" She remembers. "You two do what you do." Her eyes gander back to the stallion, she gives him a wise warning. "And you, I hope you've got your night wide open. She looks activated."

"What?" The stallion mutters.

"Hey now, no need the scare the fish away!" The changeling mare comments before pulling her unfortunate victim along for the soon-to-be life-changing ride. "C'mon!"

As he is dragged away, I glance back to the pair, trying to understand something about him. Ocellus sees the confusion settling in on my face. "What is it?"

"I dunno... that guy seems familiar."

"Seriously, how many white unicorns do you see running around in Equestria? Better yet, how many of them happen to be guards around the castle?"

"...Yeah. You got a point."

The Next Morning...

The night goes by as a tremendous blur for the stallion. Bits and pieces are shown to him, but much of it appears as a meshed vomit of colors and sounds. It takes even longer before he starts to gain some sense of sobriety after the night's events. So long, in fact, that the hour reads 11:49 on the nearby alarm clock.

His eyes are slow to open, the light of the dawn torturing his dilapidated senses. "Mmmnnnguh... my head." He complains quietly. His eyes wander to the clock, not quite able to make out the hour and minute of the day. He squints to try to gather his senses a little better.

But in the midst of that process, a shifting occurs on his chest. He lifts his covers, seeing the orange eyes of a happy changeling mare looking back at him. "Good morning. Finally awake after all of that."

"Wha... what the─" He struggles to use his magic to remove the sheets over his body, finally realizing that his body had been claimed over by the yet still amorous creature.

"Hmm?" Larva looks down, seeing the prince's morning salute offering more than a suitable course for her brunch of affection. She giggles with a verbalized thought. "Oh yeah, we really went at it. Even went to sleep going at it too. I had so much fun with you."

Parts of the night he easily forgets remain a blur, but the last thing he recalls accurately is the annoying sensation of her crying and snotting into his chest. It finally dawns on him that his night of threesome bliss was upended by the very mare laying on top of him. His eyes expand with horrific realization as he feels his better self being tugged at as she shifts her body. "IS MY DICK IN THIS CHANGELING BITCH!?" Panic starts to run in his mind, he snaps his head to the clock, reading the time of 11:51, just minutes before the noon hour. "Ah shit! I shouldn't be here─"

"Hold on. Give me a little bit" She pleads sweetly, pressing all of the weight of her body onto his hips. He plops out, finding himself to be at mid phase, her moistened folds warmly snuggling his underlength.

The stallion furiously chastises himself for having let the matter escalate to this point. "This... this is pure heresy! Witchcraft!" He thinks to himself. "I need to separate myself from this bug before I'm changeling feed!"

She pauses for a moment, but pleads with him with earnest pressing. "One more time. Please?" Her hips more than show her vested interest in a more sober continuation of their drunken activities.

"I need to get out of this." He starts to rise, but as he does, he feels a tight vicelike grip ensnare what he treasures most. "What the hell is gripping at me?" The changeling mare smirks as she plops herself down on him, causing him to gasp at the overwhelming surprise. "Oh shit."

"You feel wonderful inside me." She teases.

The prince eyes wander as he feel his constitutions weaken with every drop of her body. He gasps and grunts, realizing that this sole encounter has probably gotten him the most panicked, but also understanding that the taste of the foreign touch sparks a tinge of interest. "Good Doctor, how the hell is she this greedy!? This body... You can't do this to me, you stupid bug wench! I'm supposed to hate you, not fuck you for hours on end! Unhoof me!"

Her actions become all the more fierce, offering no quarter to the Ponyland prince. He bites his tongue, unsure of how to feel in the moment his sex is being milked for every ounce of seed, both unclaimed from the long night, and that which is soon to come.

Her soft squeaks and cries vouch for him to remain, but his strict upbringing screams for him to flee. The warring thoughts fling a myriad of arguments like sharpened spears across a busy battlefield. His legs grow weaker with every second she stays. And if he allows her to finish him in this manner, there would be no guarantee that she would dare allow him to leave without fully convincing him in his lustful weaknesses to stay. "Dammit..." He curses under his breath, thinking of a way to not only finish himself, but to solidify his leverage to escape at his leisure. "If I give you what you want, you'll let me go?"

"Yes." She whispers breathlessly. "Anything you want, baby. I'll be everything for you."

The words of affirmation touches him in a way his mind never once received. Usually he hears such praises given to him by many mares in the past, but often coming with the mention of his titles. Always 'sir prince' or 'your majesty'. But the tone she takes, coupled by her choice of words, elicits him to commit further. "Doctor forgive me." He places his hooves on her hips. "Hold still." He flips her over, proudly placing her on her back as he instantly continues where her hips have worked up to this point.

His thrusts are deep, bottoming not quite to his hilt as her body is not equipped to take him to that point. But the much she takes of him is so snugly embraced upon every withdrawal. And her body shows no form of rejection as he presses further in. She drapes her forelegs around his neck, encouraging him with every press onward. "Yes... you do so good, honey. Press harder, baby. C'mon, I can take it."

Her words to encourage him are met with grunts, he becomes helpless to resist the mind he now has. To know that a changeling of all creatures would dare to indulge him with such explicit praises. "Filthy bed bug! Taking my cock like some greedy slut!" He finds the pressure building in his loins becoming far too great to ignore. His body wilts in anticipation of his climax. His strength to continue wanes. "I need to pull out." He warns her.

"Mm-nmm." She further wraps her forelegs around him, but also bouncing her hips up to tightly wrap her hindlegs around him, locking herself onto him and riding his belly with each thrust. The prince gawks as she sinks her lips into his. Her tongue plays around his, her body starts to clasp around him, becoming even more tenacious to keeping him bound within her at his highest moment. "No. You're right where you need to be. Don't hold back. Let me have it. Please..." She whispers in his ear. "Please daddy, I'll be a good girl."

Unable to withhold himself, he shouts one last time in vain as the surge overwhelms him. "I'm serious, let me go!"

His wings snap out from underneath his cloak, spreading far and wide with each feather proudly displaying his alicorn heritage. Larvae is caught off guard by the sight of his wings clasping around her body, his forelegs giving way to allow him to press his hips fully into hers. "WOAH!" She yelps as his hips lunges forward with authority.

He buries his head into her neck, willingly driving every pulse of his orgasm into her womb. His seed spills with such urgency that he easily spills from within her body, breaking past every small opening that their bodies allow. His heart pulses loudly in his ears, knowing the taboo he willingly indulged in, hearing every praise she's offered that's set him off in a way unlike any other.

In his pants, he relaxes every part of him, his wings being the first thing to uncoil themselves from around her. He lays atop of the changeling mare, panting and sweating from the moment of high ecstasy. His eyes glance down to hers, easily forgetting what she is for a moment, what he is in that embrace... until. "Wow... I love your wings."

His countenance fades from the enjoyment of his time with her, to now realizing that he is a prince of Ponyland, and his seed now infests the womb of a creature unlike him. The horror of that message runs clear in his mind, driving him to instantly release her and use his magic to break her away. He leaps from the bed and snaps his wings back underneath his cloak. "I need to go."

"Wait─" He plea falls short as he walks out the door.

"I've been here longer than I needed to be! I need to go now! I'm well out of my time here─"

But even his arguments are interrupted by her catching up to him, jumping on his back and tilting his chin to have his lips meet with hers. He freezes in horror while the changeling wears a heartwarming smile. "Thank you for last night. I truly needed that release. You let me finally have that moment, the moment I was trying to hard to─"

He breaks her off of him again, stepping away as he realizes both what false expectations he's given her, as well as the painful dosage of their reality as strangers. It brings a sour, crippling turn of her lips to her face, so sour that he turns away in shame. "I... I don't think we can see each other again." As he makes that confession to her, he makes a poignant statement to himself. "Not a soul will know about this. I'll just leave this and pretend that none of this ever happened. I'll just dust off and try things again." He feels his neck slowly turn. "Don't look back. Walk forward. That moment never happened. And it will never happen again."

He walks into the elevator, presses the button for the lobby, and looks back to the reflective mirror, seeing the changeling before the doors close. A sad smile shows as the last thing she gives. He looks towards himself, unfurling the bandages over his disabled eye, staring at the glossy organ that reminds him of his truth, his purpose. He stares at the sash, who's jeweled accents wear off from the cheap glue that was used.

"...Figures."

Returning to the mountainside caves, Agamemnon ventures deep within where the light of the sun barely gives any hope for sight. He uses his horn to light his way, eventually coming back to the airship with the Equestrian Banner superimposed over what was once the sigil of Ponyland. He enters into the airship, greeted by none other than Eros.

"Back from your midnight debauchery with the locals?" The lavender-eyed prince takes a sniff of the stallion trying to brisk past him. "Yeah, you had a night worthy of it's forgetfulness. You reek of booze, sweat, and shame. Learned anything while you were out, or did you just simply get piss drunk again and wound up in some lower-class' bed?"

The silver-eyed prince scoffs as he easily weaves a story, part truths, parts fiction. "It was a fun little rout, I'll admit. The night was rife with a choice of three, and I chose... poorly, but I chose. Drunk and forgotten the night may be, but I'm sure that in time I will remember as I often do and will regale you with stories."

The prince smirks back at his brother. "So, were they of any use to you in bed? Were you wound up with an ugly duckling with some notable skill or something? Did the firm and mighty 'Magus' find himself in the clutches of one who has at last put whip to flesh?" He starts to tail his older branch sibling. "Oh don't tell me that you've found some new kink in this one, or are you merely gatekeeping again?"

"Maybe you shouldn't be so damn picky, you'd find out for yourself." The older lunges back, before holding his head. "Damn humans have some sort of concoction cooked up. Stronger than the countryside moonshine of the hicks out in Hayfling."

The younger brother shows a disgusted look of surprise. "That strong!? Usually that stuff is about 140 proof."

"Try 190."

The younger sibling croaks a stunted breath. "Are you alive?"

"Wishing I wasn't." The elder groans. "I'm going to the room now. I think I might puke."

"Egh... Away then. Don't need you evacuating in my presence." Eros orders with gross displeasure.

Agamemnon makes his way to his quarters, finally stumbling back into his own bed. He places a hoof over his face to void off the incandescent light within the room. His stomach turns with more and more thoughts of the night slowly starting to recall to a more picturesque vision as opposed to the unshaped blobs of earlier. He remembers faint traces of things, another changeling walking around with a purple and green dragon, the sight of the changeling mare smiling back at him on the dance floor, the stumbling walk back to the hotel, how her tongue danced so vividly around his sex, how inviting her throat had been, how she took him from above, the manner of her hips grinding against his with complete abandon, how eagerly she swallowed, and offered no moment of a refractory period for him. How gentle her hooves were, how he was milked dry the moment he finally passed out. Then waking up to him still being inside of her, only for her to tease him to warmth and ensnare him again.

He inhales, close his eyes, remove the cloth over his eyes, and sighs dejectedly. "Why the hell did she give me that smile?"