To be Awakened

Chapter 6 Operation: Stolen Gnome

Perched high in Canterlot Castle, the view stretched majestically over the city, revealing a vibrant panorama of architectural wonders. Canterlot, the regal capital of Equestria, boasted a harmonious blend of classical and magical structures.

The towering spires of the castle dominated the skyline, adorned with delicate filigree and crystalline accents that reflected the sunlight. Cascading waterfalls adorned the cliffs, adding a soothing melody to the visual symphony below. The city itself sprawled gracefully across the mountainside, with cobblestone streets winding through neighborhoods adorned with charming pastel-colored buildings.

Ponies of all kinds; unicorns, pegasi, and earth ponies, traversed the city's thoroughfares, their daily lives intertwined with the magic that permeated Canterlot. Vendors offered treats in the bustling markets, and enchanting boutiques displayed glittering wares. The vibrant energy of daily life harmonized seamlessly with the magic that enveloped the city.

Staring at one of the few towers allowed to rise higher than the castle, a lone mare looked at the time, contemplating her choices and path before shifting her eyes to the garden below. There, three statues stood, immortalizing Equestria's most infamous villains.

She couldn't help but scoff at the idea; to her, they were more like villains of the month. If she had led the group, they would have conquered the entire province without anyone knowing. But she couldn't solely blame the three, especially that one. Memories of her remained vivid—the transition from before the tree to what she became afterward.

Red slowly moved her eyes away from the statue, staring at the sky, reflecting on more pleasant memories when the world was simple; when her sister smiled before the magic had poisoned her heart, mind, and body. A creature of pride and hunger had emerged, but still she smiled.

"At least she had the spine," Red muttered, shaking off the thoughts but remembering the past. "No use lingering too long…" She returned her gaze to the statue. "Looks like you need me to save you again. Such a pain, but what are big sisters for?"

Red smirked discreetly. Today was her last day as the character she’d been playing this whole time. Hopefully, she’d done enough pre-planning so that the powers that be wouldn't ask so many questions after this. She was contemplating a return with a new façade someday, and it would not do to raise suspicion. Her tenure working for the princesses had started around the time Twilight first left for Ponyville. How many years had it been?

Red, as one of her more laid-back characters, enjoyed having plenty of friends in the castle, trusted by everypony to do things normal ponies couldn't. With an airheaded demeanor, her occasional mistakes appeared more like quirks than malfeasance, whether she was snooping around or exploring the castle.

"Slacking on the job, I see," a disapproving earth pony commented, radiating a strict and elegant aura. It was likely her thousandth time admonishing Red for hanging out in this room.

Red responded with a small smirk, letting out a breath of exasperation. "Come on, C.O., it's my last day! I just want to enjoy my favorite lunch spot with its incredible view. I'm surprised the princess herself doesn't come up here once in a while."

Mrs. Clean and Orderly moved out of the door frame and into the break room, unfazed by Red's attempt to charm her, and looked outside at the view. "Just because it's your last day doesn't mean you should frequently break the rules. We have them for a reason." Despite the stern words, Red heard a softness in her voice.

While others might have thought of Mrs. Clean and Orderly as a slave driver, Red had found her to be fair to everypony who had ever worked there. She had faced twice the scrutiny, being an earth pony, with mini-nobles and maids attempting to undermine her. Red, having been around long enough, played along and usually put them in their place.

It was always a treat when Mrs. Clean and Orderly put a pony in their place on rare occasions. If Red remembered correctly, there were maids who had tried to take her position. Although she didn't personally witness the aftermath, the last time she saw the two, they were loyal little lap dogs of the earth pony, following her words like puppies—Feather Duster and Lacey Frills.

"I deserve a break every once in a while. Plus, I'm still working off that cake you guys had made for me at my going-away party." Red leaned back against the chair before stretching out her body in a very unladylike pose.

Mrs. Clean and Orderly let out a huff as she sat down across from Red. "I could never understand you. I've been here for a very long time, and you? You're the only oddity I could never figure out. You hardly seem less skilled than most others, but you always play second fiddle to everyone."

Red offered a small smile, but her look of false interest shifted into a sharp, analyzing gaze. She was about to say something, but Mrs. Clean and Orderly spoke first.

"No matter what task I gave you, you succeeded—difficult or easy. On top of that, no matter who I paired you with, you always made them shine. Whether it was the hardest worker or the laziest slacker, you made sure it was done."

Red knew this game well. They had been playing it for years, where Mrs. Clean and Orderly tried to figure her out—an enigma, seemingly a jack-of-all-trades who never showed she was angry, no matter what happened, and could seemingly handle almost every situation. Moreover, she had a cutie mark that seemed unrelated to her service-oriented nature; a line with a circle on one end and an arrow on the other, detailing the size of several fruits. At the top, a watermelon, then an eggplant, then a tomato, a habañero, a strawberry, and finally a pomegranate seed at the bottom.

Remembering that Mrs. Clean and Orderly was quite traditional, a believer in destiny and a follower of the Sundial—a religion quasi-banned by Celestia—Red wondered how it would feel to be ignored by a goddess. Her devil was quite alive, and he paid attention to all of his children. Red couldn't help but giggle.

"You keep tiptoeing around what you really want to say. This might be the last time we see each other, so you might as well tell me if you've fallen in love with me..." Red, feeling bold, whatever the consequences, wanted to see the surprise on the older mare's face. To her shock, she let out a chuckle. She probably wasn't expecting that. The character Red had portrayed had never made a joke like that, but she felt like letting loose.

The older maid's face flushed red before she composed herself. "That is inappropriate. You should not be making jokes like that with your superior. Not to mention, I could still clock you with sexual harassment. Didn't your parents ever teach you some respect for older mares like me?"

Red managed to suppress her giggles as she smiled. "Who said I was joking?"

As she leaned closer, her body pressing against the other mare's, a devious smile playing on her lips, the gray-haired mare scowled. "It seems like you're really showing your true colors, now that you're on the way out. But you're right. I should say what I have to say. Are you a changeling?"

No fanfare, no hesitation, the head maid just came straight out and said it. That's what Red loved about this one. The thought to lie crossed her mind for a second before she smiled. "That's a complicated question. The simple answer is “Yes.” The complicated answer is complicated. But tell me, what brought you to that assumption?"

The older mare scrutinized Red, trying to discern any telltale signs of deception or changeling traits, but like Princess Celestia, she kept her cards close to her chest. "I was there when you slipped that letter to Princess Celestia. I saw you place it in her pile of papers. You were the one who foiled Chrysalis's plan to invade Canterlot."

Red shifted uneasily, recalling the day she had managed to slip her message into Celestia's important documents. She found it personally amusing that she could outmaneuver Celestia but had been caught by a simple maid.

"I must be growing sloppy. Maybe it's because of the relaxing job here. Oh well," Red remarked, leaning back slightly and resting both hooves on her chin, feeling the fur against her skin. "So tell me, what do you want for figuring it out? I'm a changeling. I'm on my way out, and even if you do tell anyone I was a changeling the whole time, we're now widely accepted by the general populace."

The head maid seemed to grapple with the weight of her next words. "Why did you help us? During the invasion, you tricked us into the lower levels of the castle, protecting all the staff from having their love drained or being kidnapped. Even after the invasion, you didn't take credit for your deed. You worked as a normal maid. Even when the changelings were finally accepted into Equestrian society, you still didn't reveal yourself.”

Red nodded along.

“And now you're leaving, and I don't buy your excuse that your sister landed herself in prison and you're going to Las Pegasus to help support her. So why? You could stay here. You could tell Celestia that it was you. I'm pretty sure she would reward you, and ponies wouldn’t care if you were a changeling; you would be considered a hero."

Red took a moment to savor the word "hero," letting it roll off her tongue. "I've been playing a character for a while, and I don't think I need to anymore. At least, not right now."

Mrs. Clean and Orderly appeared puzzled by the statement as Red twirled her forehoof in a nonchalant motion.

"Being a hero is too much work. Plus, can you imagine me saving the day?"

Mrs. Clean and Orderly leaned back in her chair. "To be honest, I can't imagine you at all, especially if I never knew you."

Red erupted into laughter. "Ha! Any proper spy, infiltrator, or liar will tell you the same: Lies are actually the truth wearing a different hat. Most of the time, I acted the same way I would normally act if I wasn't pretending to be someone else. But I guess I should answer your question."

She slid a white card with a design of a red dagger encircled by an aurora-like motif across the table. An odd star adorned the background.

"Take this card to Las Pegasus, find the Lucky Horseshoe Casino, look for a bar with two zebras on the sign, and then ask for Golden Eye if you're truly curious. Oh, yes, and don't forget to bring a book. Rarer is better, or extremely new."

The head maid reached for the card, and Red's smile widened as it exchanged hooves.

"Oh, and to be clear, I didn't fully lie. I am leaving to help my sister, who is in prison. But for now, something is about to happen. You should take off early tonight. Go home, take a bubble bath, and try to rest well for tomorrow."

Observing the time, the head maid noted there were only thirty minutes left until the end of her shift. Mrs. Clean and Orderly began to say something, but the look in Red's eyes gave her pause. Red's irises narrowed into slits, revealing a hint of something sinister and malevolent that the head maid had never seen before.

Red closed her eyes, and when she reopened them, her usual warm, pony-like eyes greeted Mrs. Clean and Orderly, accompanied by a kind smile. The head maid hesitated, then stammered, "Y-yes, I think I will take an early night…"

Red giggled softly as the mare stood up and exited the room, closing the door behind her.

"Red, even though I no longer have eyes on her, I can still take the shot."

Red rolled her eyes. "Are you really going to bet against me? When have I ever been wrong about a target?"

Silence lingered for a good five minutes. Red took a moment to gaze out at the view before the voice returned.

"I guess today is not that day. She's exiting the castle. I thought you were going to make this job difficult again."

Red leaned slightly out the window, releasing a breath of irritation. "I am the best operative in the entirety of Lab One."

A second voice came over the line. "And that's why you're defying orders to free your sister?"

The younger voice irked Red slightly. She disliked cocky newcomers. "You can stuff it, rookie. Doc will understand. Plus, the Council is up in arms about the lower life forms digging where they're not supposed to be. Their attention won’t be on little old me…"

A third voice chimed in, this one female with a softer pitch. "Please don't remind me about those dinosaurs whining about how the lower life forms are meddling with the great technology of a long-dead civilization."

Red blew a raspberry. "Not as dead as they said it would be."

The first voice responded with a heavy, gruff tone. "Quiet that chatter. The operation is about to begin. If there are any consequences, we'll deal with them when we return to base."

Red reached towards her watch and pressed a button, activating the timer. She could see she had twenty-five minutes. "Operation: Stolen Gnome is a go," she announced over the radio before immediately leaping out of the window.

As she fell, her yellow fur began to burn away, revealing a large, black, chitinous series of plates that covered her body like armor. It was a sleek, black material that seemed to shift and move around her form, with sturdy slats covering her chest and forming a coif-like structure around her head.

Her short red hair flowed behind her as she descended, seemingly relaxed despite the rapid approach of the ground. With a controlled landing, she slammed into the gardens below, leaving four small craters in the earth as she strode forward amidst the debris.

"That's never pleasant," she muttered as she surveyed the garden. "Really? This is where you imprison your enemies? Talk about lax security. What’s the point of even having a gate to Tartarus if you don’t employ it?"

Red used her magic to open her small backpack with a red cross on it, retrieving a device and placing it on the ground before proceeding further. It was a small black cylinder, just as tall as it was round, only five centmetres in any dimension. With precise steps, she planted more of these small devices along her path until she reached her destination: a statue depicting three creatures frozen in various poses. One appeared to be carrying something, another wore a look of shock and surprise, and the third radiated pure rage and anger.

Red couldn't help but chuckle. "Wow, sis, you’ve never been photogenic, have you?"

She wasted no time, pulling out three smaller backpacks from the one on her shoulder and securing them onto each of the statues, clicking on the straps around their front and back hooves.

"Red Queen, we have winged chickens moving to check out the noise you made," came a report.

Red finished the final clip on the pegasus statue before turning to see armored pegasi flying towards her.

"Clip their wings when they're closer to the ground; don’t injure them too badly."

As two guards approached to investigate the disturbance, they were swiftly incapacitated by something that impacted their armor and seemingly electrocuted them, forcing them to drop from the sky and land on the ground.

"Two targets have been subdued, but I think we have woken up the roost," her earpiece crackled. "Multiple ground pounders are moving into your positions and spreading out throughout the castle; they're locking down the front door. Also, it looks like horn heads are casting spells, and the flying chickens are doing their best to scout. You have four to five minutes before they realize."

Red turned around to see three unicorns teleport to the gardens and look at the downed guards.

"Guess I was wrong, Red Queen. You certainly started to make some noise," she heard over the comms.

Red donned a devious smile. "You've been waiting for that, Griffin Eye," she replied.

Even though she couldn't see it, she knew the sniper was smiling. "Approved. Time to make some noise."

The unicorns were screaming at Red to surrender, and the pegasi, seemingly alerted by the noise, rerouted themselves to her location. Two of the unicorns went down before the third raised a barrier, not seeing how his fellows fell but knowing the electric dance they did was very clear something had hit them.

"That's not going to work," Red remarked as a third shot rang out, breaking a small hole through the magical barrier and dropping the unicorn.

"Red Queen, we are coming from the south," came the call over the comms. “Are we going to need to come in hot?”

“I’ll keep the glue factory ready. We don't know if the big horses are going to be coming in, but if they do, we'll need to be ready, Big Bird…”

Red swiftly set up the battlefield, placing circular devices in the corners of the gardens. Several more shots rang out, irritating her.

"Griffin Eye, you're going to give away your position if you keep using the ponies as target practice," she scolded.

The heavy gruff voice chuckled in response. "It's not my fault that the horn heads are trying to be snipers; it's kind of cute. Oh yeah, the flying chickens are moving to surround you. Let Gearhead play."

Red simply let out a breath. "Gearhead, you have been authorized to release the swarm. And try not to kill anyone. I hope you can handle that, Rookie," she relayed over the radio.

"Don't worry. Unlike the old man, I didn't equip my boys with stingers. And play some good tunes this time," came the response. “In The Flesh? That's what's going to be played.”

“Oh, come on, that song again? Never mind. Targets have been identified. Engaging now,” Red remarked, easily hearing the buzzing of the droids. Those things always brought her smiles. The rookie might have been new, but he was one of the most skilled techies in the group, and his synchronicity with his tech was almost perfect.

“Whisper, start the distraction as well. You know what to do,” Red announced, pulling out the box-like device before flipping through it and hitting play on her playlist. “They're out of the way, starting in five, four, three, two, one.”

Red couldn't see it, but she heard it—the east side gate going up in flames in one big explosion as many smoke bombs went off all throughout the city, a mix of heavy, colorful smoke coalescing in large pockets of the city: green, red, and pink. Red wondered if they received the message.

Griffin Eye came alive on Red's speaker. “They are now splitting their forces to go check on those explosions, and there seems to be a giant hole in the gate,” he reported.

Red looked to be enjoying the chaos from the view of the gardens. “Do you have eyes on the sun and the moon?”

“Not yet. I've started so many fires, but surprisingly, they haven't rebuilt themselves. They might be smarter than we thought,” Griffin Eye responded.

Red let out a loud, vicious laugh. “Too bad we’ve already won…”

~*v*v*~

"So, we cannot enter the skies; something keeps knocking us out, and the smoke leaves very little visibility," the pegasus officer grunted. "We need to clear the smoke and then stay in close proximity to each other. If one of us goes down, we can immediately identify what's hitting us. On top of that, the smoke works both ways; they can’t see us, either. Now, no more complaining. Every pegasus, rush to the sky, clear the smoke. Whatever's doing this is on the ground or in one of the towers. If we arrest them, we will overwhelm them. If we rule the skies, we will rule the battle. Now, move out!"

In threes, the pegasus royal guards took off into the air, the magical enchantments in their helmets allowing them to coordinate with each other.

As Captain High Fly gained a greater look at the battlefield, he saw that the gate was destroyed and odd-colored smoke was emanating from the castle in random parts of the city. He could already see the ponies in the distance panicking, but he could not spot any enemies.

As he moved to do a flyby around the castle, he saw an odd creature in peculiar armor before hearing buzzing. Immediately, one of his men reported through the enchantment.

"Sir, there seems to be a large swarm of something unidentified coming in from the south. They’re buzzing for some reason..."

At that moment, music blared through Canterlot louder than anything the Captain had ever heard, almost enough to deafen him, even with the helmet on. It was as if Celestia or Luna did not hold back on the Royal Canterlot Voice. Even still, it wasn’t enough to drown out the words of his men over the radio.

"We're being attacked!!"

As he saw one of his men hit by something, it immediately forced the pegasus to drop, but the oddest thing was he did not make any effort to soften his landing. He immediately turned into a big ball of white foamy substance before slamming against one of the walls and sticking there.

It only took him a second before the Captain saw what hit him—a black device that seemed to have some kind of propellers being held up by a seamless, odd, clear mechanism, with any aspect that indicated it was made using magic hidden from view.

He immediately gave the order. "Engage with whatever those things are!"

After that, the skies became a battleground.

~*v*v*~

Red simply watched the chaos unfold, a smile playing on her lips as she observed the mayhem. She began to sing the song. "Tell me, is something eluding you, Sunshine? Is this not what you expected to see? If you want to find out what's behind these cold eyes, you'll just have to claw your way through this disguise!"

As the battle raged on in the sky in the background, Red danced gracefully, her movements fluid and deliberate. Slowly, she reached into her bag and retrieved a trio of vials, hurling them against the statue. They splattered against the stone, the compound burning through the spell.

Continuing her dance, Red realized that the other two did not have headsets. Using her magic, she put two more on them, pulling them out of her bag. "Wake up, my little creatures! This is a jailbreak!"

The first one to break free was Chrysalis, who stumbled as she emerged, faceplanting into the ground. The pink one let out a scream, drowned out by the music, while the third shivered, the only one to catch a clear glimpse of Red. She smiled at all three of them before responding over her radio.

"The gnome has been cracked, and the chickens are loose. Time for these birds to fly."

Big Bird responded promptly. "We are on schedule. I should be there in ten."

Red looked down at Chrysalis, who glared up at her with anger. She gave her little sister a devious smile. “Looks like I had to save you again. How will the great and powerful Queen repay my service?”

Chrysalis began to speak, but the music drowned out her words. Red glanced at the other two, who looked confused, likely wondering who the strange creature was.

She activated their headsets. “Sorry for interrupting your nap, but I came to pick up my sister and her friends. We need to be quick about the pickup; unless, that is, you would rather continue to be lawn ornaments?”

Chrysalis continued to curse under her breath, drowned out by the drums and electric guitar.

“Chryssie, I know it's been a while, but you should remember how these work. If you want me to hear you, hit the button.”

Chrysalis growled before using her magic to press the button. “Why are you here?!” she demanded.

“Well, that's a long story, dear love bug, but we can discuss it on our way home,” Red replied.

Chrysalis's eyes widened, and she took a combative stance. “No! I'm never going back there! You and that thing[i/i] can die!!”

Red chuckled. “Don't be silly. Father will be happy to see you. He always talks about how you never visit, never talk, never call.” Red glanced around. “Plus, you're putting on a front. You don't have enough love to fight me, even though the spell was broken in an unnatural way. You're still weak from it; I can see your body shaking.”

After Cozy Glow finished screaming, she finally realized what was happening. “Wait, Chrysalis, you have a sister?”

“No,” Chrysalis responded. “I have a group of little shits who call themselves family, but they're nothing more than snakes and monsters!”

Red let out a small laugh before turning towards the other side of the gardens. “We can talk later, but right now, it seems like we have guests.”

The others turned to see the princesses with a small contingent of guards. The first one to step forward was Celestia, wearing an aura of restraint not seen since their fight in Neighpon. Her aura wasn't as intense as it was then, but Red could tell that the princess was holding back. She noticed the metal plates around Celestia's hooves, an extended version of her standard regalia, slightly curved and more spread out to protect her head.

Luna stood next to her, adorned with odd spaulders layered on the base of her wings. If Red had to guess, they likely contained hidden blades, complemented by thin layers of magical protection. Luna's horseshoes were also different, spread out more around her hooves, both upper and lower.

But the most surprising sight was Princess Twilight, wearing heavier armor than either of the other two princesses. It wasn't full plate, but a lamellar scalemail, with her six-pointed star emblem prominently displayed on her chest. She also wore a galea helmet with a horn blade attached.

Red sympathetically raised her hoof to turn down the music, which still played loudly in the background but not enough to be deafening. “Wow, I didn't realize I deserved such a welcoming party! You even decided to don your finest attire to see me, and three out of five princesses, as well!” she quipped, letting out a laugh.

Cozy Glow looked scared, having never seen the princesses in battle armor, while Tirek appeared concerned, not having seen them don their armor in a very long time. Chrysalis looked ready to fight, only held back by the numerical advantage, but Red seemed all smiles.

“So, how can I help you on this lovely night in the garden? Would you care for a spot of tea?” Red enjoyed playing games, but from the looks of the princesses, they were not so appreciative. “Sorry, would you prefer something other than tea? I've heard that's your favorite thing to do—drink tea.”

Luna spoke up. “Surrender now, and you will only be imprisoned.”

Red looked at the princess, but smiled and turned her back, walking towards the ledge and pointing towards the aerial battle that was going on. “I'm sorry to tell you this; it looks like my forces are winning, so surrendering now would end the fun early,” she taunted, unable to suppress her grin.

Celestia stepped in before her sister could utter the curses she had for the insolent bug. “I don't know what you have planned or who you are, bu–”

“Red,” she interrupted with a grin. “Nice to meet you again. I’m a mercenary, an explorer, the world’s best infiltrator… and single,” she said, wiggling her eyebrows at Celestia.

Luna and Twilight were caught off-guard by the display, but Celestia managed to maintain her stoic demeanor. “Red, if that is indeed your name, what evil are you planning?”

“Sorry to disappoint you, princess, but I'm not here to commit some great evil,” shrugged Red. “I'm just here to pick up my kid sister. After that, who knows? I try not to mess with Equestria. Too much work, not enough profit. Plus, unlike my little sister, I don't have grandiose dreams of taking over the world or feeding endlessly on love,” she explained.

Chrysalis hissed at Red, but even Celestia couldn't help but be surprised at the news. “Wait, you two are sisters?”

“No,” Chrysalis responded venomously. “This failure is only an imitation of what changeling greatness should be!”

Red rolled her eyes and let out a small chuckle. “Look at this; my little sis is so ungrateful. I come to pick her up from a bad spot, and she only scowls and barks at me like a yappy pomeranian. Would you care to trade, Celestia? You can have Grumpy Pants, and I’ll take little Full Moon. At least she learned her lesson on rebelling against her bigger sister. I guess a thousand years on the moon will make anyone compliant,” she joked.

Luna pulled out her crescent axe, ready to strike at the irreverent bug, but Celestia used her magic to hold her back. Twilight seemed confused by the new information about Chrysalis's sister, bringing up many questions. One in particular burned in Twilight's mind, forcing her to ask.

“Why didn't you help Chrysalis earlier?”

The question silenced everyone as Red took a minute to think about it. With a smirk, she answered. “It’s very simple. Our dad wanted to teach Chrysalis a lesson, which seemed to fail. Instead of coming home to lick her wounds, she decided to play survivalist in the woods for months. And then Discord, that arrogant irritation of a creature, played her like a fiddle, and forced her to become the instrument of your success story, little Twilight. My sister, the monster, the terrible trio, all just stepping stones for the great Princess Twilight Sparkle to prove herself as a worthy leader. I find the spirit of disharmony especially sickening, but I have to applaud his tactful skills to manipulate three willful villains and turn them into stepping stones for you. If I didn't know better, I would think Discord wanted into your figurative pants. Or would that be “behind your tail?””

“Quiet, you uncultured bug! How dare you talk to the princesses like that?!”

Red looked around to see who said that, spotting a unicorn guard. “Pony beings in a mob… What's a mob to a princess? What's a princess before an alicorn? What power has an alicorn in the eyes of a nonbeliever who doesn't believe in anything?”

Everypony looked around in confusion at what she said.

“Not at all surprising. We came to Canterlot and didn’t find a single music store with a rap album. Basically, what gives me the right is that I don't give a shit. But I'll give you the courtesy that you did not give us. Each of your three little princesses can ask a question, and I'll answer honestly.”

Red lit up her horn, putting the other ponies on the defensive before she tapped twice the button on her headset, which caused the speakers to switch to the next song. The ponies seemed to hear the same words she was saying over the song, but it had an odd beat, and some of the guards even started bobbing their heads.

“So, let's start with you, Moon Butt, and then we'll go to Sun Butt, and then we'll go to the nerd,” she continued, referring to Luna, Celestia, and Twilight respectively.

All three of them glared at the changeling. They couldn't miss an opportunity like this. Even if it was all lies, they could always interrogate her later after she was caught.

Luna had enough time to compose herself before stepping closer to the bug. “What were your true goals? You did not come here and start attacking our city only to release three criminals from their just punishment,” Luna demanded.

Red couldn't help but laugh. “Just punishment? Oh, that was a good one! But being honest, that's all I really came here to do. Nothing more, nothing less.

Luna looked indignant that her righteous cause was being laughed off. “Why, you arrogant—”

Red lifted a hoof. “Before you go on your self-righteous speech about all the bad things my sister did, I would like to include that the only reason my sister and her cohorts' plan even worked was because of Discord. And for some odd reason, even though he is technically the mastermind of the original problem, he's not in this garden, turned to stone. So, I’m not going to question your law system, but I'm also not going to call it a fair and equal law system, either.”

Luna grit her teeth and let Celestia ask her question, without taking her magic off her blade.

Celestia scrutinized Red. “How did you slip past security? Better yet, who were you impersonating, and is the pony still alive?”

Red tapped her hooves against her chin. “That's technically three questions, but since they all have roughly the same answer, I'll give it to you. There was no pony I was impersonating. I have been working here for years. You probably remember me; I was responsible for bringing your food, cleaning your room, and tending to the rooms of dignitaries and guests. If I remember correctly, I even served Twilight and her friends a couple of times.” A quick burst of magic reverted her the form she had been wearing ten minutes prior. “You knew me then as Red, and I have just introduced myself to you again as Red. I'm also the one who snuck the letter about the changeling attack onto your desk, and after Twilight’s little outburst at the wedding rehearsal, I took on the role of Cadance, placing her close to where Chryssi put the real one so that they would find each other. Granted, I also drugged your tea, but to be fair, I put a lot more effort into stopping her than helping her…” She returned to her proper form.

Chrysalis growled at her sister and attempted to swipe at her, but being locked in stone for that amount of time and having no recovery time made her sluggish and lethargic, making it easy for Red to dodge.

“Come on, little Chryssi, I'm rescuing you now. It's not a good time to let the help see us fight,” Red taunted.

Chrysalis looked up at her and gritted her teeth. “I'll deal with you when we're out of here...”

Celestia, Luna, and Twilight were all surprised; they couldn't figure out why this changeling seemed to help them and hinder them at the same time.

Red smiled, dodging Chrysalis a couple more times before turning to Twilight. “I guess it's your turn, little bookworm. What's your question?”

“Sixty seconds until we're in range,” Red's earpiece beeped.

“Set up for the escape plan,” she ordered, glancing at the princesses.

Twilight smiled, thinking of a question that would challenge Red's smugness. “Where are you going with the three of them?”

Red looked surprised before pondering and then smiling back. “Objection, argumentative question. You’re assuming that we’re leaving, rather than launching an assault, you assume that I’m taking them all to the same place, and that I’m going with them. But I’ve allowed the other two to use tricky language, so I’ll let you do it, too. We're going to the City of Dust, of course, where you set up your little encampment. Father will be quite happy for our family reunion,” Red replied casually.

Twilight looked surprised, then opened her mouth to ask her next question. Before she could, though, Red’s magic closed her jaw.

“I'm sorry, little one, but I gave each of you just one question, and you each tried to cheat more information out of me. Plus, you've been to our home. You even had the nerve to take something that belongs there. You probably thought he didn't need it anymore. So, this is goodbye for now,” Red declared, turning her attention back to the princesses.

“What makes you think you are going anywhere?” Luna growled.

“That’s another question, but sure, why not? My ride is here, and we don't want to be late to dinner.”

Luna's horn lit up brightly as she used her powerful, booming voice.

Suddenly, there was a heavy buzzing in the air, and everyone turned towards the east to see a large metal contraption coming in close to the mountain. Red smiled at the sight. “Fire.”

Immediately, Luna was hit hard in the chest with something. The blast echoed throughout the city, and Celestia saw Griffin Eye standing on top of the clock tower.

Magic barriers went up to protect the princesses, distracting Twilight and bringing Celestia back towards her sister. As she turned to check on her, she saw a big ball of fluff where Luna had been.

Celestia attempted to use her magic to remove it, but for some reason, her spells seemed to bounce off the substance.

Cozy Glow, Tirek, and Chrysalis were grabbed by Red's magic and immediately tossed off the edge of the gardens. Cozy Glow, forgetting that she was a pegasus, and Tirek screamed for their lives, while Chrysalis, more composed, pressed a button on her bag and was immediately grabbed and pulled towards the flying plane hovering over the city.

Griffin Eye seemed to leap from the tower, connected by the same magnet lock, and was forced towards the plane as if flying. Red observed this with a smile.

“Self-destructs will activate now,” the rookie smugly announced before the mini drones started exploding. Big arcs of either electricity or foam caught the pegasi off guard, causing a fracas. Many were hit by small electric charges or had their wings caught up in the sticky foam.

Unnoticed in the chaos, Seesaw activated her suit and flew into the air, laughing to herself. She turned around to see Celestia with a serious expression. “What's wrong, my little pony?”

Celestia's hair blazed red with anger, barely containing her fury.

“It looks like you might make a rash decision, so I'll give you another problem to deal with.” Red pointed a hoof towards the side of a mountain.

Reluctantly, Celestia glanced in that direction, knowing Luna would hold her gaze. She saw several blinking lights on the mountainside as the sun began to set. She turned back to Red, shocked.

“You probably know what that is—the support column for the mountain. You could attempt to battle me and let those go off, seeing your city fall into the valley, or you can use your magic to quickly dispose of it and let me escape.”

Celestia hesitated, then rushed towards the lights. Red smiled and walked off the edge of the gardens, falling for only a few seconds before her suit locked onto the plane and she was dragged inside the open hangar door, taking a final look at the chaos of the city from the recon Olympus.

Celestia quickly rushed to inspect the mountain more closely, finding devices of unknown origin. She glanced back for a moment to see Red being carried by some force towards the quickly departing plane, moving faster than any machine she had ever seen. She also saw Luna chasing after it as fast as her wings could carry her, which just wasn’t fast enough, and Twilight struggling to fly in her massive armour.

Knowing she didn't have time to worry about Red, Celestia relinquished her focus on the escaped prisoners, immediately using her magic to grab the beeping red devices and scanning the entire mountain. She instructed her telekinesis to gather all of them, pulling them towards herself as she searched for a safe area to dispose of them.

As she removed the devices, she heard them beeping faster. Unable to throw them or teleport them due to the risk of their explosive power, Celestia pointed herself upward and flew at her top speed, creating a sonic boom as she moved further and further from the ground.

A streak of red-hot fire made a straight line above Equestria, catching the attention of anyone distracted by other events.

Chrysalis walked over to Red to peer outside of the hangar and smiled. “What are you waiting for?”

Red glanced sideways at Chrysalis. “I assure you, Chryssi, I have no idea what you mean.”

Chrysalis scoffed. “I heard the whole conversation! Collapse the mountain and send those fuckers all to the bottom of the mountain! Bury them in rubble!”

Red chuckled smartly. “Oh, don’t tell me you believed that bluff? Those weren't explosives. It would be almost impossible to sneak that onto the side of the mountain!”

Chrysalis grumbled. “Then what were they?”

Red raised her hoof, pressing a button on a small, hoofheld remote.

A pressurised pink mist burst from the capsules, spreading all over, resembling a massive pink cloud with sunny sparkling lights.

Celestia was immediately knocked out of the sky, spreading her wings wide as she fell to disperse the mist in multiple directions before landing heavily back in the garden, coughing and smoking lightly.

Twilight rushed to her side, her armour discarded and looking utterly shocked by what she saw. “Are you alright?”

Celestia, now perfectly pink, coughed and replied, “Yes, Twilight. It seems it was quite a trap. All that was inside was coloring dye.”

“But if that’s the case,” Twilight looked up as a defeated Princess Luna glided back toward them, unable to pursue the plane any further. “Maybe she was lying about everything else?”

Celestia shook her head. “I don’t know…”

Red laughed at seeing the explosion go off. But her laughter didn't last long after she heard one of the engines cough and sputter and saw how strong Luna’s blast of magic had been.

Big Bird immediately came online. “Whatever that alicorn did, it shocked one of the engines. We're going to have to slow down.”

Red pressed a hoof to her head. “Keep the same speed. Even if we have to come in hot, we are not going to let those amateurs catch up to us.”

Red immediately moved towards a seat on the side of the plane and laid down. Cozy Glow and Tirek, having somehow figured out how to activate their radio after being tossed over the edge of the cliff, looked at her, and then at Chrysalis, who followed right after her. She stared at her sister for a few minutes, seemingly about to say something, before angrily grumbling and walking towards the other two and taking a seat.

“What was all of that?” asked Cozy. “And where are we going?”

Tirek just observed the bug, who seemed to be relaxing.

“My family,” sighed Chrysalis. “And I'm going home…”