Chapter 13: Sunrise

Chapter Thirteen: Sunrise

Bless rushed to the door and grasped one of the guards by his gold chainmail. Her fear for the Queen overwhelmed any notion of self preservation.

"Go get the dark one that looks like me and Alloy, now!"

The other guard tapped and readied his spear with bared teeth. Bless didn't acknowledge the threat.

"You, Carry the queen into the lab."

She began to run past the angry guard and paused.

"Did I fucking stutter?! Get her now!"

She took off leaving two confused guards that looked to one another for answers. The only ones they had were to listen and act.

Bless began by noting all she had to work with. This lab was remarkably different from the low budget equipment back at Last Harbor, so much of it nearly eight years older than her training. The chair itself was custom and nearly featureless, just three segments of articulate padded panels and the six metallic plates attached to motorized swivels along the sides. No ports or other connections to be found.

"Right! Voice activated. Chair, prep for an Ascended."

The chair shifted into a reclined position before all six resonant plates swung in place and began to hum. At the same time, a cylinder of stone arose from the floor near the chair's armrest. Once the full two meters of stone stopped extending from the ground Bless noticed an open hollow in that cylinder. Within the hollow was a bag of saline solution attached to two thin tubes. One extended into the stone and the other ended with a sealed hypodermic needle. An IV stand with some sort of Serum injection apparatus.

"Damnit, Alloy, I didn't expect to love you more but here we go.", she muttered to herself before turning to her next task.

"I'm here!"

A gold plated soldier shouted. In his arms was the limp body of Queen Celestia shrouded up to the neck in her silk sheet.

"Put her in the chair. Do you know how to put in an IV?"

She shouted out orders with her back turned. To her relief Alloy answered back.

"I'm on it."

Alloy and Hex outraced the guard sent to fetch them. Without time or care for shame the two dressed hastily. Hex only wore her dusty trousers and Alloy wore Hex's shirt.

"Hex, did you bring the tap gloves?"

Bless caught the glove in mid-air just as she turned to look at her dark half. Hex already had hers on. The two gave each other a knowing look. In their minds they could hear each other's thoughts.

"You're looking more confident, Bless."

"And you actually noticed, Hex."

Hex turned to the guard as he was catching his breath.

"Hey guy, we need-"

"This?", Queen Luna appeared from nowhere. How she even entered was a mystery that would need to wait. The Queen had the element of Redemption.

"Thank you, your highness", Bless took the stone sphere between both hands and squeezed. Dust and chunks of ancient concrete rained down to the floor. Gray sand ran though Bless's left hand to expose a brilliant red-orange gem no bigger than her palm.

Alloy perked as Bless's intention came clear.

"Chamber one, prep to mature"

The dragon's order made a light in one of the several large cylindrical chambers turn on. From a hidden mechanism an opalescent fluid began to fill the inside of its reinforced window. A hatch in the top swung open with a loud hiss.

"Aaand in goes the catalyst", Bless said as she plopped in the element. One more order from Alloy shut the chamber before it began to repressurize.

"Okay, quick rundown. Hex and I pump this mixture with light and dark magic, the element makes sure we don't mess up the balance. Alloy, your transmutation magic is going to turn this high-speed maturation tank into an instant maturation tank."

Alloy bit her lower lip. "I've never done this before."

Hex touched her shoulder. "You have made several serums the normal way. There's no doubt in our mind, otherwise, we wouldn't go through with this. Not with her life on the line."

The brutal honestly seemed to settle Alloy's worry. With a small nod from the dragon they began.

Hex and Bless punched gloves to bring their taps to life. Both could feel their own vital energy flow from the nerves in their body and run though the glove's mechanism. Their palms touched the maturation chamber as energy leaked and slithered over its curved surface. From bless came a bright mist dancing with sparks. From Hex came a dense smoke that swirled to the windows edge. Both energies swirled about one another as if repelled, yet both clung to the metal surface of the chamber and seeped between the very atoms of the metallic surface.

Alloy drew in a long breath as she stood between the twins. The segments of her horns began to crackle with emerald embers. Her head leaned in as a thin churning green flame hit the chamber's window.

The gem inside began to slowly turn within the mineral solution. As moments went by it's turning grew in speed. A few moments more Alloy's eyes grew unfocused. Her nostrils flared as air was drawn into her lungs as fire rolled from her parted lips. Like all her species, Alloy could draw breath in and out simultaneously. Despite this talent, her head grew light and stars formed in her vision. The fire of this spell was greedy, leaving little air for her lungs.

Sweat began to bead from Hex and Bless's skin. Cold shivers ran through their bodies as calories and nutrients stored in their fat and blood were consumed to keep their Mundane magic flowing. Bless's knees buckled and she nearly collapsed before Alloy caught her around the waist. Alloy gripped Hex before the dark mare could do the same..

The heavy pull took them by surprise. Alloy's eyes rolled onto the back of her head as the need for oxygen won. Her body crumbled into the ready arms of Luna. Alloy began to lean forward and summon her power again before the queen spoke.

"The Element has it from here. Save your strength."

Hex and Bless were tugged forward as their palms were drawn and held fast against the chamber's wall by the magic flowing out of them. The element demanded more as Alloy's spell continued on its own. Small green sparks danced within the swirling fluid. A solution of basic minerals assembled itself into a serum of saline and small interlocking gears smaller than a fine hair.

Alloy tried to pull away from Luna's hold, yet for all her strength, the Queen was deceptively strong.

"Let me go, Dammit! It's going to drain them dry!"

"It's okay." Bless began. "The element gave us enough energy to form separate bodies."

Hex finished.

"Now they need it back."

The holy must and profane smoke flowing out of their gloves spread up their arms, consuming them whole before merging, Like a wildfire, the magic churned and twisted together as it reduced to the size of one mare. Mist and smoke pulled away from a single nude figure, not even the tap gloves remaining.

Arcane recognized the mare that looked back at her from the chamber's reflection. A painted pattern of black blotches were on the right side of her face and all of her right arm. Her left side had a small blotch along her neck and most of her left leg. The left half sported a gold eye and straight lavender hair. Her right was wavy and pink, like her grandmother on her dad's side. Like a calico cat, Arcane was born as a chimera.

It was a rare but not unheard of condition. The fertilized egg that would of been Hex hadn't attached to her mother's uterine wall, yet managed to survive one week before Bless was conceived. The two merged. Nine months later a calico filly came into this world.

"Chair, transfer chamber one."

The fluid level within the chamber begsn to lower on Alloy's command. Luna loosened her hold. Unknown to the three, an audience of dragon and Equis soldiers in silver armor had gathered in the now crowded room. Without hesitation the crowd parted for Queen Luna, Acane and Alloy in company.

"Chair, Display."

Two broad rectangles slowly dropped from the ceiling, one above the foot and the other over the headrest. Small holes opened up as the shapes began to hum like a resonant plate. Grey dust flew out of the holes and began to swarm in the shape of a transparent Celestia.

"Zoom in on the left temple along scar number three."

A floating window formed to provide a magnified image of Celestia's head, microscopic nerve damage enlarged for all to see.

"Chair, full pattern. No exceptions." Arcane added.

Among the guards were concerned faces. 'Full pattern' meant the resonant plates would send the serum to every frayed nerve in Celestia's body. In normal circumstances this would be a death sentence for everyone around, instant magic overload, total Golden Hills Senario.

"If this doesn't work I want you to shut it down."

Alloy looked over at the unreadable face of Queen Luna, before she could protest or agree Luna continued.

"She'd rather die, that's my sister. That's what she would want."

They looked on as the serum made its way through the Queen's blood. Her body lifted off the chair and began to hover, the scars on her body began to glow emerald. The display finally showed movement. Nanites formed what looked like vines in splitting patterns from one edge of frayed nerves to the other. Some shattered as others took their place in an ever evolving pattern of creation and destruction.

"It's self-selecting…" Alloy muttered. "I love you.."

Arcane smiled. "You beat me to it."

"Of course I did", Alloy said with a cocky smirk.

The display began to glitch, swarms of gray sand thrown into a flurry like angry gnats. Two golden lights emerged from Celestia's forehead and danced in a narrowing spiral, soon forming a long brilliant horn. Her emaciated body began to fill out, toned muscle and a layer of fat giving the 1.8 meter Equis her true matronly form. When the emerald light faded it left behind off-white fur, not quite matching the coat. Reminders of what she survived.

The silk sheet that had barely protected Queen Celestia's dignity fell away. The only jaw that didn't drop was Luna's. She simply smirked. The Queen was more endowed than most stallions there.

"Like anyone here is surprised." Luna muttered to herself.