Mori Pro Imperio: The Story of Pliton Calleius

When we left the security of Stros M’Kai for the Ogres Tooth Mountains the next day, I was all but anxious. After all, I had died in the last battle. I was once again part of Father’s cavalry unit, along with Twilight, Ernand and Puruseius.

It felt odd, riding a horse. I didn’t feel natural; I was born to fight on foot. But, all the advantages of fighting on horseback far outweighed the odd feelings. I really liked to be in full control, and the steed I was riding was rebellious.

Twilight rode up next to me, and said, “Having a bit of trouble, are we?”

“What tipped you off?” I asked sarcastically, “If there was a horse more rebellious than this one, I would be surprised.”

She laughed at that remark. She then rolled her right shoulder; trying to get used to the Imperial Armor she was wearing. She still had her Cutie Mark above her left breast, though she couldn’t have cared less if it was on. Now that she couldn’t use magic, she was growing sour, and she became sarcastic, and not like herself.

I shirked those thoughts aside; she was going through a rough time right now. The only thing I could do right now was make she didn’t die and just be there; to give her a shoulder to cry on.

Her armor was standard issue Imperial Heavy Armor, though the helmet had been modified to account for her horn. She wielded a Dwarven Sword, and an Imperial Shield. She looked almost Tamrielic, if you took away the horn and purple skin, she could’ve looked like a normal Imperial Legionnaire.

We were about half a mile from Stros M’Kai when the sun began to rise. It would be another mile before we reached the Ogres Tooth Mountains; we were taking a road around the northern boundaries of the mountain range. It allowed us to go straight into the mountains, and gave us a chance to cut off the Daedra if they tried to withdraw to the Isle of N’Gasta, which they held with an iron fist.

Once we reached the foothills, I was growing frustrated. We had left Stros M’Kai three hours ago, and we hadn’t seen one Daedra. I was growing restless. I needed to bloody my blade.

“Patience, Pliton.” Father said, reading my emotions, “We’ll come into contact with the Daedra soon enough. You have to remember we are outnumbered right now, if we rushed blindly to fight them, we would all die. Prudence, it’s a trait all officers need.”

I groaned under my breath, and nodded. Ever since I had seen my Father, he had been giving me short lessons about being an officer of a Legion. He said that if you fell, the entire army would dissolve into an armed mob, and eventually rout. I hated his lessons; I would never become a General: I would stay at Legate.

Besides, I thought, Rikke wouldn’t die. She’s safe, in the Imperial City. She would let other Generals die before her. She’s basically the sole leader of the entire Legion!

We searched. And searched some more. But we never found one Daedra. When it was noon, I was restless beyond human comprehension. The eagerness to avenge my death was impossible to contain. I wanted three thousand Daedra die by my sword before I died again.

“What’s the matter, honey?” Twilight asked, “Is something wrong?”

“I just want to kill some damn Daedra.” I said, “But I can’t, if Father insists on keeping away from them!”

“You know,” Twilight said, “I agree with you. Your father is leading a fruitless search. They probably are far away from the Ogres Tooth Mountains, hell; they might be in the Isle of N’Gasta right now!”

“That is exactly my point, Twilight!” I said, “If only Father understood, he would look farther south.”

“You are so right!” She said, “What is there here for the Daedra? Nothing! You should state this to your Father; make sure he sees it your way!”

I nodded, and turned to Father.

“Father,” I said, “Are you sure the Daedra are inside the mountains?”

“Why wouldn’t they be?” He replied, looking ahead to the road, “They are in close vicinity to both Stros M’Kai and N’Gasta, this is the perfect place to conceal an army!”

“But what if they aren’t?” I argued, “They wouldn’t wait for us to look for them, if I was leading them, I would move south, where the Daedra still control the land. Father, they can be in Saintsport right now!”

“But they aren’t!” Father said impulsively, “And you are not leading them. The Dremora Lord leading this army is known for his cunning, he would stay here.”

“But he could be leading on a goose chase!” I said, “If he was so cunning, he would lead you to believe that he’s hiding here, while withdrawing south!”

“Pliton,” he said dismissively, “In case you have forgotten, I am leading this army, not you. You have to learn that. Until then, I will dismiss all advice you have for me.”

“But Father…” I began.

“Be silent!” He shouted. He held up his hand, and said, “Son, I see what you mean. But I am certain he is here, and not south. And I will search every damned inch of these Divine-forsaken mountains until I find them. Until then, do not speak to me!”

I nodded, and rode over to Twilight, defeated.

“He’s just headstrong,” she said, “Too damn stubborn.”

“Tell me again,” I said. “He just won’t listen to me. How he became General is beyond me.”

“He obviously doesn’t have a lick of sense.” She said, “Why camp your troops in the mountains, when there are grasslands only miles away! It’s common sense, really.”

“Common sense, something he doesn’t have any of.” I sighed, “If we go another hour without finding them, I’m riding south to find them.”

“I’ll come with you.” Twilight said, “Maybe you can link up with your Father, so that when we find the Daedra, you can tell him.”

“What a great idea.” I said, “I’ll go do it now.”

“What is it, Pliton?” Father asked, “I am not in the mood for your…”

“It’s not that.” I said, “I want to link you with me telepathically. So when we find the Daedra, we can relay things back and forth without having to send messengers.”

“That is a good idea.” Father said, “So, what are you waiting for?”

I closed my eyes, and raised my hand, and put it on his forehead. I dug for the spell inside my soul, and began to set up a link. It was very tiresome as I fought to establish connection with him. Sweat beaded from my forehead, and I was scowling in deep concentration.

“There,” I panted. “It’s done.”

“So it is,” Father said through the link. “Will it tire you to keep this up?”

“Not really,” I told him, “The real fatigue comes from opening and closing the link. But it does tire me after twenty-four hours.”

“Good to know,” Father said.

“Is it done?” Twilight asked.

“Yes,” I said, “We can go soon, I think.”

“That is good,” she said, “This is terribly boring.”

I only nodded. The way she was telling me these things and her use of profanity was worrying me. I knew she was going through a rough spot, but this is beyond her. It might also be the fact of me knowing magic, and not her that is making her irritable. But then that would make her less kind to me, unless she doesn’t get angry with people.

I shook my head; I was blowing this out of proportion. She just needed time, I figured. I would need time, and I would be a bit beside myself.

Now, we just needed to find the right time to slip away unnoticed. I devised a plan with Twilight: we would seem like we were racing to the front of the force, but then we would slip away and head south.

It was basically foolproof; I could see no flaws in it. I told my plans to Twilight, and she agreed. There was no way that anyone would find out. And if anyone did find out, they would have no way to tell Father.

So, I initiated our plan a few minutes later.

“Father,” I said, “I will go ahead, and relay if I find any Daedra.”

“Go right ahead.” He said, not looking at me. “I trust you, son.”

I nodded, and waved to Twilight. We rode out of formation, and along the side of the road. We galloped to the front of the army, and stayed there for a few minutes.

I saw a Praefect, and said to him, “Twilight and I are going to check out the woods. Don’t wait up.”

“Yes sir,” he said, saluting me. I nodded, and galloped into the woods with Twilight.

Once we were out of sight from the troops, I said to Twilight, “Alright, we just need to head south now. Phase one is complete.”

“Good to hear.” She said, smiling. “It’s about time I had some real practice with a sword and shield.”
I took slight offence to that statement. But, then again, I had never taught someone the way of the blade. We cantered past the army, but picked up speed as we passed the last of them.

We went for what seemed like hours, until we got out of the mountains. We were nearing a bridge, which separated the two islands of Stros M’Kai. We trotted onto the bridge, and went into a canter as we saw the fields in front of us.

“Let’s get going,” I said, “Father is bound to get suspicious.”

“I agree,” Twilight said, “It’s been an hour and a half. Though I think he might get suspicious in about half an hour.”

We kicked our horses, and we galloped into the plains. The wind flew past my hair, and I felt ethereal, as though I wasn’t really living. I was in this trance for awhile, until I heard a voice in my head.

“Pliton,” it said, “This is Father. Where are you?”

“Oh,” I replied, “I’m still in the front. I think I’m going to stay up there.”

“Alright,” Father said, “Although I don’t want you up there the entire time. I need you back here.”

I agreed, and stopped the mental conversation. I was back in reality, and I was searching for the Daedric Army.
We rode up onto a hill, and saw all of the Southern Island. We saw a black mass heading west, but not much else.

“That must be the army we’re looking for.” I told Twilight, “I better tell Father…”

“No!” Twilight hissed, “You won’t tell him!”

“What in Oblivion is wrong with you?” I asked, “You’ve been acting odd ever since we left Stros M’Kai.”

“Why do you want to know?” She asked, “All you want me for is sex, and you know it.”

“What?” I rebutted, “I do not! I love you, Twilight. That is my way of saying I do when words can’t express it.”

“No,” she said, tears welling up in her eyes, “It’s not. You’re just making excuses. You don’t love me, just my body. And that disgusts me; do you know what is happening to me right now? I can’t use magic, and I’ve depended on it my entire life, since I was a filly!”

“But why are you preventing me from telling him?” I asked.

“So they won’t find you.” She said. She drew her sword, and cut at my steed’s neck. It reared up, whinnied, and fell to the ground, dead.

I fell off the saddle, and scrambled out of its way.

“Twilight,” I said, “What the hell is wrong with you?”

She only reared her horse up, and rode towards me.

It was then, in my mind, I heard something that will haunt me for all of my days.

“PLITON,” it said, “HELP ME! THE TWILIGHT THERE, SHE’S A CHANGELING! CHRYSALIS HAS ME…”

The other Twilight cut off my connection, because she cut at my shoulder. Blood squirted from the wound, and I went to my knees.

“Alright you bitch,” I said, drawing my sword, “I don’t know what you did to the real Twilight, but I’m going to make you regret it!”

“Try me!” She said, “You won’t kill me!”

“We’ll see about that.” I said, using a kinetic blast to shove her off her horse. She shrieked as she fell off, and I ran towards her, sword ready to spill her blood.

She kicked me savagely in the chest as she got up.

“After all that happened,” I said, “I slept with you, a bitch who thinks she can fool me!”

“It worked just fine,” she said, “I orchestrated this all. Oh, but it wouldn’t have happened without Queen Chrysalis’ help! I am Witchthought, one of the Order of Eight, the most powerful Changelings before Chrysalis, and I’ve been posing as the Twilight you so love since you awoke! I am one of the most powerful Changelings in the Order, and we have been ordered by Chrysalis to deliver your head to her on a silver platter. And we won't stop until you're dead, Imperial. Oh, and Clavicus Vile, that wasn’t him! It was another Changeling! That was just another part of Chrysalis’ master plan for you!”

She laughed evilly, and said, “I guess I won’t need this hideous costume anymore.”

Her skin turned black, and her horn disappeared. Instead, two blue-green wings appeared. Her skin turned black, and there were holes in the wings and legs. She still wore the Imperial Armor, though she threw the helmet off, and crushed it with her foot.

She grabbed her sword off the ground, and readied it. I took the first chance to attack, and charged her. She sidestepped me, and cut at my leg.

“I have to say,” Witchthought said, “These lessons you gave me did help, though.”

“You bitch,” I grumbled, getting up, “I’ll kill you for what you’ve done.”

“Oh, we’ll see about that.” Witchthought laughed, “We’ll see,”

I slashed horizontally at her chest piece, catching her off guard. The Cutie Mark on the armor was scratched, and that was what I was going for.

“You forgot I know magic.” I said, smirking. I dropped my shield, and readied a spell in my left hand. Witchthought ran at me, but I roasted her with a fireball.

She shrieked in pain, and I finished the spell. She then began to laugh maniacally, and said to me:

“You don’t know that I can regenerate any wound you give me! Fighting me is…”

I roasted her again. She shrieked even louder, and it made my ears ring. The heat intensified as I grew even angrier at her.

I walked over to her as she panted, and kicked her square in the face.

“You took the form of the one true love I have.” I said, roasting her again. “You slept with me in that form, and took advantage of me. You should die a thousand deaths for what you’ve done, and you know very well I can do that!”

She screamed as fire enveloped her again. I smirked, and said:

“It doesn’t feel nice having your eyeballs melt inside their sockets, does it?”

“You bastard!” She said, “What is wrong with you?”

“Too many things,” I said in a calm yet enraged tone, “And you are one of them.”

I stabbed her in the chest, and sent a lightning bolt through her heart. She screamed out in pain, and spat at me. I didn’t flinch, but instead set her on fire again.

I threw her off my sword with a kinetic blast, and kept setting her on fire.

“You’ll pay for this!” She said desperately, “Twilight Sparkle will die for what you’ve done to me!”

“I’m not done yet.” I said coldly. “I’ll be done when all that’s left of you is a charred corpse.”

I put my hand right in front of her face, and unleashed the most brutal fire spell I knew on her. She screamed, but I did not relent. My cold rage at her would only be satisfied with her death.

Witchthought was clearly in agony, with burns and boils not healing on her black skin. She looked at me painfully.

“Please,” she said, “Spare me.”

“Not a chance in hell, bitch!” I shouted at her, and burned her until there was nothing left. I screamed every insult and curse I could think of, all the while she was dying from burnt internal organs and bones. This went on for hours, until finally she died.

When there was nothing left, I only stood there. I could’ve gone on for so much longer, my rage had given me newfound power. I looked at the ashes that were left, and walked away. I picked up my shield, and put away my sword as I picked up my lance.

I climbed onto Witchthought’s horse, and galloped towards Father. He needed to know this.

Surprise! That wasn’t Twilight! Although I guess you know that now. *sigh* Anyway, I modeled this fight after the fight of Roy Mustang and Envy from Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. I adore the show, and it’s one of my favorite animes. Anyway, in the fight, Envy (the villain) revealed that he had killed Mustang’s best friend. That sent him over the edge, and he incinerated her dozens of times, as she could regenerate, just like Witchthought. Also, I don’t know if Witchthought would be a good name for a Changeling, as only Chrysalis was named. But, I used a Villain’s Name Generator found on a website called SeventhSanctum to name her. I found it fitting, because I put sneaky, seductive and combat-oriented for her traits. Please leave a review to tell me what you think! Next time: Pliton returns to his Father, who has been keeping a big secret from him. What is it? Find out when I upload the next chapter! So, until next time, farewell!