>Lyra Heartstrings drew her bow against her viola.
>A rich, smooth tone resonated throughout the room.
>She nodded curtly in satisfaction and gently put the bow down before picking up the next instrument with her magic.
>The second viola stood proud in her magical grasp.
>She pulled a second bow across the strings and listened to the tone.
>Lyra grimaced before turning one of the tuning screws.
>There was a gentle knocking upon the door.

“Come in.”

>Bon-Bon poked her nose into the small room that Lyra had claimed for her instruments.

>”You’re practicing? Do you have a gig?”

“No.”

>Stupid recorded music.
>They should ban that garbage.

“But I can’t let myself get rusty.”

>She summoned Virgo’s perfectly clear mana and began to delicately play the first instrument.
>Virgo was the ideal ley line for delicate and precise works.
>It offered perfection and reliability; a rock steady power supply.
>A good spell crafted with Virgo could run unchanged for hours without any noticeable changes.
>For a music aficionado, a more turbulent ley line would not suffice.
>The minor dips and surges in the spell’s power would ruin the practiced melody.
>If only it offered more power.
>One could only do so much with it.

>”What’cha playin’?”

“Telemare’s viola concerto.”

>Specifically the Presto movement.
>But one couldn’t play it properly with a single instrument.
>And so Lyra lifted the second one and prepared.
>Virgo was tapped.
>It wasn’t like the mighty Sagittarius that could fuel dozens of spells at once.
>The maiden was delicate and fragile.
>That was the price one paid for purity.
>There WAS a workaround though.

>”Why did you stop playing?”

“It just doesn’t sound right without viola 2.”

>Lyra channeled Virgo’s mana further and further away from the ley line.
>And then she peeled off a bit of Libra and mixed it in.
>The well balanced powers of Libra tainted Virgo only slightly, but filled it with power.
>She began to play both Violas at once with renewed vigor.
>Her motions weren’t perfectly steady; a pony with pitch perfect hearing would note something was amiss.
>But to nigh on anyone else it sounded just as good.
>Bon-Bon appeared to be one of those ponies.
>She smiled and hummed along clumsily with the tune, inadvertently betraying that she didn’t know how the song went.
>Lyra continued to play the tune with what appeared to be clinical perfection.
>Her face didn’t admit the truth, that she was at her absolute limit.
>Playing two instruments at once was no mean feat, though she had the skill and talent to manage.
>The true miracle was the spellwork.
>Mana didn’t like to mix, and it fought her every step of the way.
>But she was no ordinary unicorn.
>She was Lyra Heartstrings.
>And she’d been admitted into Celestia’s school for a reason.
>Lyra let out a breath she didn’t realise she’d been holding just as she let go of the final note.

>”That was beautiful.”

>Lyra disagreed.
>She was rusty.
>She didn’t push herself often enough.
>But even so, she swelled with pride.

“Thank you.”

>”Why don’t you do that more often?

“Laziness.”

>”Well it’s a darn shame. The world could use more beauty. Would I distract you if I listened in while working on some stuff?”

>Probably.

“Not at all.”

>She moved on to the next song.and began sawing away quite merrily.
>Bon-Bon hauled a large crate into the room and began pulling stuff out.
>Lyra dared to glance at it real quick.
>She recognised some of that stuff.
>There were no fewer than a dozen guns in there.
>Why anypony would need so many she hadn’t a clue.

>”What are you playing now?”

“A piece by Carl Stamitz. His concerto in D major.”

>”Carl? That’s a weird name.”

>It really was.
>She had no idea where they came up with some of those crazy names.
>She returned to her practice and Bon-Bon returned to her work.
>She strapped firearms to her legs and slotted in drums of ammunition.
>The lively and energetic music was an odd match for the scene.
>Lyra switched to a more somber piece.

>”No, go back. I liked it.”

>Lyra shrugged, but acceded
>Bon-Bon strapped a cuff around her leg.
>Lyra recognised it as the combat drugs that Derpy had.
>Didn’t Bonny have some in her tooth?
>It seemed excessive to give her two supplies.
>Lyra wasn’t exactly happy to see that poison attached to her Bonny, but she didn’t say anything.
>Next was a visor very similar to Lyra’s own.
>Though this one appeared to have a much more sturdy design, with broader arms, thicker plastic, and a steel frame.
>It also notably wasn’t transparent.
>Designed for a different purpose, or just a different model?
>She then put some dull beige bags over her back.
>They didn’t appear to have an opening of any sort.
>Were these those satchel charges she’d heard about?
>Surely not.
>There was no way they had bombs in their house.
>Although, she couldn’t figure out what else Agent Zero would have there.
>Maybe a battery pack?
>But it’s not being wired into anything.

>”Well, I’m off to work.”

>Lyra snapped her bow.

“ALREADY?”

>”Yeah. It’s been a month.”

>She hid it well.
>But the brave face was a mere facade.
>Lyra knew her too well for her to hide it.

>”Back to the ol’ grindstone. The ol’ salt mines. The ol’... work. Back to work.”

>Lyra nearly dropped her instruments in her haste to put them down.
>She ran across the tiny room and jumped on Bon-Bon, wrapping her legs about her barrel.

“Do you have to?”

>”Yes.”

>Her voice was determined and certain.
>But what was that trembling of the upper lip?

“When will you be back?”

>”When the job’s done I hope. I dunno.”

>She inhaled sharply.
>Or was it a sniffle?
>It was hard to tell.

“Well, hold on! I have something for you.”

>Lyra bolted out of the room and headed to her bedroom.
>She retrieved the pendant from beneath her bed.

“I SERIOUSLY need to come up with a better hiding spot.”

>And then she returned to see Bon-Bon had lowered her visor.
>Was that moisture dripping out beneath it?

“I know it’s kinda dumb, but I got you a little gift.”
>She lifted the enchanted pendant and strung it around Bon-Bon’s neck.
>Bon-Bon’s legs wobbled.
>Her head dropped a bit.
>And she let out a long, satisfied sigh.

>”Wow. What is this?”

>Beacon of hope.
>An enchantment that fortifies a pony’s will in the face of terror.

“Tranquil Streams said you’d want it. Said it’d help you out.”

>”Brook made this?”

>Brook?
>That name sounded familiar.
>Was it his real name?
>Was Tranquil Streams just a codename?
>Maybe it was the other way around.

“No. I made it. Well, I enchanted it.”

>Bon-Bon stood up straight and proud.
>Lyra had never seen her stand so tall.
>So confident.
>So lively.
>This was almost a totally different pony.
>She radiated a very primal power that Lyra couldn’t help but admire.
>In all the years they’d known each other she’d never seen this side of Bon-Bon.
>How long had she been carrying her fears with her?
>How many years had she spent being crushed by them?

>”I didn’t know unicorns could do this. Why doesn’t everypony have one of these?”

>Because the sacrifice needed to create one is so great.

“Because it’s custom made for you. You can’t really make one if you don’t know the user’s exact needs.”

>”Thank you, Lyra. I couldn’t have asked for a better gift.”

>She squeezed Lyra tightly.

>”You stay safe when I’m gone. I’ll try to send letters, but they’re probably not going to go through.”

“Promise me you’ll be okay?”

>”Oh, you don’t need to worry about me. Worry about Eurynomos.”

“Eurynomos?”

>”Just some guy I ran into last op.”

>Lyra knew that name.
>She’d heard it in the recording.
>Eurynomos, lord of the Dolorin province.
>A creature so terrible it can reign over hordes of demonic beasts.
>And Bon-Bon had fought him.
>Is that what she was refusing to talk about?
>Little wonder she was stressed.
>Hearing that she’d attracted the attention of such a fearsome foe did little to calm Lyra.

“You were in REALLY bad shape when you came back last time.”

>”Yeah. You’re not wrong. But you know what?”

>A wicked smirk grey on Bon-Bon’s face as she made her way to the door.

>”He was in worse shape. And this time I won’t be alone.”

>She stepped outside into the dark night and closed the door behind herself.
>Lyra ran out to follow her, to wish her well.
>But she could see no signs of her.
>She’d just vanished.
>How could she have possibly gotten away that quickly?
>How did she plan on going anywhere with that stuff without anypony seeing her?
>She wasn’t wearing a Chameleon system like Derpy had.
>So she wasn’t invisible, she was just…
>Gone.
>Starlight’s words returned to her unbidden.
>’They found some way to move way faster. Impossibly fast.’
>But that had nearly killed Applejack.
>They must have found a way to make it work.
>Yet another thing to investigate.
>They were getting to be far too numerous.
>Lyra needed answers.
>It might be time to do some digging.
>She no longer had to hide from her roommate, and she had finally developed a new combat spell.
>Yes, it was time.
>But where to go?
>What to do?
>She wasn’t certain.
>Lyra started moving to head out.
>This was the time.
>Because Bonny was gone.
>She lifted one leg, barely getting it off the ground.
>And placed it in front of the other as her head dropped.
>She dragged herself to her room.
>And she lied down in bed, finding all her energy had been drained.
>Because Bonny was gone.
>And she was upset.
>All this S.M.I.L.E. stuff would have to wait until dawn.
>Lyra was taking a day off to sulk.
That night.
>Lyra woke up.
>She wasn’t certain why.
>Nor was she certain when she’d fallen asleep.
>She rolled over to look at the alarm clock.
>2 A.M.
>She pulled the sheets up and covered her muzzle, planning on going back to bed.
>But something was wrong.
>She couldn’t put her hoof on it though.
>Whatever it was was really bothering her.
>Something was wrong.
>Unsafe.
>Evil.
>There was a dark presence somewhere.
>It didn’t make sense.
>She had to be imagining things.
>But something had her ill at ease.
>She cleared her mind.
>There was strong magic in the area.
>Incredibly strong.
>It was nigh on impossible to sense magic that wasn’t in use.
>Whatever the source, it was active.
>And it could crush Lyra’s magic in an instant.
>That wasn’t the most striking thing about it though.
>It was equine, but not.
>Familiar at first glance.
>But something was off.
>There was something distinctly inequine just beneath the surface.
>Something that made her blood run cold.
>Something nearby.
>She had to move.
>Lyra quickly got up and started to sneak to the doorway.
>She creeped into washroom and moved to turn the faucette.
>But she stopped herself.
>It would make noise.
>Instead she levitated a bit of water out of the toilet.

“Ewww.”

>She cautiously moved out toward the source of the powerful mana.

“Get angry.”

>She reminded herself of all the terrible things that anypony had ever said to her.
>’You’re fat.’
>’Ugly!’
>’Stupid!’
>Nothing was working.
>It was time to break out the mother of all insults.
>’I just think brass instruments tend to sound better than string instruments.’

“REEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!”

>Her infuriated shriek filled the air as she rounded the corner, swinging her liquid weapon at the figure on her couch.
>A jet of pressurised water that could shred steel shot out at the intruder.
>A rift appeared before it, swallowing the water and sending it to parts unknown.

>”A properly executed geyser attack. Not bad. Try not announcing your presence next time though.”

>Princess Luna of all ponies sat on her couch.
>With a can of cider floating in the air before her.

>”And though your bravery may be commendable, it would perhaps be wiser to run next time.”

“Oh my goodness, princess! I’m so sorry, I had no idea it was you, I-”

>Lyra bowed deeply, sputtering madly as she tried to explain herself.

>”Please don’t call me princess when I’m off the job. And you can stop bowing.”

>She sipped at her cider.

>”My apologies for the intrusion. I would have stayed outside were it not for the public. They do tend to grow tiresome at times.”

>She scratched her belly as she stretched out on the couch.
>This wasn’t what a princess was meant to be.
>She’d seen Luna before.
>Regal, calm, collected, stoic, silly-
>Wait.
>She wasn’t very princessly on Nightmare Night.
>She was downright silly!
>Maybe she didn’t understand Luna as well as she’d thought?

>”I wanted to meet the one who made Agent Sweetie Drops’ artifact.”

“Agent Sweetie Drops?”

>”Don’t play dumb.”

>She didn’t sound angry.
>Nor did she seem annoyed.
>Perhaps a bit exasperated.

>”We owe you for that. One day she’s refusing to speak of her prior mission at all, the next she’s giving me a detailed report and itching for round two. A marked improvement I dare say. She’d not be fit for duty much longer without it. She could have cracked at any moment from what I can tell.”

“And you were still going to send her out?”

>An exaggerated scowl appeared on her face.

>”I’m not happy about it either. Poor girl’s gone through enough.”

>She took another swig of her drink.

>”We need her in the field.”

“But what about her needs? Have you ever stopped to think about that?”

>Lyra was surprised at herself.
>That was no way to address a princess!
>But she couldn’t help herself.
>They knew Bonny was suffering.
>THEY KNEW.
>Yet they were still sending her into Tartarus.

>”I have. She’ll have her rest whenever we can offer it. That’s not why I’ve come here tonight though. I need to ask you if you truly understand what you’ve done.”

“I surrendered part of my magic. Permanently.”

>”Not permanently. Not quite. We can return it to you if we destroy the artifact. The magic is trapped within, but we can release it if we damage the focus.”

>Lyra knew that.
>But she wasn’t planning on doing it.

“I want to help Bonny.”

>”And that is very much appreciated. She’s a very important pony and we need her at her best. Though I still don’t wish to ask this of you. We can destroy it when she’s done with her mission if you like.”

>Luna was trying to talk Lyra into reclaiming her magic.
>She understood why.
>It was actually pretty obvious to any unicorn.
>Luna saw her and felt that she was incomplete.
>Just like when Lyra saw Dinky.
>A unicorn without magic was an aberration.
>It was wrong to deny her her birthright.
>A unicorn denied their magic was no unicorn at all.
>And she’d taken a step in that direction.
>Voluntarily.

“I’ll think about it. But right now she needs my magic more than I do.”

>Luna finished her drink.
>The can disappeared into a dark void.
>Lyra was accosted by the slightly wrong magic she’d felt before.
>She still couldn’t figure out why it put her so ill at ease.

>”You’re a good mare, Lyra. Out of curiosity, what ley line was it?”

>Lyra wasn’t comfortable answering that question.
>This was already far too personal.

>”It was Aquarius, wasn’t it? There’s no way it would have been so potent otherwise. To have such mastery of the master ley line is no mean feat. I’d expect no less from a graduate of sister’s school.”

>Did the princess just compliment her?

>”Perhaps if she’d scouted that talent at a younger age- no matter.”

>She stood up.
>The taser shot out of the fake nail in the wall, shooting straight for her.
>Luna ducked her head slightly and it sailed past, harmlessly striking the wall.
>Lyra hadn’t even seen the motion.
>It had all happened in the blink of an eye.

>”I’m not on the whitelist? Well, I suppose I AM an intruder.”

>She chuckled to herself, but Lyra didn’t really get the joke.

>”Don’t worry about Bon-Bon. She’s tougher than you could believe.”

“Last time you sent her home she was a wreck!”

>”We’ll keep her well away from Eurynomos. That never should have happened.”

>No.
>It shouldn’t.

>”It was a waste! Her talents are far better used against Achlys.”

>Luna’s face contorted as she suppressed her laughter.
>A flash of blue light filled the room.
>She was gone.

“Was she joking, or…”

>Lyra had no way of knowing.
>This was such a strange situation.
>A princess had broken into her home.
>She’d acted nothing like a princess.
>She was joking around about terrible things.
>But also complimenting Lyra on her magic.

“Wait a second.”

>Did Luna say that Lyra had graduated?
>That wasn’t true.
>She’d failed out and gone to the Canterlot Academy to study music.
>Didn’t they know everything?
>Surely they’d know what happened at Celestia’s school of all place.
>Sorta weird.
>Lyra wasn’t entirely certain what to make of that.

“AUGH!”

>There were too many questions.
>It was time to go out and answer some of them..
>Tomorrow.
>She was still supposed to be sulking.
Later.
>Procrastination was an art.
>And Lyra was very well educated in the arts.
>It had been nearly three days since she’d actually accomplished anything.
>It was always ‘tomorrow’ or ‘later’.
>Never ‘now’.
>But it was time to change that.
>It was time to get to work!
>Tomorrow that is.
>Tomorrow she was totally going to go out into the world and try to figure something out.
>She wasn’t certain where she’d probe just yet, but surely she’d think of something.
>Tomorrow there would be no excuses-
>The computer was on.
>She didn’t remember turning it on.
>Could they control it even when it was turned off?
>She approached it to check what it said.

PRINCESS MEETING IN TWO HOURS
Weapons development facility beneath the ruins of Ponyville city hall.
Security is online.
Security checkpoints in town are on low alert.
Infiltrate and eavesdrop.
I cannot provide support for this task.
Failure to comply will be punished.
Be careful, there is no antidote.

>Her blackmailer again.
>They know an awful lot.
>Perhaps it would be possible to piece together who they were based on this.
>Lyra thought it over for a moment.
>But from what she could tell there were too many possibilities.
>She needed more information.
>And she had a lead.
>This was an interesting situation.
>On the one hoof, Lyra didn’t want to comply with her malefactor.
>It was tempting to refuse on principle.
>And it occurred to her that she was a protected asset.
>They couldn’t really do that much to her even if she refused.
>Maybe they’d make good just out of spite though.
>If they were blackmailing they might not be the most noble of ponies.
>What was the risk?
>Lyra weighed her options for some time.
>It was hard to say just how risky refusal would be.
>But it eventually occurred to her that she was looking at the problem from the wrong angle.

“I was going to do this anyway.”

>They may be blackmailing her.
>But they’re also helping her.
>Last time they let her into the facility.
>This time they told her where to find it.
>AND they informed her there would be an important meeting.
>That was very useful information.
>Perhaps it would be best to play along?
>She might be able to get away from them if things went wrong just by saying she was a protected asset.
>And maybe she could figure out who they were and turn things around on them.
>But right at this moment it was probably best just to play along.
>It was time to set out.
>Lyra walked into the night and made her way through town.
>City hall had once been a warm, friendly building in the heart of town.
>A deceptively welcoming facade for the cold and clumsy bureaucracy that lie within.
>When Ponyville had transformed city hall had somehow remained as it always was.
>An oasis of peace and simplicity in the busy world that had grown around it.
>Lyra headed out into the night.
>The streets were even quieter than usual.
>Doubtlessly ponies were staying home in light of the supposed monster attack.
>The security checkpoint came into view.
>Sandbag barriers and razor wire blocked all who approached, save for a tiny entrance in the middle barely big enough for a pony to fit through.
>A guard tower was dead center in the square, long gun barrels poking out over the sides.
>Lyra used her visor’s zoom functionality to get a closer look.
>They were the spinning variety with multiple barrels and a belt feed.
>But these ones were manually operated from the looks of things.
>It was her understanding that these were the rapid fire models.
>She nearly approached the checkpoint.
>But something occurred to her.
>She was wearing S.M.I.L.E. equipment.
>The visor for one.
>And also the armored vest under her black outfit.
>She backed away quietly.
>That would be a bit too much to explain to the guards.
>It was doubtlessly better to go around.
>A minor nuisance this time.
>But it might well be a major problem in the future.
>She moved to the next street.
>There was another checkpoint.

“Bah.”

>Perhaps she could sneak her equipment through?
>No, bad idea.
>They’d probably log who went through the checkpoint, especially in the middle of the night.
>If they found out somepony was poking around where they shouldn’t be, she’d be the prime suspect.
>Not to mention it was risky.
>Maybe she could go in without her equipment?
>No, that was a bad idea.
>It didn’t fix the problem of her movement being logged.
>She could try and force her way through.
>Through the security checkpoint that was designed to deal with monsters from Tartarus.
>The one that had the heavy guns that could shoot hundreds of times a minute at hypersonic speeds.

“Plan… E? I think?”

>She moved to the next street.
>It was blocked.
>She was starting to suspect they’d bisected Ponyville.
>She’d have to leave the city to get around it.
>And she was on a time limit.
>That wasn’t an option.
>She stepped back to look at the problem from a distance.
>The barriers and razor wire butted up against the massive towers that had claimed the land.
>Maybe she could go through one of the buildings?
>Lyra approached the department store.
>Owned by Rarity no doubt.
>The sliding glass doors at the front were locked at these early hours.
>She’d have to break in.
>Was this really okay?
>Was destroying private property in her quest for truth acceptable?
>Or was she about to go too far?
>This place was almost certainly Rarity’s, and she worked for them.
>Did that change things?
>And how confident was she in the ownership?
>This could belong to somepony totally unrelated to S.M.I.L.E., somepony who’d done no wrong.
>Or it could have been given to Rarity as part of their takeover.
>Did it matter either way?
>She was pretty certain there was no other way.
>The only real alternative was to go home.
>She really didn’t want to miss this chance, but this was just wrong.
>On the other hoof she had to know what they were up to.
>It seemed they were going way too far.
>Spying on everypony, bleeding the economy dry, pushing out counterfeit bits, and blowing open the bloody gates of Tartarus.
>What if they were in the wrong?
>Somepony had to stop them.
>And it might well be up to her.
>Was this certain evil justified in light of a possible good?
>Was it okay to do wrong to allow a potential right?
>If they were definitely in the wrong she’d have no problem.
>But without even knowing the probability how could she possibly decide?

“I guess it’s not so bad. It’s not like I’m going to steal anything.”

>She prepared to smash the glass.
>But hesitated.
>That’d probably set off an alarm.
>She could trigger it and hide.
>The guard would soon decide that the intruder had fled, and she’d be able to proceed.
>But would it be soon enough?
>If only she could teleport.
>From what Lyra could tell this was still her best bet.
>And the clock was rapidly ticking.
>She’d have to move.
>Lyra pulled a rock from her saddlebags and bashed the doors.
>A loud ringing filled the night sky.
>She quickly swept away the broken glass with her magic and ran to the far end of the building.
>She quickly found her way to the fire exit and ran through.
>The exercise and healthy eating Bon-Bon had been forcing on her had paid off.
>She left the building with energy to spare.

“That was surprisingly easy.”

>Floodlights flickered on.
>The guards had heard the alarms and were now looking for the cause.
>They weren’t pointed at her, but they were illuminating every street intersection.
>And she’d have to cross one of them if she wanted to get anywhere.
>Lyra was trapped.
>If she wanted to press on she’d have to smash the floodlights.
>But not just one.
>If she just destroyed the one, they’d know where to look.
>She’d have to break each and every one of them.
>Was this okay?
>It was property damage again, but this time it was also something more.
>She’d be sabotaging the ponies that were supposed to be protecting the public.
>What if a monster attack came tonight?
>What if they needed those lights to keep the city safe?
>But what if there were no monsters coming?
>Lyra didn’t trust S.M.I.L.E.
>They lied all the time.
>Maybe the whole monster scare was just an excuse to police the public more?
>If that was their goal, perhaps sabotaging them was a good thing.
>But if they were on the level it was either a minor nuisance or a catastrophe.
>Depending on when the monsters actually came.
>If they came.
>Lyra didn’t know what to do.
>Until it occurred to her.
>The guards were certainly coming.
>She was trapped.
>She had to move.
>Stones flew out from her saddlebags, smashing the floodlights in rapid succession.
>Then the streetlights.
>It was dark, but Lyra was out of rocks.
>With any luck she’d be able to claim more, but right now she had to move.
>The guards in the checkpoints didn’t step out.
>Perhaps they didn’t want to leave their fortified positions?
>Lyra didn’t know and she didn’t care.
>She was just happy to have gotten through.
>It really was risky though.
>She’d have to find a better way in the future.
>But there was no time to worry about that now.
>She had to move.
>The ruins of city hall drew into view.
>The site had been almost totally cleaned up.
>Where once there had stood one of the remnants of the Ponyville of old there was now nothing but dirt.
>They had excavated quite a bit of it, making a small mountain in the currently empty lot.
>Maybe they were getting ready to build the foundation of something new?
>Perhaps a new, modern city hall.
>Or maybe something totally new.
>Either way it was one more part of the town she loved that was gone.
>Forever.
>No time to worry about that right now.
>Where was the entrance?
>Lyra looked down.
>Her visor revealed nothing.
>Was this the wrong place?
>Surely not.
>Her malefactor wants her in there for whatever reason.
>They’d at least tell her where to look.
>Maybe she was already late?
>No.
>There was no way.
>She had to get in there right away.
>Where would the entrance be though?
>If it was underground, some remnant of that must remain.
>She approached the hole in the ground.
>A pipe was sticking out of the ground.
>Not a very big one.
>Nowhere near big enough for her to go through.
>But it was there.
>If it led to the underground facility, it would probably run through the entrance.
>No point in excavating space for the pipes and the entrance separately.
>She used her magic to dig.
>And sure enough, she found a steel plate.
>Further digging quickly revealed it to be a hatch.
>It was old and unmaintained, with some rust forming on the hinges.
>It had been a very long time since this entrance was used.
>Long before the explosion.
>Clearly there was some other entrance somewhere.
>Why have more than one entrance?
>It seemed a security risk.
>She remembered her malefactor’s words from her excursion into the Everfree forest.
>Something about how she couldn’t use the other entrance.
>The way they worded it seemed strange.
>It wasn’t that the other entrance was barred or locked.
>She couldn’t use it.
>Perhaps it was nothing.
>Or maybe the other entrances were inaccessible without some specific circumstances?
>Maybe these alternate entrances were meant for emergencies?
>Whatever the case, Lyra didn’t have a key.
>And she was pretty certain that even if she did, she wouldn’t be able to get in.
>This thing had rusted shut long ago.
>Which made it brittle.
>And weak.
>Lyra pulled her water bottle out of her saddlebags and poured some out.
>She caught the stream of liquid in midair with her magic and prepared.

“Angry.”

>She thought about how they were abusing Bon-Bon.
>How they had thrown her against the most terrible creatures in hell, pushing her until she’d reached her breaking point.
>About how they were making her go again.
>Her earlier doubts about destruction vanished.
>Her cause was righteous.
>There was nothing under the sun that would keep her out.
>A loud crack filled the night sky, and the hinges on the hatch were blown off by a jet of water.
>She pried the steel plate out and revealed a ladder.
>As Lyra once more descended into the depths of the Earth, she casually reflected on how much she’d changed in such a short time.
>The Lyra of a few months ago would never have gone out in the middle of the night, broken into a department store, smashed the royal guard’s equipment, and broken into a blacksite.
>Was she still the pony she used to be?
>Perhaps recent history had changed her.
>Or maybe this was always there, below the surface.
>Maybe this was an aspect of Lyra that had never had reason to manifest, and she was just now discovering it.
>She took a deep breath of the stale air.
>This place wasn’t properly ventilated anymore.
>Was that what that pipe was for?
>It didn’t matter.
>It would be dangerous to stay for too long.
>Lyra reached the bottom of the ladder.
>She was greeted by a sturdy oaken door.
>A strange sight in this day and age.
>It was neither the cheap, mass produced doors that she saw so often.
>Nor did she see a heavy metal door that one would associate with high security in this age.
>This was old.
>Probably older than the technological revolution of this age.
>The rusty entrance certainly seemed to support that idea.
>Perhaps the strangest thing about this one was that it had a warning symbol crudely painted on it.
>This was clearly done as an afterthought, and in a hurry.
>Lyra recognised it as the one in front of the automatic gun at the Everfree facility.
>She cautiously pushed it open-
>And slammed it shut.
>Sure enough, one of those big, automatic guns was pointed at it.
>It hadn’t reacted.
>Had it not seen her?
>She cracked the door open again, just enough to see the edges of the machine.
>She grabbed it with her magic.
>And knocked it over.
>It didn’t react.
>She sat still for a few minutes, heart racing.
>The door slowly creaked open.
>And nothing happened.
>The barrel was pointed away from her.
>The gun still did nothing.

“Is it not turned on?”

>She approached it.
>There was a red blinking light by the barrel.
>She didn’t see it on the one in the Everfree forest.
>Probably a power indicator?
>But if it was turned on, why couldn’t it see her?
>How do they see ponies anyway?
>Lyra pondered on it for a while.
>How did her visor see ponies?
>It didn’t. It saw the chips in them.
>Maybe these worked the same way?
>Princess Luna had mentioned a whitelist on Bonny’s system.
>Maybe these worked the same way.
>They looked for those chips and checked to see if the chip’s owner was allowed in.
>But if that was the case then Lyra would be immune to them.
>They wouldn’t even know she was there!
>She wasn’t certain how to test that idea.
>Not without doing something incredibly stupid that is.
>But she hoped it was true.
>It would make her life far easier.
>And longer.
>She made certain to pull out the ammunition belt just in case before proceeding.
>The gun stayed totally idle all throughout.
>Lyra walked into the foyer of the facility.
>It was warmly lit with familiar magical lighting.
>Tasteful beige carpeting lined the floor, but it was surprisingly dirty.
>As though maintenance of this place had nearly halted.
>There was a long abandoned desk in the middle of the room.
>A receptionist, perhaps?
>Lyra approached the desk.
>She searched around it.
>It had long ago been cleared out.
>However, she did find a hidden button on the underside of the surface.
>Perhaps an alarm?
>It was probably best not to touch it.
>Lyra moved inward, walking the broad corridors.
>The further in she got the cleaner the air was.
>Clearly this place was being ventilated from somewhere else as well..
>This place was so unlike the others she’d seen.
>Warm.
>Furnished.
>And seemingly abandoned.
>It was clearly made before the others.
>Weird.
>She walked through the facility to find office doors lined the walls.
>She moved to open one.
>It yielded without trouble.
>On the inside was a somewhat spacious room.
>It too was carpeted, albeit in brown.
>But strangely it looked like it was being used for storage.
>Desks and chairs had been crammed into the room.
>But she didn’t see anything particularly interesting at a glance.
>They’d probably already removed all the documents.
>Was this whole place abandoned?
>No, why would they be having a meeting here?
>Unless perhaps they were planning on re-opening it.
>Lyra tried three more offices.
>They were all empty.
>The next one was different though.
>When she pushed on the door, nothing happened.
>A quick inspection revealed a keypad.
>It was unlike their other locks which needed a computer input.
>This one had a small display requesting a four digit code.

1-2-3-4

>The display changed.

1 try remaining

>Perhaps she could force her way in?
>Later.
>She was trying to find something specific.
>This could wait.
>Lyra slipped on her visor to look for signs of ponies.
>The princesses were already here, but further down.
>They weren’t there a moment ago.
>And they didn’t pass Lyra.
>That pretty much confirmed there was another entrance.
>What she went through was the service entrance.
>Yet it had a desk for a receptionist.
>Maybe it used to be the only way in?
>Something to worry about later.
>She sped up her pace and walked through the facility.
>It took some time but she finally found a stairwell.
>And downstairs, things were entirely different.
>Concrete floors.
>Blast doors.
>A fire extinguisher every ten paces.
>Sprinklers set into the ceiling.
>And most doors had a warning symbol on them.
>Most often was the familiar skull that denoted poison.
>The blackmailer had warned her to be careful.
>There is no antidote.
>Lyra kept her distance from the poison rooms.
>Aside from the poisons she saw no shortage of flammables and explosives.
>Interestingly each and every warning was familiar.
>She wasn’t encountering any of the weird warning symbols she’d been seeing to date.
>There was something far more mundane about this place.
>It was clearly built with a different goal in mind than the other places.
>Made to last rather than being cheap.
>A long term goal that might last decades rather than the short term goal that was only around 12 years away.
>And then almost totally abandoned.
>It was supposed to be weapons development.
>So either they didn’t need weapons for what they were doing…
>Or they didn’t think whatever they were working on here would do the job.
>Lyra reached the room the princesses were in.
>The door was open.
>She couldn’t see if there was supposed to be a warning on it without revealing herself.
>But they wouldn’t be in there if it was dangerous.
>Right?
>She crept up and listened in.

>”Nopony is arguing that it’s nice. We’re saying it’s necessary.”

>Princess Luna was talking.
>She sounded frustrated.

>”Look. We have 247 agents left.”

>Left.
>Meaning they used to have more.
>Lyra’s heart skipped a beat.
>Was Bonny okay?

>”And despite Zero’s success in sabotaging the railways in Cocytus, we still need to protect ourselves from all sides. Achlys’ forces WILL come. She merely bought us a couple days.”

>”Perhaps we could convince them we mean no harm and sign some form of treaty?”

>Celestia.
>Lyra had been told she was a hopeless optimist.

>”Would you really trust one of the Lords of hell with a treaty?”

>”We can bind them to their word, Twilight.”

>They can force honesty out of a monter?
>Wait, is Achlys a monster or a demon?
>Lyra didn’t know.
>She didn’t really know the difference either.
>All she was certain of was that one was worse than the other.
>According to whom, though?
>S.M.I.L.E.?
>Princess Luna spoke up again.
>But not before letting out a frustrated groan.

>”You’ve been negotiating with these wretches for months, ‘Tia.”

>What?
>Princess Celestia had been negotiating with them?
>She’d been trying to make a deal with the devils?

>”And the Dryads-”

>”Yes. The Dryads in Tartarus have been surprisingly helpful. I never thought I’d see the day that I considered a monster a… friend is far too strong of a word.”

>”Ally. They’re an ally.”

>”Only as long as we’re useful, Twilight. If they were truly on our side they’d have let us harvest what we needed.”

>Ally.
>They’d struck up an alliance of opportunity with monsters.
>This was what Lyra had been asked about before.
>The secret war.
>It made perfect sense now.
>How does one hide large scale conflict from the public?
>By fighting in the depths of Tartarus.

>”Luna is right. We shouldn’t consider them friends or allies. Perhaps the right word is ‘ceasefire’?”

>Cadence.
>Lyra hadn’t seen her name in that room.
>Perhaps she wasn’t chipped?

>”MONTHS of negotiations and you’ve managed to get ONE ceasefire out of it. I admit I’m impressed. I would have never thought it could be done. But even so, we can’t count on that happening again.”

>It almost sounded like Luna was pleading.

>”Nay.”

>”Pardon?”

>”I vote nay on the proposal.”

>”At least hear me out first.”

>Princess Celestia had rejected whatever idea it was out of hoof.
>This was going to be nasty, whatever it was.
>Luna tried to deliver her pitch.

>”There’s no need. I recognise this lab. There’s a reason I ordered it shut down.”

>”We’re outnumbered. Horribly. At least a hundred thousand to one. Probably in the millions, we don’t really know.”

>”Is retreat an option?”

>”No, Twilight. We’re running out of time.”

>Didn’t they have years yet?

>”And we need to preserve our numbers and resources. Even if we were to crush everything in all the burning hells it would be pointless if we don’t have the means to fight the black tide.”

>Black Tide?
>Wait a second.
>Whatever their enemy is it’s not part of the hells?
>Then why are they in there in the first place?

>”The forces of the underworld are poorly disciplined. They’ve spent millenia fighting each other for dominance, and they hate each other far more than they hate us. Shiny thinks that we can turn them on each other if we assassinate the lords.”

>”That’s the hope, Cadence. But if we’re to do that we must hold our position. We need to survive the coming storm before we may counterattack.”

>”And how do you propose we do that, Luna?”

>”This lab right here. It’d take a little work to get it running again, but it was made to produce Isopropyl methylphosphonofluoridate.”

>What a mouthful.

>”A clear, odourless substance that kills through respiratory and cardiac arrest.”

>She wants to poison them?
>How is she going to get so many hostiles to drink the poison?

>”A fine mist of it on the battlefield should be enough.”

>”What if they hold their breath?”

>”Skin contact is enough, Cadance.”

>Princess Luna had a chemical so deadly that just touching it would kill you.
>That a fine mist could wipe out armies.

>”Ugh. I can’t believe we have to rely on the help of such disgusting creatures.”
>What?

>Lyra really didn’t understand Twilight’s complaint.

>”This was developed by a pony, Twilight. Part of our non-magical weapons program.”

>That- being made by a pony was unusual?
>That meant they were getting their stuff from something that WASN’T a pony!
>Everything made so much more sense!
>The crazy revolution they were going through.
>Invisibility suits, computers, the implant chips, and who knows what else.
>Not developed by ponies.
>But stolen or given.
>But that still didn’t really explain where they came from.

>”Ugh. The second most disgusting invention and we made it. I think I need to take a shower.”

>They had something WORSE than this?
>They could poison the air of an entire battlefield and choke armies to death.
>And it was the SECOND worst.

>”Second most? You haven’t been keeping up with what we’ve been working on in the Crystal empire.”

>”Truthfully, I haven’t either. I’ve been too distracted with the campaign.”

>So this other weapon was news to Luna as well.
>Lyra had assumed that all of the alicorns were fully informed on all the proceedings.
>But perhaps that wasn’t true.
>Perhaps this project was simply too large to be overseen properly by the four of them.
>Maybe they had been forced to break it down into smaller tasks?

>”I have. None of them can really be deployed below ground though. They’re of no use to us now.”

>So Celestia and Cadance had a weapon so big it couldn’t be used underground.
>Which meant they were preparing for a big battle on the surface.
>In Elysium.
>It was sounding like this whole thing in the hells was just a nuisance or a distraction.
>That was probably the worst news she could have possibly gotten.

>”So we come back to the problem at hoof. We’ve got an unbelievably vast army coming at us, and only a few agents who can handle it. We need to give them the most unfair advantage possible.”

>So Luna wanted to poison the air to beat their enemies.

>”What about 148?”

>Cadence offered an alternative.
>Lyra remembered a mention of a 148.
>A weapon so terrible they were talking about destroying them all.
>A weapon so powerful they were mass producing them.
>What had changed so drastically to make them rethink their plans?
>Perhaps it was this Black Tide.

>”We’ll need them later. This gas won’t do us any good once we’re done with the Underworld. MAYBE we’ll want a bit for Hades. We might as well use our stockpiles now.”

>”STOCKPILES? I thought you’d destroyed them when we scrubbed this project.”

>So princess Celestia was saying that they’d cancelled this part of their weapons program.
>Probably because they didn’t think it would do any good against this Tide.

>”I lied.”

>Luna said it flippantly.
>Almost as though hiding a stockpile of such a horrible weapon was no big deal.

>”We’ve got five tonnes of the stuff. There should be enough time left to litter canisters throughout the battlefield before the enemy arrives. We can open them remotely and win the battle before it starts.”

>”The greatest victory is that which requires no battle. We could rout the enemy before they even get within firing range.”

>Cadence had been hanging around Shining Armor too much it seemed.

>”The tactical advantage is indisputable. That’s not what concerns me!”

>There was more than a little fire in Celestia’s voice.
>She was upset.
>Perhaps even angry.
>Lyra had never seen or heard her actually angry.

>”You’re talking about slaughtering them by the tens of THOUSANDS with an invisible weapon! Have you no honor? Have you no SHAME? This is cruel!”

>”They’re demons, sister.”

>”That doesn’t mean we must lower ourselves to their level! Surely there must be some other way!”

>Silence hung in the air for a brief while.

>”If we fall back to the river Charon our rear will be covered. We’ll only have to focus our fire in one direction, and we can probably kill them as fast as they approach with machine guns and barriers. That is, if we entrench that position. We’d have to cede our ground though. And we’d probably use all our ammunition. And there’s be nowhere to run if things went bad.”

>So Luna DID have an alternative.

>”Do that. I’m going to go talk with Achlys some more.”

>Princess Celestia vanished.
>Lyra didn’t notice a teleportation spell though.

>”I disagree. It’s way too risky. If we can win before we fight, we should. We owe it to our ponies.”

>”Great. So we aren’t in agreeance. I’ll go get sister. We really need to decide on this tonight. You two talk it over.”

>Luna vanished.
>There was no sign of her strange magic.

>”So this stuff was really made by a pony?”

>”It seems that way, Twilight. If it makes you feel better, the chemist has always been an odd one. She’s not really representative of the average mare.”

>”Who?”

>”I don’t remember her name. She’s the eccentric that’s obsessed with purity. Maybe that’s what makes her so good with chemicals?”

>”Oh, the Earth pony?”

>”That’s the one. I’m pretty sure she’s the only pony still working in this place. Must be lonely.”

>Eccentric Earth pony that’s obsessed with purity?
>No way.
>Lyra knew the code for the door upstairs!

>”So… what do you think, Twilight?”

>”I don’t want to think about it. But I suppose I have to. This is the world we live in now, isn’t it?

>”I’m afraid so.”

>”Celestia’s right. It’s wrong to use this stuff. But not using it is wrong too. If we don’t give out agents every advantage we can, aren’t we betraying their trust?”

>”They’re already dealing with so much. We can help them, but at what cost? Which is right?”

>”Which is less wrong. This is a real dilemma. On the one hoof this stuff will do far more bad than good. But we’ll be helping ponies and hurting demons. Demons we’re probably going to have to hurt anyway. I just don’t know. What do you think?”

>It looked like they were going to be talking in circles.
>And Lyra was pretty confident she knew why she’d been called here.
>Someone wants her opinion on this weapon.
>But there was no reason to answer now.
>She was here.
>She might as well look around.
>But maybe not in the basement.
>With all the poisons and flammables and explosives.
>Somewhere safe, upstairs.
>She walked around and sure enough the place was almost totally empty.
>They’d cancelled this program because they didn’t need it.
>But there was on office still in use.
>Owned by a single eccentric who was obsessed with purity.
>Lyra reached up to the keypad.

1-4-8-8

>The door clicked and Lyra pushed in.
>Poor Aryanne had to be so lonely in here.
>The office space was neat and tidy, with papers stacked carefully in neat rows.
>The walls were decorated with pictures of ponies, fillies to be specific.
>Did Aryanne have a family that Lyra didn’t know about?
>No way, there were way too many of them. 
>One especially large photo caught her eye.
>The Cutiemark Crusaders playing on a swing set.
>It had been framed and hung upon the wall beneath tinted glass.
>Below it was a small placard that read ‘We must protect them.’
>It was strange to see this side of her.
>The pony that seemed to hate anything inequine with a burning passion.
>And yet she had so much love for her own.
>Lyra was honestly surprised.

“Focus, Lyra. Focus.”

>This was an excellent opportunity.
>She had access to the files of one of their chemists!
>Lyra could find out what they were capable of.
>She opened up a folder.

>”Who’s in there?”

>Woops.
>Lyra shoved as many folders as she could into her saddlebags before bolting for the door.
>Aryanne tackled her on her way out.
>Lyra hit the ground hard as the Earth pony above her put her weight on Lyra’s back.
>The crushing pressure an Earth pony could exert had her pinned and helpless.
>Lyra rabbed Aryannes mane with her magic and pulled back.
>The pain and force on her neck got her to relent, and Lyra was able to pull her off, but the damage was done.
>She’d twisted her leg on the way down.

“Oooowww.”

>”Who do you work for? Is it George Soaring? That damn griffon! WHY DO YOU WANT TO DESTROY EQUESTRIA?”

>George Soaring?
>Aryanne lifted her leg and pointed it at Lyra.
>The familiar glint of steel shone in the magical lighting.
>She was armed with a gauss gun.
>Lyra froze.

>”You’re going to do exactly what I say.”

>Lyra nodded.
>There WAS a way out of this.

>”Lie on your back.”

>Lyra complied.
>The trigger lead was in Aryanne’s mouth, waiting for her to bite down.
>Lyra opened her mouth and collected her saliva.
>Aryanne put her leg down to walk forward.
>Lyra grabbed her spit with her magic and shot it out at the trigger.
>She missed.
>Aryanne moved to raise her leg, but Lyra gripped it with her magic and pulled it to the ground.
>She needed to break that line before Aryanne broke free.
>But Geyser needed Sagittarius.
>All telekinesis did.
>Including her grapples.
>And she didn’t have enough strength for both.
>Aryanne’s mighty Earth pony muscles were nearly breaking through as it was.
>She pulled the wire out, but that wasn’t good enough.
>The weapon needed to be disabled.
>Lyra was tiring out rapidly.
>Aryanne was breaking free.
>And so Lyra closed her eyes.
>Cleared her thoughts.
>And tapped into Leo.
>The swiftest and most fierce ley line.
>The one that granted huge power, but only for a moment.
>She dumped as much of Leo as she could into Sagittarius, flooding her telekinesis with power.
>And Aryanne collapsed to the ground under the weight of Lyra’s magic.
>Leo was depleted, but it had worked.
>Lyra ran forward and tapped her horn to Aryanne.
>Her curse’s power flowed in.
>And Aryanne lie perfectly still.
>Lyra started limping away.
>But she hesitated.
>Instead she turned around.
>Collected Aryanne’s gun. And absconded into the night.
>She hid the gun in the woods, limping all the way.
>The sun was rising before she finally made it home.
>And sure enough, her computer was running again when she got there.

I CAN STOP THEM
I am in position to prevent them from deploying the chemical agent.
Should I?
Is it better to risk the wellbeing of our agents, or to deploy cruel weapons with excessive force?
You have 8:03 to reply.

>The timer was ticking down, one second at a time.
>But Lyra didn’t need that long.
>She knew why they’d sent her out.
>And she’d already been thinking on it.


                                                *       *       *       *       *


“Where the hay is the ‘S’ button?”

>Lyra frantically hunted and pecked about the keyboard, trying to type in her reply before the time limit expired.
>She wasn’t certain what would happen if she took too long.
>But she saw no reason to tempt fate.
>Less than a minute remained when she submitted her reply.

“I can’t answer without more information. May I ask a few questions?”

>The timer paused.
>A reply came a couple seconds later.

>”Yes, but hurry it up.”

>She started seeking out the necessary keys once more, making little to no progress on her message.

“W-h-y-d-o”

>A few minutes passed before whatever being was on the other end grew impatient.
>The message on the screen updated.

>”I’m turning on your microphone. Just speak.”

>This thing had a microphone?
>It could hear her?
>And they could tap into that at any time?
>Lyra wasn’t certain why she was so surprised.
>It was far from the greatest invasion of her privacy as of late.

“Surely there must be better ponies to ask than myself. Why ask me? Why not ask nearly anypony else? Why can you not choose for yourself?”

>”Next question.”

>No surprise there.
>They don’t want to risk revealing their identity.
>If Lyra was to get anything out of them, she’d have to present her probing questions as though they were critical to the issue at hoof.
>She did have an idea for that though.

“Do you really think you can stop them from doing it?”

>”Next question.”

“Yeah, but this one is actually pretty important. How you do it matters.”

>No reply came for a couple minutes.
>Lyra was wondering if she’d pushed too hard and they’d given up on her.
>Were they getting ready to send the guard to arrest her?
>No, they couldn’t.
>She was a critical asset.
>But she might have lost a useful source of information.
>Getting to the bottom of all this would be way harder without them.
>A reply came despite her worries.

>”I do not see the relevance. Explain.”

>She thought it over for a moment carefully choosing her words.
>She had to avoid accidentally giving away her answer lest they close off the lines of communication.
>But she also had to persuade them that her questions were of critical importance.

“No action exists in a vacuum. The means you use might have effects that are not readily apparent. Even if the use of the weapon is immoral, stopping its use might also be immoral.”

>Lyra could almost see her computer nodding along in agreement when she finished speaking.

>”The princesses are not in agreeance on this issue. By their own rules they need a three quarters majority to deploy this weapon, and Celestia is adamantly opposed. I only need to persuade one of them to stop this.”

>Whoever they were, they had a direct line of contact with at least one princess.
>Possibly all of them.

“And if you cannot, what would you do to stop them?”

>”Their stockpile could go missing. They don’t have enough time to replace it before this battle.”

>They felt that they could move tonnes of an incredibly dangerous chemical without being caught?
>THAT was interesting.
>Lyra could hardly imagine the panic that would ensue if that much of such a terrible substance went missing from S.M.I.L.E.’s stockpile.
>How would princess Celestia react if a weapon that could slaughter an entire battlefield were to fall into the wrong hooves?

“How would you dispose of it? You can’t just leave such a dangerous thing lying around for anyone to find.”

>”A valid concern. I could neutralize the chemicals.”

“How?”

>”That is not relevant.”

>Lyra tried to argue otherwise.
>But she couldn’t think of a good way.
>Regardless, she’d learned a lot from that line of questioning.
>Whoever was on the other end knew quite a lot about this weapon.
>They didn’t simply know of its existence or its location.
>They knew how to destroy it.
>Which presumably meant they knew what it was made of.
>They had some understanding of the chemistry behind S.M.I.L.E.’s weapons.
>Whoever they were, they knew so much.
>They had to be right at the top.
>No surprise there.
>If they really were helping her with these infiltrations they’d have to be.
>S.M.I.L.E. was willing to deploy lethal weapons in their facilities.
>Clearly they were willing to go to great lengths to keep their secrets.
>Yet Lyra just kept waltzing in.
>Sure, there were the odd scuffles.
>But Lyra realized that she’d never been opposed by an actual agent.
>Her two great victories were against a crippled farmer and a chemist.
>She would do well to stay humble.
>But on the other hoof, she wasn’t satisfied with only learning what this malefactor showed her.
>She'd have to go solo.

>”Should I assume that you think I ought to stop them?”

>Oh dear.

“Well…”

>Lyra wasn’t done digging for information just yet.
>Surely there had to be some other way she could probe.

“I need to know more about the target. Have they really been offered peace?”

>”Repeatedly.”

>Princess Celestia was honestly trying to deal with demons.
>To convince them not to fight.
>Was she stupid?
>No.
>Princess Celestia is not stupid.
>She’s desperate to avoid conflict.

“What of their societies? Are these things born to fight, or do they have lives beyond that?”

>”We know very little about them”

>We.
>Not I.
>Lyra wasn’t certain just how much she should read into that.

>”Now stop stalling.”

“It feels wrong. But I don’t see why. I mean, they’re demons, right? Like… actual abominations from Orcus?”

>”DO NOT SAY THAT ACCURSED NAME OR I WILL RIP OUT YOUR TONGUE.”

>Wow.
>Touched a nerve on that one.

“Geeze, fine. Look, you've got an obligation to your agents. If you risk their wellbeing when there's an alternative you've betrayed them. That's wrong.”

>”Were you not the one that said it was right for them to perish on principal?”

>She had.
>She'd said it was better to die a pony than to live a traitor.

“It's always wrong to risk your own agents. But that was a lesser wrong than betraying your word to your allies.”

>Of course she now knew that it was a rather tenuous alliance.
>With monsters.
>That made it a bit less clear.
>Why would they hide such an important detail?
>Were they hiding something now?

>”So in your eyes a pony life has less value than an oath?”

>That didn't sound right.
>A promise had value, yes.
>But not all promises were equal.

“In my eyes treachery is unforgivable. You've no obligations to these demons, you do to your agents. I wanted to know if you'd betray your own to stop them. That's why I was asking about what you'd planned. After all, treachery is the opposite of one of the Elements of Harmony.”

>Lying isn't as bad as blackmail.
>At least, not in Lyra's opinion.

>”You support the use of weapons of mass destruction to preserve the lives of our own. Celestia is concerned about the rights of the victims. What would you say about that?”

“Why should we grant rights to those who wish us nothing but harm? They're demons. I could even argue that not using the weapon is immoral. It's wrong to endanger a pony.”

>”Says the one who sabotaged our guard towers. Which element of harmony is hypocrisy again?”

>Harsh.
>But they had a point.

“I might have gone too far.”

>”Indeed you did. The weapon you stole has been retrieved. I'd advise that you not try that again.”

>Lyra let out a frustrated groan.
>It would have been nice to have that.
>She wasn't planning on using it of course.
>But pointing it at somepony should be a good way of making them leave her alone.

>”I saw your encounter with the chemist. Breaking free from an Earth pony’s grasp is no mean feat, especially for a unicorn. Can you synthesize ley lines?”

>Yes.
>And she always tried to hide it.
>First off because nopony believed her.
>Second off because when they DID believe her they begged her to teach them.
>And when she tried they couldn’t understand her instructions.
>Even Moondancer thought Lyra was lying when she explained how.
>It put a real strain on their friendship for a while.

>”I’d advise that you keep that to yourself if possible. It would be unwise to draw attention to yourself.”

>The computers screen went black shortly after the message came through.
>Who was this that they were unable to decide for themselves?
>Did they find the problems overwhelming?
>Did they not trust themselves to make the right decisions?
>Lyra made her way to bed, gingerly stepping on her hurt leg.
>She lay down to sleep and chanced a glance at her alarm clock.
>Mana Tide lessons in an hour and a half.
>She groaned and pulled herself out of bed.
>It was time to start her day.

The next day.

>Lyra had planned on sleeping in.
>But she hadn't planned on sleeping until 1 in the afternoon.
>She rushed her way to Derpy home.
>She was supposed to tutor Dinky today, but it would be hours before she had to start that.
>She wanted to discuss some things with Derpy first.a
>As she walked through the bustling city she began to notice something strange.
>The crowds were thinning out.
>As she moved on she began to grow apprehensive.
>Normally she'd be relieved to be away from the crowds and the noise.
>But the question of why they weren't crowding around her was floating about in her mind.
>As she rounded the corner of the massive office building she finally saw the problem.
>The security checkpoint before her looked far more menacing in the daylight.
>So much more that she was wondering if it was still under construction earlier.
>Razor wire and sandbag barriers still littered the streets, but behind them there were thick concrete walls.
>A couple of guards in their plastic armor stood atop the walls, just barely visible around the parapets.
>And just below them were small holes in the wall through which gun barrels pointed menacingly outward.
>Six barrels per gun, like the big ones she kept seeing.
>Bonny’s could fire ten times a second.
>How quickly could these fire?
>She was reluctant to approach the fortifications. 
>She even considered going around them.
>But her sore leg wouldn’t allow it.
>Lyra took a deep breath and stepped forward.
>She looked up to the guard tower.
>Two long steel barrels were pointed outward.
>Why make them so long?
>A more precise gun perhaps?
>The guards seemed almost totally uninterested as she made her way in.
>A narrow corridor of concrete had been made to allow passage without granting access to the actual guard station.
>One one side was a heavy steel door.
>On the other side were even heavier blast doors.
>Why two paths?
>She didn't dare stop to ask.
>She moved as quickly as she could without breaking into a gallop, not daring to look back.
>When she got away she breathed a sigh of relief.

“Not doing that again.”

>When her legs stopped shaking and her heart stopped racing it occurred to her that the guards weren't interested in her at all.
>Maybe those things really were for their safety.
>They'd been told to flee to them in the case of a monster attack.
>Of course Lyra suspected this was about something worse than a monster.
>Maybe the blast doors were for hiding civilians?
>She couldn't help but wonder how many millions of bits had been thrown at that project.
>Building those fortifications in such short time couldn't have been cheap.
>Not to mention the cost of arming all the guards and instructing them on how to use their weapons.
>She thought about the fake bits in her saddlebags and the sales tax and wondered if it was enough.
>They'd doubtlessly done something similar to all the major cities.
>Were there fortifications in the smaller towns too?
>There was no way they could protect every little settlement.
>For once she was glad to live in the big city.>She finally dared a glance backward and looked at the defensive line.
>Guard towers dotted the city, cutting it in half.
>East and West Ponyville, divided by a wall of concrete and lead.
>It wasn’t right.
>It wasn’t normal.
>But perhaps it was necessary.
>Lyra reached Derpy’s home and knocked on the door.

>”Who is it?”

“Lyra!”

>”Oh! Come on in!”

>She pushed on the door, surprised to find it wasn’t locked.
>She then walked into Derpy’s living room to find the bubbly mare sitting on a sofa.
>Holding the gun she’d stolen.
>And pointing it at her own face.
>Lyra froze in terror.
>Derpy put the barrel right up next to her eye, which quickly drifted away.
>She repositioned the weapon before the other eye just as it began to move.
“What are you doing?”
>Lyra grabbed it with her magic and slammed it to the floor.

>”What was that for?”

>She sounded surprised and confused.
>Not angry of course.
>Derpy was very slow to anger.

“You were going to hurt yourself!”

>”Why would I do that? My life’s great.”

“Accidentally.”

>She levitated the weapon pointing it downward.
>She placed it on the coffee table as she walked into the room.

>”How would it hurt me? Is it dangerous?”

“It’s a weapon. They throw small bits of metal faster than sound.”

>”This is a gun? Really? Into the garbage it goes.”

“You don’t want it?”

>”It’s designed to KILL, Lyra. I’m not going to kill anypony.”

>She stood up and popped into the air with a single flap of her wings.
>She immediately landed.

>”Wait. What if a racoon goes through my trash and knocks it over and somepony sees it?”

>A bit of a stretch perhaps.

“I’m going out of town soon. I can take it and dispose of it there if you want.”

>”You’d do that for me?”

“Sure. What kind of friend wouldn’t be an accessory to espionage?”

>There was no way Lyra was going to dispose of it.
>Visions of the fused timberwolf charging at her still haunted her dreams.
>She refused to be helpless ever again.

>”Thank you.”

“Did you ever figure out how they were tracking their stuff?”

>”No. But I DID learn that they can’t find them after you microwave them.”

>Lyra’s mouth hung half open.
>She was flabbergasted by what she’d just heard.

“You put a gun in a microwave.”

>”Just for 10 seconds or so. It started to spark so I stopped it.”

>She put a gun in the microwave.
>And it didn’t go off.
>How lucky can you get?
>Still, it might be broken now.
>Without knowing how they function Lyra really couldn’t be certain.

“WHY would you put a GUN in a microwave?”

>”So that S.M.I.L.E. couldn’t find it. Duh. I really like you, but you can be pretty slow at times.”

>The pony that put a loaded gun in a microwave just called her stupid.

>”But you’re normally such a clever pony! You’re smart and good with numbers and, err… smart?”
“Don’t worry. No offense taken. I’m just thinking that it’s not a very good solution is all. We can’t just microwave everything.”

>”Yeah. Say, where are you going?”

“Canterlot. Did you get called to the place under city hall the other night?”

>”No?”

>Why wouldn’t they want her input too?
>They did last time.
>It seemed strange that they’d care what Derpy thought but not consult her on this one.
>On the issue of demonic hordes and invisible poisonous mists that could-
>Derpy was too sweet and pure.
>She must never know.

“Well, the princesses seem to be divided on some issues. And they don’t seem to all know everything about what’s going on. It must be too big for any one of them to manage. I figure that the stuff happening in Ponyville must be being overseen by Twilight, right?”

>”Ooh! You want to know what the other princesses are up to.”

>She was hoping it wasn’t all doom and gloom.
>Princess Celestia of all ponies had to be doing something good.
>Right?

“Everything I’ve seen around Ponyville is dealing with immediate problems. Well, everything that I understand at least. Somepony has to have a long term goal.”

>”Otherwise they wouldn’t have messed with the schools and I wouldn’t have gotten involved.”

>Actually, that raised a good question.

“How DID you get involved?”

>”Oh! Umm, Dinky’s homework was weird so I went to the school to look into it. Miss Cheerilee told me the principal had given her the new coursework, he sent me to the school board, they wouldn’t talk to me.”

“So you talked to the princesses?”

>”I couldn’t get ahold of them! This went on for months and I watched Dinky get sadder and sadder every day, so I finally got fed up and broke into the school board’s offices. Half their papers were coded! I gave up and went home, then a couple weeks later somepony contacts me through the mail offering to pay me for advice and threatening to arrest me if I don’t.”

“You get PAID?”

>”You don’t?”

>This was so unfair.
>Though Derpy DID need it more.
>She was a mother.
>And Lyra didn’t even need to pay rent.
>Were they trying to help Derpy out?
“That doesn’t matter right now. I got some documents while I was there and I was wondering if you’d help me go over them.”
>She moved to pull them out of her bags.
>And then she planted her hoof in her face.

“I brought them through security. You’re right, I can be pretty stupid.”

>”Hey, don’t be so hard on yourself. You just get lost in thought easily.”

“Anyway, I don’t know what’s in them. I found them in a chemist’s office though.”

>She pulled the binders out of her bags and dropped them on the table, knocking the gun on the floor.

“Wow. You’re worried about Bon-Bon, aren’t you?”

“CONSTANTLY! I can hardly sleep at night, I keep forgetting what I’m doing, I even tripped on my own hooves the other day!”

>She angrily stamped the floor.

“They’re going to get her hurt or worse! I swear if they get Bonny killed…”

>She didn’t know what she’d do.
>What COULD she do?
>Nothing.
>She was powerless yet again.
>All she could do was hope.
>Lyra began to sag as the feelings of helplessness sank in.
>Derpy came up and began to pat her on the back.

>”Is what she’s doing really that dangerous?”

“I don’t know.”

>A lie.
>But there was no point in worrying Derpy about all this demon business.

“I need more information.”

>She stashed the gun in her saddlebags and quickly sat down grabbing one of the folders on the way.
>She cracked it open.

“Augh!”

>It was nonsense.
>Derpy leafed through another.

>”It’s in a code.”

>Lyra had noticed.

>”But the index isn’t.”

“Seriously?”

>Sure enough, there was an entire book of page numbers and descriptions and dates.
>Most of those descriptions seemed to be about experiments.

>”I guess it makes sense. It’d be a nuisance to find what you’re looking for in all this if the index was coded.”

“Project Bloody Mist?”

>That sounded an awful lot like the weapon they were talking about.

>”What’s that?”

“I dunno, but I’m seeing a LOT of records of it. All in book 4.”

>She quickly searched through the other books.
>They were labelled inside the cover.

>”We have that one, right here!.”

“It looks like the entire book was devoted to that project. The last entry is dated just over 5 years ago. But there’s so much blank space here for more notes.”

>”Did it finish early?”

“Maybe it got cancelled. Or maybe she just left too much space.”

>”Wait. I recognise that hoof writing! I’ve seen it on dozens of letters. Aryanne!”

>Lyra raised a single brow.

“You can identify anypony’s hoof writing.”

>”Not anypony’s. Look, she always dots the letter I with a windmill.”

>Sure enough, Derpy was right.

“Well, you’re right. I got these from her office beneath city hall.”

>”Wow. You think you know a pony. There’s a more recent project going on here. Entries going on until a bit over a month ago. The most recent was September 10th. Project Dragon’s Roar first tests. And then it stops.”
“And the next day we have an accident report.”

>”Say, isn’t that when city hall blew up?”

“Oh hey, yeah!”

>”When the criminals blew it up they must have caused problems with the test.”

>Lyra’s hoof met her face.

“There were no criminals. The accident was the explosion.”

>“Oh. Right. So Aryanne was trying to make a bomb?”

>Dragon’s Roar.
>It brought fire to mind.

“Maybe.” 

>She needed to know what that project was.
>And what went wrong.

>”Do you know anypony that can decode this for us?”

“No. Well, maybe? I promised I’d tell them what I found out, I should really give them an update.”

>”Why don’t you go and talk to them?”

“I would. Except that they don’t want to be seen with me incase I get caught. I’m not sure how to get ahold of them.”

>”Mail it without a return address.”

“But they live with somepony who’s S.M.I.L.E.”

>Derpy looked confused.

“What if they get suspicious and open her mail?”

>”Lyra! That’s ILLEGAL!”

“These ponies don’t seem to care about privacy though. They’re-”

>“It was a joke. I’m trying to get you to lighten up!”

“Oh.”

>She HAD been pretty tense lately.
>How could she not be?
>Her thoughts were constantly plagued by S.M.I.L.E. and their activities.
>And now this Black Tide they were worried about.

>”You look so worried. Please cheer up?”

“I’ll be okay. I just need to distract myself. When’s Dinky coming home?”

>”Pretty soon. She might be late because she needs to go through the new security.”

>A little filly was being made to walk through that.
>They had to go through the razor wire and the gun nests and the concrete barriers.
>They had to have weapons of war pointed at them.
>A little filly.

>”I feel the same way. The first few days I flew her over them, but now they won’t let us fly near there. Life’s real hard for her. Say, would you mind teaching her more magic?”

“Sure, but what about her school?”

>She gave a deep morose sigh as a response.

>”I don’t think she’s going to pass anyway. She’s nearly the head of her class thanks to you, and it’s still a failing grade. I’ve been thinking of pulling her out.”

>Dark times indeed.
>They were putting fillies through hell.
>And they were putting Bon-Bon IN hell.
>It was then that Lyra swore to herself.
>If this Black Tide wasn’t as bad as they said? 
>They’d get a taste of hell all their own.
The next day.
>Lyra could see her reflection in the window.
>She hated it.
>Dark blue coat and black mane.
>It was a terrible look for her.
>She kept reminding herself it was temporary.
>It WOULD wash out.
>This dye was water soluble.
>But it was still not a good look for her.
>Even if it was a necessary precaution.
>She refocused her eyes and looked out the window.
>The train blew through the countryside as it made its way to Canterlot.
>And it was making great time.
>They blew through old watering stations without even slowing down.
>She didn’t know why the trains didn’t need water anymore.
>Somehow they ran without steam.
>They ran through old towns that had been build to support the railway.
>Ghost towns now.
>Empty homes stood in the dead landscape, roofs sagging and windows shattered.
>Every now and then a small town would have a family or two who hadn’t moved.
>But the overwhelming majority of these communities were long gone.
>Moved to the big, busy city.
>The rural life was a thing of the past.
>And she dearly missed it.
>Lyra glanced out the window and looked up at Canterlot.
>It hadn’t changed nearly as dramatically as Ponyville, though it HAD grown.
>The city now stretched down to the base of the mountain, with massive towers built along the cliff face.
>A great wall had encircled the city, much like the one in Ponyville.
>Though this one seemed incomplete.
>Half done at best.
>Had their budget ran out?
>No, they’d have protected the capitol before Ponyville.
>It just wasn’t done yet.
>If they had everything planned out, that meant there were at least a few more days before anything went wrong.
>Did they have it all planned out right?
>The rolling gates slid aside up in front of the train well in advance of its arrival.
>How they moved such heavy concrete slabs she didn’t know.
>It was a smooth and steady motion, not the lurching heaves one might expect from pony power.
>They doubtlessly had some machine working on it.
>So much work, so many hours of toil and back breaking labor.
>Such a massive expense.
>All because they opened the gates of hell.
>It suddenly struck Lyra how odd that was.
>They were already in there.
>They HAD been for over a month.
>And yet there had been no havoc in Elysium.
>Why did they think that was going to change now?
>More questions.
>The train went past a fork as it made its way to the switchbacks.
>To the left they went into a seperate railyard for freight.
>Warehouses and factories crowded around the tracks, impatiently waiting their next deliver.
>And straight ahead was the mountain.
>The train reached the end of one switchback and ground to a halt before slowly reversing as it made the arduous journey uphill.
>She got up and began to stretch.
>Soon it’d be time to get to work.
>Her target was the palace.
>There had to be something interesting in there.
>Princess Celestia and Princess Luna were involved.
>One of them would have something somewhere that she could learn from.
>Hopefully one of them would have good news.
>ANY good news.
>Before too long the train pulled into the passenger station and Lyra was finally free to disembark.
>She made her way to the palace, stunned to find that Canterlot was less crowded than the once humble Ponyville.
>This heart of the city had been almost totally unchanged, with the additions growing around it.
>They hadn’t erased the former Canterlot, they’d just built a second city below it.
>If she ignored the electric lighting and plastic wrappers scattered about it almost looked like the Canterlot she knew.
>Right up until she saw the royal guard standing before the palace.
>Their steel tipped spears and bronze armor were a thing of the past, with high powered guns and plastic armor taking their place.
>They looked less intimidating without the bulky spears and heavy armor.
>But Lyra knew better.
>These ponies were deadly.
>They didn’t look at her as she made her way to the palace.
>Security was always lax around the exterior of the palace.
>Not because of laziness or lack of staffing.
>There were simply too many ponies coming and going for
 them to stop everyone.
>With the school and the library and all the administrative offices, there really was no good way to regulate all the traffic.
>Even some of the restricted areas were wide open to any trespassers who could tell a convincing lie.
>Of course that all changed if one went deeper into the palace.
>As one drew close to the throne room it became nigh on impossible to avoid attention.
>Going towards the princess’ bedchambers or studies was even harder.
>Which was exactly what Lyra had in mind.
>Her plan was pretty severely lacking and she knew it.
>There were no shortage of guards in the palace, and she had to hide from all of them.
>All she had was a stab vest on her body, a few stones, some water, and her visor in her bags.
>And the gun she took from Derpy.
>Not a magnetic model.
>This one was designed for maximum killing power, and lacked subtlety.
>And she only had 12 shots.
>Not that she ever planned on using it of course.
>But it was good to have the option.
>Somehow she had to turn those three things into breaking into one of the princess’ studies.
>Without being noticed.
>Because there was no way she could escape the palace if they saw her.
>And no chance of reaching the rail yard.
>Or of actually getting home.
>The more she thought about it the worse this non-plan seemed.
>She kept walking around the palace, pleased to find that she remembered the layout from her school days.
>A bit further to the northern wing, where Celestia’s chambers lie.
>The ancient building had none of the hallmarks of modern architecture.
>Marble pillars held the high ceiling up above the well kept red carpet.
>The bricks that made the walls had all been chiseled with great care and polished to a shine before being placed.
>And it was so roomy! She didn't feel as though she were being crowded in from all sides.
>The palace made her yearn once more for a simpler, saner time.
>But there was no going back.
>That world was gone.
>And she was here to find out why.
>She had finally reached the restricted parts of the palace.
>Few ponies wandered the halls this far in.
>If she went much further she could get in serious trouble.
>But right here, just past where she was allowed, Lyra was confident she could talk her way out of it.
>And so she waited.
>It didn't take long for a single guard to spot her.
>He approached with a stern face.

>”This area is off limits! Depart at once!”

“Oh! I'm sorry! I just got lost. Could you show me where the library is?”

>”Third door on your left, back to the great hall. Sixth door on your right will take you to the school's wing from there you hang left-”

>He looked away only slightly as he gestured.
>Horn touched shoulder.
>Cursed magic flowed.
>And the guard collapsed.

“That was easy.”

>It was no great surprise though. 
>She knew just how much time they spent giving directions.
>After her years in this school she'd observed them more than enough to understand the job.
>It looked way too boring for her tastes.
>As she dragged the unconscious body away she couldn’t help but feel guilty.
>Curses were wrong.
>There was a reason why she was so reluctant to use them when she first learned how.
>When her blackmailer showed her how.
>Showed her this almost totally forgotten art.

“Stupid!”

>Her plan just went out the window.
>If this guard woke up with his armor and weapons missing it would raise suspicion.
>And Lyra was one of the few ponies alive who could cast the spell.
>She dragged him to a nearby room.
>A quick scan with her visor revealed it to be empty, so she went in.
>It was a washroom.
>Perfect.
>She propped the guard up on one of the stalls and started to creep away.
>In her testing with Derpy is seemed as though they didn't remember being afflicted.
>With any luck he'd think he'd simply dozed off for a while.
>Lyra began to make her escape when something caught her eye.
>This room was smaller than she'd expected.
>It was too narrow.
>Maybe there was a crawlspace for the plumbing?
>She checked one room over, a broom closet, and sure enough there was a small door on the wall.
> One quick strike on the lock with her geyser popped it open, and she was in.
>A single light bulb hung from the ceiling of the dark chamber.
>She pulled the cord on it to reveal a crowded and dusty mess.
>The piping wasn't so bad.
>It was all the electrical cables that had been crammed in as an afterthought.
>Ducking and weaving through the cramped area, she searched for any other exit.
>Nothing.
>She'd have to make her own if she wanted to use this room to proceed.
>But that would be noisy.
>She put her visor back on and scanned around to see if anypony was near enough to hear.
>Pinkie Pie was right next to her, just on the other side of the wall.
>And Princess Celestia was approaching.
>It was risky, but Lyra knew she had to hear this meeting.
>There was no way she'd be able to hear through this wall though.
>She could punch a hole in it.
>They’d doubtlessly notice.
>Come on, Lyra.
>There has to be SOMETHING-
>She ran back to the washroom and stripped the guard.
>Back to plan A.
>If she finished up and got him re-dressed before he woke up, maybe she’d get away with it.
>What could go wrong?
>This just meant that she couldn’t go very far away.
>And she no longer needed to.
>Lyra donned the guard’s armor, blushing as she removed the rear pieces.
>She slipped on the stallion’s plastic garments, which hung loosely on her.
>She still didn’t look like a guard.
>But at a distance with the lights out?
>She could do this.
>A few quick shots of water later the hallway was dark.
>She made her way up to the door they were meeting in and pressed her ear against the door.

>”I’m so glad to have you on board.”

>Celestia was talking.

>”It’s been trying. Scraping together everything that the other three need without completely destroying Equestria. Some days I wonder if it’s worth it.”

>”What do you mean?”

>”I am not ignorant to the suffering we’ve caused, Pinkamena. Equestria would be better off in the moment if we’d done nothing over the past few years. We’ve got ponies working upward of FORTY hours a week these days just to pay their bills.”

>Forty?
>That’s completely insane!
>How could anypony stand that?

>”And I suspect, nay, I know that it will only get worse. We’ve committed a terrible crime against the public, whether they know it or not.”

>”It’s worth it. If we can save-”

>”IF! What if we fail? All this misery has been for naught. And even if we succeed, it might be better to perish to the Tide than to survive. Perhaps we withstand it but cannot overcome it. Perhaps we are forced to live in tiny bunkers for the rest of eternity with no chance of escape. Perhaps a scant few of us make it, but Elysium can no longer support ponies.”

>She sounded so very tired.
>Tired of uncertainty.
>TIred of pain.
>And tired of fighting.

>”It might well be better to make the best of what time we have left than to resist. If failure is certain then it must be better. How likely must success be before we ruin yet more lives? How likely is success now? I don’t know. I don’t know what to do.”

>”What you do is deal with the problem in front of you. These schools-”

>”Who’s there?”

>A masculine voice.
>Lyra could see a guard in the lighted area.
>She ran back to the washroom.
>He followed.
>She ducked into the crawlspace and closed it behind herself.
>She slipped her visor on and tracked his motions.
>He was coming right for her.
>He knew where to look.
>She turned off the light and climbed behind one of the heavier pipes.
>The crawl space door opened.
>A glint of steel shone in the dim light as he pushed his gun laden hoof through.
>He very methodically checked every corner.
>Then he backed away.
>Was he leaving?
>Lyra nearly cursed aloud.
>He was going for help.
>She ran out after him and fired stones at the back of his head.
>He fell.
>Limp.
>Lyra ran up to him in a panic and quickly checked his pulse.
>Steady.
>He was alive.
>But she’d injured one of the royal guard!
>How could she do that?
>He hadn’t done anything wrong, he was just trying to do his job!
>She had to get out of here.
>She had to RUN!
>Lyra took a long, steadying breath.
>She had a job to do.
>She dragged him into the washroom.
>She propped him up in a stall, then cursed him to ensure he didn’t wake up.
>A quick trip to the other stall had her hesitating.
>The unconscious guard stood before her.

>”This actually might work! We’ll have one or two fewer missiles, but we can do it! Pinkie, you’re a lifesaver.”

>”But what if they need those missiles?”

>”What if Cadence needs another satellite? Should I force everypony into work camps until it’s done? What if Luna needs more soldiers, should I draft everypony who can hold a gun and send them to fight? The answer of course is ‘maybe’. We are uncertain how many uncertainties there are. What I do know is that there are three princesses working on making sure Equestria has a future. They’ll let us know what they need and when they need it, and when the time comes we’ll have to find a way to get it. But in the meanwhile it’s our job to ensure that Equestria is worth saving.”

>”I don’t want to be in charge anymore.”

>Princess Celestia let out a warm, rich laugh.

>”That means you deserve to be in charge. That takes care of the schools for now. I’ll leave you to think about the salt problem. If you’ll excuse me, I need to go make a deal with the devil.”

>Celestia started to move.
>Lyra ducked back into the washroom.
>And a strong aura of comfort and purity washed over her.
>One she was very familiar with.
>Much like her sister’s magic, there was something distinctly inequine in princess Celestia’s spells.
>But rather than being uncomfortable and frightening, it was soft and warm.
>Something very primal in Lyra’s mind understood that this magic was kind; that it meant her no harm.
>She stepped out.
>Princess Celestia was looking around the darkened hallway in confusion, a light spell emanating from her horn.
>Lyra ducked back in when Celestia started to look her way.
>She held her breath in anticipation.
>And when Celestia began to leave she followed.
>The journey took her far deeper into the palace than she’d ever been.
>It was sorely tempting to run away.
>Perhaps she should have.
>But she had to know.
>What did the princess mean by a deal with the devil?
>Lyra’s visor revealed that the room ahead had four guards in it, standing in a row.
>Celestia passed through the middle of them.
>And began to descend down into the Earth.
>She had to get in there.
>But how?
>Four guards against one Lyra.
>Could she really do it?
>She’d gotten a LOT better at fighting.
>And from what she’d seen so far the guards weren’t actually that great despite their role.

>”Wait a minute. You’re not a guard!”

>A voice came from behind her.
>She bolted into the room and grappled the first guard she saw, throwing the shocked pegasus headfirst to the ground.
>She raised her gun at the second guard as she let her rocks fly.
>They froze at the sight of the gun and didn’t even see her real attacks coming.
>One, two, three.
>To her amazement, she’d downed four guards in seconds.
>But behind her came the fifth.
>A hoof hit her rump.
>Hard.
>She fell to the ground as pain shot through her body.
>Above her was a pegasus guard, flapping just out of reach.
>He shot down, landing a hoof on Lyra’s ribs.
>She choked out all her air as the pegasus flew up again, preparing to dive once more.
>Lyra raised her potentially broken gun.
>He shot down and kicked her leg.
>Her strength was leaving her body.
>She couldn’t take much more.
>He began to swoop again.
>She lashed out with her water.
>Blood splattered out of his wing.
>He collapsed on the ground.
>It took Lyra a few seconds before she could properly move.
>When she did she was horrified by what she saw.
>The pegasus had crashed into the ground, hard.
>His left wing was twisted at a harsh angle.
>And his right wing was oozing blood.
>She’d hurt him.
>Lyra Heartstrings had done this to him.
>This wasn’t who she was.
>She was a good and friendly pony!
>How could she have done this?
>This wasn’t right.
>THIS WASN’T RIGHT!
>She frantically looked around.
>There was a first aid kit on the wall.
>She ripped it open and pulled out the bandages, tightly binding the wound.
>There was no time for this.
>But she couldn’t just leave him.

>”Why?”

>He croaked the question out.

“I don’t know anymore.”

>The words left in a hurry.
>To her surprise they were absolutely true.
>She didn’t know why she was still doing this.
>The other day she’d been spurned by her anger.
>Her fear for the wellbeing of Bon-Bon and Dinky.
>But here and now, it was so very different.
>She’d hurt 7 ponies today.
>SEVEN.
>Lyra Heartstrings didn’t like what she was becoming.
“For what it’s worth, I’m sorry.”
>She began to cast her curse.

>”Yeah. So am I.”

>The guard raised his leg in preparation to shoot.
>The curse sunk in.
>He fell limp.

“He was going to shoot me?”

>Even after she bandaged his wing?
>Wow.
>Rude.
>But why didn’t he?
>He had plenty of time to do it.
>He hesitated.
>It hit Lyra all at once.
>How she’d been when she first started learning mana tide.
>These guards were ponies too.
>Disgusted by violence.
>Peaceful by nature.
>She’d been forced to learn how to attack without hesitation.
>But these guards were still reluctant.
>Especially with their lethal weapons.
>Some may have gotten over that, but the rank and file had never seen battle.
>And they didn’t want to.
>Was this how she’d won?
>That didn’t matter right now.
>Lyra checked her work.
>The bleeding had all but stopped.
>She’d shot all the way through, but the wound was mercifully small.
>He’d need medical attention, and recovery would be long and painful.
>But he’d live.
>She quickly harvested all their bullets wondering what she was becoming.
>Was this all worth it?
>Would it be justified in the end?
>Much like Princess Celestia, Lyra didn’t know.
>All she could do was proceed and hope for the best.
>She looked at the staircase that bored down into the Earth.
>And began to follow Celestia.


                                                *       *       *       *       *


>Lyra stepped onward, leaving the battered guards in her wake.
>She made her way onto the narrow staircase down which Celestia had disappeared.
>She barely saw her surroundings as she descended; guilt wracked her mind.
>’What am I becoming?’
>’Am I really any better than a common thug?’
>’All this lying, violence, stealing…’
>’I’m a mockery of everything I find good.’
>’Is this worth it?’
>’Will I be able to justify it in the end?’
>She didn’t know anymore.
>Everything she’d done lately had definitely been wrong.
>But she’d done it with good reason.
>Right?
>The staircase wound down further and further below the ground.
>They were roughly carved into the mountain itself, growing progressively cruder as she went into the earth.
>There was a distinctive aura of wrongness with this place.
>She could find no light source, yet everything was illuminated by a flickering red light.
>The stone that surrounded her seemed to be flickering like a dying flame.
>The stairs seared her hooves even as the air chilled her to the bone.
>She continued to fall into the heart of the mountain for what felt like an eternity, the spiraling staircase growing more and more twisted with each step.
>She could constantly see motion in her peripheral vision; but there was nothing around.
>Her hoofsteps were totally silent, but there was a thunderous din of otherworldly sounds.
>And Lyra couldn’t shake the feeling that she was being watched.
>This place was beyond wrong.
>And more than once she considered running away.
>But she couldn’t.
>Because her visor told her that right below her hooves there was not only princess Celestia, but TWENTY agents of S.M.I.L.E.
>Agents 1, 3, 6, 10, 15, and 21 stood around her as she moved about some room.
>14 others were busying themselves not far off.
>No sign of Bonny.
>Even so, there was no shortage of high ranking agents to be found.
>If they had that much ponypower in one place, it had to be important.
>She’d never seen an agent in any of their facilities.
>Guard duty had always been left to less important ponies.
>Even their chemical weapons facility had barebones security.
>What were they doing down here?
>Was this a super top-secret facility?
>Was this place the reason for all their activities?
>She couldn’t help but hope.
>Yet she dreaded what she might find.
>She reached the bottom and found a narrow corridor leading to the ponies she sought.
>They had all convened in one central location; a massive chamber that was being buttressed up with a sturdy metallic framework.
>They were worried about a cave-in, despite being in solid rock.
>The stone walls seemed to be almost alive, writhing whenever she looked at them.
>But whenever Lyra touched them they stopped.
>Was she seeing things?
>She pressed inward and found a small hole in the wall.
>Peering inside she found a chamber crammed full of crates and boxes.
>What was its purpose?
>Lyra moved in.
>The walls and floors of this chamber were different from the others.
>The floors didn’t burn.
>The walls didn’t writhe.
>Whatever was wrong with this place, it hadn’t happened to this room yet.
>Was it a newer addition?
>Quickly sorting through the crates revealed them to contain a wide array of weapons and munitions.
>Bullets for various sizes of guns.
>Large, thick shells that must have been meant for an extremely heavy weapon.
>Massive guns that she doubted she could lift.
>Other cases contained an assortment of blades.
>All of them seemed to be full save for the one labelled 198, which was empty.
>A number instead of a name.
>This was a recent discovery on the same level as her visor and Derpy’s laser microphone.
>How could a knife be on the same level as those devices?
>One box was labelled as being poisonous.
>Lyra popped it open with her magic, keeping as far away as she could manage.
>Inside She found the tubes with needles protruding from one end.
>Syringes?
>They were labelled Hg(CH3)2
>A mercury based toxin?
>She closed the box quickly.
>This place was meant to equip agents of S.M.I.L.E. for battle.
>And it was equipping them with what was surely overwhelming force.
>Right?
>A strong sensation of dread filled her body.
>She began to shiver and sweat at the same time.
>Something was wrong.
>No, not wrong.
>That didn’t begin to describe it.
>This was so incredibly twisted and perverse that it didn’t even feel real.
>She walked to the entrance to the armory and poked her nose out.
>Princess Celestia was by the corridor, facing inward.
>Or at least Lyra thought it was Celestia.
>Everything in the chamber was distorted into a twisted parody of reality.
>She was guessing at what she saw nearly as much as she was actually seeing it.
>Before her was an enormous circle of dried blood with five black candles surrounding it.
>A withered old tome sat in the center of the circle, yellowed pages loosely bound by dried and cracked leather.
>She stood back from the mess and let out a long, shuddering sigh.
>A pair of Earth ponies stood on either side of her.
>And a pair of unicorns behind.
>And fourteen pegasi wearing chameleon suits by the far wall.
>They had those poison syringes strapped to their legs.
>Not guns.
>Wouldn’t a gun be more practical?
>The unicorns bore plastic armor much the same as the guards did, though it seemed a bit thicker.
>They had guns strapped to their legs, sacks on their backs, and each of them had a series of large discs floating before them.
>There was a small light just beyond the edge of each disc.
>That didn’t make sense.
>Maybe the disc was transparent?
>She took a closer look with her visor and saw that they were incredibly thin.
>They were also made of a dull black material with which she was not familiar.
>Perhaps they really were so thin they were transparent at the edges.
>Maybe the light was there so they could see the edge?
>The Earth ponies had a very different loadout, with a heavy metallic frame around their body.
>The tips of their hooves were still bare, but all along their limbs were steel rods, hydraulic rams, gears, and massive guns.
>When they moved their armor would emit a high pitched whine as the suit hurried to match their motions.
>And upon their back was an enormous, six barreled cannon.
>Their movements were far too brisk for one carrying such bulk.
>Those suits didn’t seem to be slowing them at all.
>Lyra zoomed in on them with her visor.
>There were clearly visible motors attached to the armor.
>To her surprise, each and every pony in that room was wearing earmuffs.
>Ear protection?
>The guns.
>They propelled their munitions with an explosion.
>In this enclosed area.
>It would be deafening.
>At least they were thinking ahead.

>”Weapons ready?”

>One of her guards jumped in fear when princess Celestia yelled the question.
>They each quickly checked their guns, and the unicorns began to spin their discs.

>”Armed!”

>Each and every one of them yelled in turn.

>”Stimulants?”

>”Ready!”

>”Chemical agents?”

>”Toxins good to go.”

>”Which of you are medics?”

>Every single one of them raised a hoof.

>”Alright. Listen up! This… THING should be trapped. Nopony touch the circle! If ANYTHING crosses that circle it’ll be free. IF it gets free, it DOESN’T. LEAVE. THIS. ROOM. Understood?”

>”Yes ma’am!”

>”Which of you haven’t been here before?”

>Three ponies raised a hoof.

>”Demons can grow in strength through ritual sacrifice, with the gain being proportional to the power wielded by the victim. Recon suggests that only five of the lords of Hell still live. The others have been defeated some time over the last five thousand years, and they were likely sacrificed by their killer. Odds are the remaining lords wield several times the magic that they used to, and we know they tend to enchant themselves to resist injury.”

>The ponies listening to her didn’t seem at all phased by this.
>But Lyra was gripped in terror.
>The lords of Hell had grown STRONGER since they were imprisoned?

>”They’re incredibly resistant to all forms of injury that they’ve encountered. This leaves a weakness to attacks they’re not familiar with. While they’re highly resistant to toxins in general, they can’t have specific spells in place for designer toxins. If we hit them fast and hard we should be able to incapacitate them. Once they’re down they’ll be relying on their magic to keep themselves alive. We can interrupt their magic for a few seconds if we make them drink an angel’s tears. If they’re in bad enough shape those seconds will be enough to end them. Earth ponies and unicorns, we’re counting on you to wound them. Pegasi, your job is to inject as much toxin as possible into those wounds. Your syringes will never penetrate their hide, so wait for your opening.”
>Whoa, whoa.
>It sounded like they were getting ready to fight one of the lords of Hell!”
>Here?

>”We aren’t fighting if we can help it, but we have to be ready. Steel yourselves!”

>She turned to face the circle.

>”PHOBOS! ARISE! DEIMOS! ARISE! PHOBOS! DEIMOS!”

>Every time she said a name, reality seemed to warp.
>A thick wave of  and terror and dread distorted her vision as it washed over the cavern.
>Her vision dimmed with the final cry, and she collapsed to the ground.
>When Lyra regained control of her body and her senses, things had gotten even worse.
>The writhing walls seemed to be trying to flee.
>And Lyra didn’t blame them.
>In the circle stood the most hideous creature she’d ever seen.
>It was no fewer than twenty meters tall, towering above the ponies that stood before it like a malformed giant before an ant.
>Two heads with no necks stood atop the horrible body.
>They grinned, revealing rows and rows of jagged spines where teeth should be.
>Their hollow eyes seemed to have endless depth that threatened to drag everyone and everything in.
>Six bony spines protruded from the disgusting beast’s hunched form, the angry red flesh around them contrasting harshly with its sickly pallor.
>Six long and twisted arms protruded out the front, with jagged spines jutting out on the backside of their dozens of joints.
>Six long, bulky legs held its massive body up, with bits of broken bone protruding through their flesh.
>Lyra’s heart hammered in her chest.
>This horror was beyond her belief.

>”Good evening, princess.”

>Both heads spoke in unison.
>Their discordant voices seemed to exist in her head without reaching her ears.
>A deep, throaty growl that didn’t exist in the air.

>”Only six guards this time. You’re mighty trusting.”

>Weren’t there more?
>She looked around.
>The pegasi were invisible.
>But her visor could still see their implants.
>To Lyra’s amazement, none of the ponies seemed to be reacting to what they saw.
>They stood firm, with a fierce determination.
>They were not afraid.
>Or at the very least, they hid it well.
>The beast lowered itself until its faces were at eye level with Celestia.
>It pushed itself right up to the edge of the circle and began to lick its many lips.

>”I know you cannot escape.”

>”Oh really? If that’s true, why do you have any guards at all? Perhaps you aren’t as confident as you claim.”

>Contempt dripped from its every word.

>”Why have you brought me here? Do you wish to beg for mercy once more?”

>”I’ve never come to you seeking mercy, Deimos and Phobos. I’ve come to you seeking SANITY. There is NO reason why we must fight.”

>”We fight because we’re strong. You negotiate because you’re weak.”

>”You mistake kindness for weakness.”

>”Kindness IS weakness.”

>They sucked in a deep breath, pulling Celestia’s mane forward.
>The hairs didn’t quite reach the circle.

>”The Black Tide will swallow you as it’s swallowed countless others. We need to stop it. If you wish to survive, you’ll step aside.”

>”If you can turn back the tide, then it is no threat. If it even exists. Tell me, have you seen this Black Tide?”

>Celestia didn’t answer.

>”I’ll take that as a no.”

>”I am done negotiating with you two. I’ve offered everything. Gold, metals, jewels, information, infrastructure. I’ve offered you everything for peace, and still you refuse.”

>”You’ve not offered us everything. You’ve not offered us freedom. Tell us, when will you allow us into Elysium?”

>A forked tongue ran over one of the mouths serrated ‘teeth’.

>”When you vow that you won’t harm the residents of this realm.”

>”Eternity is a mighty long time to wait. Perhaps if you were to cut a few trillion years off that I’d be willing to talk.”

>”I have extended the olive branch as far as I can, but to no avail. I now extend the sword. Stand down or you and your entire empire will be destroyed!”

>One of the heads started laughing with a mad cackle.
>The other spoke during the laughter.

>”Destroyed? By PONIES? Is this one of those jokes we’ve heard so much about?”

>”You may outnumber us a million to one or a billion to one, it matters not. We are far more mighty than you can comprehend.”

>The other head started cackling.
>The first began to speak.

>”And how do you expect to best us with those puny bodies of yours?”

>”We no longer fight with our bodies. We fight with our minds. The power we wield transcends the limits of flesh and blood, exceeding what any sane being would imagine. We wield the power of creation in our hooves, and we will burn you to ash with flames stolen from the stars themselves. There is NOTHING in the burning hells that can match the terror we will bring.”

>The laughter died.

>”You do not know the meaning of terror. Don’t worry, we’ll teach you.”

>”Look around yourselves. Do we seem frightened? Are we in ANY way fearful of you?”

>Lyra looked around.
>They really didn’t.
>They looked angry if anything.
>How could they not be afraid of that thing?

>”You’ve become a JOKE by our standards. You are the twin lords of terror no more, for my sister an I have claimed thy throne! We have reinvented terror! I do not fear you nearly as much as I fear myself; our knowledge has unlocked a greater hell than even a demon could imagine. Stand down or we will make Inferno seem like the highest heaven!”

>The twin demons seemed taken aback.
>Shocked even.
>Something that Celestia had said had actually gotten to them.

>”You really aren’t afraid of us?”

>It took a vicious swing at Celestia with one of its incredibly long, jagged arms.
>It slammed into an invisible barrier, stopping dead just before her eyes.
>She didn’t flinch.

>”Perhaps we should fix that. You see, princess, we have a little secret. Something we’ve been holding onto for thousands of years, waiting until just the right time.”

>”And what would that be?”

>Her voice was cool and steady.
>She was not scared in the least.

>”It’s quite simple. We know your name.”

>Princess Celestia froze.
>If it was possible for her white coat to blanch, Lyra was sure it would have.
>She started to turn around.
>She started to RUN.

>”Now now. Don’t go anywhere, Celestia.”

>Princess Celestia stopped mid-stride.

>”Come. Release me.”

>She ran to the circle.
>Her unicorns grabbed her horn with their magic and pulled her to the ground.
>Princess Celestia used her magic to snuff a candle as she was slammed to the stone below.
>A terrible, overwhelming wave of disgustingly tainted magic washed over Lyra.
>Her legs gave out.
>She opened her mouth to scream.
>But nothing came out.

>”Good enough. Now kill your guards.”

>She didn’t move.

>”Kill your guards, Celestia.”

>Princess Celestia’s magic ripped some of the discs out of the unicorn’s grasp.
>She barked an order at them.

>”Do what you must, they do NOT. LEAVE. THIS. ROOM!”

>She hurled the discs at one of the unicorns.
>Lyra hadn’t learned that particular attack pattern, but she had seen her master demonstrate it.
>Celestia was doing it wrong.
>She was supposed to spin them like a circular saw.
>She was just throwing them like a stone.
>An Earth pony lunged in the way, glowing with their protective magic.
>Shallow gashes formed on their hide and a thin trickle of blood began to leak out.
>Their powered suit fell to the ground, slashed into pieces.
>Celestia had used them wrong and still they could cut through steel and STILL slice an Earth pony.
>The discs pulled back, readying for another strike.
>The unicorns grabbed the princess’s body with their magic and roughly flung her into the hallway.
>She groaned in pain, but began to rise regardless.
>The agents were locked in battle with the demon as Celestia rose.
>Thunderous blasts rang out as the heavy gun batteries on the Earth ponies blasted the terrible creature.
>A terrible ringing wracked Lyra’s head.
>Enormous shells slammed into the beast at hypersonic speeds, but it did not falter.
>It didn’t even bleed.
>The unicorn’s chakram dug at its legs, whining as they spun at high speeds.
>The wounded Earth pony lunged at the demon, delivering a supernaturally vicious spinning kick.
>An ear shattering blast rang out as the kick connected, and a thin trickle of blood began to leak out.
>A flock of invisible pegasi swooped in.
>The demon struck at the flying attackers, who deftly scattered through the air.
>The unicorns began to pull capsules out of their bags, and slammed them into the demon.
>Smoke immediately started wafting out as the corrosive chemicals melted flesh.
>Princess Celestia charged back into the room with a look of abject terror plastered on her face.
>She wasn’t in control.
>The agents were already locked in battle with a lord of hell.
>They couldn’t deal with the princess too!
>Lyra acted without thinking.
>Celestia’s tail was pinned to the wall with telekinesis.
>She tried to take flight, but her wings were bound.
>She began to cast a spell.
>Lyra violently pulled on Celestia’s horn, shattering her concentration.
>She ran out and began to cast her curse.
>Princess Celestia was struggling against her bonds.
>But while she fought she looked up at Lyra with a look relief.

>”Thank you. Thank you so much.”

>She blacked out as the curse took hold.
>One of the agents glanced back as the magic flowed.
>They saw Lyra.
>They knew there was an intruder.

>”GET HER OUT OF HERE!”

>And they turned back to the demon lord before them.
>The Earth ponies had already depleted their ammunition and had discarded their suits.
>A flurry of vicious blows rained down on Deimos and Phobos, but they did not falter.
>Almost as one, the small lights on their leg bands went out.
>They’d injected their stimulants.
>The unicorns threw their discs at their foe once more.
>Some of them shattered on contact.
>Pegasi shot past Lyra and collected more poison.

>”GET HER THE HELL OUT OF HERE!”

>Phobos and Deimos jumped on the wounded Earth pony.
>It sunk its ‘teeth’ deep into the poor pony’s leg, mashing it into a fine paste.
>They screamed in pain even as they kicked back with incredible force.
>One Earth pony jumped up on the writhing walls and flipped off, bringing one of their legs down in a million tonne axe kick.
>A small chunk of flesh was knocked off.
>The unicorns dug their chakram into the wound, widening it ever so slightly.
>The tissue around the first wound had started to turn blue as the poison took hold.
>The demon swung at a unicorn, who was pulled away by an invisible pegasus.
>The sweeping strike slammed into the chamber’s wall, and rock began to fall from the ceiling.

>”WHAT THE BUCK ARE YOU WAITING FOR?”

“Right!”

>She levitated princess Celestia as well as she could.
>And began to run up stairs.
>The strain of moving Celestia’s unconscious body up the stairs was getting to her.
>Lyra’s stamina was wearing down.
>She struggled and strained to get her up higher.
>Her ears were ringing with a high pitched squeal.
>Even so she could hear thunderous blasts and crashes down below.
>The Earth trembled around her with every crash.
>She pulled Celestia up another set of stairs.

“Stupid princess. Get an elevator.”

>One more set of stairs.
>Sagittarius was spent.
>Lyra dropped Celestia in the stone stairwell, unable to move her any further.
>She couldn’t levitate anymore.
>But she was so close!
>Lyra grabbed Celestia’s tail in her mouth and began to pull.
>Her muscles burned
>But she finally made it.
>She’d pulled Celestia to the top.
>Lyra collapsed to the ground in exhaustion.

>”Ahem.”

>She turned around.
>A full dozen armed guards glared at her.
>The pony who’d just attacked a bunch of guards.
>And now had an unconscious princess.
>Uh oh.

>”Please. Try and resist. Make my day.”

“You’ve got wounded down there! The princess is hurt, her guards are fighting a DEMON LORD, they need help!”

>”Look, you don’t need to pretend to be crazy until you’re in court. Just come along quietly.”

>They all had guns.
>Lyra was exhausted and her magic spent.
>There was no way out of this except words.

”You have to believe me! Princess Celestia was being controlled by the lords of Hell!”

>It was then that Lyra realised the problem.
>They weren’t part of S.M.I.L.E.
>They didn’t know what was happening.
>She must have sounded completely and totally insane.
>One of them raised their gun.

“I’ll go quietly.”

>”Good idea. Get on the ground.”

>The guards guided Lyra through the process, and she did not resist.
>There was no point.
>She was caught, this was it.
>And Lyra was glad to go.
>To be away from that horrible place.
>One of them stripped her of all her possessions and started to sort through them.

>”Standard issue firearm. She’s either a rogue guard, or she’s picked a fight before. What the hell are these glasses? Some kinda stupid fashion statement?”

>Before long her legs were bound together by manacles and she was being guided to the dungeons.

>”No magic. We’re armed.”

“Now that you’ve got me, could you PLEASE go downstairs? They’re in danger!”

>”Don’t worry. We’ll take care of the demons for you.”

>The condescension in his voice was palpable.
>Was this really how her journey ended?
>Locked up in a cage in Canterlot?
>What would Bon-Bon think?
>What would her parents think?
>What was the punishment for attacking SEVEN guards and knocking a princess out?
>What was the punishment for having stolen S.M.I.L.E. equipment?
>She had a stolen gun on her for pony sake!
>As they led her to the dungeons Lyra slowly started to realise just how much trouble she was in.
>Not as bad as if she’d stayed downstairs with Deimos and Phobos.
>But pretty darn bad!
>They were going to lock her up forever, weren’t they?
>She had to figure something out.
>She had to ESCAPE!
>But how?
>She was being escorted by TWELVE armed guards.
>She didn’t stand a chance against that.

>”Speed it up, would ya?”

“Sorry!”

>She moved onward as quickly as her weary and battered body would allow.
>Pain stabbed at her ribs with every step, crying out about the injustice the guards had inflicted on her before she went downstairs.
>That pegasus had hurt her more than she’d realised.
>And what had she done to him?

“Is he going to be okay?”

>”Who?”

“The guard I hurt.”

>”You’re going to have to be WAY more specific than that.”

>She hung her head in shame as they pulled her onward.
>She’d hurt their friends and comrades.
>There was no chance of lenience, was there?
>They brought her to the dungeons, and another pair of guards pulled open the heavy steel doors.
>The harsh fluorescent lighting of the dungeons burned her eyes.
>Before long she was being shoved into a small holding cell.
>At least she had it to herself.
>The bars slid shut and latched, sealing her in.
>She was trapped in their cage.

>”Hooves by the bars.”

>She complied.
>An Earth pony shoved a key through the bars and unlocked her manacles.
>Why not have a unicorn do it?
>Wouldn’t it be safer to levitate the keys?

>”This cell’s been designed to hold unicorns. No magic for you. Dinner will be here in three hours. Vanilla or chocolate pudding?”

“No banana?”

>”You’re in PRISON.”

“How long will you be holding me here?”

>”Until the trial.”

>They walked away.
>Lyra sat down on the bench.
>She was alone.
>And in prison.
>She sat alone for a moment, catching her breath and collecting her thoughts.
>Then, once her emotions had stabilized enough, she collapsed to the ground.
>And screamed.
>Loudly.
>Until she was hoarse.

>”QUIET DOWN IN THERE!”

>She continued to wheeze in terror.
>She couldn’t get their hideous faces out of her head.
>Lyra curled up on the ground in the fetal position and hid her head under her tail.
>Hours passed before she composed herself.
>She forced herself to think on other things.
>It was a terrible struggle.
>But she finally managed.
>She thought about herself.
>And her actions.
>She didn’t like what she saw.
>Could she honestly say they were wrong to put her here?
>She’d done the wrong thing.
>Repeatedly.
>She’d risked seriously harming other ponies multiple times.
>For what?
>Some ill defined quest for truth?
>How could she justify what she’d done when she didn’t even really understand why she’d done it?
>What would she say to Bonny?
>Bonny.
>Bon-Bon was expected to fight those things!
>Was she okay?
>Was she hurt?
>Lyra NEEDED to know.
>And she had to be there for Bonny if- WHEN she came home.
>She couldn’t afford to rot in jail!
>She had to escape!
>Lyra looked around.
>Toilet with water.
>Small sink with water.
>She was well armed.
>It would be easy to break out.
>She scraped together what little saggitarius magic she could to levitate her weapon-
>Nothing happened.
>Something was blocking the flow of mana.
>As luck would have it Lyra knew quite a bit about mana blocking.
>Moondancer’s research into Aquarius was delicate.
>She needed to block EVERY ley line other than Aquarius.
>And so she’d had to learn all about mana blocking.
>And Lyra, being a real friend unlike Twilight, kept in touch with her friends.
>She’d learned a bit about mana blocking too.
>Lyra doubted she could recreate the process.
>But maybe she could break it?
>Somewhere around here there was a strong magic source disrupting flow in the ley lines.
>A ‘jammer’, they called it.
>A device that cast a spell to put a magical barrier in ley lines.
>The spell plugged them up and stopped the mana from flowing.
>She didn’t understand how it worked, but she DID know that it took a lot of magic to run.
>Somepony would have to swap them out periodically so they could recharge them.
>There was no way they’d forget that 
>She couldn’t count on that level of incompetence.
>She had to break through on her own.
>She had nothing but the fur on her back and no access to magic.
>The mana wouldn’t even reach her.
>How could she possibly get around that?
>If she could find the physical location of the jammer-
>They’d never put it in her cell.
>There had to be some way out of this!
>But she had nothing.
>They’d taken away her magic.

“Wait a second.”

>They couldn’t take away a unicorn’s magic.
>They’d be as drained as she was when she burned out with Aquarius.
>Or as sick as Bon-Bon’s Earth pony sailor.
>Ponies NEEDED magic to be healthy.
>If they took away ALL her magic, she’d be really sick before long.
>Lyra reached to a different ley line.
>She could feel the tingle of the magic.
>But she couldn’t make it flow.
>The blockage wasn’t stopping the magic from reaching her.
>It was stopping it from LEAVING her!
>Which meant…
>Nothing?
>How did that help at all?
>There was a blockage downstream in the ley line.
>The magic couldn’t go out the end of the river.
>But what if she went around it?
>Impossible for most.
>The end points of the ley lines were fixed.
>But Lyra didn’t have to use one of the 12 ley lines.
>Because she could make her own.
>She pulled cancer out of the ley line.
>The mana flowed in a way that she herself didn’t understand.
>It seemed to transcend space as it moved.
>At one instant here, at another it was far far away.
>She pulled Leo out.
>The mana flowed through a path that her mind couldn’t comprehend.
>But it was a repeatable and reliable flow.
>One she could exploit.
>The spell fizzled.
>But it was cast.
>Lyra giggled.
>She had magic.
>It would be hard to use, but it was there.
>She began to cast a geyser strike.
>Cancer would form barriers that shaped the water.
>Sagittarius would press the barriers, causing the eruption.
>What if they were one in the same?
>What if she used Sagittarius AND Cancer to form a barrier that moved itself?
>She fused the two ley lines.
>But there wasn’t enough power in there.
>Sagittarius was spent.
>She pulled Leo in to add power.
>Her spell overloaded, and pain exploded in Lyra’s head.

“AUGH!”

>A guard ran to her cell.
>She was rolling on the floor.

>”What’s wrong, are you okay?”

“Y-yeah.”

>No.
>That REALLY hurt.
>But she needed them to leave her alone.
>She got up and climbed onto the bench.

>”Should I get a doctor?”

“No, I’ll be fine. Just an old injury, don’t worry about it.”

>They looked unconvinced.
>But they left.
>They were treating her a lot better than she’d expected so far.
>But that was no reason to stay.
>She had to be home before Bonny came back.
>So Lyra did the most important thing she could.
>She relaxed.
>It would take time for her to recover from that shock.
>In that time her stamina would return.
>Lyra leaned back on her bench.
>And took a nap.
>Or at least she tried to.
>Every time she started to nod off her heart would skip a beat.
>Deimos and Phobos had taken residence in her head.
>Hours of failed napping passed before a guard knocked on her cell.

>”Soup’s on!”

>She slid a tray of vegetables and hay under the bottom of her cell’s bars.
>No pudding at all.
>The monsters!
>Lyra smiled at him and nodded.
>He walked away.
>It was time.
>She fused two ley lines.
>But not the third.
>That was too much for her to handle.
>She formed the mobile barriers as a single spell rather than two.
>It took a little while to manage the unfamiliar mana, but soon enough her geyser strike was ready.
>As she looked at the floating water and positioned it before the lock, something struck Lyra.
>This was easy.
>REALLY easy.
>She was monitoring half as many spells as she normally had to.
>It didn’t take nearly as much focus.
>She could probably manage more fields for more pressure.
>Alternatively…
>Lyra levitated more water out of the sink.
>She formed it into a second point.
>And now she had TWO geyser strikes ready.
>It was then that Lyra began to realize the true nature of her gift.
>This was no mere trick.
>What else could she do with it?
>What was she overlooking?
>Lyra looked up at her still painted horn and grinned.

“Nice.”

>Two shots rang out.
>Two gashes were made around the latch.
>A quick kick knocked it out, and Lyra was free.
>She stepped out and met with a guard straight away.
>Their jaw was in danger of breaking through the floor.
>He was going to call for help if she didn’t do anything.
>She didn’t have time for that.
>But last time she’d fought her way out of a problem things turned bad.

“Do you know what I was in for?”

>”Beating up seven armed guards at once then beating up the princess.”

>Their voice quaked in fear as they spoke.

“Exactly.”

>Wrong.
>But that was okay.
>It was scarier than the truth.

“And did you see what I just did?”

>”Kicked your prison cell open without magic.”

“Right. And now that I’m out of my cell, I DO have magic again. So think things through really carefully before you act. Are you sure you want to try and stop me?”

>”I’ll be good.”

>They started to back away.

“Not so fast. I can’t have you calling for help. You’re going in a cell.”

>To her amazement, the guard complied.
>He walked into a prison cell.
>And slammed it shut.

>”Please don’t hurt me.”

“Re-laaaax, I’m not gonna hurt you!”

>She began to walk through the prison.
>There were only a few cells from the looks of things.
>Perhaps this place was just for holding new arrivals, and they were later shipped off?
>It didn’t matter.
>Lyra made her way to the heavy barred doors.
>And came face to face with a camera.
>Help was doubtlessly on the way.
>She hammered on the door with her geyser fruitlessly for a short time.
>It was just too thick for her to punch through.
>And the more she thought about it, the more likely it seemed that there were guards on the other side.
>Perhaps there was another way out?
>She turned her attention to the brick walls.
>Where would they lead?
>Probably not where she was being expected.
>Lyra punched through the brick walls with ease.
>On the other end was a single guard sitting on a sofa with a box of pastries resting on his belly.

“Sorry to bother you, could you direct me to the evidence locker?”

>”Uhhh…”

>She intimidated the previous guard pretty well.
>Maybe she could do the same here?
>The guard started to reach for his weapon.
>Lyra levitated the debris from the smashed wall and stepped forward.
>She started to swing the broken bricks around the air.

“You wouldn’t want to make me angry, would you?”

>”No. No I would not.”

“Then I suggest you go and lock yourself in a cell.”

>THESE were the royal guard?
>She guided the guard back to the holding cells and locked him up.
>She then went back to the guard’s break room to find two more had arrived.

“Good grief.”

>Some time passed with more and more guards arriving to help.
>Each and every time Lyra scared the bejeezus out of them and locked them away.
>But it was really starting to be a problem.
>She brought her latest capture in with a frustrated groan.
>The cells were crammed right full.
>Guards were pressed up against each other quaking in fear when Lyra arrived.
>Even the cell she’d broken open was full.
>There was nothing holding them in.
>They just didn’t want to get out.

“18, 19, 20… Alright. Looks like there’s still a little bit of room in holding cell C.”

>”Just you wait until Burly gets here! He’s going to set your straight!”

>Somepony called from cell B.

>”Yeah, thing about that, Cloudy, is that… I REALLY don’t want to fight her.”

>Said somepony from cell C.
>Lyra rolled her eyes and made her way out.
>She’d been disillusioned with the guards when she scared them away from Twilight’s.
>But this was something else entirely.
>She opened the reinforced door with the keys that one of the guards had so kindly gifted her.
>She entered the guard station without resistance.
>And popped open the evidence locker.

“Let’s see here. Armored vest. Super fancy glasses. Saddlebags…”

>No gun.
>Her weapon had gone missing.
>She COULD try and hunt it down.
>Or she could get out of Canterlot and grab another later.
>And considering that the whole of the guard DEFINITELY knew there was a breakout by now, the choice was clear.
>Time to go.
>Lyra suited up and froze.
>The moment she put her visor on she saw she was surrounded.
>There were dozens of guards waiting to ambush her the moment she left this room.
>Unless…
>The dungeon was underground.
>Maybe there was an above ground to this building?
>She blew a hole in the ceiling with a few quick shots of water.
>Debris and dust fell to the ground.
>And up above was a crawlspace.
>She pushed the desk into place and climbed on.
>She pulled herself up.
>And then she looked around.
>She knew exactly where she was.
>This was where she’d been spying on Celestia and Pinkie!
>She knew how to get out of the palace.
>The question was if she could avoid the guards.
>With them all being tagged, it should be easy.
>Right?
>She looked around.
>The palace was swarming with guards.
>There was no way she could ever just walk out.
>Lyra groaned and dropped to the ground.
>She couldn’t just stay here.
>She had to move!
>But-
>The ventilation ducts caught her eye.
>Maybe?
>Lyra stood on her hind hooves and reached up.
>She pulled herself into the duct work and started to crawl along.
>It was cramped.
>And ventilation ducts were surprisingly noisy.
>Worst of all, it was cliche.
>But it was working.
>She made her way to the perimeter of the palace-
>Celestia and Luna were nearby.
>It looked like they were talking to each other.
>She was practically home free.
>She could just leave.
>Or she could risk capture and injury to find out what they were up to.
>Lyra’s curiosity got the best of her and she took a turn to go check in on them.
>She found herself peering down on the two of them from above.
>Luna was pacing furiously.
>Celestia sat on the floor, staring vacantly into space.

>”REALLY? SERIOUSLY?”

>Luna was mad.
>Not just mad.
>Pissed.

>”I can never apologize enough.”

>Luna let out a long, aggravated sigh.

>”I want to say I don’t blame you. But I do. I WARNED you! How many times did I say not to talk to them?”

>”Dozens.”

>Princess Celestia sounded more than morose.
>She was absolutely gutted.
>She seemed as somber as a mare who’d lost their foal.

>”Demons cannot be reasoned with. They cannot be bribed either. They WANT to fight! It’s FUN for them!”

>No answer.

>”I know you don’t believe me. You can’t imagine that anything could be so vile. I ask that you TRUST me! I know the demon far better than you ever will. There is nothing in them worth redeeming.”

>”We must give all a chance to repent.”

>”This was the SEVENTH try! How many more chances would you give them? Seven more?”

>”Seven times seventy if I must.”

>Princess Celestia would give demons so many chances?

>”They don’t deserve any chances. You shouldn’t even be talking to them.”

>”What is it you would do?”

>”You know what I’d do. Tomorrow, our forces will be beset upon by MILLIONS of theirs. There will be no talks. There will be no warnings. They’ll all fall when the mist hits. Not because it’s right or fair, but because I’d rather slay them by the millions than sacrifice a single pony.”

>Celestia was tearing up.

>”What of mercy? What of honour, justice, kindness. What of virtue?”

>”The wellbeing of our ponies matters far more than your principals. You must understand that!”

>”Can we even be said to have principals if we’d abandon them?”

>Luna’s mouth hung open for a brief moment.

>”If there ever was a time to compromise on morality, it is now!”

>”A mare’s character is measured during times of hardship. It’s easy for one to be good when they are not tempted by sin. If we abandon our values we’ll be as the demons themselves!”

>”I will stop at NOTHING to protect our ponies. If that means I have to stoop to the level of the demons then so be it!”

>Celestia shook her head morosely.

>”’Tia, I didn’t want to do this. I really didn’t. But you have to understand.”

>Luna levitated a small folio of papers out.
>Lyra felt her unsettling, oily magic fill the air.

>”THIS is the price of thy virtue!”

>She pulled photographs out of the folio.
>Lyra nearly lost her lunch at the sight of the first one.
>An Earth pony lay sprawled on the ground, hind legs crushed until they splattered.
>Gore was splattered about their rear end.
>Muscles, blood, bone shards…

>”Agent three. In critical condition. They’ll never be able to do field work again if they even survive!”

>Agent three.
>A very high ranking agent was crippled for life.

>”27. No, not 27. Sunshine Song. K.I.A.”

>A second photo came out.
>A unicorn had been impaled through the eye.
>A massive, jagged spine was broken off, pinning her lifeless body to the ground.
>What was left of her face was forever locked in a rictus of terror.

>”Meadowlark. K.I.A.”

>She pulled another photograph out.
>A pegasus had been vivisected.
>Their hide was peeled back, showing their organs and muscles to the world.
>They’d been pinned to the wall by the foul beast’s hideous spines like a lab specimen.

>”Please stop. I can bear no more.”

>Celestia was openly crying at this point.
>Luna ignored her words.
>She used her magic to pluck the tears from Celestia’s face as she produced another photograph.
>The last one was in some ways the most disturbing of all.
>Just a severed tail, matted with blood.

>”Arctic Star. They ate him alive, ‘Tia. He’s gone. This is the price you’ve paid. And for what? They’ve escaped back to hell to lick their wounds, but they are not dead. We will still have to face them. Those ponies died for nothing. These are the wages of thy virtue. It shall be by my sin that the rest survive.”

>Celestia curled in on herself.
>Luna continued to collect her tears.

>”They deserved better than that. I’ll be giving the remaining agents every advantage I can. Tomorrow morning, I am deploying a Nightmare class weapon. With or without thy blessings.”

>”Did they enjoy it?”

>Luna looked confused.
>Celestia looked up at her.
>She was still crying, but her face wasn’t covered in sorrow.
>She bore righteous fury.

>”Deimos and Phobos. Did they really enjoy what they did?”

>”Immensely.”

>Princess Celestia was trembling with rage.

>”Bring them to justice. End them. Do whatever it takes, they must never harm a pony again.”

>”What happened to your virtue?”

>”You were right. They are beyond redemption.”

>”And if I should choose to deploy an Armageddon class weapon?”

>”Do what thou wilt.”

>Luna nodded curtly.

>”I’m sorry I had to do that to you. I know you were only doing what you thought right. But I suggest you consult with me before you contact one of them again. As bad as this was, it could have gone far worse.”

>Luna teleported away.
>Celestia didn’t move.
>She was despondent.
>Lyra was sorely tempted to get out and comfort her.
>But she couldn’t.
>She had to leave.
>She crawled to the far end of the palace, and used her magic to punch a hole in the wall.
>She climbed out, feeling circulation return to her cramped legs.
>And Lyra ran.
>She ras as fast as she could out of the city.
>The sun was setting by the time she made it to the wall.
>Lyra bolted through the incomplete wall and made her way into the woods.
>Her visor revealed guards flying about in the sky, doubtlessly seeking her.
>But she had the advantage.
>She knew where they were.
>She’d always know where they were.
>And while they’d seemingly spied her moving into the woods, they couldn’t pinpoint her.
>Lyra waded through the river to hide her tracks.
>Ground bound ponies swept the areas before and behind her, failing to find anything.
>She wound up hiding in a bush for nearly half an hour when they began to get close.
>But as time went on they broadened their search.
>They spread out further and further until finally, Lyra was free to just walk.
>The river had washed away most of the dye on her legs, revealing the minty green fur beneath.
>If she was caught now they’d know her true coat colour.
>But with knowing where every guard was at all times it wasn’t that hard to evade them.
>Lyra made her way into Ponyville under cover of darkness.
>She crept into her home and climbed in through a window.
>The She went to take a shower and wash away the dye and grime of the day.
>The sun was rising as Lyra dried off.

“I need to get Bonny home.”

>There was no way that her Bonny should have to face that madness.
>She was a kind and sweet pony, full of joy and life.
>To throw her into hell itself was sick.
>To demand that she face such monstrosities in battle was insane.
>It was little wonder she was so stressed out all the time.
>Lyra absolutely had to figure out a way to get her home.
>Maybe if-
>The computer was on.
>Hadn’t she turned it off when she’d left?
>Lyra was pretty certain she had.
>She approached it hesitantly.
>There were words on the screen.

>”Did you enjoy your trip to Canterlot?

>Her blood ran cold.
>The text on her computer changed.

>”Oh yes. I know it was you. Assaulting the royal guard is a serious offence.

“Are they okay?”

>It took a while for them to reply.

>”We don’t know the long term effects of your brutality yet. The pegasus will recover in a few months. Their wings mend quickly. The ponies you concussed we are not certain. One has partial blindness, though we retain hope they’ll recover.”

>Partial blindness.
>An innocent pony had been seriously hurt.
>And it was not just her fault.
>She’d done it.
>She, Lyra Heartstrings, had seriously hurt a pony.
>With what might be lasting damage.
>She was guilty.

>”Why should I not have you arrested?”

>Lyra didn’t answer.
>She was still overcome with guilt.

>”You protected Celestia at great personal risk. I suppose some degree of lenience is warranted. But I warn you, you are on very thin ice.”

>Was that why they were letting her go?
>Or was it because they needed Bonny on their side?
>Perhaps a combination of both.
>Did she really deserve to be let loose?

>”You do not understand the power you wield, Lyra. The average pony is not equipped for battle. Even the Royal Guards are delicate and peaceful. Mana Tide is a dangerous art. It is not meant to incapacitate ponies. It is meant to kill monsters. To kill creatures far bigger and tougher than any pony ever could be. When you use Mana Tide against a pony you’re bringing a warhammer to a pillow fight.”

“I understand.”

>”You really don’t. They are soft. Frail. They revel in their weakness. When you strike a pony, you strike a defenceless whelp. I will bring you in if you harm another. Your crimes against the state continue to grow; your punishment would be great. Watch your step.“

“Understood.”

>The computer shut down.
>They had caught her.
>Lyra had to find some way to get out from under their hoof.
>She had to get Bonny home.
>And she had to get ahold of Starlight somehow.
>She went to bed, completely exhausted.
>Her dreams were plagued by visions of terror.

													 *       *       *       *       *

>Lyra Heartstrings was sitting on her couch in her usual Lyra manner.
>She’d spent several hours resting there.
>It was a strange change of pace for the lively and exuberant pony.
>Normally she’d be up and about, bouncing throughout the lands with her brilliant and goofy grin.
>But she was in rough shape.
>The long trek home through the night had taxed her.
>As had her ascent from Celestia’s damnable summoning chamber.
>It was bad enough on the day of her journey, but the day after she was truly sore.
>And the beating she’d received on that day hadn’t helped either.
>Indeed, Lyra was tired and battered.
>To make matters worse she had barely slept a wink the last couple of days.
>Lyra whiled away the early afternoon upon her couch, neither asleep nor truly awake.
>Hours ticked by in her stupor.
>Every now and then a stray thought would pass through her addled brain.
>But she forgot them nearly as quickly as they came.
>She was awoken by a banging on the door.
>Not the usual kind that might imply somepony seeking her attention.
>Rather than a few quick taps, she was greeted with one heavy strike.
>The kind that might imply somepony slamming into the door at high speeds.
>Perhaps with their face.

“Come on in, Derpy!”

>The door crept open and in walked a bubbly grey pegasus.
>Lyra rubbed as much of the sleep from her eyes as she could.
>With her no longer blurry vision she looked at her friend.
>She seemed completely unphased from her crash.
>As usual.
>Lyra wasn’t sure how she did it.
>Pegasi made no sense to her.
>And Derpy made no sense to anypony.

>”Whoa. Lyra. You look terrible. Is everything okay?”

>Said the pony who just slammed into a building face first at high speeds.

“I’m worried about Bonny.”

>And scared out of my skin.

>”Do you know what she’s doing?”

>Trying to conquer Orcus with a skeleton crew and limited resources from the sounds of it.

“Monster hunting I think.”

>Lyra opened her eyes.
>She didn’t remember closing them.
>But it wasn’t quite as bright outside any longer.
>Derpy was quietly brushing Lyra’s coat.
>She seemed to be stuck on a particularly stubborn tangle.

>”You haven’t done this in days, have you?”

>She hadn’t bathed in days either.
>She’d hardly done anything.
>Except go to her Mana Tide lessons.
>That stallion was scary.
>She wasn’t going to attract his ire if she could help it.
>There were already enough things haunting her nightmares.

>”She’s been away for a little while. You weren’t this bad until just recently. What happened?”

>She didn’t want to talk about it.
>Derpy kept brushing.

>”When was the last time you ate?”

“Err… I don’t remember.”

>”I’ll go make you some pancakes.”

>She spat the brush out of her mouth and walked to the kitchen.

“Wait. How was she speaking so clearly?”

>Lyra woke with a start.
>She didn’t remember falling asleep.
>But she DID remember what woke her up.
>A terrible crashing noise in the kitchen.
>She quickly made her way there to find Derpy lying on her back.
>A plate of pancakes had landed right side up on her belly.
>Amazingly not a drop of syrup had been spilt.
>A knife fell from the countertop, and dug into the pancakes harmlessly.

>”That turned out pretty well actually.”

“You’re okay?”

>”Right as rain!”

>She got up in one swift, graceless motion right after Lyra levitated the food away.
>Derpy took a step and tripped.
>She faceplanted to reveal what had caught her leg.
>A floorboard had been displaced on her first journey to the ground.
>Beneath it lie a secret compartment.
>Lyra peered inside.
>A steel box was there.
>It was labelled as a corrosive.

“I’m not even surprised anymore.”

>Derpy returned to her hooves once more and looked in.
>She gasped in shock.

“Yeah. I’ve been finding a lot of stuff like that lately.”

>Lyra had been snooping about her own home a bit as of late.
>Ever since she found out Bonny was hiding a gun under the mattress.
>Explosives in the bathroom, poisons in a hidden compartment under the kitchen sink, a veritable armory of firearms in the closet.
>All of them useless to Lyra of course.
>Without knowing what the chemicals were or how the bombs worked they were not safe to handle.
>And she didn’t want to risk losing one of Bonny’s guns.
>They were doubtlessly on a catalogue somewhere.
>If one of Bonny’s weapons were to be captured, Lyra would be found out immediately.

“Please don’t talk about it.”

>”Don’t worry. I’m not going to tell anypony that Bon-Bon is secretly-”

>Lyra stood on her hind legs and shoved her front hooves in Derpy’s mouth.

“Don’t say anything.”

>Derpy nodded.
>Lyra removed her hooves.
>She didn’t drop back down on them.

“I’ve unplugged my computer. It can hear us, and it can turn on on its own. I just hope unplugging it is good enough.”

>”It is. They don’t have an internal battery. The capacitors will run down really quickly.”

>Lyra stared intently at Derpy.
>She stared harder.
>And harder still.
>She raised one brow.

“How do you know?”

>”Oh! Umm… I have a friend who knows this kind of stuff. I’d introduce you to her but she’s really shy.”

“Fluttershy?”

>”Not that kind of shy. I’ve been going to her with all my computer problems and she’s always been able to figure it out.”

“Is she part of S.M.I.L.E.?”

>”No. She’s just a clever pony who spends way too much time with her computer.”

“I’m not sure I’d trust that to be right all the time.”

>”No, you don’t understand. WAY too much time. Up to 18 hours a day.”

>That WAS quite a bit of time.

>”She’s spent thousands of hours on the internet reading about those things.”

“I don’t know. I still wouldn’t count on her to actually know how they work.”

>Derpy shrugged.

>”She’d know more about them than I do.”

>That was true.

>”And she says she has an untraceable internet connection. Could be useful.”

“Untraceable? How?”

>”She’s behind seven proxies.”

>Lyra didn’t know what that meant.

>”AND she’s managed to find some stuff for me. Apparently S.M.I.L.E. has computers connected to the internet. And with a little bit of information she can access them from home.”

“Seriously?”

>”Okay. With a LOT of information. I basically need to tamper with it with my own hooves before she can do anything. But it lets us connect to computers again at a later date.”

>That did sound useful.
>Lyra sat down at the table and began eating.
>The meal disappeared quite rapidly.

“So this friend of yours. She found anything interesting?”

>”Oh yeah. Bon-Bon had another therapy session.”

“Really? WHEN? Is it recent?”

>”I dunno.”

>It might not be recent.
>Lyra didn’t know if Bonny was still okay.
>She sagged onto the table.

>”It’s okay, Lyra. You can tell me. What’s worrying you? Why is this outing so much worse than her other ones? She’s not in Orcus again, is she?”

>Lyra jumped upright with a start.
>She didn’t know what was so bad about that name.
>But she’d seen what Princess Celestia did with names from that terrible place.
>And she’d seen what their owners had done with her name.
>S.M.I.L.E. didn’t seem too worried about naming anything else from down there.
>But that one in particular was dangerous.
>And names held great power.

“DON’T SAY THAT NAME!”

>”Which name? Orc-”

>Lyra practically tackled her friend.

“Names have power. I don’t know what’s so bad about that one, but it’s apparently one of the worse ones. DON’T SAY THAT NAME!”

>”Okay, geeze.”

”How did you know she was down there anyway?”

>Derpy blinked three times.
>Every time she opened her eyes they were in a different configuration.
>During the fourth blink the sweet smile melted from her face.
>A look of shock replaced it.

>”BON-BON’S ACTUALLY IN HELL?”

“Yes?”

>”That was a JOKE!”

“It’s a pretty weird joke.”

>”I knew they sent her down there last time but I didn’t think they’d do it again!”

“I know, right? Sending somepony down there TWICE is just cruel.”

>”That’s awful!”

“Why do you care? I thought you hated her.”

>Derpy shook her head furiously.

>”I don’t hate her! I just don’t want her near my daughter! But she doesn’t need to be THAT far away! Why would they do that to her?”

>Derpy didn’t know.
>She didn’t know about the Black Tide.
>She didn’t know about Eurynomos.
>She didn’t know about Deimos and Phobos.
>Lyra shuddered with terror.

>”You know, don’t you?”

“Yeah…”

>”Why won’t you tell me?”

>Lyra looked to her friend.
>One of the sweetest ponies in history.
>She looked hurt.
>Not angry or upset.
>Just hurt.

>”Don’t you trust me?”

“Of course I trust you! It’s just I’m not sure if you really want to know.”

>”It’s okay Lyra. I understand that it’s bad down there. I’m not just a filly. I can handle it.”

>Derpy was right.
>She wasn’t just a foal.
>She was an adult mare and a mother. 
>She knew about S.M.I.L.E. and their reach.
>If she couldn’t handle the truth nopony could.
>So Lyra told her.
>She told her everything.
>All about the chemical superweapons and the missions in Orcus.
>All about the lords of hell and what she’d seen beneath Canterlot.
>And she told Derpy all about the Black Tide.
>This danger that was seen as greater than hell itself.
>As Lyra spoke, her bubbly friend slowly nodded along with each point.
>And when she was finished Derpy took a deep breath.
>And then?

>”AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!”

>An ear piercing shriek.

“Whoa, calm down D.”

>”AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!”

>She just kept going.
>Lyra was genuinely amazed by the lung capacity on that pony.
>Several minutes passed before she stopped.

“You okay?”

>”Yeah. I’m just a little hoarse. Sorry about that.”

“No, I’m sorry! I shouldn’t have told you. Nopony should have to worry about this mess.”

>”No, no. I asked you to tell me. It’s fine.”

>She certainly didn’t look fine.

>”I want to know what’s happening and what kind of world my Dinkums will live in.”

“And what do you think it’ll be like?”

>”I think it’s going to be great.”

>Seriously?

>”All these terrible things are happening at once. Once all this stuff is taken care of we’ll be out of problems!”

>That was one way of looking at it.
>Assuming they DO get through it all.
>Which seemed like a pretty big ‘if’.

>”C’mon, Lyra. You need to keep your chin up. There’s no point in being sad.”

“Yeah, but-”

>”No buts! Being sad and worrying won’t fix anything. Just keep on going.”

“But-”

>”Would Bon-Bon want you to do this to yourself?”

“No…”

>”Well there ya go. She’s trying her best to make sure you’re doing well. Don’t work against that! Be happy!”

>Lyra couldn’t help but admire her friend.
>Nothing had gone right with her life.
>She used to be one of the strongest flyers in Cloudsdale, nearly ensured a position in the Wonderbolts.
>Her eyes failed her.
>The surgery failed.
>She wound up working a low profile job in a backwater town.
>Tried to settle down, wound up a single mother.
>Constantly crashing, constantly failing, never surrendering.
>She was an amazing pony despite her constant shortcomings.

“I’ll try.”

>”That’s the spirit!”

“So. What happened in Bonny’s therapy session?”

>”I actually didn’t listen to it. Hopefully it’s not so bad.”

>She produced a small device that was tucked into her mane.
>She placed it on the table.
>It looked just like a tape recorder.
>But far smaller.

“I dunno. This is supposed to be her private stuff. I don’t feel right snooping through it.”

>”You might find out how she’s doing.”

“GIMME!”

Earlier...

>Agent Zero was exhausted.
>Physically exhausted, yes.
>The previous mission had been interesting.
>It was physically taxing of course.
>But it had been far more emotionally exhausting.
>She was glad to be back in Elysium.
>Away for the tortured landscape and oppressive atmosphere of Orcus.
>But even up here under the blue sky tension filled her entire being.
>She looked at the pendant Lyra had given her.
>Maybe it was broken?
>She moved to lift it off-
>Her heart nearly beat its way out of her body.

“Yeah. It’s workin’.”

>The tension wasn’t worth worrying about too much though.
>She’d been scared and stressed before.
>She’d be fine.
>But this?
>This was new.
>She had to tell somepony.
>But she couldn’t tell Lyra.
>Even if Lyra was allowed to know about what just happened, there was no way she could ever tell her.
>What would she think?
>How would Lyra react if she knew who Sweetie Drops really was?
>Lyra was kind and pure.
>There was no way she’d ever associate with somepony as monstrous as Sweetie Drops.
>She would hate Sweetie Drops.
>She could only ever care for Bon-Bon.
>Agent Zero let out a long sigh.
>Sweetie Drops needed to talk through this.
>If only so she could understand.
>Understand not from the perspective of an agent, but from the perspective of a pony.
>She had to understand how to be Bon-Bon.
>Regrettably there were few ponies she could talk to about this.
>And few of them weren’t in the same boat as her.
>She pushed the door open and walked into her psychologist’s office.

>”Agent Zero? I wasn’t expecting you.”

“I’m scheduled for around now, aren’t I?”

>”Well, yes. But you never show up of your own volition.”

>That was true.
>She didn’t want to be here.
>Calm Breeze seemed like an okay sort.
>But Bon-Bon hated being stuck in this place.
>And Sweetie Drops hated being questioned by this canton.
>She sat down on the sofa and leaned back.

“How long until your next appointment?”

>”A little over an hour.”

>That should be more than enough.
>But how to approach this issue.

>”What’s on your mind?”

>Plenty.
>But she didn’t really know how to put it in words.

>”Why don’t you tell me about the most recent operation?”

“Are you allowed to know what happened?”

>She pushed a manilla folder forward.
>From the looks of things the doc knew nearly as much as the actual agents.

“You already know what happened. No need to tell you.”

>”I know what happened, yes. But I don’t know what you went through.”

“Sure you do. It says right here that I was part of task force theta.”

>”I know what you did and I know what happened around you. But I don’t know what you experienced. Our perception of the world seldom matches actual reality. At times the two are quite divergent, especially during periods of great stress. I could read all the documentation a thousand times over and not know what your experience was. So please, tell me in your own words. What happened?”

“Fine.”

Earlier still.

>The ground trembled in the pits of Orcus.
>Everyone knew why.
>Misery would soon be upon them.
>They were beyond counting.
>They were beyond reason.
>And they were beyond redemption.

“Alright! Listen up.”

>A small team of ten Earth ponies and ten Unicorns looked at her intently.
>The were hiding in a small burrow just below the ground well away from what would soon be the front lines.

“This fight is already won. We don’t need to worry about them getting to our fortifications, much less wiping them out. That’s all been taken care of. Our job is to make sure their attack is the most costly military blunder in the history of the universe. Every one of those bastards we off now if one we don’t have to worry about later.”

>The ponies around her were checking their equipment.
>Looking one last time to ensure they were ready for maximum destruction.

“When the gas hits them the survivors can either push onward or run back. If they move on they’re going to get slaughtered by our forces back at base. If they fall back, well, they’re going to get slaughtered by us.”

>Guns were loaded, blades were unsheathed, explosives were readied.

“We’ve nearly ensured aerial superiority; most of our firepower is aimed upward so we should take over the skies pretty quickly. We’ll have no shortage of air support. But our fliers aren’t going to have the power to take down the big bogies.”

>Unicorns fanned out their bladed discs and poisoned lances.
>Earth Ponies slipped on their powered armor.
>Servos whirred as they struggled to move the heavy weaponry.

“Our primary objective is to stay safe. It’s more important that we’re ready and able for the next mission. Our secondary objective is to take down the leviathans. With them out of the way our birds should be able to clean up without trouble. They can hunt the stragglers all night long if they need to. Our tertiary objective is the other greater demons. They’re no real threat to pegasi, but we might as well deal with them while we have the chance. Don’t worry about knocking out `the rest of the trash, stay on target.”

>Unicorns donned their armor.
>Unlike the powered armor which was a means of carrying heavy arms, this was designed for protection.
>Without the breath of the Earth a unicorn would be knocked over by the recoil of Earth pony weapons anyway.
>Extremely durable polymers were layered over a fullerene reinforced frame.
>Useless against major threats.
>But indestructable to the lesser demons.

“Don’t go down into the valley or you get poisoned. Don’t stand in front of a leviathan or you’re getting trampled. Don’t hesitate to retreat if things go sour. And don’t get cocky.”

>And she climbed into her Aeries suit.
>A specialised form of powered armor
>If it even could be called armor.
>A barebones steel exoskeleton was in place to mount an array of heavy firearms.
>And servomotors were there to help her move their bulk.
>The guns were merely a sidearm though.
>They always were for an Earth pony.
>A means of striking from a distance and preserving stamina, nothing more.
>The true destructive power was in their magic.
>Their hooves were the real weapon.
>And Zero embraced that.
>Her armor wasn’t meant to protect, nor to mount weapons.
>Those were secondary concerns.
>The real purpose was strapped to her legs.
>Rocket thrusters to give her kicks even more speed.

“If nopony gets hurt, drinks are on me.”

>They popped out of their burrow.
>Downhill from them lie a valley carved into the desolate hellscape.
>Innumerable vile creatures crawled about downhill of them, making a living blanket of corrupted flesh.
>Their maddened howls and pained cries mixed in the caverns of Orcus to make a bone chilling din.
>They marched toward S.M.I.L.E.’s fortified position in a pincer formation, looking to envelop the smaller force with their incredible numbers.
>Normally they’d have no trouble.
>S.M.I.L.E. had little more than trenches and razor wire to slow the enemy down.
>There was neither time nor reason to build walls.
>The forces of hell could easily crush them, and the flying demons never cared about them.
>If your walls somehow managed to withstand the crushing blows of the massive hulking beats, it still didn’t matter.
>They’d swarm about you until their dead piled over the top and climb in.
>Defence didn’t work in hell.
>Aggression was the only solution.
>A small strike force was out in the battlefield.
>They were being overwhelmed.
>Pushed back.
>Small arms fire constantly shot out as they made their retreat back to their defensive position.
>They were outrunning the slower demons.
>The massive leviathans which towered into the sky with their enormous muscular legs slowly dredged along the countryside.
>Their thick scaly hide was filled with holes and burrows in which swarms of flying beasts nested.
>Four winged segmented insects the size of a cat flooded out of their spawning grounds ready to hunt
>The air was thick with their spawn which would swarm about anything they could and inject them with terrible poisons from their long, needle sharp stingers.
>Whenever a pegasus drew near the leviathans would roar into the skies, spewing toxic gases into the air.
>A lesson they had learned long ago.
>Stay away from their mouths.
>The osobolos also lagged behind.
>Tripods with short chitinous legs slowly lumbered forward.
>The front of their bodies consisted of little more than a massive cleaver made of chitin and bone that they’d drop on their prey.
>By the rear were broad flexible appendages bound together by tough sinewy tissue from which they could hurl massive jagged spines, each one nearly half the size of a train car.
>An organic ballista.
>How quaint!
>Despite how primitive they were, they were doubtlessly effective.
>If they got in range to fire a shot there’d be trouble.
>Good thing that would never come to pass.
>And finally were the reavers.
>Four legs carried their enormous, muscular forms.
>Four arms wielded enormous blades.
>There was no rhyme or reason to the weapons they held save that they were all damaged.
>Cracked swords, chipped axes, rusty sickles.
>All were clearly overused from endless combat.
>Recon had reported that the hells did have mines, smiths, and foundries.
>Developed agriculture and road networks.
>They had a surprisingly robust network of infrastructure that would have put Equestria to shame a few scant years ago.
>Not for quality of life, but to support war.
>But it wasn’t enough.
>No amount of resources could properly feed a war machine so vast.
>The trapped team of ponies didn’t direct a single shot at these major threats.
>They busied themselves with dispatching the lesser demons.
>Creatures bred not for power or durability, but for speed and expendability.
>Foul beasts that were sent to wreak havoc in weak points to maximize damage with no expectation of survival.
>What might have once been a dog countless generations ago had been twisted into an emaciated bald hound with a mad glare.
>Their wicked teeth had grown too long and sharp for their mouths, often cutting through their own flesh.
>They blurred along the hellscape far quicker than any ground bound being had any right to do.
>Each and every one of them fell during their charge, but they didn’t stop.
>They didn’t fear death.
>Perhaps they welcomed it.
>All the bloodshed that she’d seen down here had been faced with a surreal eagerness.
>The lesser demons did not value their own lives.
>Only the greater demons and the lords seemed to care at all.
>The small team of ponies that was down in the valley was surrounded.
>The enemy’s pincer formation had collapsed around the small group rather than holding for the main fortifications.
>The valley was densely packed with demons eager for blood.
>Perfect.
>The bait team jumped in place, seeming to go through an invisible doorway.
>Their innards could be seen during this transition as they transcended what the pony mind could perceive.
>They’d soon be back in Elysium, far from the battlefield.
>The demons didn’t miss a beat, they changed their target to the trenches atop the valley.
>They charged upward no longer in formation.
>The deadspace in their ranks was gone and they were now tightly packed on their approach.
>They began to move back into formation, but it was too late.
>An eerie oppressive blackness fell over the land.
>Princess Luna herself stood atop the trenches, horn glowing brightly.
>Thousands of illusory stars formed in the false night sky.
>This gave the enemy pause.
>They’d been born in Orcus, and they’d die in Orcus.
>They’d never seen the night sky.
>They’d never even heard of it.
>Panic began to spread through the more sapient ranks as an apparent infinite void formed above and threatened to consume them.
>The false stars began to pulsate with a brilliant golden light.
>Rays of light shot down into the battlefield.
>A golden glittering dust filled the valley.
>It was nothing but a lightshow.
>A means to obfuscate the nature of their real counteroffensive.
>The gas canisters opened.
>A thin mist filled the valley.
>A few seconds later the lesser demons began to stumble and walk in random directions.
>The greater demons began to fall back.
>All the flyers who were on the ground took to the skies, only for their wings to become paralyzed.
>Out from the trenches emerged hundreds of minotaurs, each carrying massive flak cannons.
>They turned their attention upward and unloaded their huge weapons on any enemies already in the air.
>Minotaurs.
>Bulky enough to wield heavy weapons, and their weird appendages allowed for greater precision and speed in aiming.
>Natural born shooters.
>S.M.I.L.E. had always been ponies only.
>But things change.
>The lesser demons down in the valley collapsed almost as one and began to seize violently.
>Soon their lungs and heart would stop working.
>They were already dead.
>Massive winged serpents began to swoop toward the trenches to slay the minotaurs.
>There were so many of them that they began to penetrate the constant flak fire with dozens of them flooding in when the shooters had to reload.
>A barrage of monofilament bladed discs shredded them as they approached.
>Unicorns were an interesting breed of fighter.
>Capable of rapid and highly destructive strikes, but almost totally defenseless.
>Shield spells just couldn’t cut it against any serious threat.
>For the unicorn, the only choice was an overwhelming and relentless assault.
>Their specialization allowed them to make quick work of the threat and defend their allies with ease.
>The minotaurs were safe to stand their ground.
>The greater demons in the valley began to collapse as the poison took hold.
>This was not according to plan.
>It had been assumed that they’d be able to survive.
>The chemist’s attack had proven even more deadly than they’d hoped.
>Within seconds the skies were clear of hostiles and the valley was packed with corpses.
>The few stragglers that were far enough from the strike to be spared had crested in the opposite side of the valley.
>They were coming straight for agent Zero and her team.
>Pegasi shot in from above.
>They each carried small recoilless gauss rifles.
>The recoil compensation drained a great deal of the shot’s muzzle velocity.
>But it was a necessary sacrifice.
>Pegasi were so light that their shots would ruin their flight paths; they couldn’t wield powerful firearms while airborne.
>Missiles could be used with an inertia dampener, but that was an expensive proposition and resources were scarce.
>Such weapons were deployed very sparingly.
>An Ossobolo fired a massive spine into the herd of pegasi.
>It was like trying to swat a fly with a sledgehammer.
>They flashed out of the way of the incoming attack and moved in for the kill.
>Pegasi were best for hit and run maneuvers.
>Their speed and flight allowed them to hunt down nearly anything in nearly any terrain. 
>They could almost always pick on a weak point and almost always dodge any incoming strikes.
>But they had to travel light.
>And they weren’t particularly deadly.
>Their weapons had to be light and their bodies weren’t well equipped to kill.
>And worse still, they had the minds of ponies.
>Even these highly trained and experienced pegasi hesitated to move in to strike.
>Their instinct screamed out at them to stay away from the threat.
>A good instinct.
>They were at their most vulnerable when they moved to attack.
>Defenseless in a closed space, but an incredible terror when attacking from above.
>A leviathan’s enormous feet crashed down near 27.
>The young Earth pony had come to hell relatively inexperienced.
>But he’d seen more battle this week than the previous generation’s agents would have seen in a lifetime.
>A reaver brought a cleaver the size of a train car down on his head.
>It shattered on contact.
>She swung a hoof at the reaver’s legs and emptied his cannons at its head.
>The bullets had no effect but the kick landed true.
>The demon’s leg snapped and the reaver collapsed under its own weight.
>Earth ponies usually served as the front lines.
>Capable of shrugging off nearly any physical strike and delivering crushing blows.
>But they were slow and had little reach.
>Unmatched in a close encounter, useless at a distance.
>But their drawbacks mattered not at the moment.
>The enemy had to go through them if they wished to flee.
>Agent Zero delivered a quick jab to the nearby leviathan.
>She activated her rocket thrusters and landed her blow with equine speed.
>The enormous weight of her kick and incredible speed were enough to rip the demon’s leg clean off.
>It began to plummet to the ground.
>It would take minutes before it was done falling.
>The disoriented and wounded demon was quickly consumed by a pride of gryphons
>Their talons had been fitted with monofilament blades to enhance their natural offensive.
>The leviathan would be dead before it finished hitting the ground.
>Gryphons were another new addition to S.M.I.L.E.’s ranks.
>Whereas ponies had to train for years to overcome their instincts and strike, those predators were natural born killers.
>Less evasive and slower than pegasi, but far far deadlier.
>And capable posing a threat without any training.
>The surviving demons didn’t make any further attempts to fight back.
>They just ran as quickly as they could.
>It was a total route.
>And before long, the last demon was brought down.
>Agent Zero sat down to catch her breath.
>She surveyed the battlefield before her.
>The blasted hellscape.
>She’d come to hell expecting madness and bloodshed.
>Demons were notorious for their cruelty and lethality.
>Indeed, Zero knew what was going to happen down here.
>She wasn’t expecting to be the one doing it.
>Orcus was an eternal deathmatch; an unending and bloody struggle for dominance.
>The prize?
>All the demonic magic in the world was down here.
>One could corrupt a purer soul before absorbing them to get a bit of demonic magic.
>But the true prizes were the lords.
>Whichever one of the lords of Orcus managed to slay another would become nigh on immortal.
>Elysium was lucky there was a stalemate down here.
>If one were to absorb all the others no amount of magical rivers could keep them trapped.
>Despite having been bred for war by some of the most disgusting beings in existence, each and every demon fell in battle.
>Demons were no longer the most dangerous things in the land..
>Ponies were.
>She was.
>She’d come to hell and managed to make it worse.
>Bon-Bon walked away from the battlefield, countless corpses in her wake.
>All this blood spilled.
>How many more had to fall?
>The dead were beyond counting and still there was no end in sight.
>Was this really what she was meant to do?
>Was she born to kill?
>Was there nothing more to her than violence?
>Perhaps she belonged down here in hell.

Later…

>Bon-Bon sat before her therapist having just finished recounting her tale.
>She felt strangely detached from the events.
>It was almost like it had happened to a different pony.

“So that’s what happened.”

>”I see. How many friendlies were injured?”

“None. Not a single one. It was a perfect battle. No hostiles survived, no friendlies were harmed. We even captured a few for study.”

>They had no idea what was coming.
>They were not prepared at all.
>But when she thought on the problem, how could they be?
>How could one prepare for that?
>Was there any way to overcome such incredible destruction?

>”I see.”

>She wrote something down in her notebook.
>Bon-Bon didn’t bother to see what.

>”What of the team that was sent out to disrupt their formation? How did they get out?”

“They’re safe. That’s all you need to know. How they escaped is irrelevant.”

>”My apologies. You’re absolutely right, that isn’t important.”

>It was also classified.

>”Well, agent Zero-”

“Don’t call me that.”

>”Again, I apologize. I thought you wanted me to call you that to avoid the use of your name.”

“Yes. I want that too. But I don’t want to be reminded of who I am right now. Just call me ‘pony’.”

>What a ridiculous request.
>But she needed this.

>”Very well, Pony. The concerns you are having are completely normal. It is healthy for a pony to have doubts about killing. It is not in our nature at all.”

“That’s not the problem.”

>She looked surprised by this statement.
>As though she was certain that this was a specific problem.
>Perhaps others had come to her with that concern before?

“When I gazed upon the reavers I noticed something interesting about their weapons. They were all quite heavily damaged. If those were our weapons we’d have discarded them by now. We tend to discard tools the moment they become unreliable. Then it occured to me that we do the same thing with agents. When somepony becomes too weak or too injured, they are excused from duty and replaced. This will someday be my fate. Our weapons and I have a great deal in common.”

>The pegasus nodded along as she spoke.

”And what is a weapon anyway? A tool you use to hurt someone. Much like me. I was sent out there to hurt others, as a weapon. That is my job as of late. I no longer collect information or find threats. I’m always needed for a fight of some sort.”

>The doctor stopped writing.
>It looked like she’d figured out where this was going

“If my job is to harm others, and I’m to be discarded when I can no longer do so, then am I not a weapon? Is this what I was meant to do? Was I meant to conquer? Is there more to me than violence?”

>The doctor looked surprised and confused.
>She clearly didn’t know how to handle this.

“I’m uncertain what it is to be equine. I look at the ponies that surround me in Equestria and I know that I am fundamentally different. What is it that we have in common aside from our shape? Have I changed too much to ever connect with them again? Have I ceased to be a pony? Am I nothing more than a weapon?”

>”Of course not. You’re not a weapon. You’re a pony.”

“You say that despite my having all the properties of a weapon. I hurt others. That’s my sole purpose, and I will be discarded when I can no longer do so.”

>She could nearly see the gears turning in the doctor’s head.
>They had no idea what to say about this.

“When a pegasus goes home they can put down their weapons. Same for a unicorn. But for me, I AM the weapon.”

>She swung a hoof through the air, drawing her magic into it as it travelled.

“I can never separate myself from that. My hooves have destroyed so much, and I can never put them away. I always carry that part of my life with me. Because I do not wield weapons. I AM a weapon.”

>”Would Lyra care so much about you if you were just a weapon?”

>Probably not.
>That was part of the problem.
>Would she still care if she knew who this pony really was?
>She liked Bon-Bon.
>But there was more to her than just Bon-Bon.
>Lyra would probably hate Agent Zero.

>”You need to distance yourself from your work for a while. Take up a hobby, preferably something creative. Remind yourself that your hooves are capable of creating as well as destroying. Learn to play an instrument, or start painting. One agent wrote a series of novels and he said it helped a lot.”

“I am aware.”

>That idiot writing his stupid spy novels.
>She could hardly believe Lyra read those things.
>And the nerve of him to use her designation for that trash!

>”You can’t allow yourself to be defined by your work.”

“I suppose.”

>”I’m sure Lyra would be willing to help you if you wanted to learn how to play an instrument. Would you like to do that with her?”

>”Yeah. Yeah, that does sound nice. Thanks, Doc.”

>Bon-Bon left the room.
>She didn’t feel any better at the moment.
>But at least there was something to look forward to.
>Maybe, just maybe, there could be more to her life.

Later…

>Lyra sat alone in her kitchen.
>Derpy had left some time ago.
>Neither was really certain what to make of that mess.
>Ponies being more dangerous than demons.
>Ponies seeing themselves as weapons.
>Ponies slaughtering fleeing foes.
>Demon or not, it didn’t seem right to kill something that was retreating.
>But perhaps it was necessary?
>Lyra didn’t know.
>She didn’t want to know.
>And poor Bonny, thinking Lyra wouldn’t actually like her.
>She had to show her that that wasn’t true.
>And that it would never be true.
>But how?
>Lyra didn’t know.
>She could only hope that Bonny would come home soon.

The next morning...

>”Come on, Lyra! You were way better than this last time!”

>Lyra stood in her master’s class, clumsily levitating a small blob of water.
>She hurled it ineffectually at the paper bullseye target across the room.
>Water splattered everywhere.

>”You should be able to punch straight through the center without getting the rest wet. Hay, I saw you do it just last week. What’s going on?”

>Was her master worried?
>Or just annoyed?
>Lyra couldn’t tell.

“Sorry. I just have a lot on my mind.”

>”You’re just wasting my time. Focus!”

>Annoyed it is.

“Sorry! I’m really worried about Bonny. It’s… It’s hard, you know? Caring about somepony in S.M.I.L.E.”

>Lyra cold see the anger growing in her master already.
>She knew exactly why.
>She’d just said something stupid.

“Not nearly as hard as being PART of S.M.I.L.E. of course!”

>He nodded curtly.

“But I’m still worried that something bad will happen to her.”

>”Lyra? You don’t need to worry about her. She’s tougher than you can imagine.”

>Tough enough to take on Hell itself?
>Maybe.

>”Here. Let me show you something. Come with me.”

>He started walking outside.
>Lyra followed.

>”Sweetie Drops and I had a chat and we agreed that it would be a good idea if you knew at least one powerful attack.”

“Don’t I know two?”

>”I said POWERFUL. Undertow is basically training wheels, Geyser is a light unarmed attack.”

>Lyra had used it to punch through steel just a few days ago.
>And he was calling it a light attack.
>The front door swung open and they made their way into the rundown streets.

>”Those are light attacks. They’re meant to swiftly disable a target with minimal magical expenditure and minimal risk. However, many foes are too tough to be downed by a couple little bruises.”

>Lyra thought back to her trip to Canterlot.
>She’d seriously harmed a pony with a single strike.
>And that was considered a light attack.
>Warhammer to a pillow fight indeed.

>”If you were to come across an enemy with tough enough hide and thick enough padding around their organs you’d be unable to harm them. Say you pick a fight with an elder dragon.”

“Pardon?”

>”You’d need to cause serious damage to get anything done. Even when you go for a dragon’s weak points they’re tough.”

“Right, but what’s this about fighting dragons?”

>”With weaker opponents such as manticores you can pull it off by executing a high quantity of strikes. However, those that have decent defences will shrug off any number of geyser strikes. An elder dragon’s scales are barely going to be scratched. You need to go bigger.”

“Hold on, why do you keep bringing up dragons?”

>”Oh. Because I killed an elder dragon with this once. Good times.”

>He had a small but genuine smile on his face as he reminisced.
>Happiness looked strange on him.

>”Good times. See, most monsters have a respiratory tract. That’s your ‘in’. You need to attack through the nose.”

“So… small rocks? Beat up their lungs from the inside?”

>”No. You blow their fucking ribcage open.”

>His horn started glowing brilliantly.
>His legs started to tremble.
>Tranquil Streams was sweating up a storm and gritting his teeth.
>Clearly he was drawing magic at his absolute limit.
>And to Lyra’s amazement, it wasn’t that much.
>She could beat that power output.
>Lots of ponies could.

>”Yeah, yeah. You can stop staring. I’m getting old, I know.”

“Oh! Sorry, I didn’t mean-”

>”It’s fine. I’m retired for a reason.”

>A large telekinetic field had formed in the the air above.
>Probably about a cubic meter by volume, just by the looks of it.
>No, wait. Maybe three quarters that big.
>Or half.
>Or a tenth?
>It just kept shrinking.
>Lyra moved towards it get a better look.

>”Stand behind me. Sweetie Drops would gut me if you got caught in this.”

>Lyra complied without question.

>”Eruption is a heavier form of the Geyser strike. You pressurize a fluid and deploy it in a quick blast. This time we’re using gases instead of liquids, usually air. Since you can compress gases you can build up pressure in advance rather than having to peak right when you attack. This gives you a much higher maximum force. You can draw as much magic as you need to get the job done as long as you have time to build it up.”

>He sat down on the ground.
>The ball continued to shrink.

>”In theory you’d eventually turn the gases into a liquid and you wouldn’t be able to pressurize it any further, but in practice that’s not happening. Even at my peak I couldn’t pull it off. Fifty megapascals used to be my limit. I’m probably below ten by now.”

>The ball stopped shrinking.
>Tranquil Streams was trembling and panting.

>”The containment sphere offered by Cancer is much easier to fuel than the pressure you source from Sagittarius. You can maintain this relatively easy after it’s created. Of course you can’t hold it indefinitely, but a couple minutes should be possible if you’re good. If you had a chance to prepare for a fight you could make one of these in advance and hold it. The magical drain is still significant, but not massive. And it’s usually not a big deal if you exhaust your Cancer ley line.”

“Are you okay?”

>”Yeah. Just old. Cover your ears.”

>Lyra stood on her hind legs and placed her front hooves over her ears.
>Tranquil Streams looked up at her with a mixture of confusion and disgust.

>”How can you stand like that?

>Lyra pretended not to hear.

>”Whatever. What you do is you shove this up something’s nose and stand back. Watch.”

>He dropped the orb in the streets.
>A massive blast shot out, kicking up a wicked wind.
>Chunks of asphalt scattered about.
>When the dust had settled Lyra’s jaw hung open.
>There was a serious crater.

>”Mana Tide, bitch.”

“Wow.”

>”Yep. Drag me back inside, would ya?”

>Lyra gently levitated her master and pulled him back indoors.

>”Just drop me anywhere. I’ll be okay in a bit.”

>She slowly placed him on the floor.

“That was impressive. But it doesn’t make me worry any less about Bonny.”

>”She got caught in one of those blasts once and walked away. Sweetie Drops is tough.”

>Lyra knew.
>She knew that Bon-Bon had set off a bomb she was holding once.
>But that was little comfort.
>After actually SEEING one of the Lords, Lyra doubted anything would be.
>Their hideous visage haunted her dreams.
>When she closed her eyes, she could see their cruel grin.
>So many of Bonny’s peers faced them at once.
>And it was not enough.
>Was anything enough to stop that thing?

>”Okay. That look on your face is starting to scare even me. What’s going on?”

>Lyra should keep quiet.
>Every time she admitted knowing anything she risked capture.
>But she had to know.
>She needed literally any comfort.
>She NEEDED Bonny to be safe.

“Bonny mentioned a name. Eurynomos.”

>Tranquil Streams flinched at those words.

“I don’t know much about him, but I know enough to be scared.”

>He didn’t say anything.

“Well?”

>”Well what?”

“Aren’t you going to tell me she’s going to be okay?”

>”I don’t want to be made a liar.”

>Not what she wanted to hear.

>”Eurynomos is classified as an Armageddon threat. Significant risk of extinguishing all equine life if he escapes. As far as I know that’s the most dangerous classification.”

>Armageddon.
>Luna had mentioned a weapon with the same classification.
>Did they have a weapon that could potentially wipe out all of Ponykind?

“Is it okay for you to be telling me this?”

>”Not really. I suppose I should stop.”

>Woops.

>”But I will tell you this. The whole point of S.M.I.L.E. is to keep ponies safe. There are secondary goals, but that’s the main one. Any operation in which an agent dies is considered a failure, even if everything else was accomplished. If they’re going to take on something that big they’re going to do everything they can to give her an edge.”

>That seemed to contradict what she’d seen.
>They were talking about holding their best weapons back.

“I just wish I had some way of knowing she was still okay.”

>”You’d know if anything bad happened to her.”

>Lyra cocked her head in confusion.

>”The pendant you gave her is way more fragile than she is. If she goes down it’s not going to survive and you’ll get your magic back.”

>Lyra gasped with joy.
>He was RIGHT!
>She quickly tried to draw on Aquarius.
>Nothing.

“But what if she takes it off?”

>”If they’re after Eurynomos she’s literally in the underworld right now. If you had something that kept you from freaking out and you were in hell, would you take it off?”

>She remembered the horrifying visages she’d seen beneath Canterlot.
>There wasn’t a chance she’d ever take that thing off.

“Thanks, master. That helps.”

>The future was yet unknown.
>But the present was certain.
>Bon-Bon was okay.

>”No real point in having lessons today. You’re distracted and I’m wiped out. Next time you’re going to learn how to pull a bomb out of thin air.”

“Alright. Thank you, master.”

>”Go away.”

>Lyra went home with a spring in her step.
>She slept more soundly than ever before that night.
>Because Bonny was still okay.

                                                *       *       *       *       *

>Lyra Heartstrings prowled through the streets of Ponyville.
>All around her were masses of ponies.
>Simple, naive ponies.
>They didn’t know what was beneath their hooves.
>This pony here didn’t know what was just below the surface.
>A research complex in which live tissue was being grown separate from any living being.
>It was the most disturbing experiment Lyra had come across to date.
>She had no idea what the purpose was.
>Replacement organs?
>Food for gryphons?
>Weapons testing?
>She didn’t know.
>Perhaps that was for the best.
>Her investigations had brought no joy and no comfort.
>Knowledge was a burden.
>It would be in her best interest to stop entirely.
>But much like the salt addict, she could not stop.
>Not even for her own wellbeing.
>Sometimes she envied the ignorant.
>Like that pony.
>That pony there didn’t know that just beneath them lie a laboratory.
>A laboratory from which came incomprehensible bloodshed.
>A slaughter the likes of which the world had never before seen.
>Not from the claws of some monster or the fangs of a vile demon.
>But from the mind of a pony.
>A pony who had weaponized knowledge.
>Civilians walked about the construction site on which the new town hall would be erected.
>They were innocent in this madness.
>They were ignorant to the world around them.
>Perhaps the ignorance and innocence were one in the same?
>Even Lyra had blood on her hooves.
>She’d suggested that the attack take place.
>And she stood by her words.
>S.M.I.L.E. had to put the wellbeing of ponies before the wellbeing of demons.
>But that didn’t change the facts.
>And the fact was that countless hundreds had been killed.
>And she’d had a part in it.  
>And that pony there.
>They didn’t know that the crown had not so long ago thrown away the lives of its most loyal for metal.
>Blood for lithium of all things.
>After they considered betraying and massacring their allies.
>Equestria.
>Land of friendship and harmony.
>Spilling blood for profit.
>And from the sounds of it they were right to do so.
>How could such a disgusting act be justified?
>On the other hoof, if this tide was as bad as they claimed, how could ANYTHING be unjustified?
>Was there a line they ought not cross?
>Had they already crossed it?
>Lyra walked past an office tower.
>Except it wasn’t an office tower.
>Inside was a rudimentary factory.
>It produced enormous vehicles meant for combat.
>Lyra could easily imagine Nemesis’ treads crushing living beings beneath its enormous treads.
>Celestia was right.
>Such a thing did not belong in Elysium.
>It didn’t belong anywhere.
>Yet there it was.
>Or was it already in Orcus?
>Bon-Bon hadn’t mentioned it.
>Maybe it wasn’t ready yet?
>Maybe it had already been destroyed?
>What could possibly oppose such a massive abomination of  wrath and metal.
>Again, Lyra would be better off not knowing.
>But she couldn’t help herself.
>She needed to know more.
>Why were they in hell in the first place?
>She had to find out.
>But she had no idea where to look next.
>There was doubtlessly more to find under the post office.
>But a quick scan showed it was crawling with guards.
>Perhaps breaking in twice was the limit
>Was there any point in going back in even if it was safe?
>It seemed to be a research complex of some sort.
>Would she even understand what she saw?
>Probably not.
>There had been mention of weapons development in the Crystal Empire.
>Perhaps learning what they were developing would give some hint on what they were expecting?
>But some vague, off the hoof remark wasn’t much to go off of.
>The Crystal Empire was huge.
>It could take days to find where the weapons were hidden.
>Then how would she infiltrate a weapons development facility?
>Those guards would probably be the most well armed in the land.
>And again, would she even understand what she saw?
>Lyra was a musician, not a scientist.
>She needed guidance.
>She needed Starlight Glimmer.
>Contacting her would be difficult.
>There had to be some way.
>Preferably some way she could maintain contact.
>Lyra looked up at Twilight’s tree palace and rubbed her chin.
>Security wasn’t that tight.
>She could easily overpower anypony in there if she had to.
>But she couldn’t exactly stay put and have a conversation.
>Especially not without drawing attention to Starlight.
>A thought occurred.
>They had computers in there.
>What if Lyra could tamper with their computer like her malefactor was doing?
>Derpy apparently had a friend that could do that.
>Perhaps it was time to pay the bubbly pegasus a visit.
>A brief glance at the sky told Lyra it was mid afternoon.
>Odds were she would be getting off work soon.
>Lyra headed to Derpy’s home.
>She made her way to the security checkpoint and gazed up at the towering walls.
>When they were first erected they seemed so enormous.
>Excessive and imposing.
>After what she spotted beneath Canterlot she had a very different impression.
>Why wasn’t this wall ten feet higher?
>Why weren’t there more guards and bigger guns?
>Perhaps they didn’t have the resources.
>Or maybe there was no point in going bigger.
>If something really nasty broke out, maybe they couldn’t stop it anyway.
>A chilling thought.
>Lyra stepped through the gap in the wall apprehensively.
>They’d never bothered her in the least.
>But even so, she didn’t like being so trapped.
>She released a long breath after she passed through.
>It never got any less intimidating.
>Even so, she was glad they were there.
>If they really thought there was even a small risk that something from Orcus could break free…
>Bon-Bon had told Lyra she was being forced to learn to fight because of criminals.
>In a VERY broad sense that was true.
>It was illegal to be a demon in Equestria.
>Just as a way to simplify the paperwork that came with capturing one.
>Even if it was actually true, she felt lied to.
>But on the other hoof, what was Bonny supposed to say?
>Knowing the truth was a burden.
>She’d be better off ignorant.
>Was lying some kind of twisted mercy?
>Was it possible for honesty to be bad?
>Perhaps.
>Lyra made her way to Derpy’s home and waited.
>She didn’t have a solar schedule in front of her, but it was the same every year.
>And this month the sun should be about 30 degrees off of high noon when Derpy got off work.
>Which meant she was already done.
>Probably on her way home right that moment.
>There was no sense in wasting this time.
>Lyra decided to practice.
>Her horn burned brilliantly even in the daylight.
>Eruption was in many ways a very simple spell.
>There was no delicate timing.
>The component spells were all quite simple.
>The geometry was straightforward.
>And it was probably the second hardest spell Lyra had ever attempted, right after teleportation.
>The raw power it took to execute was absurd.
>No unicorn could manage that much force behind a single incantation; not even an Aquarius user could go at this head on.
>Not without seriously hurting themselves at least.
>Instead it took tens of thousands of coordinated spells to build up the necessary pressure.
>And if she failed to maintain even one of them, it would detonate early.
>She strained to draw as much mana as she could.
>A colossal pressure built against her mind.
>And her eruption broke with a loud ‘pop’.

“Well, I can make noise at least.”

>Even when linking ley lines it was beyond her abilities.
>But she was determined.
>Not only would she do it, she’d do it the hard way.
>She’d learn to do it without any of her tricks so that she could go all out if the time ever came.
>Because this world wasn’t safe.
>The naive Lyra who detested violence in all its forms was gone.
>She still hated bloodshed.
>But she was no longer ignorant to the world around her.
>This land was dangerous.
>And the guards were powerless.
>If she was to be safe, she had to protect herself.
>She had to be able to execute that attack.
>Preferably without any fancy tricks.
>But she was missing something.
>And she knew exactly what.
>Both her and her master had figured it out right away.
>Rage was a crutch.
>When she made herself angry to attack she got over her revulsion.
>But anger clouds the mind.
>And she needed all the focus she had and then some to pull this off.
>She needed to learn to strike with a calm mind and clear conscience.
>A grey blur made its way through the sky toward her.
>Lyra waved cheerfully as Derpy came in for a landing.
>Then ran out of the way as Derpy came in for a crash landing.
>A crash landing that involved her standing on all four hooves?

“You’re okay?”

>”I know how to fly, Lyra.”

>Lyra tried to hide the surprise from her face.
>She failed.

>”Come on in!”

>She was bubbly and cheerful as always.
>Despite what most would have doubtlessly seen as an insult.
>An insult that came from Lyra herself.

“Thank you. And sorry.”

>”For what?”

“Don’t worry about it.”

>They made their way into the cozy household.
>As soon as the door was closed Lyra began to speak.

“Can we talk?”

>”I think so. Why, did I lose my voice or something?”

>Was she joking, or just being Derpy?

“Is it safe to talk?”

>”I think so. I’ve never hurt myself talking before.”

>Lyra’s hoof met her own face in frustration.

“If we were to discuss confidential matters in this area would we be overheard by a third party?”

>”Oooooh! Why didn’t you ask that from the beginning? We should be okay, yes.”

“Okay. I need to get in contact with somepony without being caught. It occured to me that I could talk to them through a computer like the blackmailer does. Can your shy friend do that for us?”

>”I don’t know! Let’s go find out.”

>She started to trot towards the heart of the city at a brisk pace.
>She seemed oddly light on her hooves, almost as though she was walking on air.
>Did pegasi actually weigh anything?
>She lead the way to a somewhat rundown apartment building that towered over the crowded streets.

“Wait. I recognize this place!”

>Right across the street was the building in which Nemesis was being built.
>This was where they hid while watching the guards!
>Derpy walked up to the front of the building.
>But then she stopped.

>”Be back in just a couple minutes.”

>She bolted into the sky in what didn’t appear to be a coherent flight path.
>But despite the awkward strangeness she hadn’t actually hit anything by the time Lyra lost sight of her.
>Lyra spent the time watching the ponies milling about.
>Just through that thin concrete barrier lie an enormous machine of death.
>It was a horrendous suspension of what Equestria was meant to be.
>Peace, love, and friendship had been replaced by the wrath of a cold machine of war.
>Would the masses accept this if they knew?
>Would they be repulsed by what the beacon of harmony had become?
>By how low ponykind had dropped?
>Would they accept it as a necessary evil?
>She had no clue.
>And they had no clue either.
>They all proceeded with their simple lives, totally oblivious to what was happening around them.
>A chilling thought struck.
>If they kept their secrets from so many for so long, what had she missed?
>How many times had they teetered on the brink of destruction?
>How close had they come to ruin?
>There were enough disasters with creatures like Tirek running around and plunderseeds swallowing ponyville and parasprites eating entire cities.
>Those were just the things they DIDN’T stop.
>Either S.M.I.L.E. had a terrible track record, or Equestria was in a constant state of peril.
>She wasn’t happy about either thought.
>Derpy soon returned with a plastic bag in her mouth.
>It bore the markings of Discount Foods (a subsidiary of R&A incorporated).

“I thought you didn’t buy the cheapest foods. Something about pesticides.”

>”All food comes from the same place now. Might as well save a few bits.”

>A valid point.
>They began to approach the building.

“But why though?”

>”Hm?”

“Why the grocery run?”

>”This pony doesn’t eat properly.”

“And you’ve taken it upon yourself to take care of them. You can’t mother everypony.”


>Derpy bore a look of fierce determination.

>”I can try!

>Such a strange pony.
>Always mothering everypony around her.
>Wait.
>Is that how she was treating Lyra?
>Cleaning her up and feeding her when she was depressed about Bonny being gone?
>Naa.

>”Besides, she needs my help.”

“Why?”

>”I wouldn’t feel right telling you all her problems, but she’s got more than her fair share of trouble.”

>Derpy produced a key and opened the front door.
>The interior was a wreck.
>The railing on the stairs was brown and grey from the filth covering the off-white chipped paint.
>The carpet on the floor was stained and torn.
>Were those cobwebs?

>”Cheapest apartments in the city.”

“I should hope so.”

>This building wasn’t even that old.
>To see it in such a state spoke volumes.
>Were they even maintaining it?

“Who owns this place?”

>”Not sure. It’s one of the few apartment buildings not owned by Rarity.”

>What a dump.
>They made their way to the top floor.
>As they ascended the filth abated somewhat in intensity.
>Wear and tear from hooves lessened as fewer and fewer ponies had tread upon the higher staircases.
>They made their way to the top floor.
>And it was almost cozy.

>”She’s probably not going to want to talk to you. Sorry. But I’ll ask her if she can do what you need.”

>Derpy made her way to one of the apartments.

“How did you meet this pony anyway?”

>”Remember how the roof is leaky? I tried to get ahold of them to tell them. And I couldn’t. From there, mail carrier's confidentiality.”

“Is that a thing?”

>Derpy moved to knock on the door.
>But she stayed her hoof.
>Instead she softly spoke.

>”Floor? It’s me.”

>Nothing.

“Maybe she’s not home?”

>”She’s home.”

>It was a statement of fact.
>As though she were saying that fire is hot or water was wet.

>”Floor Bored, It’s me. D. May I come in?”

>No answer.

>”I brought you dinner.”

>The door slowly creaked open.
>A strong odor of mould and shame wafted through the corridor.
>There was absolutely no light inside the apartment.
>Derpy trotted in, seemingly oblivious to the stench.
>The door slammed shut behind her and the bolt slid into place.

“Should I break her out?”

>This was all incredibly suspicious.

“JUST SCREAM IF YOU NEED HELP!”

>”Yeah, actually! I do need help! Could you go get some bleach?”

“On it!”

>Lyra headed out into the busy streets.
>Her expedition was fraught with terror and dread the likes of which ponykind had never seen before.

“TWENTY BITS for a liter of bleach?”

>”Plus tax.”

>No matter where she went she was faced with the same numbers.
>Absurd prices for everyday items.
>Food was cheap.
>Sugar was practically free.
>Anything else that wasn’t strictly necessary for survival was priced to absurdity.
>Were they really that hungry for money?
>They flooded the market with fake bits, held a monopoly on nearly all businesses, and still they extorted everypony.
>How many bits could they throw at their problem?
>All of them and more, from the looks of things.
>Obviously invading hell was expensive.
>But still it seemed to Lyra that there was something more.
>It was hard to imagine a project so grand that it could bankrupt Equestria and still be underfunded.
>On the other hoof, it was hard to imagine that a project as big as this WOULDN’T bankrupt everything.
>These ponies were the best at keeping secrets.
>And yet everywhere she looked they were leaking information.
>This was an organization that traded in deception and existed in the shadows.
>Officially they didn’t exist.
>And they had gone on for who knows how many years without anypony being the wiser.
>They should have no trouble keeping a novice like Lyra locked out.
>Yet they couldn’t keep her from seeing their most jealously guarded secrets.
>Had they bitten off more than they could chew?
>Were they coming apart at the seams?
>If they couldn’t keep something hidden, nopony could.
>Perhaps nopony could keep something so large under wraps.
>Lyra returned to the apartment building, overpriced chemicals in tow.
>As she approached she realized she couldn’t enter.
>The front door was locked and she had no key.
>It would be trivial to knock the door down.
>But she couldn’t just do that every time something got in the way.
>To her relief Derpy ran out the front door.
>To her dismay, the pegasus had a look of abject terror to her.

“Whoa, whoa. What happened?”

>”It’s EVERYWHERE!”

>She plucked the bleach out of Lyra’s telekinetic grip and held it close.

>”Unclean. UNCLEAN!”

“Are you okay? What happened in there?”

>She just shuddered.

“Blink twice if I should call the guard.”

>”The guards are powerless to stop this.”

>Probably true.

>”Maybe we need a fire?”

>She produced a small stick from beneath her wing.
>It smelled funny.

>”On the back of each computer there should be a small rectangular port. Plug this into that computer. The screen will turn black and flash a bunch of text. When it’s done that pull it out and leave. She’ll be in.”

“That easy?”

>”It might take a few tries to get it to fit in. These things exist in six dimensions.”

“Heh. Funny.”

>”I think she was serious about that.”

>Hardware in hyperspace?
>Lyra knew that these computer things were fancy.
>But she didn’t know they were THAT fancy.
>Wait.
>Hyperspace is real?
>No way.
>That was definitely a joke.

“She’s probably mistaken. But I’ll keep it in mind. Do you need any more help here?”

>”Yes. But you’re not allowed in her room. I don’t know if I can do this.”

“Then don’t. She’s not your filly.”

>”But she needs my help!”

>There was no talking her out of this one.
>Derpy’s heart was too big.

“If you’re not back by 4, I’ll organize a searching party.”

>It was time to get to work.
>Starlight Glimmer had asked for information.
>And though Lyra wasn’t entirely certain she wanted to share what she knew with Starlight, she DID want her help.
>Starlight knew more than she was letting on.
>That was a near certainty.
>The question was how to extract that information.
>Perhaps it would be straightforward.
>Perhaps Starlight would just share what she knew when Lyra coughed up some S.M.I.L.E. secrets.
>Would a simple exchange be enough?
>She hoped so.
>But it seemed like it would be a bit too straightforward.
>Whatever happened next, the first step was establishing contact.
>That meant returning to Twilight’s palace.
>But she couldn’t just walk in.
>She was not welcome there.
>She had to intrude.
>And that meant waiting for nightfall.

That night…

>The streets were beyond dead.
>Curfew was in effect.
>Not the kind of curfew Lyra was expecting.
>She was allowed to be out and about within the city.
>She just wasn’t allowed to leave the city limits.
>But the public consciousness had clued into the problems of the times.
>Ponies knew that if there were guard towers everywhere and that they weren’t allowed to be too far from them, something was wrong.
>It was rare to even see the normal underbelly of urban Ponyville.
>Even the vile elements that had crawled out of the gutter had gone back into hiding for fear of what may come.
>Where once one might find signs of an alcohol trade in the back alleys, not even a stray cat could be seen.
>Lyra couldn’t help but muse on how far Ponyville had fallen.
>A drug trade.
>In Ponyville.
>They’d never had such problems before.
>Song and laughter were the only drugs they needed back in the day.
>What had gone so wrong?
>How had their society decayed so?
>She glanced up at Twilight’s palace.
>There was her answer.
>The crown had sold them out.
>The constant thief, the crowded living conditions, the constant fear.
>It was little wonder ponies sought refuge in drink.
>Why would they do this?
>Why would princess Celestia of all ponies allow this?
>To invade hell?
>For what purpose?
>She believed that they had good reason for this.
>This was Celestia of all ponies!
>The best and most pure hearted pony of all!
>If she was doing this to them, then it had to be done.
>But that was no answer.
>Yes, they had to do it.
>But WHY did they have to do it?
>And why did they have to torture Bonny so?
>It was time to find out.
>There were two guards in position once more.
>She’d been expecting them to ramp that up.
>On the other hoof, perhaps they had?
>Perhaps they were relying on the walls and guard towers to limit motion.
>Or maybe there was more on the inside.
>How to get inside.
>The same trick as last time would doubtlessly work.
>But that attracted a LOT of attention.
>There had to be some other way to get their attention.
>A bright flash, a loud noise, a-
>A loud noise.
>She closed her eyes and focused.
>Grab the air before you.
>Crush it in a tight ball.
>Squeeze until the air collapses.
>The ball began to glow with heat.
>Lyra pushed it away from herself for fear of self injury.
>She fumbled.
>A loud blast filled the empty streets.
>Lyra fell to the ground.
>Partially from fatigue, but mostly from shock.
>The guards fled from their posts.
>No surprise there.
>The lights in the palace flickered on.
>Probably because the explosion woke up the residents.
>Woops.
>From the looks of it, only Starlight was home.
>That was interesting.
>It made things quite a bit easier.
>If she could avoid him she’d be fine.
>Lyra quickly made her way inside.
>The palace had changed little since her last visit.
>The windows were still covered.
>The lights were still out.
>It was still poorly maintained.
>But somepony had cleaned up the broken glass.
>The shattered mirrors had not been replaced, however.
>A strange oversight.
>If it was indeed an oversight.
>Perhaps somepony didn’t want mirrors?
>Perhaps they had been destroyed for a reason.
>Were they dangerous?
>Or did Twilight just not want to see herself?
>It would be no great surprise if she was revolted by her own face.
>What had she seen?
>What had she DONE?
>Lyra wondered.
>And she then wondered if she really wanted to know.
>Her target was upstairs.
>But wait.
>Rainbow Dash had mentioned another hidden room on her prior visit.
>This was an opportunity.
>But where?
>Behind another illusion perhaps?
>She could find an illusion easily enough.
>But the kind of brute force spellwork that would do that would doubtlessly attract attention from anyone sensitive to magic.
>Such as Starlight.
>Was it okay to draw her attention?
>Probably.
>After all, she was going to know Lyra was here.
>Maybe she didn’t have to know she’d been in their secret room-
>Spike just walked through a wall.
>He was armed.
>The little lizard was using his amazing draconic strength to carry a firearm far too large for any pony to bear.
>It had no fewer than six spinning barrels attached to a long belt of ammunition draped over his shoulders.

>”Oh no. I suuure hope nothing scary comes and hurts me. I’m just a little boy.”

>The visor wasn’t picking him up at all.
>He didn’t have an implant?
>Luckily for Lyra he seemed to be going upstairs.
>His back was turned.
>This was easy enough.
>She grabbed the belt of ammunition with her magic and plucked it out.
>He didn’t notice.
>He just kept going.
>Leaving the illusory room he’d vacated totally unguarded.
>She went in.
>It was a small, cramped study.
>The first thing that grabbed Lyra’s attention was a whiteboard.
>Wave patterns were drawn upon it.
>For what purpose?
>Most of them had a few quick notes or equations scribbled beneath them.
>But right in the center was something bizarre.
>It looked like the other waves, but it was mostly blank.
>Dozens of equations had been scribbled around it, but they too were incomplete.
>The middle parts of the whiteboard had been worn down and stained from countless erasures; she’d been working on this problem for who knows how many hours.
>And getting nowhere.
>How many attempts did it take to wear out a whiteboard?
>She had never seen such a thing before.
>Upon closer inspection she noticed that the early parts were all neat and orderly.
>Meticulously laid out and written with a precise script.
>But the mess that had been overwritten countless times was hastily scrawled.
>These were not the marks she’d expect from Twilight Sparkle.
>These were what she might expect from some crazed madmare who’d forgotten the meaning of propriety.

“Let’s see…”

>The complete waves didn’t make much sense.
>They didn’t seem to be describing any function.
>And the equations near them didn’t really match the waves themselves.
>What did that mean?
>These weren’t waves as she knew them.
>These were not representations of mathematics.
>But then what were they?
>Sound waves perhaps?
>And what was she trying to piece together in the middle?
>Lyra couldn’t make any sense of this.
>Stacks of papers in neat piles were scattered about the room, seemingly at random.
>Knowing Twilight there was some inner logic to their positioning, but Lyra had no clue what it was.
>She looked at one of them.
>It was a list of geographic coordinates and times.
>Each entry had a note attached to it.
>A unit of distance and a time period.

“0.62 nanoseconds, 1.0210−12 meters.”

>Each entry varied.
>But they were all quite similar.
>Incredibly brief periods and ludicrously short wavelengths.
>Not sound then.
>Well, not audible sound.
>Still, it seemed like these were real waves somewhere.
>They were documenting them.
>And trying to find a pattern in them.
>But this mess in the middle wasn’t a wave.
>It wasn’t anything.
>And it seemed like it was driving Twilight crazy.
>Lyra hated to admit it.
>But if Twilight didn’t understand, she never would.
>There was probably nothing to be gained from investigating this any further.
>She turned to leave.
>But she couldn’t ignore how strange that was.
>Why hide that of all things?
>It was clearly important.
>Perhaps it was unrelated to current events?
>Surely not.
>If she was obsessing over this one thing so much it had to be important.
>Whatever, no point in worrying about it now.
>She stepped out.
>Spike was clumsily making his way down the stairs, over encumbered by his weapon.
>Lyra ducked into the kitchen.

>”I know you’re out here!”

>He was coming right for her.
>How did he know?
>Oh.
>Duh.

“Stupid cameras.”

>He parked himself near the kitchen doorway.

>”Might wanna stay put until the guards show up.”

>Was his weapon still disabled?
>She absolutely needed to know.

“Why? What are you going to do?”

>”Shoot you. A lot.”

>”With what? I saw no bow there.”

>Six shots rang out.
>Six holes were formed in the far wall.
>But then it stopped.
>Loud clicking noises filled the air.
>It was empty.

“Might wanna run away until the guards show up.”

>”Good idea.”

>The ground shook when he dropped his weapon.
>The soft pitter patter of little claws marked his departure.
>Lyra poked her head out.
>He was gone.
>Lesson learned.
>They store a few rounds inside.
>Pulling the belt out doesn’t immediately disable them.
>That seemed like useful information.
>She tried to levitate it.
>It was horrendously heavy.
>Sure, she COULD move it.
>But it wasn’t practical to try and take it.
>Just how strong are dragons anyway?
>No matter.
>The guards were doubtlessly coming.
>In large enough numbers they might actually be a threat.
>And they might even bring an agent in for this one.
>Lyra had to move.
>Did they have any computers aside from the hidden room?
>She ran upstairs.
>Wait, where did Starlight go?
>Didn’t matter.
>Not in the bedrooms.
>Not in the washroom.

“Why did I even check there?”

>Not in the library.
>Wait.
>Yes in the library.
>This place is huge!
>Like, there must be thousands of books in here.
>There’s no way Twilight has read them all.
>Except that she’s Twilight.
>Okay, she’s probably read them all.
>She quickly made her way to the computer.
>Sure enough, there was a small rectangular port in the back.
>Lyra produced the small stick from her saddlebags and put it in.

“Must be upside down.”

>She reversed it and put it in.

“What?”

>She put it in!
>Come on!

“Was it right the first time?”

>Flip.
>No.
>Flip.
>It slid in no problem.
>How did that make any sense?
>Was that smelly pony serious?
>Are these things designed with six dimensions in mind?
>It was an absurd notion!
>Yet it wasn’t the most absurd thing that had happened lately.
>Next she shoved Aryanne’s documents into the shelves.

>”What are you doing?”

>Starlight.
>Lyra turned around.

“I need your help.”

>”You need to leave. The royal guard-”

“Is horrendously incompetent. But you’re right. I don’t have long. I grabbed these documents from a research facility.”

>She levitated the papers to Starlight.

>”Encoded. Hrmm… These are the fourth generation encryptions I think.  I can’t crack this.”

“Seriously?”

>”Not without knowing what’s in them, no. There’s too many possible keys. It would take centuries to try them all. Do you have any hints?”

“Aryanne wrote them.”

>”I’ll have it done by tomorrow night.”

>She flipped through them a few more times.

>”Yeah. She always signs them the same way. That should be enough. Did you even find out who was blackmailing you?”

“No. But I have a hunch. I think it’s princess Luna.”

>”What.”

>It was a statement of incredulity, not a question.

“They know way more than they should. I think it’s got to be somepony at the top, probably a princess.”

>”Why Luna though?”

“Her motives seem to line up with the blackmailer’s.”

>”And what would those motives be?”

>This wasn’t going well.
>She was sharing everything and getting nothing in return.

“I need something from you before I say anything else. I need you to show me that I can trust you.”

>”Why wouldn’t you be able to trust me?”

“You have no idea how many times I’ve been lied to.”

>By ponies she trusted.
>By Bon-Bon…

“If I’m going to tell you anything else, you need to give me something useful.”

>She chewed on her lip in thought for a little while.
>What was happening in her head? 
>She was clearly thinking something over.
>Wondering how much she should share to earn Lyra’s trust?
>Wondering how best to betray her?

>”They’re doing something in Tartarus.”

>They were a little lower than Tartarus actually.

“Yeah. I know.”

>”They’re phasing out real money for fake money.”

“Yup.”

>”I don’t know much else.”

“Do you have any useful equipment?”

>”No. It was really hard to get what I already gave you.”

“Wait. Show me how you got rid of the tracking beacon on that visor. That would work.”

>”The global positioning beacon is accurate to within a meter. If you don’t do anything to stop it they will find it. If you pack it in layers of electrically conductive material they can’t find it.”

“So…”

>”Aluminium foil.”

“You want me to wrap everything in aluminium foil. You do know that’ll make me look crazy, right?”

>She shrugged.

>”Finding the chip isn’t that hard if you have time. You’re looking for a small silver square, about 5 millimeters. The number 027 should be written on it. Break that off and you’re set.”

“If this is a trick-”

>”It’s not.”

>”If it is, I should warn you. I’m close to a very dangerous pony. They might be upset if I tell them you betrayed me. I’d better go. The guards have to be getting close. I’ll send what I know through this computer. When’s a good time?”

>”Twilight will be out for a couple days. She went to the Crystal Empire, but she wouldn’t tell me why.”

>Lyra knew where she was going next.

“Alright. Before I go, quick rundown. Equestria is invading hell, Princess Celestia is summoning demon lords into Canterlot, these machines are being stolen or copied from who knows where, and they’re invented weapons that can turn air into invisible poison.”

>Starlight grimaced.
>She started backing away carefully.

>”Okayyyyyy. You just go have fun with your aluminium foil then. Maybe make a hat with it.”

“I’m serious!”

>”Yeah. And I’m sure the leprechaun that told you all this is a good, trustworthy source.”

>Starlight thought she was insane.
>That was fine.
>Lyra was confident that Aryanne would prove her right.

“I’m going to be out of town tomorrow. I’ll contact you in a couple days to see what Aryanne was up to.”

>She made her way downstairs.
>And then she made off into the night.

                                                *       *       *       *       *

>Lyra woke up before the sun had risen.
>She struggled to pull herself out from under the welcoming covers.
>She strained to pry her eyes open and meet the darkness around her.
>And she railed against the fog that had formed in her head.
>She was too tired to figure out how long she’d been asleep, but it clearly hadn’t been long enough.
>It never was lately.
>Somehow, no amount of sleep was enough these days.
>Her jaw strained as she yawned.
>Her legs protested as she made her way to the washroom.
>Her teeth behaved themselves as she brushed them.
>Today was the day.
>She was heading to the crystal empire.
>It was going to be challenging to find what she was after.
>But wherever Twilight was, that’s where she wanted to be.
>Twilight had gone there for a reason.
>And if this warranted going in pony and not simply sending a letter or communicating over the internet, it had to be big.
>She doubted that day trips were a high priority for the movers and shakers in this day and age.
>Time was money, and they were flat broke.
>Everything they did doubtlessly came with purpose.
>Lyra’s job was to observe and piece it all together.
>Last outing she’d painted herself blue to hide her identity.
>But that didn’t seem like a good idea any longer.
>After her trip to Canterlot, an all blue pony on a train would doubtlessly attract far too much attention.
>They’d given her enough suspicious glances the first time.
>That made things complicated.

*CRACK*

>A loud jolt awoke her from her stupor.

>”Augh!”

>Her home defence system had discharged.
>Somepony just got a nasty electric shock.
>Unlike last time, Lyra wasn’t afraid.
>She was better armed and more experienced.
>And she now knew just how non-threatening the average pony was.
>She opened up the cupboard beneath the sink and pulled out the box of soap.
>A small pistol fell out.
>She wasn’t sure how many weapons Bon-Bon had hidden throughout the house, but there seemed to be enough to arm an entire guard outpost.
>She made her way to the source of the noise.
>A very disoriented Starlight Glimmer lay on the ground.

“Honestly. Does nopony knock anymore?”

>”Owie?”

>Lyra lifted the shocked unicorn with a quick flash from her horn.
>She placed Starlight on the couch.

“You okay?”

>”I can’t move my hind legs. Oh wait.”

>She groaned for a bit.

>”Nope. Can’t move ‘em.”

>She was paralyzed!
>Somepony was seriously injured.
>In HER home!
>And she had no idea what to do!

“Oh my goodness! I gotta take you to the hospital!”

>”And say what, that I broke into your home and got hit by an unlicensed weapon while trying to subvert the crown?”

>Huh.
>That WOULD be pretty bad.

>”I’ll be fine. Just give me a bit. Ugh. How do pegasi stand lightning shocks? They only get worse!”

“Yeah. Pegasi are kinda weird. You’re SURE you’re okay?”

>Her legs moved erratically.
>But they moved.

>”You were right. Well, you were right about part of it. I’m still not convinced about the rest. Aryanne WAS involved in a weapons development program, and it DOES turn air into poison.”

“Toldja. But why come here? Why not wait until I call you?”

>”Because you need to know this immediately. They’re getting close to catching you.”

“Sorry?”

>”They’ve been trying to find out who keeps breaking into their places, and you’re one of the suspects!”

>Lyra’s blood ran cold.
>They knew.
>How did they know?
>She’d been so careful!

>”It’s already too late to stop. They’re going to figure it out even if you don’t do anything else ever again.”

>Words failed her.
>She wanted to freak out, but her tongue was tied.

>”There aren’t many ponies who don’t have a tracking chip, and fewer still who are unicorn mares. There’s only a hooffull of ponies alive that could possibly be responsible. They’re going to figure out it’s you. You need to do something on your next outing to trick them.”

“Like what?”

>”I don’t know! Something! You need to prove that it’s not you somehow! What are you bad at? Are there any spells you can’t use?”

”I can’t teleport.”

>Without Aquarius, it was an actual impossibility.
>Not just a lack of effort or skill.

>”Great, teleport next time!”

“I just said I can’t!”

>”Well you’d better figure something out or you’re going down. And you’d better make it pretty convincing. You turned an awful lot of heads when you broke out of prison.”

“You heard about that?”

>”Somepony casually bypasses a jammer and overpowers a dozen guards? Yeah. I heard about it. I don’t know how you did it and I’m not going to ask. Just know that they’re taking you seriously after that.”

“How serious?”

>”The guards have been ordered to not attempt to detain you.”

“That seemed like a good thing.”

>”They’re supposed to report your location to S.M.I.L.E. so they can dispatch a team of agents.”

“Oh. That seems like a bad thing.”

>”Yeah. A really bad thing. You’re going to the Crystal Empire next, right?”

“No.”

>Yes.

>”Well when you don’t go there make sure you don’t check out the railyard. A new line has been put in and it’s really weird. ”

“How weird?”

>”Huge shipments under tarps go out into the middle of nowhere, empty trains come back.”

“Pretty weird.”

>”I’ve left some of Aryanne’s logs on your coffee table. I don’t know what to make of them, but maybe you can figure something important out. Watch your back out there.”

>She vanished in a burst of light.

“Showoff.”

>This was most unwelcome news.
>Scaring away guards was one thing.
>She was proud of her ability to discourage them so readily.
>But an actual agent of S.M.I.L.E. coming her way would be something totally different.
>She thought of her snowball fight with Bonny and her complete inability to land a single shot.
>She thought of her teacher demonstrating spells and turning a drop of water into a bullet in the blink of an eye.
>If he was too old to fight, she didn’t want to be on the wrong side of a healthy agent.
>She briefly considered staying home.
>But that wasn’t an option anymore.
>She needed to throw them off her scent.
>How?

“Euhhhhhhh…”

>That wasn’t going to be easy.
>She had no ideas.
>But there was no time to sit around and wait.
>Lyra had a train to catch.
>She quickly packed her bags and ran out the door.

Later…

>The train pulled its way along the countryside swiftly and smoothly.
>Smooth enough that Lyra had dozed off.
>It wasn’t a very restful slumber, but it did help pass the time.
>When she awoke the landscape had changed.
>The denser woodlands and rolling hills has been replaced by thin brush and long, winding rivers.
>As a filly Lyra had always imagined that northern Equestria was a frozen wonderland where snowponies could stand year round.
>The reality was far different.
>One had to go extremely far to the north to find frost in the heat of the summer.
>Not even the mountains in the distance had a white cap upon them.
>It was an eerie world that neither fit summer nor winter.
>The land was not dead, but it also wasn’t alive.
>Thinly spaced and stunted trees tried to fill the land, but they failed to overshadow the short and patchy wildgrass.
>Lyra sighed.
>She really had no idea what she was going to do when she got to the Crystal Empire.
>She hadn’t planned her trip out at all.
>How could she?
>All she had to go on was this train tip.
>There was probably more in the north to find.
>There was almost certainly something else hidden up here.
>But there was so much ‘here’ out here.
>The train finally pulled into the station.
>The crystal empire shone brilliantly before her as Lyra stepped out of the train.
>A quick glance at the sun said it was just after noon.
>Strange.
>The train wasn’t supposed to arrive until three.
>No matter.
>She departed the train, saddlebags in tow.
>Step one, find a market.
>Lyra headed out into the streets of the Crystal empire.
>As she made her way blindly through town she noticed something strange.
>And that was how normal everything was.
>This city hadn’t been remade in concrete and steel.
>The brilliant crystal spires still glittered in the sunlight.
>Sure, power lines had been erected.
>And street lamps were scattered about.
>But it was still the Crystal Empire of old.
>Perhaps a bit more crowded, but largely unmolested by modernity.

“Lucky.”

>Maybe they were just used to it?
>Was the difference really just that these ponies were comfortable with big city life and Ponyville wasn’t?
>Maybe the city had been constructed better?
>She really had no clue.
>The bustling marketplace seemed to have some strange form of order underlying the chaos.

>”Aluminium foil, silly string, blue mane dye, a banana. Anything else for you today?”

>She quickly paid for her purchase and vacated the building.
>And then she was headed back to the railyard.
>It was an exceptionally busy part of the lively city.
>The city had been built before the advent of the steam engine and wasn’t designed with mass transit in mind.
>And so this one hyperactive corner of the crystal empire was a vision of madness.
>Dozens of rails weaved and snaked through the city trying to squeeze in between the existing buildings.
>Trains were backed up beyond the horizon waiting to access the overwhelmed loading bays.
>Lyra walked into an alleyway and took off her saddlebags.
>She began to line them with the aluminium.
>Once she was done she pulled out the dye packages and began to apply the blue pigment liberally.
>It was time to get to work.
>She peered around the corner once more to asses the railyard.
>To see if there was anything out of place.
>And sure enough, there was something extremely odd.
>A single rail headed out north of the switch station.
>One rail going in the wrong direction, crammed into the already dense city.
>A long train was pulling out in that direction, with wagons covered in enormous tarps.
>It was moving very slowly as the numerous engines struggled to drag whatever it was moving.
>But it was successfully creeping along.
>There were two ponies monitoring it as it pulled out.
>They didn’t seem to be armed in any way.
>Were they not guards?
>Lyra donned her visor to identify them.
>Agents 178 and 153.
>She ducked back into the alley.
>Had they seen her?
>Was she caught?
>Minutes seemed to drag on for eternity as she cowered away from the agents.
>But eventually their implants reported that they were pulling away from the station.
>Heading north.
>She dared to peek out.
>They’d jumped on one of the few covered cars.
>The train was still moving slowly.
>Its massive load was weighing down the engines so much that even now Lyra could catch them.
>It was now or never.
>She bolted toward the cars.
>The agents didn’t react.
>They were counting on the implants to reveal any wrongdoers.
>Very sloppy and lazy.
>They’d been doing this long enough to get lax.
>Which meant whatever was on the other end had been around for a while.
>How long did it take for S.M.I.L.E. to get sloppy?
>Hundreds of shipments?
>Thousands?
>She reached the train and jumped onto one of the covered cars.
>It was a brief struggle for her to pull herself on, but she soon found herself under a heavy blue tarp.
>She turned around to face an enormous mass of steel.
>She recognized it at once, having read about them in her physics classes.

“A rocket?”

>They weren’t a common sight in Equestria.
>Why would they be?
>There were better ways to fly.
>Rockets really only existed as a concept.
>Or so she’d thought.
>What was it for?
>It didn’t seem to be attached to anything interesting.
>Lyra moved to the end of the car to jump onto the next one.
>She poked her muzzle out from under the tarp.
>And watched the ground blur by below her.

“Nope!”

>She scurried back under the tarp.
>There was absolutely no way she was jumping off this thing while it was moving.
>This was already plenty insane for her tastes.
>Risking getting crushed by a steel behemoth was a step too far.
>The train trip seemed to stretch on for hours.
>But every time she chanced a glance at the sky the sun hadn’t moved.
>Finally the behemoth began to slow.
>The towering crystal city from which she’d departed had long ago vanished over the horizon.
>The terrain around her had changed yet again.
>The vegetation had thinned even more; it had been reduced to thin grasses and moss.
>The short growing season simply couldn’t sustain more life than this.
>The air around her was brisk, but not exactly cold.
>It was a light chill that just barely cut through her coat.
>Off in the distance she could see a large complex coming into view.
>It wasn’t underground like the rest, and she could understand why.
>There was no way they could bury something this big.
>In the middle of it all a few buildings stood tall.
>They were elevated a bit off the ground, with dead space beneath.
>Held aloft by wooden pylons.
>Lyra had heard about these.
>The ground up here never really thawed.
>If they put a heated building on the ground it would melt the terrain below, turning it into muck.
>They had to keep these buildings elevated to keep them from sinking.
>Around the buildings hangars and broad roadways filled the area.
>As did staff.
>There were hundreds of chipped ponies in there.
>Maybe even a thousand.
>And among them were two more agents.
>This place was VERY important.
>As she drew closer more and more detail came into view.
>The perimeter of the complex was completely unguarded.
>No wall, no guard towers, nothing.
>They were relying on obscurity for security.
>And not even that, really.
>Because everypony who was paying attention knew that there had to be something at the end of the tracks.
>It seemed so odd.
>Except that they had multiple agents in the area.
>That was probably enough.
>Hay, it might even be excessive.
>Maybe they were relying on personnel for the job because it was the only way to protect the train?
>That made sense to her.
>How would you wall off the entirety of the train tracks?
>There was a small switch station at the end of the line with dozens of empty train cars.
>It seemed as though they detached the cars and returned with another set.
>Maybe they needed to keep the train running and couldn’t wait for it to unload?
>Ponies milled about with heavy machinery moving cargo off the previous shipment.
>Strangely, none of them were armed.
>Maybe they were worried that stray bullets would damage the equipment?
>Maybe they just didn’t think anypony would come this far out.
>Or maybe they figured that the agents were more than enough.
>If she was being honest they probably were.
>But she had an advantage.
>She could see them through walls.
>If nopony ever spotted her, there would be no fight.
>The train lurched to a halt and work crews began to detach the cargo wagons.
>The two agents who were already here boarded a set of empty cars as the train picked them up.
>And then they began to return to the city for another load.
>Work crews were still working on the previous shipment; it would be some time before they got to her hiding spot.
>Plenty of time for night to finally fall.
>The machinery they were unloading was being hauled into one of the hangars.
>Most of it was unidentifiable.
>Eventually a massive cart rolled out of the hangar.
>An assembled rocket with no payload came out.
>It was enormous, maybe 20 meters tall.
>Clearly they were planning on launching something here.
>But what?
>They rolled it along the roadways.
>A small crane was in place to pick it up and lower it into a hole in the ground.
>Princess Cadence herself emerged from the interior of the complex to watch it slowly sink below the surface.
>Once it was in place her visor revealed a small team of ponies moving in to surround it.
>The entire process was slow and deliberate, with everything halting dozens of times to make various checks.
>It felt like it took hours to move the rocket.
>Yet the sun was still near the peak of the sky.
>Was it ever going to set?

“Durrr.”

>No.
>No it wasn’t.
>This far north in the summer, the sun never set.
>The truth was that she had no way of knowing what time it was.
>Cadence returned inside.
>All the ponies followed her.
>And a second set emerged from the inside of the building.
>They were working in shifts, then?
>Shortly after the second set reached their sheds the distinctive din of power tools filled the air.
>This place was building rockets around the clock.
>No, not building them.
>ASSEMBLING them.
>The actual manufacturing was happening elsewhere.
>Hundreds of ponies working at all hours of the day with trainloads of parts coming in from all over Equestria.
>To assemble rockets.
>Such an incredible expense for such a strange purpose.
>It was true what they said.
>There are strange things done in the midnight sun.
>And the mares that moiled with machines were among the strangest.
>Lyra had to find out what they were for.
>A rocket was a delivery system.
>A means of moving something through space.
>What was it they were moving?
>And why were their rockets so enormous.
>How far were they planning on launching their payloads?
>Lyra had no way of guessing their range.
>Especially without knowing the payload.
>She had to get inside.
>She had to move.
>That was going to be next to impossible.
>The trains were right in the middle of the camp.
>Sunset wasn’t coming for weeks.
>And the work crews were never going to stop.
>But she had to move.
>It was only a matter of time before they got around to her car.
>If she stayed put she was going to get caught.
>A team was coming to the adjacent train to unload a car.
>She waited for them to start moving away.
>And then she bolted, ducking under the next tarp.
>Nopony reacted.
>They were all focused on their work.
>Vanishingly few of them were outside of their shelters.
>Still, it only took one stray glance for her to get caught.
>She trembled with excitement and fear as she lie in wait for her next chance to move.
>They returned.
>And when they left she ran to the empty train, ducking beneath it.
>Lyra crawled beneath the train moving toward one of the hangars.
>She eventually got to it.
>And then she waited.
>Hours more passed before the ponies inside finally began to move their rocket out.
>This one wasn’t complete though.
>There was no fuel tank.
>A few other pieces that she didn’t know the names of were also missing.
>They rolled it toward another hangar, presumably for another team to continue construction.
>So this place was an assembly line?
>That implied high volume.
>Just how many rockets had been made here?
>And how many more were they making?
>Once she was confident they were out of sight she ran into the hangar.
>A heavy steel framework was in place in the middle of the room to hold the pieces in place.
>Sturdy hooks and cranes hung from the rafters to help maneuver the rocket components through the hangar.
>She didn’t have time to look around further, they’d come back soon enough.
>From here it was only a short sprint to the main building.
>Lyra looked around.
>She waited until everypony was in one building or another.

“Now or never.”

>She bolted to the main structure.
>She was just barely able to slip under the elevated building and begin crawling around.
>A giddy thrill ran through her body.
>They were none the wiser.
>This was CRAZY! 
>And she was getting away with it!
>The semi-frozen dirt was strangely squishy and springy, offering a bizarre texture as it muddied up her coat.
>It was hard to tell what was happening above.
>But there were no shortage of ponies in this building.
>Most of the work crew that had been working on rockets before had gone in here.
>Maybe living quarters of some sort?
>She crawled around to the other edge.
>The building just on the other side was where Cadence had gone.
>And lo and behold, a quick scan revealed that every princess was in there.
>She had to find out what they were doing.
>The two agents who had stuck around were walking around the facility.
>Lyra had a clear view of one.
>153 was a unicorn like herself.
>A pale blue stallion with a dark brown mane.
>Lyra couldn’t make out his cutie mark.
>But she could see his armaments.
>He was carrying a coil of rope and nothing more.
>He was probably quite dangerous even unarmed.
>But at least they were trying to capture rather than kill.
>Lyra’s heart slowed slightly.
>Her muscles untensed just a little bit.
>He began to move onward.
>But his progress was slowed.
>He was limping, and pretty seriously!
>Was he hurt?
>She couldn’t see anything wrong with his leg.
>But there was no doubt that that was a wounded pony.
>Were they masking their injuries somehow?
>Maybe they were using an illusion like Twilight or Applejack.
>And possibly Rarity?
>Those ‘eyes’ were weird.
>Who else was hiding behind a spell?
>It felt like it took forever for her opportunity to come, but finally there was a clear path to the next building.
>She bolted to it and slid underneath, clipping the side of the building with her horn.

“Ag-”

>She struggled to swallow a cry of pain.
>The sounds of heavy machinery continued uninterrupted.
>When the pain subsided Lyra dragged herself further into the building.
>She was right below the princesses.
>She just needed some way to listen in.
>Lyra pressed her ear to the underside of the building.
>It was insulated too well to make anything out.
>There was only one solution.
>It was risky.
>But she needed to know what was going on.
>Lyra waited for a vehicle to roll by with rocket parts in tow.
>She prayed that it was making enough noise.
>And then she used her magic to rip a plank out of the floor.
>Nopony reacted.
>They hadn’t heard her.
>The insulation between the layers of wood had damped the sound.
>She pulled the fiberglass out.
>Still still couldn’t hear.
>She waited for another vehicle.
>Luckily a heavy one came past soon after, holding a massive fuel tank.
>As it rumbled past she broke through the second layer.
>Lyra glanced inside
>Luna was lying back on her seat, dozing off.
>Or at least she was pretending to.
>Lyra wasn’t entirely certain if it was an act or genuine.
>The other three ponies seated in that room seemed to be engaged in a very serious discussion.
>But Luna was making a point of showing her lack of interest.
>If she was even awake.
>Princess Celestia was speaking.

>”All these efforts have only been met with partial success. Public discontent continues to grow. The odds of rebellion are minimal; I’ve centuries of goodwill to rely upon. However, we’ve more and more ponies dropping out of society daily, even as the cost of living rises. The average pony simply isn’t equipped to deal with this much stress. It is bad for their physical and mental health. We shouldn’t be surprised that they shirk away from it. If we are to maintain our productivity, no amount of financial incentive will suffice. We may need to take far more draconian measures.”

>Draconian measures?
>Dragons were infamous for their greed.

>”If we continue as we are things will only grow worse. Their breaking point is in sight. We need good news on at least one front. Twilight, my student, I pray you’ve something for us.”

>”I’m sorry, princess. I have nothing. We keep running experiments, but we just aren’t coming up with anything useful. The Tide’s behaviour is predictable, but uncontrollable. Simple, but unstoppable. It’s too stupid to trick. I’m starting to worry that even if we understand it we won’t be able to stop it. It might be that the only choice is to destroy it.”

>Celestia nodded solemnly.

>”Please proceed with your studies and experiments. Even the slightest advantage may be of the utmost importance. However we must proceed assuming that it can’t be fooled. If we are to destroy it then we need destructive power beyond imagining. Princess Cadance may take the floor.”

>Luna cracked an eye open just a hair.
>She was awake, then.
>She quickly went back to pretending she wasn’t listening.

>”Making these weapons is a complicated process that requires rare materials, highly trained specialists, and a lot of power. We don’t have enough raw materials to keep on schedule, our power grid is overtaxed, and we don’t have enough ponies that can do the job. To make matters worse we’re pretty sure that using them in a large scale would be an environmental catastrophe. It’s a huge investment for something we can only use once that’s going to shoot us in the hoof in the end. If we are to rely on brute force to win the day, we’re going to need a better superweapon.”

>Luna’s ears twitched.
>Celestia considered the words for a moment.

>”Hence the Helios project. How is that coming along?”

>”Much better than expected. If all goes well the first cannon should be ready some time next month. The problem is that it’s untested, and repair and maintenance are going to be a nightmare. Helios is risky.”

>Celestia nodded.

>”It is not a risk if we’ve nothing to lose. Have we any objections to constructing a second Helios cannon should the first one work as planned?”

>Silence.

>”Very well. Draw up a request for the second one and I’ll see what assets I can offer. Regrettably we’ve little more to give you. Unless there is good news on another front. Sister?”

>Princess Luna stopped pretending to sleep.
>She got up in one swift motion and stood up tall.

>”It’s pretty bad. We are in a war of attrition. We will never compare with hell’s industrial might or numbers. Yet we still stand a chance of victory. The lords continue to fight amongst each other, only sending small numbers of hostiles our way.”

>”So what’s the problem?”

>”Sorry, Twilight. I’m getting used to being down there. My definition of small may be different from yours. When we deployed our chemical agent we were against no fewer than six million enemies. That’s still a relatively small force down there. They keep coming and we keep winning. However, they are all pyrrhic victories. They can raise a new invasion force as quickly as we can reload. There are two solutions.”

>Nopony spoke.
>They knew she’d explain soon enough.

>”We can continue our sabotage attempts. Small, highly mobile teams can get plenty done if they’re dispatched properly. At the moment we’re most interested in Eurynomos. He’s been the most active in engaging our forces. This should come as no surprise, most of the territory we’ve claimed came from him. Currently, we’re looking to eliminate his hosts. They are the bulk of the forces threatening our position.”

>All three of the other alicorns looked confused.

>”Sorry. Where is that projector?”

>She left the room from the rear entrance for a little bit.
>When she returned she had a small projector on a cart.
>The lights in the room turned off as she started it up.

>”Most of the species in hell were undocumented. The ecology of that damnable place has changed a great deal since it was last sealed. We’ve had to develop names for many of these species. We call this a ‘Stygian host’.”

>The first slide appeared on the screen.
>Lyra wished it hadn’t.
>A bipedal monstrosity stared at her with one deformed eye.
>It was probably not much taller than a pony, and probably lighter.
>But it was hard to tell what they were supposed to look like.
>This one was so rotten that most of the discernable features had been wiped out.
>Its angular skull was nearly devoid of flesh, with one of its eye sockets having been filled with crawling insects.
>Open sores dotted its putrefying body.

>”Ugh. What is wrong with you?”

>Twilight seemed no less disgusted than Lyra.

>”Despite all appearances, this specimen was still alive when the picture was taken. I think it was about three weeks old; their lifecycle is quite short. This is how they come to us. The first sign is often the stench in the air.”

>Princess Celestia had looked away.
>She was mumbling something frantically under her breath.

>”In some ways they are one of the lesser threats in hell. They aren’t tough, and they aren’t swift. One well placed shot will fell them.”

>”Please change the slide. This is disgusting.”

>”Sure thing, Cadence.”

>The slide changed.
>This one was worse.
>A Stygian Host lay on ground, a small bullet hole in its chest.
>The insects that used to be in it were crawling everywhere.
>There were thousands of them.

>”Turn off the projector.”

>Celestia spoke slowly, but firmly.

>”I have more slides.”

>”TURN OFF THE PROJECTOR!”

>Lyra had spent years in Celestia’s school.
>She’d seen the princess hundreds of times.
>She’d never once heard princess Celestia yell.
>The lights came on and the projector shut down.

>”The long and short of it is that those bugs are larvae. They’re going to grow up into more hosts. And they’re born pregnant. Deprived of food they can stay in their larval form for a great deal of time. We’re not entirely certain how long they can last.”

>”What makes them dangerous?”

>Twilight seemed scared to ask the question.
>But her curiosity overwhelmed her revulsion.

>”The host itself isn’t dangerous. Its young are. They burrow into their victims and eat them from the inside out to fuel their own growth. Relatively mundane by demon standards; we’ve saved every victim to date with surgery. However the recovery time from that surgery takes them out of the field for far too long. Some of our agents will never fully recover. Poor 39 will probably never walk again…”

>She trailed off.
>Regret?
>Sorrow?
>She began to speak again, RAGE in her voice.

>”The battlefield is littered with these bloody things after every engagement. Millions of damn things crawling everywhere. All it takes is one careless step and they’re drilling into your hoof. The only solution we’ve come up with so far is to incinerate everything when we’re done. We’re going to run out of fuel soon. Burning them just takes too much. If we proceed like this we will eventually run out of everything.”

>”So what’s the solution?”

>”I was getting to that, Twilight. We now know where they’re being bred. If we can destroy the hive our problem is not exactly solved, but it would be a great first step. One solution is to send a strike team down there to do it. Poison the food supply and wipe out a couple generations. That would help, but it wouldn’t end it. Then we’d have to send a team to the same area to destroy the railyard and interfere with his logistical operations to keep starving them out. This still wouldn’t finish it, they’d get fed eventually. We’d have to send another to destroy their agriculture. It goes on and on. Eventually we’d cripple the supply lines enough to make them a non issue. We may even be able to wipe them out entirely.”

>”Can it be done?”

>Cadence spoke.
>Celestia was still muttering under her breath.

>”Probably. If all goes well we could dismantle hell. We’d need to have uninterrupted supply lines, dozens of perfect battles, and hundreds of successful operations. Over time we could pull it all apart piece by piece. Then we’d be able to move on to the next threat and then the next. It would be a slow and challenging proposition, and if we failed we’d have to abandon hell entirely to regroup. Eventually we’ll be able to wear them down enough that we can actually win a decisive battle. That, of course, assumes that no unexpected complications come up. We would be counting on hell itself to not surprise us. I’m not willing to make that bet. Ladies, it’s time to go nuclear.”

>”WHAT?”

>The other three protested as one.

>”A few strikes into the heart of Blightsburgh could cripple everything we’re looking to take down. Months of difficult operations could be reduced to minutes”

>”You’re planning on blowing up their CITY?”

>Celestia had broken out of her trance.
>She was appalled.

>”Repeatedly.”

>”There are laborers down there! Farmers, miners, smiths! How many non combatants would be killed?”

>”Does that matter? They’re demons! Even if they’re not fighting they’re working against us.”

>”You’re planning a NUCLEAR STRIKE against NON COMBATANTS!”

>Luna nodded.

>”How many would you kill?”

>”I don’t know, Twilight. Nor do I care. They stand in our way.”

>”Have you forgotten why you’re down there? This isn’t meant to be some quest for vengeance!”

>”No. Revenge is just an added perk. We really only NEED one lord alive, and in case you’ve forgotten demonic energy can’t be destroyed. Unless we finish him off with a binding ritual he would recover from the strike before long. That’s assuming it’s enough to destroy his body in the first place. Maybe if we burn his capital to the ground with nuclear fire he’ll be willing to talk.”

>Wait, what?
>They need one alive?

>”We don’t know if we can stop the tide! We don’t even know if it’s POSSIBLE to stop the tide!. You’re talking about commiting an atrocity to prop up a gamble!”

>”Yes.” 

>They all looked flabbergasted.

>”What if you cause a cave in? You’ll break hell wide open! We could have demons roaming the streets in Equestria!”

>”This is a possibility, Twilight. I won’t deny it. But we’ve been preparing for that. Look, it’s very simple. We need to stop the tide or we go extinct. If we break hell we have better odds. If we use nuclear weapons we have a better chance of breaking hell. This decreases the odds that ponykind goes extinct.”

>Celestia stood up and marched toward Luna.
>She started yelling in her face.

>”And it kills tens of millions of civilians! Maybe HUNDREDS! It breaks hell wide open! It makes YOU-”

>She jabbed a hoof into Luna’s chest.

>”YOU responsible for the greatest mass killing in history!”

>Celestia was angry.
>Or maybe even furious.
>A golden radiance emanated from her body.
>Luna stared straight into her sister’s eyes.
>She started talking slowly and deliberately.

>” If it improves our odds by even a tiny fraction I shall do it. There is NOTHING I will not do to stop the tide. Ponykind will be EXTINCT if we fail. If we are given a chance to even slightly improve our odds I am going to take it, no matter the cost. I will destroy anything and everything to tilt the scales in our favor. I will blow up hell, erase heaven, burn down Equestria, and piss on the ashes if that’s what it takes!”

>”And what if we fail? You’ll have caused who knows how much pain and suffering for nought! YOU ALONE will be responsible for the most HORRENDOUS crime in history, and for what?”

>”For the privilege of dying knowing I’d done EVERYTHING I could!”

>A dark red haze surrounded Luna.
>A wicked snarl grew on her face.

>”I think that you all misunderstand something very important here. I’m not asking for your permission. I don’t need your approval. This is happening.”

>”No it’s not.”

>Twilight Sparkle stood up and walked over to Luna.
>She locked eyes with the elder alicorn.

>”If you’re doing ANYTHING like this we’re putting it to a vote.”

>Luna merely smirked.

>”We need to put it to a vote? Alright. Let’s see about that, shall we? All in favor of giving me the bombs?”

>Nopony said anything.

>”Looks like I lose the vote. Time to go pick up some nuclear warheads. I think I’ll go with the Manehattan series, save the good ones for later.”

>She started to casually walk away.

>”Not if I stop you.”

>Twilight Sparkle’s horn glowed as she growled.

>”Stop me from taking the obsolete weapons? Fine, I’ll grab the good ones!”

>She was suppressing a chuckle as she spoke.

>”Stop you from taking ANY of them.”

>”And what makes you think you can?”

>”I’ve stopped you before, Nightmare Moon!”

>Luna failed to hold back her laughter.
>A rich guffaw rang out.

>”You’re wrong about two things. First off, no. You didn’t stop Nightmare Moon. WE did it together. Second, I’m not Nightmare Moon. The Nightmare is dead. I’m something FAR more dangerous. But please.”

>Her horn flashed briefly.
>A dark rift formed in the air.
>A small and sleek firearm fell out of it.
>She gently floated it to Twilight.

>”You’ll be needing this. Go ahead. Stop me.”

>”You think I won’t?”

>”Of course not. That’s not who you are. But even if you did, I don’t care. You can’t stop me. Let me explain something to you, Twilight. I’m stronger than you. That means I get what I want. So go ahead. Gather your friends. Get your ancient artifacts. Raise an army. I don’t care what you do.”

>She met Twilight’s gaze confidently.

>”You. Can’t. Stop. Me.”

>She walked away casually.
>Twilight’s horn began to glow.

>”No!”

>Celestia commanded Twilight.
>The word seemed to bypass Lyra’s brain and went straight to her body.
>She tried desperately to stop even though she wasn’t doing anything.

>”No, Twilight. She will CRUSH you. If we are to stop her we must talk her down.”

>”But if I get the elements-”

>”Then she’ll laugh at you. She and the nightmare shared a body, Twilight. I don’t know what that’s like. I pray that I never learn. But I know a few things. When you faced Nightmare Moon they were fighting each other for control of that one body. You got your chance because Luna slowed the Nightmare down long enough for you to strike. She’s not going to help you this time.”

>”So we just let her go?”

>”No. We can’t physically stop her, but we may yet be able to talk her down. I’ll handle this. Please, stay back.”

>Celestia followed her sister.
>Twilight looked worried.

>”It’s fine, Twilight. Luna can’t use them even if she takes them.”

>”Really?”

>”I wanted to make sure that if they ever fell into the wrong hooves, nothing bad would happen. They’re not primed, and unless she plans on taking them apart and rebuilding them she’s going to need my key.”

>She produced a small plastic card from her mane.

>”Without this the safety will never come off. They might as well be duds.”

>”Well, put it away before somepony sees it!”

>Too late for that.
>Why so much fuss about these bombs?
>Were they really that much worse than any other explosion?
>Lyra began to creep away.
>There had to be more about these things around here.
>Maybe in the silos they were held in?
>How to get down to the bombs?
>By following the pony who was going to them.
>She had to follow Luna.
>Luna had exited the building and was moving to a small shack.
>This one didn’t seem to be elevated like the rest.
>The door swung closed behind her, making an audible click as it locked.
>Celestia opened it and ran down, not taking the time to ensure it closed properly.
>Lyra grabbed it with her magic and kept it from locking.
>It took a while before an opportunity presented itself.
>But eventually, nopony was paying attention.
>Lyra seized her chance and ran in.
>A long, narrow staircase descended into the Earth.
>It was very well lit with nowhere to hide.
>If she went in and somepony stumbled on her, there’d be nowhere to hide.
>Nowhere to run.
>Was she really going to take that risk?

“Absolutely.”

>Knowledge was a drug.
>And Lyra was addicted.
>She quickly made her way down the staircase, the air growing colder and colder as she descended.
>This area was not heated.
>No surprise, they didn’t want to melt the permafrost.
>The chill nipped at Lyra as she made it to the bottom.
>Two automated gun turrets were pointed at her.
>They were totally blind without an implant to look for.
>A quick look around revealed a guard station.
>A young pegasus mare was staring straight at her behind the plated glass.
>She moved to raise an alarm.
>It was trivially easy to stop her.
>A quick spell pinned a wing to the floor.
>Another quick spell forced her mouth shut.
>She felt a strange thrill at so thoroughly and so easily disabling another pony.
>It took a few moments for Lyra to find the entrance into the guard station, but once she was in it was only one simple curse to take down the guard.
>At first she was elated.
>She’d dealt with them without hurting them and without making a sound.
>But then it occured to her.
>This was bad.
>Really bad.
>There was now evidence of an intruder.
>Lyra looked around the guard station.
>There were dozens of displays with video coming in from all over the complex.
>One camera was pointed at the entrance to the underground.
>They were doubtlessly keeping the recordings.
>They’d know it was her.
>And they’d nearly figured out who she was.
>Breaking into this weapons facility was just one more crime for her record.
>There had to be some solution.
>Some way to trick them.
>She had to throw them off her scent or they would know that she’d been in yet another secret weapons facility.
>No time for that now.
>First she had to get her questions answered.
>She checked the guard’s computer and searched through the files.
>Incident logs, schedules, site 148-e orientation-

“Orientation?”

>How much orientation does one need to be a guard?
>She opened the file.
>Celestia’s soothing voice began playing.

>”Good day, my little pony. And welcome to your new life.”

>Lyra’s muscles relaxed slightly despite her situation.
>She couldn’t help but relax with Celestia’s voice.

>”If you are listening to this then you’ve been entrusted with the future of ponykind. It is a great responsibility, and one we hope you take seriously. If you are to appreciate the gravity of the situation, you must know what it is you are guarding. The information you are about to see is highly classified. Disclosing it to any unauthorized personnel is considered treason. If you are uncomfortable with this, stop the video now.”

>Lyra did nothing.
>Couple minutes passed.
>She couldn’t help but wonder if something had gone wrong.
>’Is it broken?’
>’Am I supposed to do something?’
>Just when she was about to give up it began again.
>The display started switching through images and paintings of various terrifying monsters.
>Some, such as Discord, Lyra could recognize.
>Others she’d never seen before.
>Most she hoped to never see again.

>”Over the years Equestria has faced countless threats. Each and every time we’ve overcome all odds. We’ve deployed a great many tools to keep ponykind safe from the world at large. Everything from diplomacy to direct assault have been used, combined with tools ranging from gold coins to ancient artefacts. Most of the time we address these issue quickly, quietly, and safely without Equestria as a whole ever knowing there was a threat.  However, our success has not always been assured.”

>The slideshow stopped on Tirek.

>”Sometimes we’ve won by chance alone. When Tirek returned we exhausted all our options and still we were defenceless. Our only strategy was to go into hiding, and even that failed. It was fortune and nothing more that allowed us to win the day. We couldn’t rely on good luck forever. We needed a solution. We needed to be more dangerous than the monsters that threatened us. We have succeeded, but in doing so a new monster was born. The most dangerous creature ever to walk Elysium.”

>A nondescript pony was on screen.

>”Ponies have become the greatest threat to ponykind.”

>Something told Lyra that was a lie.

>”Our thirst for knowledge has birthed a weapon more dangerous than we’d thought to fear. Within these halls there lies enough destructive might to reduce the greatest of empires to ash. We’ve taken every precaution we can to keep them secure, but... a guard is needed. You are needed. If these were to fall into the wrong hooves it would be a disaster far greater than any other we’ve ever seen.”

>That sounded pretty serious.
>Was Luna the wrong hooves?

>”Dereliction of duty will not be tolerated. If any unauthorized entity, be they pony or otherwise, comes into these halls it is your duty to stop them. If any employee enters unexpectedly, it is your duty to stop them. If ANYONE comes in here and cannot prove they are supposed to be present, it is your duty to stop them. Trigger the alarm first to initiate lockdown and call reinforcements. Then detain the intruder if you are able. We cannot allow these weapons to be stolen under any circumstances.”

>She trailed off slightly.
>The prior words had come in a very even pace as though she were reading a script.
>What came next carried a different tone and rhythm.
>This part wasn’t rehearsed.

>”Yet I wonder… Is it even possible for mere words to explain this? Can our language describe how critical this task is? Perhaps a demonstration is needed.”

>The display changed.
>She got an image of a desolate desert landscape.
>In the top left corner of the display the words ‘100km’ were written.
>100 kilometers away?
>A horizontal line was drawn across the bottom with distance markers spread throughout.
>On the bottom the words ‘article 148 test 3.’
>A brilliant flash filled the sky, washing out the image.
>An enormous cloud rose into the stratosphere topped with an angry red cap.
>The cloud surged toward the camera.
>The ground seemed to tremble in terror at the might of the bomb.
>The shock wave spread out, aggressively covering the land in burning dust.
>When the blast finally began to fade it was nearly five kilometers in radius.

>”Do not let this fate befall your brothers and sisters. We are all counting on you.”

>The video stopped.
>It had to be fake.
>Right?
>There was no way a bomb could make a blast that big.
>But if it was fake, why all the secrecy?
>Why the investment?
>Why all the fuss when Luna brought them up?
>And was it really the least possible thing they’d ever done?
>Lyra couldn’t deny it.
>As much as she wished it weren’t real, it was.
>Those things were REAL.
>And they were mass producing them!
>But for what purpose if not to use them in hell?
>What else could warrant such insane destruction?
>The tide?
>She needed to know more.
>Lyra crept along the frigid underground hallways, taking great care to not make a sound.
>She skulked her way toward Celestia and Luna.
>As she made her way through she passed several heavy blast doors.
>She had no idea how one was meant to open them.
>Probably for the best.
>She desperately didn’t want the wrong ponies getting in there.
>She didn’t even want them to know about them!
>One particular blast door had dozens of ponies behind it.
>When she pressed her ear against it she could once more hear the sounds of power tools.
>They weren’t finished when they put them in the underground silos?
>How many of these were unfinished?
>How many bombs did Equestria have at the ready?
>How many were they planning on making?
>She had no clue.
>What felt like an eternity had passed before Celestia and Luna came into sight.
>Lyra cautiously peeked her muzzle around the corner.

>”Is it really so wrong, sister?”

>Luna was talking.
>And she sounded confused.

>”Is it really so wrong to want to protect them? To save them from the cruel world we live in?”

>Celestia shook her head.

>”It is good to protect them. But you must consider the price you pay. You must ask yourself how far is too far. Is it true?”

>”Is what true?”

>”Would you destroy everything to protect them? Would you reduce it all to dust if it meant ponykind could carry on?”

>Luna nodded without hesitation.

>”There is no price I wouldn’t pay.”

>”Then you are right in your eyes. If there truly is no cost too great then using the bomb is noble. There is nothing I can say or do to persuade you otherwise. For me, there is a price that is too great. I believe that ponykind is valuable too. But I would not see them become as vile as the monsters or demons below them. If the only way to live is to abandon everything we hold dear? To cast aside every virtue?”

>She let out a long, deep sigh.

>”To me, ponykind is more than a species. They aren’t just animals. Ponykind is what they do, what they aspire to, what they value and cherish. Ponykind IS friendship and harmony. If we abandon all of these things, then the ponies I love are already lost. It would be better to perish as ponies than to live as non-ponies. In my eyes it is wrong to use the bomb in this way.”

>Luna nodded slowly and deliberately.

>”You aren’t going to try and stop me?”

>”I can’t.”

>”You’re not going to sick S.M.I.L.E. on me?”

>We both know where their loyalty lies.”

>Celestia let out a half chuckle as she spoke.

>”Even if I could, perhaps I shouldn’t. I don’t know.  My world is tinted nearly as much as yours.”

>What’s that supposed to mean? 

>”Sorry for snapping at you earlier.”

>”And I’m sorry too. Can you ever forgive me?”

>Luna grabbed her sister and pulled her close.

>”You’re VERY hard to stay mad at.”

>Celestia returned the embrace.

>”Was it really wise to give Twilight that weapon?”

>”It’s broken.”

>”Broken?”

>”I wore it out. The firing mechanism doesn’t work anymore. And besides, it’s empty. Still, yeah, it was pretty stupid.”

>”They wear out?”

>”I’ve gotten a lot of use out of mine.”

>Celestia seemed troubled by that.
>Lyra was pretty sure she understood why.

>”How is it down there? How is the burden affecting the ponies? How is it affecting you?”

>”The ponies… it weighs heavily on them. Even S.M.I.L.E. is too equine for war. They’re used to spending their days looking for threats, tracking their movements, planning and preparing. They never spent that much time in battle before. For me? Well, it’s been hell. Let’s leave it at that.”

>She smiled at her own pun.

>”Luna, we may well be approaching the end. Do you really wish to spend these precious moments down there? Is this how you want it to end?”

>”No.’

>Luna disentangled from her sister.
>All the warmth had washed away from her face in an instant.
>Her horn began to glow.
>A chill ran down Lyra’s spine.

>”But I don’t wish to spend them in quiet submission. I’d rather die fighting in hell than surrender to the tide. I’m sorry, sister.”

>Celestia nodded, grief evident upon her face.

>”Promise you’ll come back to me.”

>Innumerable spells formed as one.
>Hundreds if not thousands of geyser strikes perforated the heavy blast doors fuelled by nothing more than air.
>The doors fell over, an alarm blared throughout the facility, and Luna entered to claim her prize.
>But they were useless.
>Without Cadence’s key they would never fulfill their purpose.
>And Lyra realized that an enormous burden had fall upon her.
>She could leave quietly.
>If she did there would be no superweapon to tame the burning hells.
>Luna would have no idea what went wrong, and she’d be largely powerless to use them.
>She didn’t seem to know much of how they worked. Cadence could probably convince her that they simply wouldn’t work in hell.
>She would be putting a terrible burden upon S.M.I.L.E. and risking the very existence of ponykind.
>But she’d uphold pony values.
>Ponies would continue to be what they represent, without the permanent stain of nuclear fire.
>Or she could try to get a message to Luna.
>If she found some way to tell Luna, she’d doubtlessly go to claim the key.
>Ponykind would be more likely to survive, if only just.
>But she, Lyra Heartstrings, would have been complicit in the greatest massacre in history.
>Abandon what ponykind is and become everything they’ve ever hated, or risk quietly dying out never to flourish again.
>The choice was hers.

                                                *       *       *       *       *
Poll conducted. Bomb wins.

>Lyra was shocked with herself.
>How could she even consider that?
>She ought to be ashamed of herself!
>Destroying an army was one thing.
>Wiping out an entire city is entirely another.
>Clearly she'd spent too much time tangled up with all this stuff.
>Time to leave.
>She began creeping backwards, not quite daring to look away from the scene before her.
>’They’d do it to us in an instant.’
>She chastised herself.
>That didn’t matter.
>Two wrong had never made a right.
>She had to go.
>Lyra backed into something.
>She turned around to see a steel wall had lowered behind her.
>The facility had gone into lockdown when Luna bashed down the wall.
>She was trapped.
>This was beyond bad.
>Maybe she could break through?
>An agent was approaching on the other side of the door.
>And they were moving FAST.
>Perhaps it would be unwise to open it.
>She turned around.
>Was there anywhere else to go?
>There was absolutely nowhere to hide!
>In one direction Celestia.
>In the other a solid wall and a VERY dangerous pony. 
>Glass jaw or supersoldier.

“Celestia it is then!”

>Lyra charged at the princess.
>What was she going to do?
>She hadn’t really thought that through just yet.
>Celestia began to talk to her without turning to face her.

>”You aren’t supposed to be here, my little pony.”

>There was no anger in the statement.
>It wasn’t a threat.
>Just a matter of fact.

>”None are meant to see the likes of this.”

>Lyra did her best to speak in a low gravelly voice.
>She failed miserably, squeaking from time to time.

“I, uhh, I think I’m taking you hostage?”

>Celestia looked Lyra right in the eyes.
>Somehow she couldn’t bring herself to look away.

>”I’m sorry, but I’ve no time for that at the moment. Perhaps we could reschedule?”

“Sure- I mean no. Aren’t you afraid of me?”

>”Why should I fear my saviour? I owe you a great debt.”

>She remembered Lyra from the incident beneath Canterlot.
>Maybe she could leverage that?

“Can I ask you to let me go?”

>”Were it up to me I would. I do not believe you’ve any ill intent. I may use a pact to bind your tongue, but I’d not punish you. You’re a good pony. You’re just confused.”

>Use a pact?
>Some kind of magical contract perhaps?
>She looked away and gazed into the weapons stockpile.
>Luna was still in there.

>”I’ll try and convince her to be lenient in your punishment.”

“Why? Why open up hell? Why make all these bombs?”

>”I cannot tell you that. I am sorry.”

“You’re tearing Equestria apart.”

>”I know.”

>Palpable grief filled her voice.

>”Not a day goes by where I do not yearn for simpler times. I look forward to the day when I can make it right once more.”

“But first you need to make sure there’s something left to rebuild.”

>”Yes.”

>”By the infernals these things are HEAVY!”

>Luna was complaining.
>But she sounded happy.

>”What of you? What brings you here?”

>She didn’t know.
>She’d thought over it for so long but she still didn’t know.

“Fear.”

>The word slipped out of her mouth without her thinking.

>”Fear?”

“Yeah.”

>Yeah.
>It was fear.

“There are ponies I care about that are in danger because of this mess. I need to know that they’ll be okay.”

>”And what have you found? Has your investigation assuaged your fear?”

“No. It’s only made things worse.”

>”Then why do you continue? It’s dangerous, and it has brought you no peace of mind. Would it not be better if you stayed home?”

“You’re trying to talk me into quitting.”

>”It would be in your own best interest.”

>Neither spoke for a while.
>Potent, oily magic flared up from time to time as Luna did her work.
>It felt as though a vile grease had tainted the waters of her unicorn magic.
>It was so wrong.

“I’m sorry, princess. They’re still in danger and I don’t even really know why. There’s something inside me screaming that I have to help her. I can’t. This is all I’ve got.”

>Celestia stared at Luna wistfully.

>”Powerless to help the one you love. Only able to watch from a distance and wonder. Wonder about their fate. Wonder about their pain. You’d do anything to help them.”

“Anything.”

>Anything…
>Even that?

>”I cannot fault you. I too did insane things to save the one I loved. I just ask that you keep quiet about what you’ve found. We keep our secrets for a reason.”

>Another huge flare of tainted mana surged forth as Luna cast another spell.
>Celestia flinched in appearent pain as it passed by.
>Lyra wasn’t the only one who could feel it.
>Celestia seemed to be hyper aware of it.

“What’s up with her magic?”

>”It is not my place to say.”

>Another vile spell.
>It seemed like she was teleporting something.
>Probably the bombs.

“You’re terrible at this secret stuff.”

>”It is not in my nature. Nor is it in yours.”

>It was true.
>She’d revealed way too much.

>”For what it’s worth, I pray the pony you hold dear will return to you well. We’re doing everything we can to support them.”

>They’re doing everything they can?
>Really?
>Every tool and every resource?

“Liar.”

>Celestia looked taken aback.
>She probably wasn’t used to being called a liar to her face.

“You didn’t give them the poison gas or the bombs. Whatever your reason the fact is that you’re not doing everything. Who knows what else you’re holding back?”

>She didn’t say anything.

“They’re risking their necks for you. They’re taking on hell itself! And you’re holding out on them!”

>Princess Celestia averted her gaze.

“Are you really on their side?”

>”I just… ponies aren’t monsters.”

>Not an answer.

“Are you on their side? Yes or no!”

>”I’m on the side of right.”

>Lyra was pissed.
>It was such a simple question!
>Why couldn’t the princess just say ‘yes’?

“So you’d trade your own ponies for your morals?”

>Silence.

“How many? How many would you sacrifice to avoid using the bomb?”

>”Everypony dies eventually. Once we’ve used the bomb we can never take it back. Ponykind would forever have the blood of a nuclear strike upon their hooves.”

“Would you let the pony I care about die for your principals?”

>”The bomb is too cruel.”

>She could hardly believe what she was hearing!
>That almost sounded like a ‘yes’!

“They’re DEMONS! They’re pure evil.”

>”That’s what I’m told.”

>It hit Lyra like a party cannon full of high explosive confetti.

“You HONESTLY think they can be redeemed? That there’s some good in them?”

>”I have to.”

>This was insane.
>Celestia wanted to reform the demons.
>Or at the very least to live peacefully with them.
>Celestia was going to get Bon-Bon hurt!
>Or WORSE!
>If Celestia wasn’t going to protect Bonny, she would!
>Bon-Bon would survive.
>No matter the cost.
>Lyra would do ANYTHING to help her out.
>Even that.

“If the pony I care about gets killed, I’m coming for you.”

>Celestia didn’t answer.

>”I’m serious. If she dies? You’re going to answer for it.”

>”You are too gentle of a soul for that.”

>Too gentle, eh?
>Lyra grabbed Celestia’s mane with her magic.
>She started to pull her to the exit.
>Celestia didn’t call for help.

“You’re going to let me out of here-”

>The exit’s blast door was lowering.
>On the other side stood a young, pastel blue pegasus mare with a braided off pink mane.
>Her left wing was bound in thick bandages.
>A wing injury?
>She was an agent, but even so.
>Surely Lyra could handle a pegasus with a hurt wing.
>And she seemed to be unarmed to boot!
>Lyra let Celestia go.
>The door was open.
>She had no more need for the princess.

>”Good start. Now lay down on the ground. Horn where I can see it.”

>Pegasi were reliant on mobility.
>This was an enclosed area and they were injured.
>That agent wouldn’t leave the ground.

>”Keep your horn facing me and get on the ground! No funny business!”

>They had no means of a ranged strike.
>If Lyra could stop them from moving she’d won.
>She just needed to grapple them.
>They could charge forward, or dodge to either side.
>If Lyra grabbed at all three choices at once there’d be nowhere to dodge.

>”I know what you’re thinking. It’s a bad idea.”

>”Please, little one. Don’t do it. You can’t best them.”

>There were at least ten meters between herself and the agent.
>Plenty of time to attack again if something went wrong.
>Lyra began to prepare three telekinetic fields.
>The pegasus surged forward, easily passing the spell before it had even formed.
>A crack that rang like lightning filled the air.
>A strong gust of wind shot through the complex.
>As she lay down for her nap Lyra couldn’t help but wonder why her jaw was so sore.
>She’d finish casting the spell later.

Later.

>First, Lyra felt a deep throbbing pain in her jaw.
>Then she felt something digging into her side.
>Next came a loud noise.
>And finally, once these sensations had finished drifting past her senses, Lyra woke up.
>She reluctantly opened her eyes.

“Ughhh.”

>She was bound to a chair by thick ropes in a dimly lit room.
>Lyra couldn’t quite make out what was happening around her.
>It was just a bit too dark.

“Hello?”

>Silence.
>Probably for the best.
>She called on her magic.
>But she couldn’t move it.
>There was a jammer.
>No problem.
>Lyra began to link her mana.
>Her horn glowed in the darkness.

>”That’s all the proof I needed.”

>Luna’s voice broke the silence.
>The words seemed to hammer inside Lyra’s skull.
>The lights flicked on, blinding Lyra briefly.
>Luna stood by the doorway.

>”Ley line synthesis. It’s surprisingly easy once you figure it out, but practically impossible to explain.”

>She grabbed Lyra’s sore chin with her tainted magic and forced her to look Luna in the eye.

>”Yes. I can do it too. I’m ancient. I’ve had plenty of time to figure it out. You know, there are only a hooffull of ponies alive who can pull that off.”

>Uh-oh.

>”We’ve got a unicorn mare who has basic knowledge of Mana Tide, has no subdermal implant, knows an agent of S.M.I.L.E., and can link ley lines. They’re skilled in a wide array of spells and can cast them cleanly. Not only have you studied magic extensively, you had a good teacher. You went to my sister’s school, didn’t you?”

>Lyra’s heart stopped for a moment.

>”We didn’t even need to catch you. We were going to figure it out.”

“I want to cut a deal.”

>”I’m sure you do. What do you have that I cannot simply take?”

>There was one thing.
>She didn’t want to be the one.
>But somepony had to.
>Somepony had to protect Bonny.
>Protect the other agents.
>Celestia wasn’t going to.
>She gambled with the lives of her own agents to negotiate with a demon.
>Gambled with the future of Equestria.
>With the future of ponykind as a whole!
>All in some vain hope of reforming pure evil.

“The bombs aren’t going to work.”

>Luna raised one brow.

“They’re not active. Those might as well be sandbags right now. You need my help.”

>”I’m sure I can figure it out.”

“You’re sure you can figure out how to use a superweapon that you weren’t involved in making. Even though it was designed to be useless to anypony but its creator. Somehow I doubt it.”

>”It can’t be that hard.”

 You’d need to rebuild the thing from the ground up. How long would that take? How many times would you get it wrong? Hell isn’t going to wait, you know.”

>Luna chewed on her lower lip for a little while.

>”What would I need?”

“There’s a keycard. I know where that card is.”

>She nodded.

>”What are your demands?”

“I want an honorable discharge for a specific agent of my choosing.”

>”We’re already shorthooved.”

“Surely these bombs are worth more than one pony.”

>Luna sat down on the ground and rested her chin on one hoof.

>”Very well.”

“I want you to release me and to stop looking for me.”

>”Absolutely not. You’re a threat to our operations.”

“What if I stopped poking my nose around?”

>”Hmm.”

>Neither a yes nor a no.

“I want you to find out who’s blackmailing me and let me know.”

>”You’re being blackmailed?”

>Yes.
>But you of all ponies should know that, Luna.

“And I want to know what the Black Tide is.”

>”Denied. I’ll just make Cadence talk.”

>She stood up and turned to the door.

“Wait! Fine. You don’t need to tell me that. Just release me and this one agent. Stop the blackmail. Leave us alone, no strings attached.”

>Luna turned to face her.

“I want a binding pact though.”

>Lyra wasn’t sure what that involved.
>She’d just heard Celestia mention them earlier.
>It’d be easy for Luna to bluff her way out.
>But hopefully she didn’t realise that.

>”Very well. You shall tell me the activation code. You shall stop investigating into our activities entirely. And you shan’t tell anypony of what you’ve learned about us. In exchange I shall release you and one agent of your choosing, and I shall forward any information I come across regarding your blackmailer. And I shall make sure you are not pursued. Do we have a contract?”

“Yes.”

>Luna raised her leg to her horn.
>She cut into her flesh drawing just a little bit of blood onto her horn.
>That’s not how that normally goes.
>She stamped her hoof on the ground as she cast a strange spell.

>”The pact is sealed.”

>What the hay was all that?

>”Where is the card?”

“In Cadence’s mane.”

>”And this will let me use the bombs?”

“I believe so, yes.”

>Luna smirked.

>”And am I correct in assuming you don’t know the code?”

>Lyra couldn’t keep the confusion off her face.

“It’s on the card. It’s a keycard!”

>”So you do not know the code?”

“No. It’s on the card.”

>”Our pact called for you to tell me the code, not to tell me where I could find it. You have failed to live up to your end of the bargain. I’ve no obligation to you, and you’ve nothing left to offer me. Better luck next time.”

>She left the room.

>”Hey, wait!”

>She heard the door’s bolt sliding into place.
>She was alone and trapped.
>Lyra reached out to her magic.
>Nothing.
>They had cut her off completely.
>Lyra felt dizzy.
>Nauseous.
>Her mouth was full of cotton.
>Which helped keep her sandpaper tongue from hurting anything.
>Time seemed distorted  in her sickened state.
>What was only minutes felt like at least an hour to the mana starved unicorn.
>But suddenly it all went away.
>Her magic was back.
>The door was ajar.
>It was trivial for her to take her bindings off with a quick spell.
>Somepony was helping her.
>Who?
>And why?
>Did that even matter right now?
>She went to the door-
>There was a pair of headphones at its base.
>From the pony who’d released her?

>”I can get you out of here but you have to do exactly what I say.”

>The voice was muffled and distorted.
>Could she trust this pony?
>Could she afford not to?

“Why are you helping me?”

>”When I say jump you don’t ask how high, you just do it.”

>Not an answer.
>Could they not hear her?
>Or were they just not going to say?

>”Wait. In three seconds start running left. GO.”

>With nothing to lose Lyra bolted to the left.
>She was tearing through what looked to be part of the Crystal Palace.
>Just how long had she been out?

>”Keep running. Prepare a strong light spell.”

>Lyra drew on her magic, relieved to find that it had returned.
>She drank in heavily until she was about ready to burst with power.
>Just when she thought she couldn’t hold it in any longer she heard hooves approaching.

>”Cast it.”

>A brilliant flash filled the building, reflecting off of the polished crystals.
>A pegasus yelped in pain, falling to the ground blinded.

>”Keep moving. Door on the left. The code is 9-4-7-3-3-6-9.”

>Lyra came upon a smaller steel door.
>There was a number pad next to it.
>She hesitated.

>”9-4-7-3-3-6-9.”

>Lyra quickly entered the code.

>”SHE’S OVER HERE!”

>The door slid open.
>Lyra didn’t take the time to check who had spotted her.
>She slipped in and slammed it shut behind her.
>She was in some kind of storage room.
>The wall was lined with filing cabinets, arranged alphabetically.
>In the corner there was a small computer terminal.

>”They put a tracking chip in you. Get to the terminal.”

>She quickly walked her way to it.
>If there was a tracking implant in her she was doomed.
>She had to deal with it immediately.

>”Admin username SmileSecAdminAL. Passcode 746f70206d696e74”

>The terminal accepted the input.
>She was met with a text prompt.

>”Type IDENTITY_UPDATE: BRUTE”

>The screen added a block of text.

Name: Unknown. Designated ‘Brute’.
Multiple felon. Espionage, breaking and entering, assault with a deadly weapon, assaulting a member of the guard, assaulting a princess, treason, theft, illegal spellcraft.

>Lyra was shocked by how long the list was.
>Yet she couldn’t deny that it was true.

Class B threat. Knowledge of mana tide and powerful magic user. Do not attempt to detain without proper clearance.
Suspected identity: Lyra Heartstrings.

>Lyra’s held her breath.
>She knew they were getting close.
>But THAT close?
>Even if she got out of here, she was doomed.

>”You’ll be fine. Type IDENTITY_BROADCAST=FALSE.”

Broadcast Disabled.

>”If it said the broadcast was stopped then type DELETE_IDENTITY. Then type yes twice.

Really delete this profile? This can’t be undone.

>Yes.

Implants can’t be updated remotely without their profile. Delete?

>Yes.
>A hundred times yes.

Profile deleted.

>”The wall opposite the door is compromised. You should be able to destroy it with an eruption. We know you can’t cast that spell properly.”

>That was…
>Perfect!
>If they thought she broke out with a decent eruption they’d look for somepony way more experienced with Mana Tide than her!
>She wasn’t out of the woods by any stretch.
>But it would throw them off her scent.
>She drank greedily of the mana, linking her leylines.
>A small ball of compact air began to form.
>It glowed with heat.
>Even so, it was far far too weak.
>This strike would never demolish solid crystal.
>But fractured crystal?

>”Good enough. Go.”

>A blast rang out.
>Dust and debris flew everywhere as the castle’s crystal wall shattered.
>Lyra’s ears were ringing.

>”Levitate some crystals so you’re armed. Don’t use them though, they’re just a deterrent. Run left. Go up the stairs.”

>Lyra tried to run through the halls.
>Her lungs were burning and her legs felt as though they were made of lead.
>That spell had taken too much out of her.
>Civilians were panicking, running from her screaming.
>Little wonder; she’d just blown up part of the palace.
>Guards were cowering under her gaze despite her lack of breath.
>They’d been told she was dangerous.
>And the cloud of jagged crystals following in her wake reinforced their fear.
>Lyra dragged herself upstairs with what little remained of her stamina.

>”Down the hall, through the door. You’re running out of time.”

>Lyra reached the end.
>She pushed the door open, not even registering where she was.
>Adrenaline and fatigue were clouding her mind.
>On the other side was a bedroom.
>A well furnished and cozy one with rich carpeting.
>A tasteful painting was hung upon the wall opposite the queen bed.
>And on the nightstand stood a picture.
>A family picture.
>This was Cadence’s room.

>”Nightstand. Top drawer.”

>This was wrong.
>An enormous invasion of privacy.
>She did it anyway.
>Inside there were four padded black cuffs that looked to fit on legs.
>A green indicator light was glowing softly.

>”Put them on. Tap them together once they’re on. You’re going to wind up at a teleportation nexus; stay on the platform or you die. Throw the headphones over the edge of the rails. Find the WhiteTail Woods pad and go home.”

“What about my equipment? They took my bags!”

>”If you keep doing this you will eventually get caught. But I doubt you’ll be reasonable. There’s a meeting taking place at Underworld 17. The S.L.I.D.E. system will get you back out of hell if you go there. I want to know what happens at this meeting. Go home and stay safe, or become my spy. I leave the decision to you.

“S.L.I.D.E.?”

>No answer.
>Was that what these things were?
>Lyra finished slipping the cuffs on.
>Somepony burst through the door.
>She didn’t look at who.
>She put her legs together, brushing the cuffs against each other.
>And the word changed around her.
>No longer was she in the Crystal Empire.
>As far as she could tell she wasn’t anywhere.
>And nowhere was icy cold.
>A deep chill dug in through her coat.
>Lyra stood up.
>The lighting in this place was bizarrely blue.
>It was as though all the other colours were absent.
>Below her hooves was an elevated platform.
>It looked to be made of bronze or some other such metal.
>She wasn’t entirely certain what kind of metal it was.
>It was enormous; walking to the edge would take several minutes.
>Lyra began wandering aimlessly.
>In mere seconds she had to pause to catch her breath.
>The air here was far too thin.
>As she slowly and breathlessly made her way down Lyra noted black panels scattered throughout seemingly at random.
>They all had labels.
>Canterlot 3.
>Vanhoover, coal harbor.
>Everfree Greenhouse was right next to Manehattan.
>The layout didn’t make any sense.
>Was there some strange internal logic she was missing?
>She had no idea how this all worked.
>For all she knew they had to be exactly where they were.
>Where was she?
>She looked up at the sky.
>It was night.
>But she didn’t recognize those stars.
>They didn’t twinkle properly and shone far too brightly.
>The brilliant night sky seemed even more alive here than in the Ponyville of old.
>There were just too many stars for this place to be real.
>She looked at the pads once more.
>They didn’t fit in.
>They were a different material, placed atop the surface.
>A quick inspection showed them to be rubber.
>Perhaps they were mere markers?
>Lyra was no stranger to teleportation.
>She’d never pulled it off, but she’d studied it.
>Some jumps were easier than others.
>It was easier to pass into the higher dimensions at specific points.
>Perhaps the barrier between the dimensions was unusually weak here.
>From here she could presumably go anywhere in Equestria.
>And likely some places beyond Equestria.
>Was this what Starlight was talking about when she mentioned a way of moving impossibly fast?
>Teleportation wasn’t exactly the same as moving.
>But Starlight was likely ignorant to the details.
>She finally reached the edge.
>Sturdy railings ringed the platform.
>They were inscribed with an unfamiliar, flowing script written in a different metal.
>The writing had been made with great care and reverence.
>Delicate and precise work with intricate symbols flowed into each other perfectly.
>Which made it all the more surprising when it stopped suddenly.
>Tiny bits of ruined script were intermittently placed, but for the most part a huge portion of it had been wiped clean.
>For something that had taken so much care to be destroyed...
>Something bad had happened here.
>But what?
>And how long ago?
>She peered over the edge.
>And infinite inky blackness lay below.
>It seemed to writhe in the nothingness.
>She took the headphones off and tossed them over the edge.
>They seemed to sink a little bit too slowly.
>What was that stuff?
>She was pretty sure she didn’t like it.
>Lyra walked around looking for a pad that lead somewhere familiar.
>Underworld 17.
>There was a meeting going on down there?
>Whom had saved her?
>Just by their behaviour it wasn’t her blackmailer.
>Lyra still suspected that Luna was her malefactor.
>But who was her benefactor?
>Somepony who had administrative codes for their systems.
>Somepony who could come and go as they pleased without raising suspicion.
>Somepony ignorant to the details of this meeting, or at the very least not trusting.
>Somepony who didn’t think Lyra deserved to be punished-

“Princess Celestia?”

>Little more than a hunch.
>Whatever the case, this meeting sounded important.
>Was she really going to do it?
>Was she voluntarily going to hell?
>Perhaps it was stupidity, or maybe it was just the adrenaline still flowing through her brain.
>But Lyra committed herself to do it.
>She took a deep bracing breath of the thin atmosphere.
>And stepped on the pad.
>The world changed.
>The first thing she noticed was the heat.
>Each and every breath seared her lungs and filled them with ash, yet she drank down the air greedily.
>The second thing she noticed was the enormous skull staring at her.
>A massive chunk of bone easily thrice her height lay on the ground.
>The three undersized eye holes seemed to glare at her menacingly, directing its single massive tusk straight at throat.
>At a glance she could tell that its former owner had a hard life.
>It was covered in cuts and scrapes.
>The lower jaw was broken in three and its crown caved in.
>She tried to put out of mind what kind of fearsome creature this was.
>And what could slay it.
>Lyra stepped back slightly to take in more of the fearsome landscape.
>Enormous fires roared in the distance providing the only light for the area.
>Everything was tinted a yellowish red in the sweltering heat.
>There lay a ravine in the distance with a towering axe protruding from the ground at the end.
>She could only hazard a guess as to its size.
>The landscape around the blade seemed to move and writhe as countless beasts did battle in the area.
>Had that ravine really been carved by a weapon?
>Everywhere she looked there lay bones and shattered blades; the entire terrain of Orcus was defined by innumerable battles.
>Lyra wouldn’t have been surprised if the very hill she stood on was the product of combat.
>Crashes of battle and cries of agony echoed from the distance, providing an eerie background the the tranquil scene below.
>Because at the base of the hill there stood a single pony
>Princess Luna had a lawn chair set up in the desolate hellscape.
>She seemed to be humming to herself as she worked a parasol into place.
>It was a stunningly odd sight in hell.
>Made even stranger by her being right next to one of the Nemesis tanks.
>An enormous machine of war sitting in a desolate lifeless area.
>No bullets flow.
>No blades were drawn.
>The machine was idle.
>What was she even doing?
>There was a small cooler next to her chair.
>Luna opened it up and pulled a can out.
>She sat down on the lawn chair and stretched out.
>Lyra needed a closer look.
>But without her visor…
>Lyra left the relative safety of the giant skull.
>She made her way to a heap of smaller, yellowed bones.
>Each and every one of them was covered in bite marks.
>They had all been snapped in half, the marrow sucked out.
>She shuddered subconsciously as she peered around the pile.
>She did her best not to imagine the feeding frenzy that had produced that.
>It was indeed Luna on the lawn chair down there.
>And she was indeed drinking a can of cider.
>But what Lyra had failed to notice before was now clear.
>Before Luna there was an enormous and complex ritual circle.
>The blood red markings blended into the the tinted terrain, but they were definitely there.
>It bore a stunning similarity to the one Celestia had used to summon Deimos and Phobos.
>But this one had a series of runes that Lyra didn’t recognize.
>A great deal of them seemed wrong at a glance.
>The bizarre taste of Luna’s magic had nothing on the disgustingly twisted symbols that lined the ring.
>Luna’s magic flared.
>A blinding red sun seemed to form at the tip of her horn, and Lyra was overwhelmed by the terrible oily taint.
>She collapsed to the ground and began heaving.
>That spell wasn’t merely wrong.
>Not just a little off.
>There was absolutely nothing equine about it.
>It was to her mana as a viscous, sour crude was to a fresh mountain stream.
>She felt dirty for having merely witnessed that spell.

>”Yeah, yeah. Get out here, Eurynomos. I’ve got all day.”

>Lyra knew that name!
>That was the creature that Bonny had faced when she first came here!
>It was tough enough to scare Bon-Bon away.
>And Luna was SUMMONING it?
>The spell flared again.
>And when the light died down and Lyra could properly see, she wished she couldn’t.
>In the middle of the circle lay not some enormous and fearsome beast.
>Rather she saw the single most disgusting thing she’d ever laid eyes upon.
>A short and squat tailless quadruped whose front legs bent backwards.
>The hideous thing’s entire body was dotted with open sores from which pus flowed freely.
>Lyra could see bone protruding around the gangrenous flesh.
>It pointed its angular head straight at Lyra and grinned, bearing torn gums as blood flowed freely from his own diseased teeth.

>”Eurynomos. The rotten prince. You’re looking well.”

>Was that a joke?
>To Lyra’s amazement the demon lord chuckled.

>”Erebus. The black queen. We meet yet again.”

>Luna took a sip of her drink.

>”I keep telling you, I’m not Erebus. Erebus is dead. I’m something far more dangerous.”

>”There’s no point in lying to me. Your mask does nothing. I can smell it on you.”

>Lyra was amazed he could smell anything over that stench.

>”Rumor has it your jaw was broken by a pony. One agent Zero?”

>He snarled in rage.

>”I see you’ve made a swift recovery. Don’t worry. I’ve already told all the other lords about your defeat, you don’t need to bother.”

>The beast threw its head back and howled.
>A painful chill ran down Lyra’s spine.
>A windstorm seemed to kick up as the sounds rang throughout.
>When he stopped and the dust and ash had settled once more, Lyra looked down.
>Luna was sipping on her drink again as though nothing had happened.

>”Did you call me merely to taunt me?”

>”Taunt? No, I figured we could have a friendly chat. Talk through our feelings.  You called my sister-”

>She levitated a small note out from under her chair.

>”A pathetic simpleton who would lead her puny nation into the abyss. You said her mercy was, and I quote, the most laughable weakness you’d ever seen. This made her pretty upset. And when my sister gets upset, I get angry. How does this make you feel?”

>”You would call the pony your sister?”

>”She’s my older sister, yes.”

>”I don’t know how you escaped from hell, but your time in the heavens has clearly driven you mad.”

>Luna finished her drink and casually discarded the can.

>”Where are my manners? Would you care for a drink? I assure you they’re perfectly safe. There IS a small amount of alcohol in them, but nowhere near enough to do the likes of us any harm.”

>”Is this a joke?”

>”I’m entirely serious. I will give you one. They taste quite good and won’t do you any harm. I’ll swear a binding oath if you wish.”

>”What is it?”

>”Sparkling apple cider. Here.”

>Luna grabbed a can with her magic and tossed it into the circle.
>Eurynomos sniffed it for a while.
>He eventually picked it up with one of his distorted front legs and pulled the top off with a wicked claw.
>The drink exploded, spraying him in the face.

>”Your time has come, Eurynomos. Sister offered you peace. I offer you a shallow grave.”

>He wiped the sticky liquid off of his face, snarling.

>”And how do you propose to do that? With your frail body? With your crude magic? With the puny army you lead?”

>”Yes, yes, and yes. You’re too weak to stand up to the likes of us ponies. We wield weapons you will never understand. Tell me. Have you ever seen a star?”

>”Star?”

>”That’s right, you’ve never been out of hell. This hideous and contemptable place is all you’ve ever known. It suits you.”

>Lyra could hardly believe it.
>Luna really WAS taunting Eurynomos himself!

>”The stars are my domain. They are enormous masses of plasma that burn so hot they transmute the elements. A star is a true sight to behold. Every night in Elysium we are graced with thousands of them. It truly is a shame that they don’t appear down here. Their beauty is unmatched.”

>”Transmutation? Beauty? What is this drivel you spew?”

>”The good news is we’ve discovered a way to simulate a star. We too can create a ball of heat that transmutes the elements. It would be foalish to call them stars of course. They’re far too small. They do not sustain themselves. There are a myriad of reasons why I would not say that these devices truly create a star. But it’s close. I intend to show you one on this day.”

>”I grow weary of this. Get to the point.”

>”Of course! Fire the ordinance!”

>She used her magic to smack the side of the tank with a rock a few times.
>One of the barrels on the back of the imposing machine roared, spewing fire forth.
>A massive ball of flame tore through the sky, shooting off into the distance.
>Three more shots followed.

>”It’ll take a couple minutes for them to get into position. While we wait, I do have a question. There’s something… different about you. You look even uglier than usual. Did you forget to shower? Wait, do you know what a shower is?”

>”Ahh yes. I had a good meal. Deimos and Phobos were… delicious.”

>Luna blanched.
>How she did that through a dark blue coat Lyra had no clue.

>”Oh yes. I consumed their magical essence. You gaze upon the most powerful demon in existence.”

>”H-how-”

>”When the ponies summoned and battled them they used a strange poison that my fellow lords never really recovered from. In their weakened state it was… trivial to feed on their magic. The original 60 lords of hell are down to three. And I hold more than half of the magic. Now that the stalemate is broken I shall hunt down Achlys. Once I’m done digesting of course. I’ve not really managed to harness all my newfound might. And then once all of hell is mine, I shall come for you. See? I can taunt as well.”

>Luna’s horn illuminated with an eerie red glow.
>The demon began to slowly fade from existence.
>Luna stood up and shoved more power into her spell.
>The monster before her grinned wickedly as she pushed more and more of her magic out.
>He wasn’t even resisting, but still the spell was failing.
>Black flames erupted erratically upon Luna’s body.
>Her cutiemark glowed crimson. 
>Overwhelming emotion struck Lyra.
>Fear.
>Sorrow.
>Despair.
>The sheer volume of tainted magic was completely overwhelming.
>The Nemesis tank opened fire.
>An avalanche of brass casings were ejected from the side of its massive barrel as it spit forth bullets by the thousands.
>They struck Eurynomos’ body firmly, falling to the ground.
>A brief flare of distinctly evil magic passed by as it hardened its body.
>The wrongness of Luna’s magic didn’t begin to compare to the raw horror and cruelty that this beast put forth.
>A syringe levitated out of Luna’s cooler.
>She jabbed it in her own neck.
>The magic grew even more radiant and even more vile.
>But the lord of Hell began to fade away.

>”Boo.”

>Eurynomos said the word so casually.
>But Luna still jumped back and shrieked.
>He finally faded out of sight, cackling madly.
>Luna collapsed on the ground.
>She was panting heavily, trembling.
>Her legs were twitching erratically as though she were having a seizure.
>A middle aged earth pony stallion popped out of the top of the tank and checked on Luna.

>”Whoa, are you okay? How many hooves am I holding up?”

>”Call my sister at once.”

>Four enormous fireballs appeared in the distance.
>The clouds of debris rose up to the tops of Orcus.
>Enormous stalactites rained down from above, crashing into the rubble below.

>”Why, what’s wrong princess?”


>The mushroom cloud began to settle on the ruins of Blightsburgh.
>Everything had been reduced to ash.

>”We’re FUCKED.”

>Lyra had seen more than enough.
>She went back to the strange nexus.
>And went to the Whitetail woods.
>It was beyond time to go home.
>The incredible horror of that creature’s magic was lodged firmly in the back of her mind.
>She didn’t sleep for days.

                                                *       *       *       *       *

Aryanne's documents. Decrypted.

Bloody Mist: Final entry.

It would appear as though princess Celestia has caught wind of our findings.
She is not pleased. 

Under Princess Luna’s direction we’ve spent years of our lives seeking to protect Equestria from all her foes. 
We came far too close to ruin when Tirek rampaged through our lands; a non-magical weapon was needed to prevent future disaster. 
The entire alicorn tetrarchy agreed. 
Why do they now shun what we’ve done? 
We’ve developed an entire new class of weapon capable of securing our blood and soil for millenia to come. 
It’s cheap, silent, invisible, effective, reliable. 
It’s everything we’d ever dreamed of and more.
Capable of slaying powerful foes such as Tirek or handling masses of porch donkeys alike.

With further research I’m certain we could turn Equestria into an unstoppable military force. 
Why would Princess Celestia turn her back on an opportunity to ensure the existence of our kind and a future for our foals? 
Does she feel some sort of pity for the subequine? 
I shall never understand that mare.

Hail Victory, one last time.


Jan 06 08

Dragon’s Roar: 17th entry

At last, my talents are no longer being wasted!

After years of being tasked with developing FUELS I’ve been returned to my rightful place.
Weapons.
Though I’ve received no confirmation, there appears to be some major threat on the horizon.
I’ve never seen Princess Luna so distraught.
Whatever it is, it’s BIG.

I’ve been asked to revive Dragon’s Roar.
When I asked why this project in particular rather than returning to nerve agents, Princess Luna deflected my question.
Perhaps their foe is resistant to our existing chemical weapons?
Whatever the case may be I’ve been told that most avenues of research in Dragon’s Roar are insufficient.
Of all the incendiary weapons we’d developed, she only seemed interested in one avenue of research.
The odd one out.
Halogenating chemicals.

I’ve chosen Fluorine for a number of reasons, though I fear that it may be too great a task.
Creating the substance will be easy; we’d figured that out years ago.
Storing it is the hard part.
I’ve a number of ideas though, and I’m eager to get to work.

It feels good to be back.

Hail Victory!


Dragon’s Roar: 23rd entry

Sept 09 08

It took far too long to get everything together, but I’m finally ready.
Setting up the safety precautions proved to be far more work than I’d expected.
But at long last I’m ready to begin testing.
It is my hope that certain metals can be used as a stable container by forming a thin layer of metallic fluoride.
But I cannot skip a single test.
Chlorine Tetrafluoride is far too dangerous to deploy without rigorous experimentation.
I fully expect to cause at least one fire tomorrow, so we’re going to test all fire suppression systems tonight.
I’ve also asked to have emergency response teams on standby when I begin work.
If all goes well I won’t need them, but I’ve been in one too many lab accidents to take risks with this kind of thing.

Hail Victory!


Dragon’s Roar: 24th entry

Sept 10 08

The substance is proving to be even more reactive and volatile than predicted.
Thus far it’s broken containment when shaken, heated, exposed to ultraviolet light, and most perplexingly it’s reacted with its container for what appears to be no reason at all.
Princess Luna has informed me that this is exactly the destructive power we’re looking for, and so I’ll proceed with my testing.
However I’m quite concerned about the feasibility of deploying this substance safely.
If, however, we DO manage to do so, there will be precious little that we cannot destroy.

Hail Victory!


Accident Report: Dragon’s Roar

Sept 11 08

The concrete.
WAS ON FIRE.
IT WAS ON FIRE!
Concrete, asbestos, glass, steel, even the DIRT under my lab was on FIRE!
The sprinklers only made things worse! 
When they went off they struck my fluoridant tanks with a heavy spray of water.
Apparently that shockwave was enough to set it off.
Over a thousand kilograms of chemicals up in smoke.
Extremely toxic smoke.

I managed to cause pretty serious structural damage to town hall when I blew up my lab, and I’ve been told that several ponies have been injured.
I can only hope they recover quickly.
But despite this catastrophe not all is lost.
I’ve attracted Princess Celestia’s attention once more.
And she is VERY pleased.
Not with the accident of course, rather she is thrilled to know that I can set ASBESTOS on FIRE!

I’m being given lab space and interns in facility PV3 to proceed with my work.
With my new lab space so far from town, I hope that I can avoid harming anypony else.
But my work is still dangerous.
I still don’t actually know what went wrong, but I’ll have to be far more careful in the future.
The new fire suppression system will smother the fire with nitrogen, hopefully preventing another disaster.
But we’ll have to take great care to not asphyxiate ourselves in the process.
The mere fact that it’s so dangerous is proof that this work is important.
If I can make this stuff combat ready, our agents will be unstoppable.

HAIL VICTORY!

                                                *       *       *       *       *

>Lyra was wandering the outskirts of Ponyville in a half-conscious state.
>The warm sun shone above on the gorgeous, cloud free day.
>Birdsong filled the air on this late summer afternoon that had graced her life.
>Here, beyond the regular hustle and bustle of city life, peace could be found.
>It was not the meagre peace of a lack of violence.
>It was a far deeper peace of both mind and soul.
>Out here there was no cause for concern.
>Life was as it was.
>And it was good.
>There was no reason for concern nor for resistance.
>One could lose themselves in the moment without care for the past or the future.
>Lyra’s trance-like state came not from weariness nor illness.
>It came from calmness.
>It came from peace.
>There was just nothing important to be aware of.
>Here and now she could almost fool herself into thinking everything was fine.
>Lyra was savouring every instant of her day as the time slipped away from her.
>Such was life in the Equestria she had loved.
>And such was life in this corner of the modern Equestria.
>She was glad to see that it had been preserved if only in parks and countrysides.
>But something wasn’t quite right.
>This feeling was entirely familiar; it was the true Equestria of old.
>She wasn’t quite certain what was wrong.
>The landscape around her had returned to life quickly once the snow had cleared.
>The huge dump of fresh snow had proven to be the perfect thing for their scorched home.
>As it melted in the summer sun the land was awash with pure, life giving water.
>Fresh growth had quickly claimed the dead landscape.
>Lyra sat on a grassy hill looking out onto the wilderness.
>Fresh, sweet clover was sprouting up amidst the soft, young grass.
>Undersized leaves and buds covered the trees in the distance and flowers were pushing out from the ground adding colour to the land.
>The summer sun shone, but the land was still in spring.
>Was that what was wrong?
>Lyra doubted it.
>It was weird, yes.
>But it was the wrong kind of strange.
>She felt like something was missing.
>Like she wasn’t totally alive.
>This late spring wasn’t an absence.
>It was a distortion.
>So what was missing?
>Lyra’s horn glowed dimly as she plucked some of the clover, casually tossing it in her mouth.
>The fresh, green taste danced delicately upon her tongue.
>She spent some time grazing upon the wild growth.
>But as her stomach filled the void within remained.
>She wasn’t hungry.
>Something else was missing.
>What was it?
>Bon-Bon was missing.
>But she’d been away before.
>And while that did tend to leave Lyra feeling empty inside, this wasn’t it either.
>Something more was missing.
>Something less important, but important nonetheless.
>Time passed in blissful, boring perfection.
>All around her ponies frolicked in the countryside.
>Fillies and colts ran excitedly playing their little games.
>Giggles and excited shouts would occasionally fill the perfect skies.
>A young pegasus flitted about above.
>They weren’t flying anywhere from the looks of it.
>They flew not for purpose.
>Instead they flew for the simple joy of flight.
>Lyra fell on her back to lay in the grass.
>She felt the warmth of the sun on her exposed belly.
>It was the perfect temperature.
>Hot enough that tension seemed to melt away.
>But not so hot as to cause discomfort.
>She stayed there for a while watching the few fluffy clouds that remain gently drift on by.
>But the void within grew.
>Lyra rolled onto her side.
>A young couple were resting next to each other beneath the shade of a nearby tree.
>They seemed to have brought some sandwiches, but neither ate.
>Nor did they speak.
>They were content to lean upon each other.
>Content just to exist with each other.
>To hear each other’s breath and feel each other’s heartbeat.
>Their day was complete with nothing more than each other’s company.
>Truly they were at peace.
>Everyone else was enjoying the perfect day.
>There was nothing wrong with it.
>Nothing missing.
>Yet she felt empty.
>Lyra was missing something, not Equestria.
>Somehow she was incomplete.
>She whiled away the rest of the day, feeling tension she didn’t know she had slowly drain from her body.
>The sight of hell haunted her still.
>The memory wasn’t fading in the least.
>But life up here in Equestria helped.
>Whenever she was snapped from her reverie she was surrounded by perfection and bliss.
>Smiling, carefree faces on every pony that walked on by.
>Fresh clean air.
>Calm, clear rivers.
>Blue skies and gorgeous nights.
>There were no otherworldly horrors.
>Except maybe for Discord.
>The most dangerous thing around here was Angel bunny.
>She wasn’t surrounded by the stench of death or cries of pain.
>She was surrounded by the smell of fresh cut grass and cries of joy.
>She wasn’t staring straight at the face of evil.
>There was nothing evil in sight.
>Everything was safe.
>Everything good.
>It was peaceful.
>It was simple.
>And it was all so incredibly pointless.
>Lyra began returning home as the sun set.
>Something was missing.
>Something within her.
>And she suspected she knew what that something was.
>Lyra lacked purpose.
>There was no point in her life.
>She lived and breathed and ate and drank…
>There was no doubt that she was alive and well.
>But to what end?
>For what reason?
>She would return to her comfortable home.
>She would have a delicious meal.
>And she would retire for a peaceful night.
>Then she would awaken and waste the next day.
>And the next.
>Lyra’s was a life without hardship.
>But it was also a life without meaning.
>She lived in a static world and lead her pointless life and wasted her meaningless days.

“Why?”

>Why was she no longer satisfied with this?
>She’d gone most of her life living this way.
>One day followed the next without consequence.
>Nothing really mattered.
>It was meant to be bliss.
>It HAD been bliss.
>But no longer.
>She had tasted something different.
>A life of hardship and fright.
>A life of pain and struggle.
>She’d hated it.
>But it meant something.
>It was a life in which she mattered.
>Lyra had a chance to quit right then and there.
>She’d ‘proven’ her innocence.
>If she gave S.M.I.L.E. nothing more to work with, if she’d just faded into the background, she’d be safe.
>They were far too busy to track her down without any leads.
>But that wasn’t really an option.
>She would not be another pointless pony.
>She would not be a waste of space.
>She was going to matter.
>Lyra changed her course.
>She needed to contact Starlight.
>And the safest way was through Floor Bored.
>But first?
>She knocked on Derpy’s door.
>A loud crash rang out.

>”Woops!”

>”You okay?”

>”Yup! Could you get the door though?”

>A few seconds later Dinky opened the door.

“What was it this time?”

>”The washing machine.”

>They rolled their eyes as one.
>The young filly lead her visitor to the laundry room and swung the door open.
>Derpy was INSIDE the washing machine, one wing sticking out of the closed glass door.
>The machine tossed and turned her as it filled with water.

“Whoa, okay hold on, I’m going to smash the glass!”

>Derpy shook her head vigorously.
>Or at least that’s what Lyra interpreted.
>It was hard to tell with the machine running.

>”This happens every week. She’ll be fine.”

>A loud whining noise came from the machine.
>It struggled and strained to spin the full grown mare inside.
>Then finally the machine gave up.
>The water drained.
>And the door unlocked.
>Derpy gracefully climbed out of the too small enclosure and placed her hooves on the ground steadily and swiftly.

>”Ooh. I’m really dizzy.”

>She walked out of the room in a perfectly straight line, eyes oriented straight ahead.
>She then headed to the washroom to grab a towel.
>She plucked one from the linen cupboard with one swift motion and began drying out her mane.

“How did- you know what? Never mind. I’ve got a favor to ask. Can you get ahold of Floor for me?”

>”Lyra, do you have any idea what time it is?”

>Lyra blushed profusely.
>This had been stupid.
>She should have waited until morning.

“Around ten at night.”

>”Perfect! She should just be getting up around now. Let’s go! Oh, wait a bit.”

>She left the room.

>”It’s okay mom. I can put myself to bed. I’m a big filly now!”

>”Are you sure? What if you don’t tuck yourself in right? You could get chilly!”

>”It’s summer though. I’ll be fine.”

>”But what if it snows again tonight?”

>They just kept talking back and forth.
>Lyra eventually got bored.
>She made her way to the kitchen to fetch a glass of water.
>Lyra levitated a glass out of the cupboard, but then she thought better of it.
>There was no need to dirty a glass.
>She turned the faucet and called on her magic.
>A quick barrier formed with Cancer would make her glass.
>The entirely familiar golden aura appeared, but there was something distinctly wrong with it.
>It was too dim.

“Huh?”

>It seemed unstable.
>There was something missing with it.
>Lyra took a closer look at her spellwork.
>The the ‘glass’ broke before it was even half full.

“Wha?”

>Lyra formed another spell.
>It was even weaker than last time.
>She quickly took stock of herself.
>Her heart rate was fine.
>Her pulse was normal.
>She wasn’t out of breath.
>Lyra wasn’t even remotely tired.
>The spell winked out of existence before it even got wet.

“Zuh?”

>She knew what was wrong.
>She just wasn’t certain she believed it.
>Lyra probed the ley lines.
>Cancer was dry.
>Saggitarius was dry.
>Leo, Aries, Gemini-
>Most of them were tapped.
>Lyra sat on her haunches and rubbed her chin pensively.
>This wasn’t ENTIRELY unheard of.
>Just incredibly rare.
>It had never happened in Lyra’s lifetime.
>But it was well documented.
>In the past when there was an overwhelming demand for mana they ley lines would go dry.
>The battles in the Crystal Empire, the heat spells before the first Hearths Warming, a few attempts at great works.
>Somepony was using all of the mana.
>It replenished quickly, but not instantly.
>This was a sign of massive, coordinated spellwork.
>Somewhere out there lots of ponies were doing something big.
>S.M.I.L.E. doubtlessly.
>Every ley line Lyra knew how to use as a weapon was spent.
>And a couple that she didn’t.
>Yet another battle?
>Derpy walked into the room seemingly satisfied.

>”Sorry about the wait. Let’s go.”

>The two of them headed out into the streets.
>It was a strangely chilly night considering the warm day they’d had.
>Maybe it actually would freeze again.

>”The winds are sad.”

“What?”

>Derpy didn’t elaborate.
>They made their way into the middle of the city.
>Lyra’s mouth was so very dry.
>Derpy was panting just walking along, her hoofsteps way heavier than usual.

“You low on magic too?”

>She rasped the words out.

>”Ye- yeah… *pant* a bit low.”

>It seemed to be coming back.
>Whoever was using it all, they’d stopped.
>Or at least slowed down.

>”What was that?”

“I don’t know much about pegasus magic. But all of the unicorn magic was in use.”

>”That can happen?”

“Yeah.”

>Lyra wasn’t actually certain WHY it had happened.
>The sheer amount of magic available was nigh on immeasurable.
>Even the idea of S.M.I.L.E. consuming that much mana was laughable.
>She reached into the mana as it trickled back.

“Ugh!”

>”What?”

“Nothing.”

>Something.
>It was tainted.
>Whoever had drained it had left something behind.
>The incoming mana washed away the sickly oil.
>The very same corruption that came with Luna’s magic.
>Had Luna used all the mana?

…

>Naa.

“Seriously. What was that about the wind being sad?”

>”You couldn’t smell it? It was so stuffy out here.”

>Stuffy outside.
>Pegasi are so weird.
>They eventually reached the run-down apartments.
>Derpy hummed merrily as she unlocked the front door.
>The interior was at least as dingey as last time.
>Perhaps even worse.
>One of the lightbulbs was burnt out.

“What’s that smell?”

>Whatever it was grew stronger as they ascended to the top floor.
>It wasn’t nearly as unpleasant as Eurynomos.
>But her nostrils still burned slightly.
>Derpy knocked gently on the door.

>”Floor? It’s me. May I come in?”

>The door creaked open slowly.

>”Progress.”

>She smiled as she pranced into the room.
>Shortly after she poked her muzzle back out.

>”What were we doing here again?”

“I need to get ahold of Starlight and tell her what I’ve found.”

>”Oh. Umm… Can you just tell me and I’ll relay it?”

“That sounds really slow and annoying. What if she has questions? You’d have to go back and forth all the time. Wouldn’t it be easier for me to just come in?”

>”No. No, it really wouldn’t.”

>Lyra raised a single brow.
>Derpy shrugged.

>”Maybe I can set something up. Hold on.”

>She went back inside for a while.
>And Lyra waited.
>And waited.
>And she waited yet more.
>Derpy eventually emerged again.

>”I think we have a deal, but you have to promise something.”

“What’s that?”

>”You’re not allowed to look at her.”

“Ooookaaayyy? Would you mind telling me what she looks like then? It’s going to be weird otherwise.”

>”I’d love to but I don’t know. I’m not allowed to look at her either.”

“Oh yeah. That’s not weird at all.”

>”Shush! She’s being very courteous helping us out and letting strangers into her home. Be nice!”

“That’s- but- oh. That was pretty mean, wasn’t it?”

>”You’re going to apologize to Floor Bored right away!”

>She bore a stern and serious look.
>There was no anger behind it, but no room for negotiation either.
>Derpy’s word was meant to be law.

“You’re not my mother. But… Floor? I’m sorry. I didn’t mean anything by it.”

>”That’s better.”

>Derpy opened the door fully.
>On the other end lay the most wretched mess Lyra had ever seen.
>Fruit flies were affixed to every wall as thick as molasses.
>Most of them seemed to be long dead.
>Trash and debris littered the floor so thick that Lyra couldn’t tell what colour the carpet was.
>Or even if there was any carpet at all.
>Derpy closed the door sinking everything into pitch black.
>Lyra flipped the lightswitch.
>Nothing happened.
>She called on her magic.

>”Oh right! No light spells.”

>Lyra rolled her eyes.
>Or at least she thought she had.
>It was hard to tell in the dark.
>Lyra whispered into Derpy’s ear.

“I thought you’d cleaned this place up.”

>”I did.”

>Derpy swept a heap of crushed plastic bottles aside with her wing and gestured to Lyra to sit down where they were.

“I’m good thanks.”

>”Alright.”

>A surprisingly large computer screen sat on a cluttered desk.
>Lyra couldn’t quite keep her eyes from wandering.
>They keyboard’s cable ran down beneath the desk, where there lay a heap of dirty blankets.
>The tip of a dark coloured tail poked out.

>”Thank you again, Floor. Can you contact Starlight?”

>The soft clacker of swift typing came out, muffled by the heap of smelly cloth.

>”Wait, what? What’s going on?”

>Starlight’s voice was coming through.

“Is it safe to talk?”

>Lyra again adopted her deep gravelly voice.
>She again squeaked constantly.

>”Pfft! Ooh! It’s so mysterious!”

>Starlight barely suppressed her laughter.

“This is no laughing matter. I have critically important information-”

>”Bwahaha! No, stop! It’s too funny!”

“I investigated the blacksite.”

>Lyra squeaked the word ‘black’ as she spoke.
>Starlight lost all control.
>She broke down laughing.
>A loud thud could be heard as she presumably collapsed to the ground.

“I don’t sound that silly, do I?”

>She looked to Derpy who was trying to hide her face as she giggled.
>A soft snickering noise came from the heap of filth.

“Well I’m not using my real voice. It’s risky… eh. Whatever. They already know who I am.”

>Everypony gasped.
>Even Floor Bored.

“I got caught. Somepony let me out, I’m almost sure it was Celestia. Somepony’s been blackmailing me, and I’m almost sure it’s Luna. They both had a chance to take away my disguise but they didn’t. If half the princesses already know there’s not much point in hiding it.”

>”Lyra…”

>Derpy looked really scared.
>Starlight was murmuring something.

“What is it?”

>”I don’t want you getting brought in, you’ll expose all of us.”

“I wouldn’t!”

>”I have seen them mind control ponies! Are you going to keep your secrets after that?”

“Maybe?”

>”No.”

“No…”

>”Why haven’t they brought you in yet?”

“I, err…”

>She couldn’t tell them.
>She was protected because of Bon-Bon.
>They couldn’t punish her without risking Agent Zero’s loyalty.
>But if she told them that they’d know who agent Zero was.
>Lyra couldn’t do that to Bonny.

>”Both Luna and Celestia are trying to use her so they’re protecting her.”

“Right! That! Thanks, D.”

>”Smooth. Why should I keep trusting you? You might be part of S.M.I.L.E. counterintelligence.”

“They wouldn’t be willing to leak what I’m about to tell you. I checked out where their railroad goes. It’s a weapons stockpile.”

>”Why would they need trains full of weapons?”

“Really REALLY BIG weapons!”

>Lyra recounted her entire trip.
>Everypony in the room stayed silent for the duration of her story.
>She covered the size and quantity of the weapons.
>She detailed the argument between the princesses.
>She explained her heroic escape.
>Possibly downplaying how much help she’d received.
>She described the meeting between Luna and Eurynomos.
>The nuclear fire that marked its end and the horror in Luna’s eyes despite her power.
>And she described the strange nexus and its mysterious glyphs.

>”Wow.”

>Starlight seemed awed by the story.

“Yeah.”

>”That might just be the single stupidest story I’ve ever heard.”

“Hay!”

>”Do you really expect me to believe any of that?”

“It’s all true!”

>”Either you’re lying or you’re insane.”

>This again.

“Was I insane when I told you Aryanne could burn asbestos?”

>”Wait, what’s this about burning asbestos?”

“Oh. I’ll tell you later, D.”

>”You didn’t tell me that. I’m the one that decoded the papers that told YOU that.”

“Oh right.”

>”What even IS asbestos?”

“A kind of mineral that’s sometimes used to build things because it’s fireproof. Well, how can I convince you it’s true?”

>”Can you break into the computers at their weapons stockpile?”

>”If it’s fireproof, how she set it on fire?”

“That’s why it’s weird, D. And no. I was going to but it slipped my mind when I had a chance. And when they took my stuff I lost the key you gave me so I won’t be able to unless I get another. Sorry.”

>The laundry pile seemed to shrug.

“Well, is a giant bomb really the most impossible thing they’ve done?”

>”No. What bothers me is your weird obsession with the underworld!”

“There’s only one way to solve this. I’ll be back in an hour.”

>Lyra left and went home.
>It wasn’t a long trip in the dark of night.
>She did catch the eye of a few of the guards standing watch in their towers.
>But they let her pass without trouble.
>When she arrived at her home she strapped on the cuffs.
>’Slide’, Celestia had called it.
>An acronym perhaps?
>She grabbed her camera.
>And stepped into the void.
>Lyra snapped a picture of everything in sight.
>The surreal sky.
>The rubber pads.
>The strange runes.
>The blackness below.
>She returned to Equestria and made her way back to the apartment.

“Wait. I’m locked out.”

>She jiggled the door hoping it would come open.
>The doorknob fell off.

“Seriously?”

>She gripped the bolt with her magic and pushed it aside.
>The ‘locked’ door swung open without trouble.
>She ascended to Floor’s room and knocked softly.
>Somepony on the other side yelped.
>Derpy came to let her in.

>”Not so loud, she’s very excitable.”

“But I barely touched it.”

>”She’s VERY excitable.”

>She came back in to find things largely unchanged.
>The the garbage had been swept into piles and some of the trash bagged, but it was barely a scratch in the filth.

>”Is Starlight still on the line?”

>”Yup. I’m still here. Twilight came home and left almost immediately. She seemed really upset about something.”

“Wait. How am I going to get the pictures to you?”

>A hoof popped out of the laundry.

“You… want me to give you the camera?”


>The hoof beckoned.
>Lyra was reluctant.
>She wasn’t certain that anything that went into that heap would ever be clean again.
>But she passed it over anyway.
>A new window opened on the screen indicating a file transfer.

“Say… did anything weird happen to the magic today?”

>”That wasn’t just me?”

“No. And D- a pegasus friend told me there was something wrong with the pegasus magic.”

>”But why would she want to set asbestos on fire anyway?”

“You’re still on that?”

>”Whoa! Where IS this place?”

>Starlight had apparently received the pictures.

“No idea.”

>”Hold on, I have a star chart somewhere around here. What’s that black stuff?”

“I don’t know. But I think it might be the black tide.”


>>32236879
>>32237238
>>32237720

>”Would they really build their portal nexus right above a sea of black tide?”

“Maybe they wanted easy access to it for experiments.”

>“When has something like that ever turned out have been a good idea?”

>That did sound like a crazy risk.
>They were gambling a lot, sure.
>But that was going to far.
>Either that wasn’t the tide, or they had some other reason for being there.


“Maybe I’m wrong. But Twilight made it sound like they were running tests on it already. So I think they have to have some available, right?”

>”Lyra, are these images fake?”

“No.”

>”You promise?”

“Yeah! I promise!”

>”What was it like on the other end?”

“Thin air, cold, I got a bit of a sunburn last time I was there even though I wasn’t there for long.”

>”Did you feel lighter or heavier?”

“Hey, yeah! A fair bit heavier. Why?”

>”Look. I don’t think you’re lying, but these stars don’t match any star chart.”

“What?”

>”What?”

>Derpy seemed just as confused.

>”Yeah. This picture is really weird. There are a couple possibilities. One, the most likely one, is you’re being tricked with some elaborate ruse.”

“And the other?”

>”I’m not sure just yet. It’s a long shot, but maybe… We need to learn more about this thing. What did you say it was called?”

“I didn’t. They threw the word ‘slide’ around.”

>”I know about that!”

>Derpy chimed in full of pep and cheer.

>”The Super Limerick Displaying Engine.”

“Umm...”

>”What?”

>Starlight seemed very confused.
>How was she not yet used to Derpy’s antics?
>She’d been in Ponyville for years!

“Superlinear displacement engine, maybe?”

>”No, I think it was limerick.”

“Maybe. Its name doesn’t really matter right now. What matters-”

>”It kinda does,”

>Starlight interrupted.

>”If it’s superlinear then it’s going through higher dimensions. 3D geometry doesn’t apply. Imagine a flat piece of paper with a floor plan drawn on it. There are little flat ponies going about their day in their flat house. One of them puts a sack of flat oats on their flat counter. You come along in the third dimension and pick it up. As far as they can tell it just vanishes.”

“Right, but-”

>”You could keep it in the third dimension and as far as they can tell it doesn’t exist any longer. Or you can place it elsewhere in their home and it will seemingly come back out of thin air. You could even move it over walls without trouble. It would seem like it was teleporting around the house. What’s more, you could move it to places that wouldn’t normally be accessible to them.”

“I know-”

>”That’s how teleportation works. If you can break through to higher dimensions you can move to other places in ways that don’t seem possible. There are limits though. You have to be able to map a path to the destination. The only reliable way to do that is to establish a magical connection with your target location and follow it once you leave the third dimension.”

>”Ooh! Did you know that, Lyra?”

>Yes.

“What does that have to do with anything?”

>”Well, in practice you can only teleport as far as your magic can reach and to places you’ve seen. But theoretically, if you had some other way of navigating you could go almost anywhere. Even places that you couldn’t normally reach. Even other planets.”

“Seriously?”

>”Think about it. Thinner atmosphere. Different stars. Higher gravity. Different solar radiation. Writing in an unknown language. Unfamiliar landscape.”

“This is AWESOME!”

>”It’s probably fake. But to what end? You weren’t supposed to see all that. Why try to trick somepony who’s not supposed to see the trick in the first place?”

>”Wow! I’m friends with a space pony!”

“It’s all just speculation, D. We don’t know any of this for sure.”

>Oh my gosh oh my gosh OH MY GOSH!
>I went to another planet!
>Lyra struggled to contain her excitement.
>She failed.
>A loud, joyous giggle rang out.

“This is the COOLEST!”

>The heap of laundry shifted.
>Lyra wasn’t sure, but she thought she saw an eye steal a glance.

>”It’s still probably wrong.”

>Said Starlight Buzzkill.

>”How would they chart a path to another planet going through dimensions we can’t understand or even perceive? How would they find the one safe place in the entire area? How would they know they even know there WAS a safe area?”

>Huh.
>Those were good points.
>Lyra was sticking with the planet thing though.
>Not because she thought it was more likely, but because she thought it was more cool.

>”We need more information. First off we need some proof of the whole demon thing. Lyra, could you go back to hell-”

“No. There’s NO WAY I’m going back there. Once was way too many.”

>”But-”

“Nope. Not happening.”

>”So you’re not going to give me any proof? Why should I believe the whole demon thing?”

“Do or don’t. I’m not going back there. You go.”

>”Me. Go to…”

“Yeah.”

>She paused for a couple seconds.

>”I’m good, thanks. How about we focus on the tide. That’s what ties all this mess together. What even is it? Where did it come from? When will it arrive?”

“Like I said I think it’s the goop on that other planet.”

>”It’s probably not another planet-”

“Quiet. You’re not going to take that away from me. Anyway, I don’t really want to mess with that goop. If that is the tide and they’re as scared of it as they seem to be it’s probably best if we don’t touch it. But if Twilight is running tests on it…”

>”Right! We can find out more by looking at Twilight’s work! But I don’t know where she goes in the day. We need to follow her. And without your equipment it’s going to be hard to find her. We need to piece together her schedule somehow.”

>”Princess Twilight visits the post office every day at 8 a.m. She always goes into the basement, but I’ve never seen her come back up.”

>”Oh.”

“That’s...very helpful, D. Looks like we’re going back there. I’ll check it out tomorrow morning.”

>”What? Just like that? No planning, no clear goal, no preparation, no scouting. Just… walk in?”

>Starlight’s words dripped with sarcasm.

“Uhh… yeah. That’s sorta how I’ve been doing things.”

>A heavy silence lingered in the air.
>It was eventually broken when the computer’s fan revved up as it took on yet another secret task.

“I’m pretty good at scaring ponies enough to make them leave me alone.”

>”You’ve been captured TWICE.”

>”If they can set asbestos on fire what else can they burn?”

“I don’t know. Look, you don’t know how it is. We don’t really know enough about what we’ll find to make a proper plan.”

>”You can at least prepare yourself. Find a weapon, try to swipe some more gear, plan a distraction. Anything!”

>”If asbestos isn’t fireproof anymore are they still going to use it to make houses?”

“Look, I can only handle one of you at a time right now. I choose… Right. They stopped using it a long time ago because they were worried that it was bad for your lungs. Either that was an old lab or they thought it was less dangerous than whatever chemicals they were working with. I don’t know enough about chemistry to say how they set it on fire or what else they can do with that chemical, and they’ve relocated to do more experiments because they were worried about starting another fire. Any other questions?”

>”Nope! That explains everything. Thanks, Lyra!”

“Right, back to you. Do you have any suggestions? It’s easy to criticise.”

>”And apparently it’s also important. There’s a reason why you keep getting caught. You’re not careful enough.”

“What? I’ve been PLENTY careful!”

>”You don’t know what careful is. When I got my revenge on Twilight do you think I just walked into her house and cast a spell?”

“Yes?”

>”I stalked her for months, planned out every little detail, and created a new spell after studying a magical artifact! That was half a year in the making! And how many times did she catch me?”

>Huh.
>Maybe, just maybe…
>Lyra wasn’t quite convinced, but it was POSSIBLE.
>That perhaps she was being reckless.

>”They can call in backup from pretty much anywhere at pretty much any time. If an alarm is raised an agent is going to come. Do you think you can handle that?”

>She thought back to her trip up north.
>And how she was humiliated by a wounded pegasus.

“So don’t be seen.”

>”And they have cameras almost everywhere. Sooner or later you won’t notice one of them.”

“So, umm, don’t be visible? I know they have suits that do that. There might be a spell that does that too, but I don’t know of one. And I don’t know how I’d get one of their invisibility suits.”

>”Or shut down all their cameras?”

“I’m listening.”

>”There’s an armory disguised as a warehouse in Canterlot. I’ve got the plans right here. Guard station is by the front door. I’ve got it all figured out except for one step. We need to cut the power without seeming suspicious.”

“They’ll have backup generators.”

>”We’re not trying to shut down power to the warehouse, we’re trying to shut down communications. They won’t have internet access on emergency power.”

>”Oh! Oh! I can do that! I’m REALLY good at doing that!”

>Lyra wasn’t sure what Derpy had in mind.
>But she believed in the bubbly pegasus.

“Right. So after we cut the power, what?”

 >”If they’re worried they’ll start another fire even with asbestos, why are they still running experiments?”

>Lyra couldn’t help but groan.

Three days later.

>Lyra stood watch in the Canterlot outskirts.
>The industrial sector surrounding the base of the mountain was continuing to grow each and every day.
>And now the wall securing the city was fully developed.
>Too many factories spewed noxious gases into the atmosphere, fouling the air for everypony in the city.
>Many ponies were asking questions.
>Was this smoke dangerous?
>What were the long term effects of breathing it in?
>Why were the factories so close to their homes?
>But in asking these questions they overlooked far more fundamental questions.
>Why build them in the first place?
>A few years ago there was a new invention or gadget hitting the market every other week.
>These days hardly any new innovations reached the public.
>Nothing new was coming out, but still more factories were built.
>What were they for?
>Bombs?
>Lyra hoped there was something more than just that.
>She was so very sick of destruction.
>Lyra was an artist.
>A creator.
>She relished in making beauty.
>This mess was not beautiful.
>Bombs were not beautiful.
>A long, exaggerated sigh escaped her lips.
>And she couldn’t help but pity herself.
>Nopony should have to see what she’d seen.
>Lyra shook her head vigorously.
>She had to focus on the world around her.
>The warehouse stood before her in all its ugly glory.
>A structure of heavy, continuous pour concrete occupied a small corner of the district.
>Lyra doubted she’d ever have noticed without having it pointed out.

“It does kinda stick out like a sore thumb.”

>”What’s a thumb?”

>Lyra jumped slightly.
>She’d thought she was alone.
>Somepony had snuck up behind her.
>A middle aged Earth pony in a guard’s outfit.

“Oh, h-hey. I overheard a minotaur say that once. I think they’re a kind of plant?”

>”Huh. Say, why are you down here?”

“Actually, funny story. I’m, uh, part of the demolition crew for the site three blocks down!”

>”That’s not a very funny story.”

“Yeah, I don’t tell it that well.”

>”You don’t look like part of the demo crew.”

“I’m the foremare?”

>”Oh really? Come with me, ma’am.”

>Uh oh.
>The guard turned around and began to walk towards the work site.
>There was a way out of this though.
>She didn’t want to do it though.
>She’d have to abandon the mission.

>”You’re in BIG trouble.”

>This was her chance.
>His back was turned.
>Lyra’s horn began to glow.

>”The debris is too heavy for the workers to clear out! You’re going to have to come up with something!”

>She dropped the spell.

“Oh, that!”

>They rounded the corner and were met with a heap of rubble.
>Angry looking yaks surrounded the mountain of wood.

“What seems to be the problem?”

>”Yaks destroyed pony building, but ponies not strong enough to take away what Yaks destroy!”

“Uhh. Hold on a second.”

>Pinkie had talked about about the yaks at length.
>They seemed pretty simple.
>Maybe it would be that easy?

“What if Yaks destroy even smaller? Smaller stuff would be easier for little pony to carry?”

>The yaks all gasped and stared at her mouths agape.
>Lyra started to slowly back away.

>”Green pony is GENIUS!”

>They all descended upon the heap of rubble like sharks upon a…
>Lyra turned to the guard.

“What do sharks descend upon?”

>”You’re weird, lady.”

>He walked away from the growing cloud of dust and wooden shrapnel as the din grew louder.
>Lyra distanced herself from the bizarre sight and returned to her target.

“Where was I? Right. Sore thumb.”

>It did stick out from the other buildings.
>Where everything else was wood or concrete blocks, this was one solid piece of concrete.
>It was doubtlessly a much sturdier structure.
>It was also surrounded by a chain link fence with barbed wire running around the top.
>None of the other warehouses needed that.
>Why would they?
>And sure enough there was a small hut by the front entrance with a large window facing outward.
>There was a single guard inside.
>This place was pretty suspicious.
>Right in plain sight surrounded by other unremarkable and uninteresting buildings.
>But if Starlight was right then this was no mere warehouse.
>If it really was an armory then this seemed perhaps a bit light for security.
>It was nearly time.
>Soon, Derpy would cause a power outage.
>Lyra had to create a distraction elsewhere to draw the guards away.
>Once that had happened Derpy would sneak into the guard station with her chameleon suit and get to the computer system.
>Floor Bored had created a program that would freeze the cameras so they always showed the same picture.
>Derpy just had to plug it in then they’d have the run of the place.
>If everything went well then nopony would ever know they’d been there.
>At least, not until they did inventory and noticed things were missing.
>Lyra would never say it aloud, but it WAS preferable to bumbling about blindly.
>Maybe slower.
>But also less exciting.
>And sometimes that was a good thing.
>Starlight was right on this one.
>Lyra looked up.
>Derpy was flying through the sky gracelessly.
>She started to plummet.
>Lyra quickly summoned her magic to help her friend.
>Too slow.
>Derpy slammed face first into a power lines.
>A flash of light filled the sky and a loud crack rang out.

“D, no!”

>She stood up from the ‘accident’ with a blackened face and mane.
>A guard ran out of a nearby building to check on the incident.
>Lyra snuck a little closer to listen in.

>”Oh my goodness, Derpy! Are you okay?”

>”Yeah, I think I’m okay, Shield.”

>”You’re sure? That looked really bad.”

>”Oh yeah. I’ve run into power lines PLENTY of times! I even ran into one just the other week!”

>”I know. I was there for it.”

>”Oh! And the week before!”

>”Yup.”

>”Actually, I think I run into one almost every time I come to Canterlot! Oh. Um… sorry?”

>”Oh, it’s fine! We don’t mind!”

>Lyra started to back away.
>It seemed as though Derpy’s reputation reached nigh on everywhere.
>And she was loved in every city.


“Good for her!”

>With power knocked out in that block the emergency generator was going to kick in.
>But they wouldn’t be connected to the internet anymore.
>They wouldn’t notice the tampering with their security until power was restored.
>Lyra didn’t claim to understand it.
>But she was willing to trust Starlight at this point.
>It was time for the distraction.
>Originally she’d planned on using her magic for some petty vandalism.
>But now she had a better idea.
>She returned to the demolition site.

“Good work Yaks! Yaks should be proud!”

>They stopped their stomping and started chattering amongst themselves.

>”Yeah! Yaks best!”

“Yaks have earned a break. Why not go downtown for a while? Enjoy pony city.”

>”Sounds good!”

>They started to walk off.
>It would only be a matter of time before they began smashing things.
>What to do in the meantime?
>That could take hours-

>”YAKS DESTROY!”

>Oh.
>Never mind then.
>Lyra ran back to the warehouse.
>The guard was slumped over his desk.
>Derpy stood by the computer system in her invisibility suit.
>Lyra ran up to her, ready for action.

“How’d you knock him out? Another dart?”

>”Nope. He was just asleep.”

>Wow.
>Lyra quickly tapped her horn to his head to ensure he’d stay out.
>Derpy pulled his keyring away.

>“You’re not wearing a disguise?”

“Sure I am!”

>Lyra pulled the guard’s armor off and slipped into it.
>It was way too loose.
>She also picked up the guard’s pistol.
>A quick check revealed it wasn’t loaded.

>”C’mon, we don’t have long.”

>They ran to the door.
>Derpy fumbled with the keys for an uncomfortably long time before unlocking it.
>It swung open and they entered a small, dark room.
>Lyra prepared a light spell as the rear door closed.
>Opposite the front door was yet another door.
>There was a sign posted on it.

”Warning, off limits, no entry, blah blah. Right! Open it.”

>”I can’t. It’s an eye scanner. I guess we’d better leave.”

“Oh.”

>Sure enough there was no keyhole.
>Just another head slot like at the post office.

“No matter.”

>Lyra pulled a water bottle out of her foil lined saddlebags.

“Where’s the bolt… there.”

>Her magic surged forth shooting a jet of pressurized water straight through the door.
>It held out.
>Lyra struck again and again.
>The door swung open after the third strike.

>”Wow! Are you SURE you’re not part of S.M.I.L.E.?”

“Last time I checked I wasn’t. Let’s move.”

>They stepped in.
>The entire facility was dimly lit under the emergency lighting.
>There were rows upon rows of oversized tricycles with closed cabins for their rider.
>The tires were oversized, raising the vehicle well above the ground.
>She’d need a stool to climb into it!
>All terrain vehicles perhaps?
>A broad barrel protruded from the front.
>Too big to be a gun.
>Perhaps a rocket launcher like on the Nemesis tanks?

>”I don’t see any pedals.”

“I think it moves itself. There are rockets on the back… a rocket powered vehicle? That’s insane! How fast do these things go?”

>”What are they for?”

>Lyra had no clue.
>They were clearly preparing for something specific.
>But Lyra wasn’t going to try and say what.

>”Say, what’s that over there?”

>Derpy turned too swiftly and struck one vehicle with her rump.
>It fell over, just barely brushing the next one in line.
>They both stopped and stared intently as it swayed back and forth.
>But it didn’t quite fall.

>”Whew.”

>Derpy wiped her brow throwing off a little bit of nervous sweat.
>It struck the swaying vehicle, knocking it over.
>Each and every bike fell over like a line of dominos.

>”Woops?”

“That was pretty loud. I hope nopony heard it.”

>”Do you think they’re going to be mad?”

“Do I think they’re going to be mad that we downed a powerline, incited a Yak riot, subverted their security system, broke into their TOP SECRET armory, SMASHED down the door, knocked everything over, and then stole a bunch of stuff we’re not even supposed to know exists?”

>”Yeah.”

“Hopefully not. What were you looking at?”

>”That.”

>She gestured past the racks of guns, past the stacks of ammunition cases, past the exotic blades and drums of chemicals.
>A giant metal pony glared at them.
>Lyra didn’t let out a cowardly shriek as it stared at her with its dead eyes.
>Nope.

>”Calm down. I don’t think there’s anypony it it.”

“What?”

>Lyra asked while cowering behind the fallen bikes.

>”It’s just a suit of armor.”

“Oh. Yeah. I knew that.”

>They trotted up to it to get a closer look.
>Lyra’s heart raced as she approached it.
>Every little bit of the suit was covered in metal save for the eye holes that seemed to be made of plastic or glass.
>By the muzzle there was a big, clumsy bulb with a few small holes punched into it.
>Presumably some kind of filter through which they breathed.

>”It’s covered in guns.”

>It was true.
>There was a gun attached to every leg.
>One coming out of the barrel.
>A larger cannon on the back.
>But that wasn’t the most interesting part.
>Rocket thrusters were attached to each leg on the rear.

“These are Ares suits. Earth pony powered armor. They look different from the ones I saw in Canterlot though.”

>”What did they change?”

“Everything’s covered. I think they made this line to be safe in the gas.”

>Which meant they were expecting to be fighting in the gas.
>And that meant they were expecting something to be ABLE to fight in the gas.

“There’s probably a unicorn model somewhere. And maybe a pegasus model. We’re not here for powered armor though. Unless… no, no. It would be hard to hide.”

>”How about those?”

>Nearby there stood a small shelf with a few heavy looking blocks.
>Lyra had no idea what they were.
>Some kind of plastic brick with a power inlet and a power button.
>Lyra levitated one experimentally.
>It had some heft but it wasn’t as heavy as she’d expected.
>Maybe 5 kilograms?

“No idea. Maybe we’ll take one just to try and figure it out? We’ll put it back if we run out of room.”

>She put one in her bag.
>They spent some time wandering the facility aimlessly, looking at the sights.
>There was a stunning array of weapons available.
>Dozens of gadgets they didn’t recognize.
>And a couple they did.

“Ooh, another laser microphone. Don’t mind if I do!”

>”Hey, are these those cuffs you use to teleport?”

“Sure are! Throw ‘em in the bag. Maybe grab an extra pair just in case.”

>”No sign of that visor you had.”

“It worked on the implants they put in us. It wouldn’t work on their enemies so they probably don’t use many. Any invisibility suits?”

>”Maybe? I don’t see them anywhere.”

>Was that a joke?
>Lyra came upon a small metallic box that was held shut by several latches.
>On the surface there was a warning written in an angry red.

“Caution: sharp.”

>She stepped back and popped it open with her magic.
>Inside there was a small stack of metal discs with tiny lights just beyond the edge.

“I’ve seen these before.”

>These were the blades that S.M.I.L.E. unicorns were using.
>Lyra quickly closed it and shoved it in her bag.
>Her stomach churned at the thought of using them.
>But she refused to ever be helpless again.

>”What’cha find?”

“Oh. Just more weapons.”

>”Oh. Blech.”

“Yeah. Gross, right? Ehehehe.”

>She shoved it a little deeper into her bag.

>”Got it!”

“What, what have you got?”

>”Their stimulants! Woohoo!”

>She she stood before what looked like a well stocked pharmacy.
>Needles, pills, powders, everything you cared to name.

“Why do you want those? Are you planning on fighting someone?”

>”No. But they’re really useful for running away. Yeah, they make you super sick, but they make you super fast too.”

>That DID sound useful.

>”How much do you weigh?”

“Wow. Rude!”

>”It’s important. You don’t want to overdose on these.”

“Oh. Umm…”

>She blushed slightly as she muttered.

>“Sorry, what was that?”

”About 100 kilos.”

>“Oh. Wow. Okay, 100 kilo unicorn, and 15 kilo pegasus.”

“FIFTEEN?”

>Friggin’ pegasi.
>Don’t make a LICK of sense.
>Derpy pulled a bunch of pill bottles off the shelves.

“Take a bunch of different doses. We don’t want them to know how much we weigh.”

>”Good idea.”

“Okay. We have another laser mic, a few Limerick engines, stimulants, and an unknown piece of hardware.”

>And bladed discs.

“We’re running a little low on room. What else should we pick up?”

>”Ooh! Ooh! Grappling hook!”

>She held a small grapple launched aloft, big grin on her face.

“Can’t you fly?”

>”Well, yeah, but they’re COOL!”

“I dunno. I can use my magic to throw ropes. You can fly. I don’t think it makes much sense.”

>”Oh, fine. How about these?”

>She picked up a pair of goggles.

>”Article 097. Heat vision!”

”Oh, cool! You mean I could shoot heat from my eyes?”

>“No, I think it just lets you see heat.”

“Oh. That could be cool too I suppose. Toss ‘em in. I’ll look for all the tracking chips when we leave. With what Starlight told me it shouldn’t be too hard to get rid of them.”

>”Great. There’s lots of neat stuff here but I don’t know what most of it does.”

“Yeah. It’s a shame. Maybe we can come back some day if we find out?”

>”Alright! Let’s get out of here. You can make it home on your own?”

“I’ll use the Limerick engine. You’re okay?”

>”I’m invisible.”

“Great. Hopefully this stuff will let us track Twilight. Let’s get gone before we’re spotted. See you soon, D.”

>She tapped her legs together.
>And the world changed.


                                                *       *       *       *       *

>Today was the day.
>Not the day that they’d get their answers.
>Today was the day Lyra would tail Twilight.
>An all day operation to get Starlight the information she needed to form a proper plan.
>Because, as it turned out, this was all so much safer if you knew what you were doing in advance.
>But it required a LOT more hoofwork.
>Luckily for Lyra she didn’t have to do it alone.
>She had a team.
>And what a team!
>A team of some of the best and brightest ponies alive.
>Like Derpy!

“Oh.”

>Well, she had some of the nicest ponies alive.
>Like Starlight, the multiple felon who always used mind control to solve her problems.

“Huh.”

>At least they were all charismatic.
>Like good ol’ Floor Bored.

“...”

>Well, she had a team anyway.
>And they may not be perfect they were good at what they did.
>Starlight seemed to have an endless supply of useful information.
>Facility locations, floor plans, delivery schedules, you name it.
>And she was both patient and clever enough to find opportunities where there should be none.
>Floor Bored was a genius in her own right, even if she was a bit odd.
>Lyra could neither make heads nor tails of computer systems, yet Floor was able to make them do what she wanted when she wanted.
>S.M.I.L.E. had many weaknesses.
>Their over reliance on computers was one of them.
>If Lyra could get her girl into an important server, they’d have access to more secrets than they could handle.
>If only she knew what the enigmatic pony looked like.
>Regardless of her peculiarities Lyra was thrilled that Derpy had found her.
>Speaking of.
>Derpy wasn’t a genius.
>But she might as well have super powers.
>Everypony loves her.
>Everypony lets their guard down near her.
>Her bubbly and joyous demeanour could bring a smile to even the most dour of ponies.
>Who would ever accuse her of wrongdoing?
>She was the perfect scout.
>She could fly in and out of nigh on anywhere without anypony batting a wall eye.
>Invisible, maneuverable, and equipped with a disarming smile.
>And then there was the heart of the operation.
>The suave superspy who could get out of any situation.
>Brilliant, beautiful, and overwhelmingly powerful.
>They were just like the Agent Zero novels!
>Real proper spies!

“Oh, who am I kidding?”

>They were nowhere near as cool as those novels.
>They didn’t have a Q branch!
>Without more gadgets they were nothing.
>Somehow they needed to get an equipment specialist.
>THEN they’d be awesome.
>Who did she know that knew a lot about top secret future gadgets that officially didn’t even exist?

“Hmm.”

>She’d figure that out later.
>For now it was time to track Twilight.

“Maybe Twilight would be good with gadgets?”

>No.
>No, Twilight probably wouldn’t be willing to help her spy on Twilight.
>That was just silly.
>Lyra made her way to Derpy’s home.
>She was meant to go there for instructions before starting her day.
>Floor’s home would be simpler in theory.
>But as Lyra was beginning to learn, that pony was somewhat…
>Odd.
>It was going to be easier to just use Derpy’s computer.
>They were going to route the signal through Floor’s computer.
>Whatever that meant.
>Lyra gently tapped on the front door.

>”Come iiiin- ack!”

>She pushed the front door open and made her way to the living room.
>Derpy was under the computer desk, upside down.
>Lyra chose not to ask.

>“Hi Lyra! You’re a bit early.”

“Should I come back later?”

>”Oh, no. Now is fine!”

>She stayed down there with a small but genuine smile.
>Not moving.
>Seemingly unaware that she was upside down under a desk with her body weight on her neck.

“Need a hoof?”

>”No thanks, I’ve got four.”

“Oh. So you do. Say, do you think-”

>”Is this thing on?”

>Starlight’s voice was coming through.”

“We hear you.”

>”Great! Good work on the last outing. The didn’t find out anything was wrong for hours! But did you really have to knock over all their vehicles?”

“That was an accident!”

>”You really shouldn’t do that kind of thing. You’re just going to make them angry. And what if they’d been loaded with bombs and you’d set one off?”

“Why would they leave primed explosives in the vehicles when they weren't using them? That’s asking for trouble.”

>”Why would they have a chemical weapons lab under city hall? That’s asking for trouble.”

>Huh.

>”I get that you’re mad at them and all, but don’t do stuff like that anymore. It doesn’t help anyone.”

“I told you, it was an-”

>”Did you manage to get anything good?”

>Why am I even talking?

>”Oh! Some good stuff, yes! Heat vision!”

>”You can burn stuff with your eyes?”

“No, that would be silly. It just lets you see heat.”

>”Oh. That’s still pretty cool I guess. Anything else?”

“Stimulants.”

>”Whoa. Okay, be really careful with those.”

“We know.”

>”No, you don’t. Twilight started using them to work longer hours. Before long she couldn’t get out of bed with them. And not long after that she couldn’t get out of bed even WITH them. They had to monitor her 24 hours while she worked them out of her system to make sure she didn’t stop breathing.”

>”Oh no, is she okay?”

>”I think so. I haven’t seen her take them in a long time. Withdrawal was really hard on her so I think she’s a bit scared of them now.”

>And they were feeding that stuff to Bonny.

>”Lyra? Why are you grinding your teeth?”

“Don’t worry about it, D. We also got a weird plastic brick.”

>”A plastic brick.”

“Yeah.”

>”And you took it because… why?”

“Because we didn’t know what it did.”

>”I see.”

>Lyra wasn’t sure if that tone was frustration or disappointment.

>”Does it have a catalogue number on it?”

“Yeah, actually. I found one when I was removing the tracking chip. Hold on. It was 60… something. Four digits. Plastic brick with a power inlet and a button.”

>”Hold on. Sixty…”

>She could be heard flipping through a stack of papers for a while.

“I wrote down all the numbers. Just a second.”

>”You wrote- you made a paper trail? What were you thinking?”

>Lyra fished a notebook out of her bags and flipped it open.

“I was thinking that you might ask questions about what we found.”

>”You’re leaving evidence that it was YOU! Destroy that paper right away!”

>Oh.
>Oh yeah.
>She hadn’t thought of that.

”Article 6213. High number. It must have been a more recent discovery.”

>Lyra popped the paper in her mouth and began to chew.
>After far too long she was able to swallow.

“Blech. That was gross.”

>”Why didn’t you just burn it? You could have used my stove.”

“That’s- yeah, that would have been smarter. Why didn’t I?”

>”Are you feeling okay Lyra?”

>Not really.
>That talk about the drugs had her worried.
>That was the kind of stuff they gave Bonnie to HELP her.
>Despite her distraction she was a bit embarrassed.
>That was pretty dumb.
>Thankfully Starlight broke the silence.

>”Article 6213. Classification: safe. Clearance: secret. So it’s not one of their most closely guarded secrets then. Article 6213 is a REDACTED based on our discoveries from REDACTED.”

“Well that’s helpful.”

>”Shush. Though the mechanism through which it functions is ill understood, it has proven extremely effective at dampening or eliminating inertia? What? Is that possible?”

>”What does that mean?”

“Inertia is what makes something hard to speed up or slow down. If that thing works like they say it does you could go to full speed with one step and stop or turn on a dime.”

>”What’s a dime?”

>”Article 6213 has proven to be reliable and effective. However the power requirements are proving somewhat restrictive. Most planned applications are impractical as other methods of controlling acceleration are more power efficient. Approved for production for agent deployment. Pending approval for public release. Unit cost: approx. 2.5 million bits.”

“Two and a half MILLION?”

>”Wow. It actually gets rid of inertia?”

“No, I’m sorry, are you sure it said MILLION?”

>”Lyra, are you really hung up on that?”

>What the hay was Starlight talking about?
>Of course she was!

>”This thing is- it’s impossible! And you’re worried about the money?”

“They do something impossible every five minutes. Who even cares anymore? This thing cost more bits than I’ll see in my lifetime!”

>”Military budget. Seems pretty normal to me.”

“This is normal. Millions of bits on a plastic brick. Normal.”

>”Yes? I mean, the plastic is probably just a casing. There’s going to be a machine inside.”

“Fine, whatever! It’s TINY! How can it possibly be worth that much?”

>”I’m pretty sure it breaks the laws of physics. That seems like a pretty low price to pay for that.”

“Low price- It’s insane! How can they possibly afford that?”

>”Well, stamps are ten bits now. Maybe that’s how they’re making their money?”

“No, D, I don’t- TEN BITS FOR A STAMP?”

>”Can we get back on topic please?”

“No, I’m not done with this!”

>Silence.

“We’re not moving on until I’ve said my piece.”

>No reply.

“It’s just a lot of money is all.”

>”Right. Well, I don’t know what we’d do with that, and we can’t use it without a power supply anyway.”

“Hoof work is really important in a fight. And it would help for running away.”

>”The idea is to not be seen, not to kick your way out. But you’re right. I’m not sure where we’d get the power though. We’ll keep our eyes open but it’s useless for now. Next order of business, then. Our eye in the sky has tailed Twilight.”

“Who’s our eye in the sky?”

>”Oh, geeze, I don’t know. Of the three of us who could it possibly be?”

“Oh. I didn’t realise D had gone out. I’d sorta assumed you had a fourth pony.”

>”Oh, oh! Is it me?”

“I think it might be, Derpy. I think it might be.”

>”Derpy’s perfect for recon. Trust me on this. So, what did you find when you followed Twilight?”

>”She picked up a package from beneath the post office and boarded the train heading to the badlands. She jumped off around Ghastly Gorge and flew down. There she walked into a cave.”

“Ghastly Gorge? It’s a bit of a hike, but not too bad. We might be able to take a shortcut with the slide thingy too. I think I know where we’re going next.”

>”Ghastly Gorge? Hold on a bit. I’ve got a document about that somewhere.”

“If it’s in a cave it shouldn’t be that hard to sneak around. We just need to keep the lights off. If we go there and cut the power-”

>”You’ll be killed horribly. We are cancelling this outing.”

“Oh come on! We know where she is! She’s studying the Tide! The answers are RIGHT THERE!”

>”Yes. She probably IS studying the tide. And I think you might have been right about them having some of it, because this is insane. Most of this paper has been blacked out, but I’ll tell you what I can. No samples of REDACTED are to leave the facility under any circumstances. All active samples are to be destroyed immediately after testing. All inert samples are to be stored following containment procedure C-36. Addendum: following incident C-36-2 no further attempts are to be made to store deactivated REDACTED until further notice. Addendum: following incident C-36-3 all deactivated REDACTED is to be handled as though it were still active unless otherwise approved by a research lead. REDACTED is to be stored exclusively in a cylindrical container made of pure nickel except during testing. It shall be no less than 20 cm of nickel at its thinnest point. No more than 1 gram of REDACTED is to be stored in any one container. Samples and their containers are to be destroyed no more than 1 hour after being filled. Containers are never to be handled through any means other than telekinesis.”

“Geeze. Are they trying to write a whole novel about how to hold it?”

>”Addendum: following incident 3-36-7 samples are to be destroyed no more than 30 minutes after being filled. Looks like they’re having a lot of trouble containing it. Destruction protocol. All samples slated for disposal are to be disabled by exposure to an electric current of no less than 100 kV no less than 50 W for a period of 10 seconds. The deactivated REDACTED is then to be heated to a temperature of no less than 5000 Kelvin for no less than 1 minute. Addendum: 5 minutes.”

“I’m starting to get a bit scared of this stuff.”

>”Here’s where it gets bad. In the event of a containment breach, twenty seconds are to be given to vacate the contaminated area, after which it will be sealed. The affected area will then be flooded with REDACTED whether or not any personnel remain. If containment is not established within 1 minute, all staff are to vacate the premises. 5 minutes after the initial breach the entire facility will be flooded with REDACTED.”

“Wait, did they just say they’re willing to kill their staff if that stuff gets out of control?”

>”Shush. If containment has not been re-established within 10 minutes of containment failure, a 10 megaton onsite nuclear warhead is to be detonated. Any surviving staff are advised to use REDACTED to evacuate if available. Addendum: yes, the bomb is real. Stop asking. The rest is blacked out.”

“Okay, yeah. I’m starting to agree with you. Going there is maybe a tad dangerous.”

>”What’s a megaton?”


“I think it means a million tons, but that can’t be right. There’s no way the bombs weigh that much.”

>”However big it is I don’t think the two of you should go there. I can’t read the incident log but there are dozens of entries. I can only imagine the security they’ve got around that. And I can only imagine what would happen if you screwed something up.”

“Yeah. I don’t really feel like going there.”

>”Me either. I don’t want to do anything dangerous.”

>”I think I’ve got another lead you can work though. I should be able to get a list of the ponies that work there. Give me a couple days to dig through this stuff.”

>”We could ask them what they’re doing! Oh wait.”

“Close though. They wouldn’t want to stay on site around there. I’m betting that they have an office or lab or something somewhere less dangerous. There’s bound to be useful information lying around.”

>”Right. We don’t know what the tide is but we do know what researchers are. If they’re any good they’ve been keeping meticulous notes. We have to find those notes and- gotta go.”

>The line went dead.

“So. Their lab blows up if something goes wrong.”

>”Do you think the workplace safety commision knows?”

“I can never tell if you’re joking or not.”

>”Not funny?”

“Not really.”

>”Oh come on, it was funny! Imagine some dusty old pony coming by their top secret lab and saying that the fire exits aren’t labelled clearly enough and they need a second wet floor sign!”

>Lyra couldn’t help but chuckle a bit.

“Okay, that’s a bit funny.”

>She put on a fake stern face and started pointing around and yelling.

>”The corridor is too narrow! You’re not allowed to have more than 10 ponies in that room at once! Why aren’t you wearing protective goggles? Your coffee is too hot!”

“Hehe. Yeah, that’s good.”

>”And then somepony else comes by and says that the bomb would be a noise violation and they get a fine!”

“Ha! Okay, I take it back. That’s funny.”

>”Good. You’re way too tense, Lyra. You really need to lighten up.”

“Yeah. I know. It’s hard though.”

>”Worried about Bon-Bon?”

“Yep.”

>”Don’t worry. She’ll come back home.”

“You don’t know that.”

>”Sure I do! Nothing’s going to keep her away from you. Do you remember that one time you went to see your parents and the train was delayed? She walked halfway to Canterlot to check on you!”

“True.”

>”And what about that time the two of you got separated at the mall and she bowled over half the shoppers when she found you?”

“Yeah. That might have been a bit much.”

>”And then there was that time that you were called in for jury duty so she called in a bomb threat!”

“That was definitely too far. Sweet, but too far.”

>Especially since she actually made the bomb.

>”The point is that nothing is going to keep Bon-Bon away from you. She’ll come back.”

“I hope you’re right.”

>”Have I ever been wrong?”

>Lyra really didn’t want to answer that question.

>”Go home and relax. Watch a silly movie or something. Just take your mind off of this mess. Stress isn’t good for you, you know.”

“Alright. I think I will. Thanks, D. I’ll talk to you later.”

>Lyra made her way home in the cool of the evening.
>The sun had sunk below the horizon but darkness had not yet fallen.
>While the normally busy streets had mostly cleared out they were still a bit too crowded for Lyra’s tastes.
>She wasn’t quite able to relax amidst the masses that surrounded her.
>Perhaps in another time it would grow familiar.
>She rushed her way home rather than enjoying the summer evening.
>And then she shut herself up indoors.
>Away from the crowds.
>Lyra could feel the tension bleed away as she closed the doors.
>Then, almost immediately, her peace was ruined.
>There was a gentle knock on the front door.
>Lyra jumped slightly.
>She’d sorta gotten used to ponies letting themselves into her home.
>Who would be so sensible as to try the door?
>She was actually a little scared to answer it.
>The front door, it was just so…
>Right.
>She didn’t trust it.
>Lyra stowed her bags away in her closet and stepped to the door.
>Was it the guard come to arrest her?
>Was it a horrible monster who was trying to ambush her?
>Worse still, was it a door to door salespony?
>There could be any number of terrible things on the other side of that door.
>Perhaps it would be best to ignore it.

*knock knock*

>Again it sounded.
>A gentle and calm knock.
>One that didn’t hint at urgency or strong emotion.
>If a knock upon the door could be serene this was it.
>Very suspicious.
>Lyra went to the kitchen and grabbed one of the cereal boxes.
>She fished the prize out of the bottom.
>A low powered gauss pistol.
>Loaded.
>Lyra once again idly wondered just how many weapons were hidden about the house.
>She carefully cracked the front door open.
>And was bathed in a radiant light.
>The most perfect, glorious wondrous creature alive!
>Lyra dropped her gun in an instant.

“Princess Celestia!”

>She took a deep bow, brushing her muzzle against the floor.

>”Hello, Lyra. May I come in?”

“Of course! Please, make yourself at home!”

>The princess stepped over the threshold and closed the door quietly behind herself.
>She looked down at the weapon on the floor with some distaste.

>“Where did you get that dreadful thing?”

“Cereal box.”

>”That’s a mighty strange prize. Is there some place where we may speak in comfort?”

“Right this way!”

>Somehow the thought that she might be in trouble never entered Lyra’s mind.
>Celestia’s presence was just too soothing.
>Lyra head the way into her living room.
>She gestured to the princess to take her pick of seats around the coffee table.
>Princess Celestia approached.

“Oh wait, no!”

>”Hm?”

>A bolt shot out from the wall, striking the princess right in the neck.
>She collapsed on the ground, convulsing as the electric current surged through her body.
>Lyra ran up to the stunned alicorn and pulled the tazer’s lead away.

“Oh my goodness, I’m so sorry princess! I’d forgotten about that, I didn’t mean- ohh, I’m a bad pony!”

>”Oww?”

“Are you hurt? Should I get a doctor? Should I bring you to the hospital? What should I do?”

>”That was terrible! Those guns are terrible! We need to get rid of them!”

>What.

>”I can’t believe my sister talked me into giving those things to our guards.”

“Does-”

>Does the princess think that was a gunshot?

“You didn’t get shot. You just got shocked. You will be okay, right?”

>”Yes, I shall be alright. I’m one of the strongest ponies ever born.”

>Bon-Bon shocked herself on purpose and was fine.
>Luna dodged it no problem.
>Derpy took a way worse shock and was fine.
>Lyra wasn’t confident she’d be fine.
>It looked extremely unpleasant.
>But for Celestia to claim she was tough?
>That was just silly.
>Was that false bravado?
>Maybe she was trying to put on a show to instill confidence.
>Or maybe she was delusional.
>Lyra didn’t know.
>Celestia climbed onto a chair and sank in.

“You know you’d probably fit on that better if you sat with your back up rather than resting your front legs on the chair.”

>”That sounds uncomfortable. Now, Lyra, I’m afraid this is not a social call.”

>Oh.
>Oh dear.

>”I’ll be blunt. There was a raid on a military warehouse in Vanhoover. Were you responsible?”

>Vanhoover?

“No. I don’t know anything about that.”

>”Are you certain? Some very dangerous objects went missing. We need to know where they went.”

>Was there another pony doing what she was doing?
>Or was she dancing around the subject?

>”How about the raid in Canterlot?”

>Eep.

“Why do you think it was me?”

>”I have my reasons. If I were to search this house would I find any secret equipment?”

“Yes. Lots of it. I live with an agent.”

>”Oh yes, that’s right. How could I forget? She always speaks so fondly of you.”

>A soft smile formed on her face for just a moment before she remembered the task at hand.

>”Would I find any of the items stolen from Canterlot or Vanhoover?”

“No. You would not.”

>That was the absolute truth.
>She’d left them in Everfree.

>”Very well. I… we… I’ve a confession to make. It was I who helped you escape from the Crystal Empire.”

>Lyra gasped.
>Poorly.

>”You’d already figured that out?”

“Yeah. Thank you, by the way. I don’t mean to sound ungrateful, but why did you do it?”

>”I believe your intentions are pure. You don’t mean anypony any harm. But could you please explain to me how you found yourself leading this kind of life?”

>Maybe this was the time to reveal it.
>The blackmail.
>Princess Celestia might make it stop.
>And it would give her a good excuse for what she’d done.

“At first it was an accident. I saw some suspicious ponies breaking into the post office late one night. They were talking about being paid to not ask questions. I thought they were thieves! So I followed them to try and stop them, but I wound up learning a bit too much.”

>”That shouldn’t have happened. For that I apologize. It was partially my doing.”

“Why, what did you do?”

>”I’d rather not say. So, why did you proceed?”

”Somepony knew it was me. They started to blackmail me.”

>Celestia’s jaw dropped.
>A few emotions ran by her face.
>Shock.
>Horror.
>Fury.
>Pity.
>Sorrow.
>This news had hit her hard.

“They’re influential. And they want my advice.”

>”I assure you I’ll find out who it is and stop them. But you needn’t listen to their demands any longer. I already know. They’ve no more leverage.”

“Thank you princess.”

>”And I must apologise for asking you to follow my sister. It was horribly selfish of me.”

”You didn’t force me to.”

>”Even so. None should have to see what you saw. I shouldn’t have encouraged it. But since you did, I must ask you. Did Luna offer peace?”

>Did she?

“I don’t think so. I think she mostly threatened it.”

>”I see… What did Luna think of the beast? Was she confident or fearful?”

“Has she not talked to you about that yet?”

>”She has.”

>Then why did she need Lyra’s help?
>Did Celestia not trust her sister?

“She seemed pretty scared by the end.”

>”Hmm. Thank you Lyra. But before I go, I must insist once more that you stop your investigation. It’s for your own good.”

“I understand. I’ll quit right away.”

>No she wouldn’t.

>”I see. And what you said up north about feeling helpless and needing to do something. Has that stopped being true?”

>Woops.

>”You have to stop. Forget what you’ve seen. Live your life in peace. Sweetie drops isn’t a secret agent. There is no mess in Hell. We’ve no secret labs. There is no long term danger. Everything is fine.”

“But what about Bon-Bon?”

>”She’ll be perfectly okay. I promise you that no harm will befall her. She will return to you happy and well.”

“You don’t know that.”

>”I swear it, Lyra. Bon-Bon is perfectly safe.” 

“Liar.”

>Celestia flinched at the word.
>Lyra hadn’t shouted.
>She hadn’t lunged at the princess.
>She’d merely stated a fact.
>And the princess seemed wounded by her word.

>”I promise you Bon-Bon is safe.”

>Lyra’s blood pressure was rising.

>”She’s going to be okay-”

“Shut your damn mouth! YOU, princess Celestia, are lying. That’s all you ever do! You lie to the public, you lie to me- is anything you say true? Is your entire LIFE a lie? Bon-Bon is NOT safe! She’s literally in HELL!”

>”No she’s not.”

>Lyra shoved the table aside with her magic and jabbed a hoof at Celestia.

“Stop. Lying. Bon-Bon isn’t safe. You don’t know she’ll be okay.”

>Celestia let out a long suffering sigh.
>Her serene appearence didn’t change a bit.
>And somehow, the rage within Lyra bled away.
>She just couldn’t stay angry.

>”You’re right. I’d hoped you didn’t know that much, but you’re right. She has been deployed to hell. But she is strong, and Luna cunning. Her odds are far better than you think.”

“Why?”

>”I can’t tell you why we sent them there. But I can tell you that Bon-Bon knows. And she agrees it’s necessary.”

“No. Why do you keep lying? You’re supposed to be princess Celestia! The best, most virtuous pony to ever live! How could all this lying be right?”

>”Because knowledge gained is innocence lost.”

>What?

>”Look at yourself, Lyra. You too are living a lie. Before you stumbled upon our secrets you were a normal happy pony. Well, perhaps not normal. But what troubled you? Now you stay up at night gripped in terror about Bon-Bon and about the future. Not long ago your greatest crime was tossing a paper cup on the street. Now you’ve violently attacked multiple ponies, stolen military equipment, broken into other’s homes! You were once so innocent and pure. Now what are you?”

“I’m not that bad.”

>”You threatened to kill me back up north.”

>Huh?

>”You said that if anything happened to Bon-Bon you were coming for me!”

“That- but- I was upset, okay!”

>”You were upset because you knew what you weren’t meant to know. I fear what you may become if you continue down this path, Lyra.”

“And so your solution is to lie to literally everypony?”

>”Yes. Call me a hypocrite if you must, but that is my solution. And I fear it may be the best one.”

“Seriously? What about all your talk of honesty?”

>”I’m well aware. This is not a decision I’ve made lightly. But it must be. My vision for Equestria is one free of conflict and hate. A world of absolute trust and love. I want perfect harmony. You’re threatening that.”

“By seeking truth.”

>”Because the truth is that harmony is incompatible with reality. If we are to maintain the relative paradise that is Equestria we must suppress reality.”

>What?

“That’s impossible.”

>”And yet I’ve done it. Today, Equestria is a shadow of its former self. But for centuries harmony was law. It took lifetimes of planning and toil to pull it off but I did it. But Equestria was fragile and vulnerable. We needed something to keep the real world out, to prevent the cruelty of the universe from from getting in and corrupting us, much as an egg’s shell keeps the inside safe from infection. But our shells needed to be violent and cruel at times. Our own protection was corrupting Equestria.”

“So you needed to keep it separate from Equestria. You needed an army that nopony knew about. One that wouldn’t disrupt things when they were on or off duty.”

>”Not an army. We could never keep something that big hidden. A small group of elites who could handle nigh on any threat. Ponies who were bound by magics to secrecy so that they wouldn’t corrupt the masses. Ponies who could battle hideous fiends one day and plant daisies the next. They kept the corruption out without conveying it to Equestria. But now, when S.M.I.L.E. is facing their greatest test, when that thin egg shell is cracked, YOU have been exposed. You are corrupted. And you are a threat to harmony. But it’s not too late for you, not yet. Stop the investigation. Distance yourself from violence. And whatever you do, don’t spread the outside world to the rest of my ponies.”

“Where’s the music coming from?”

>”You’d better learn this lesson.”
>”Please try to understand.”
>”Don’t look too close at anybody else.”
>”In this or any other land.”
>”I hope to bring you friendship.”
>”To bring peace to all your kind.”
>”But that is still a long ways off.”
>”I think that you would find.”
>”Please avert your eyes.”
>”Don’t see the world as it now stands.”
>”Them among the mighty.”
>”Preserving our fair land.”
>”Please just close your eyes.”
>”Return to your sweet fantasy land.”
>”Don’t grow up or get wise.”
>”I beg you, little one, don’t open your eyes.”
>”We all start out the same.”
>”With wondrous naive trust.”
>”Shielded from the many ways.”
>”That life’s not fair or just.”
>”We must keep on believing.”
>”The sweetest lie you’ve faced.”
>”That friendship, love, and magic.”
>”Will forever protect this place.”

>”Do not take the first step.”
>”Don’t head out on your own.”
>”I pray that you’ll believe me.”
>”It’s best to stay safe inside your home.”
>”Please ignore your eyes.”
>”And try to understand.”
>”That you are safe and loved.”
>”Your life is fun and grand.”
>”Just cover your eyes.”
>”Don’t look at the rising flames.”
>”Ignore the screams and cries.”
>”I beg you, young one, don’t open your eyes.”
>”Don’t open your eyes.”

>Lyra’s mouth hung agape.
>She could hardly believe it.
>Princess Celestia of all ponies…
>Was FLAT!

“Just a little bit higher pitch next time. It would help if you fixed your posture a little.”

>”Please, Lyra. Equestria is pure, and I intend to keep it that way. If I think you’re going to threaten that purity, I WILL have you silenced.”

“Did- did you just threaten to KILL me?”

>”What? Oh, heavens no! I was talking about arresting you! See? Your mind went straight to violence. This is exactly what I’m talking about! Now I wonder if maybe you’re too far gone.”

“I’ll be good.”

>”See that you are. I will be watching.”

>A warm radiant light surrounded Celestia.
>As Lyra was bathed in the light all tension, fear, and anxiety left her body.
>When the light faded princess Celestia was gone.
>As Lyra sat alone in her home one singular thought was echoing in her head.

“What’s with Celestia’s magic?”

>She had to investigate further.


                                                *       *       *       *       *

>Today was the day.
>For realsies this time.
>Today they were going to look into the tide.
>They had a location to investigate.
>An office tower right here in Ponyville was apparently home to several S.M.I.L.E. researchers.
>The group’s last meeting was very productive.
>Starlight had promised to prepare an airtight alibi for Lyra on the night of the heist.
>She wasn’t at a blacksite.
>She wasn’t even in Ponyville!
>She was down in New Yoke watching a musical!
>And she had tickets and everything to prove it.
>Why, she was probably even caught on some of the security cameras there!
>Lyra was VERY thankful that Twilight had taught Starlight how to use illusion magic.
>She didn’t like how reliant she was on the other unicorn though.
>But for now she had no choice.
>This was a golden opportunity.
>She quickly reviewed the objectives they’d laid out.
>One. Don’t get caught.
>Fair enough.
>Two. Get Floor Bored into their computer network.
>If they had persistent access to their network they could keep up to date on any new developments without having to return.
>Three. Photograph any relevant documents or objects.
>Starlight said they shouldn’t take anything, and Lyra had to agree.
>Not only was it proof of a break-in, it might be a setback for vital research.
>They were expecting minimal resistance.
>There were likely no vital assets on the premises, and Starlight said that a great deal of staff there were civilian contractors.
>It seemed odd to Lyra that they’d be so vulnerable.
>But if this project was as big as she thought, it might be unavoidable.
>There was no way to properly protect everything at once.
>Somewhere would be exposed somewhen.
>And with her awesome team Lyra was ready to exploit those weaknesses.
>Lyra began preparing herself.
>She filled her foil lined bags with her assorted contraband.
>She didn’t bring her armored vest or any of Bon-Bon’s weapons.
>They were all linked to agent zero.
>And she was linked to Lyra.
>If she lost them while out she was caught.
>There was no reason to take that risk right now.
>She doubled and triple checked everything before heading into the cool of night.
>Lyra wasn’t fond of the methodical approach.
>It took too long and it was kinda boring.
>But this was the price of working with Starlight.
>And loathe as she was to admit it, Lyra DID need Starlight’s help.
>Starlight had so much information to work with it was practically cheating.

“Wait.”

>How could one cheat at spying?
>Were there rules she was supposed to be following?
>That didn’t sound right.
>The evening sky was perfectly clear.
>Were it not for the lights of the city and all the buildings, there would doubtlessly be a brilliant sunset to the west and the beginnings of a night sky forming to the east.
>Such a sight was a luxury that Lyra had always taken for granted.
>But now that it was gone the sky just felt wrong.
>It was a silly thing to obsess over.
>Of all the changes that had occured in her life and all the panic that was hidden beneath society’s surface, complaining about the sky was absurd.
>But she couldn’t help but miss it.
>Every single evening for thousands of years one could see the sun sink below the horizon from this place.
>But now it was nought but concrete and glass.
>Just one more reminder of how much their world had changed.
>She made her way to the address.
>A seemingly unimportant office tower, some 20 stories in height.
>Outwardly there was nothing special about this place.
>But Lyra had been assured that this building in particular was important.
>She did her best to look casual as she walked past.
>Trying not to steal too many glances at her target.
>It wasn’t time yet.
>Lyra kept her distance as the minutes ticked down.
>The plan was relatively simple.
>Derpy was meant to stay hidden indoors when they closed.
>And once everypony had cleared out she was going to get Floor into the security system.
>From there Lyra should be relatively free to wander the place as she pleased.
>Derpy would perch herself on the rooftop and watch for any incoming security just in case.
>The lights began to flick off in the steel and glass tower.
>Lyra waited.
>And waited some more.
>She was beginning to grow impatient.
>But one window stubbornly remained lit.
>Surely they’d just forgotten to turn it off.
>She approached with what she hoped was caution.
>The front door was open.
>It must be time.
>She slipped in and locked the door behind her.
>The reception area looked strange at night.
>The large semicircular desk that stood before the elevators was absolutely pristine.
>Every surface was polished to a shine and not a single speck of dust could be found.
>Lyra  felt completely out of place here.
>It was far too sterile.
>She felt like she was dirtying it just by being here.
>She made her way to the elevators.
>There were no buttons.

“What?”

>Lyra looked around for a while, but sure enough there was not a button to be found.
>She broadened her search until a terminal caught her eye.
>The receptionist seemed to be in charge of the elevators.
>How fancy was this place?
>Lyra plugged Floor into the terminal.
>It was probably useless.
>But it was a good habit to develop.
>It looked like she was being forced to take the stairs.
>The stairwell was thankfully unlocked.
>Lyra groaned in frustration as she began to ascend the building.
>The stairwell was a sharp contrast to the reception area.
>First off the lights were still on.
>But even in the day it wouldn’t fit in.
>The linoleum was dirty and stained.
>There was no decoration to be found, and emergency equipment was awkwardly attached to the walls at every landing.
>Lyra ran her hoof along the top of the fire extinguisher’s housing.
>Sure enough, it was dusty.
>There was an assumption that nopony would see this place; they felt safe neglecting it.
>It might even be possible to hide here during the day.
>Not that she had any intention of doing so.
>But it was strange that security would be so lax here.
>Surely there was something more.
>Were there automated guns somewhere?
>Was the door going to blow up when she opened it?
>Would the stairs retract and turn into a slide to dump her into a pit full of lava sharks?
>She reached the 18th floor.
>The one where the lights had stubbornly remained lit.
>This, they suspected, was where their researches did the bulk of their paperwork.
>Requesting funding, permission to run experiments, writing up their experiment reports…
>Lyra had spent enough time with Moondancer to know that these academic types spent more time on paperwork than the actual experiments.
>Science wasn’t just the revolutionary breakthroughs that changed the world.
>It was also the slow methodical grind.
>The painstaking documentation and collection of data.
>One could not hope to do proper research without leaving a colossal paper trail.
>This was their in.
>Lyra took a deep bracing breath to steady her nerves.
>She stood away from the door and pushed it with her magic.
>It was locked.
>She examined it as well as she could from a distance.
>It appeared to be a low quality hollow wooden door, likely made of particle board.
>It wouldn’t be hard for one to put their hoof through it with a sturdy kick.
>Which would make noise.
>And it would almost certainly trigger any traps that may be present.
>She could knock the bolt out with her magic.
>That too would make quite a bit of noise.
>What would the fictional agent Zero do?
>Probably blow it up.
>Not the best idea.
>What would the REAL agent Zero do?
>Lyra thought back on what she’d seen and heard.
>Bon-Bon had picked the lock when they bought their computer.
>She’d done it in the blink of an eye.
>That was no good.
>Lyra had no idea how to pick a lock.
>Maybe this was the wrong question.
>What would LYRA do?

“Uuuuhhhhh…”

>Still the wrong question.
>Did any of her gadgets help with this?
>Heat vision was useless.
>Inertia neutralizing was no good even if she could use it.
>The S.L.I.D.E. wasn’t useful.
>Her super fancy blades-

“Oh.”

>Lyra produced her stolen weapon and removed a single disc from its case.
>She slid it in the crack between the door and the frame and started looking for the bolt.
>The door swung open slowly.
>She hadn’t even felt the bolt when it was cut in half.
>She looked at the cut in amazement.
>But this was a problem.
>There were precious few things in existence that could make a cut that clean.
>They’d certainly know exactly what had done it.
>From the inside, Lyra quickly dismantled the lock and put it in her bags.
>They would know WHERE she entered, but not how.
>Smiling with satisfaction she turned to enter-
>There was an enormous steel panel in front of her.
>A slim seam could be seen in the middle- this WAS a door of sorts.
>But not the kind she could knock down.
>Maybe her blades would be able to do it given time.
>But there would be no chance of hiding her tracks if she did that.
>Surely there had to be another possible point of entry.
>What would Starlight do?
>She had no idea.
>What would Derpy do?
>Smash the floor with her butt.
>That actually wasn’t a bad idea.
>She could come in from the floor above.
>Lyra ascended another set of stairs.
>She repeated her steps to force entry.
>No giant barrier this time.
>Lyra walked into the office space after carefully checking the corners.
>Opposite the entrance there was a glass wall separating her from an overly sterile chamber.
>The long oaken table had at least a dozen seats surrounding it.
>Some kind of meeting room?
>Similar divisions were visible to the right, though they were all a fair bit smaller.
>The glass seemed an odd design choice to her.
>There was no chance of privacy here.
>She shrugged that revelation off and continued to survey.
>Four sofas were arrayed about the entrance.
>It was clear at a glance that they had never been used.
>There was an oddly ugly painting on the wall.
>It wasn’t quite bad enough that she felt comfortable writing it off as trash.
>But it still wasn’t pleasant to look at.
>Was there some bizarre deep meaning that only the artsy types would understand?
>Everything felt a little bit off here.
>Like the ponies who filled this space weren’t actual ponies.
>Like they were a strange species that wore pony skin.
>So either there were changelings here, or it was a lawyers office.
>Another reception desk sat to the right.
>It felt a bit out of place in this sterile environment.
>Almost as though a real pony spent time there.
>It wasn’t cluttered, but it had its fair share of oddities and curios.
>Lyra took a moment to search through the tchotchke, knickknacks, baubles, and bric-a-brac.
>Nothing caught her eye as being obviously interesting.
>It was strange to think that a relatively mundane place such as a legal practice would exist just above what was for all intents and purposes a blacksite.
>But she had to admit that without Starlight’s help there was no way she’d ever have found this place.
>There was nothing outwardly interesting about this place.
>There was nothing remarkable about ponies coming and going here.
>There was absolutely nothing to set it apart from the rest until you actually tried to break in.
>It was a tree hidden in the middle of the forest.
>Lyra produced her stolen blades once more and began to cut into the floor.
>It was surprisingly thin and flimsy.
>There were steel beams holding the structure up, but they were broadly spaced.
>Was that normal?
>She easily carve a pony sized hole between the beams.
>Clean cuts again.
>She’d have to cover her tracks on the way out.
>But it would be way easier to explain than cutting through the solid steel wall.
>She levitated the plaster, wood, and insulation out of the hole and peered in.
>The lights were off.
>Whoever had been here earlier was probably gone.
>Was it safe to go in?
>Lyra could think of only one way to find out.
>She grabbed the edge of the hole with her forehooves and tried to lower herself down gently.
>And landed hard on her rump.

“Ooowww…”

>Why couldn’t it have been carpet?
>Lyra listened closely for any signs of life.
>As far as she could tell she was completely alone in the dark.
>A light spell formed on her horn almost as reflex as she stood up.
>She found herself in a cramped cubicle.
>A family photo had been taped to one of the walls, but otherwise there was seemingly no decoration.
>There was a broad but cheaply made desk right next to her covered in a light dusting of plaster.
>Lyra was stunned to see it had hardly any papers on it.
>What WAS present was all densely crammed full of information.
>An absurd amount of detail was fit into a small space.
>It would take some time to make sense of it all.
>Photographs were a good idea, she had to admit.
>Lyra casually walked through all the cubicles taking pictures of everything she could find.
>She also took the time to plug Floor into each and every computer in the place.
>There was little left to see.
>How thorough should she be?
>As far as she knew all the answers she sought could be here.

>”Psst.”

>Lyra jumped in shock.
>She looked around but could see nopony.

“D?”

>”Yeah.”

“Don’t sneak up on me like that!”

>”Why aren’t you wearing a disguise?”

>Lyra stood perfectly still and blinked several times.
>She raised a single hoof into her field of vision.
>It wasn’t dark blue.
>It was minty green.

“Eep!”

>”Aren’t you supposed to wear disguises for this kind of stuff?”

“I forgot! We gotta get out of here.”

>”Oh right! How could I forget? I’m so sorry, probably should have said this sooner.”

“Said what?”

>”A bunch of ponies are coming up. They’ll be here any second.”

>But it was the middle of the night!

“Researchers?”

>”Yup.”

“Whew. Okay, that’s not so bad.”

>”And maybe a couple dozen guards. And I think an agent?”

>It was definitely time to run.
>Lyra linked her ley lines and started to cast an eruption.
>She was getting better.
>But it was still way weaker than her teacher’s eruptions.
>She levitated it into the hole she’d carved in the ceiling.
>Her focus faltered the tiniest bit and the spell burst early.
>But debris still rained down and the clean cuts were erased.
>She tapped the S.L.I.D.E. thingies together.
>Nothing happened.

“What?”

>She tried again.
>Nothing.

>”Maybe they need to be recharged?”

>This was…
>Pretty bad.

>”I’ll fly you out.”

“If they see me they’ll recognise me! There’s nowhere to hide in the sky!”

>She needed to disappear.
>And she needed to do it NOW.

“Fly me through the hole in the ceiling. At least then I’m not in the right room.”

>She was harshly jerked into the air.
>Before she even knew it, Lyra’s hooves were on the ground one floor up.
>The lawyer’s office was no good though.
>It was all glass.
>Nowhere to hide.

”Can you turn off the lights in the stairwell?”

>”Yup!”

>A strong gust of wind ran through the office.
>Soon after a loud popping noise filled the air.
>The smell of ozone soon wafted in.
>Lyra snuffed out her light spell, chastising herself for not doing it sooner.
>And then she awkwardly fumbled the thermal goggles onto her forehead.
>Lyra carefully made her way into the stairwell.
>It was pitch black in here.
>She couldn’t see a thing.
>Lyra slipped the goggles over her eyes.
>The defunct lights shone with heat, but she was otherwise blind.
>She slowly and awkwardly ascended the stairs, trying to put distance between herself and the scene of the crime.
>Before long she could hear the sounds of hooves trailing her in the oppressive darkness.
>She slipped into the first unlocked room she found.
>Where was she now?
>She hid behind what was probably a wall and hoped.
>The door creaked open.
>Who was there?
>She couldn’t see through the wall!
>The bright beam of a flashlight or light spell shone in.
>Lyra didn’t take the time to check what was there.
>She produced her stolen blades and levitated them outward.
>Whoever the pony was turned tail and ran with a terrified yelp.
>Backup was doubtlessly coming, but they were gone for now.
>Where was the elevator access?
>She took a chance and restored her light spell.
>Heading deeper inside she found empty office space of all things.
>No furnishings or decorations.
>Just an empty room.
>This land was a hot commodity
>Before long she found an exit door.
>It lead to a narrow carpeted hallway that branched off to other offices.
>And several elevator doors lined the wall.
>Great!
>Wait, no.
>If she took one she’d be trapped!
>She turned around to leave-
>There was somepony here.
>She couldn’t hear them move, but she could see their heat.
>Their light and lithe frame skulked around without a sound in the dark.
>Lyra took a single step backward.
>Their head snapped to face her.
>They’d heard her.
>This one singular pony continued to move their way toward her in perfect silence.
>They thought they were invisible to Lyra.
>They thought this was a fair fight.
>No such luck.
>She prepared a telekinetic spell to grab at them.
>But they somehow slipped through her grasp every time.
>A brief flip from a wing or a silent step from a hoof and they slipped through her grasp.
>The pony in question suddenly surged forward.
>Lyra slammed the door shut.
>A hoof shot straight through before swiftly pulling back out.
>This was the agent, no doubt.
>Lyra grabbed the broken chunks of door and shot them out at her opponent.
>A barrage of blows shot in from all directions.
>Nothing could connect.
>But at least she was keeping them from approach-
>Never mind then!
>Lyra backed away from the door and rounded a corner as they slipped in, completely bypassing all of her strikes.
>This was unreal.
>They couldn’t even SEE!
>HOW were they doing this?
>They jumped forward and swung a leg.
>Their aim was only slightly off, bashing into Lyra’s side rather than her jaw.
>The blind pegasus she was facing had knocked her down with ease.
>She began to scurry back as her eyes teared up with pain.
>Her opponent was circling her, presumably to hide their location.
>Lyra started filling the air in front of her with junk and swinging it wildly in hopes of deterring another attack.
>They jumped through it without a scratch and landed a blow on her back.
>This was time for a desperate measure.
>Lyra prepared an eruption-
>Her opponent jumped through the cloud of debris that Lyra was swinging about.
>Another heavy blow, this time to the ribs.
>She wheezed out a pained breath as they jumped off of her, landing gracefully and silently a good distance away.
>Her teacher had described trying to hit a pegasus as being like trying to swat a fly with a warhammer.
>And he wasn’t wrong!
>Every time she swung the wind carried them away!
>The wind.
>He’d said they use the small increase in air pressure to push them around.
>This pony could FEEL her attacks from the wind they were making.
>How was she supposed to beat that?
>She stopped her attacks and left the debris hanging in mid air.
>She waited until they got close to the floating wood.
>Then swung as hard as she could.
>They surged backwards, easily dodging the blow.
>This was hopeless.
>The instant she struck they were gone.
>She needed something that could hurt without having to be swung.
>Something that would hurt them if they walked into it.
>She pulled out the monofilament blades and scattered them about.
>Making sure they were all at leg level so as to avoid cutting anything vital.
>They launched themselves forward.
>Before Lyra could react they’d fallen back.
>She was sure they’d have cut themselves in half after that.
>How could they possibly have stopped moving that fast?
>How could they have even noticed they were being hurt in time?
>No time for that.
>They produced something from their bags and threw it.
>Lyra wasn’t sure what it was, but she WAS sure that she didn’t want it near her.
>She grabbit it with a quick telekinetic spell.
>A blinding light filled the air.
>A deafening roar assaulted her ears.
>And the agent fell over.
>They were struggling to regain their standing, but they couldn’t seem to make sense of which was was up.
>She ran up to them quickly and knocked them out with her curse.
>Then she summoned a light spell.
>To her amazement the young female pegasus on the ground was completely unharmed.
>No signs of a cut at all.
>Unless that was an illusion?
>Lyra probed around carefully.
>Sure enough, there was an intricate spell covering most of their body.
>She tore it apart.
>And heaved.
>This pony had seen better days.
>Better years.
>Scars from old cuts criss-crossed their entire body.
>Huge patches of their coat had fallen away to reveal scratched and irritated hide.
>One of her ears was missing!
>Heavy bandages were wrapped around her barrel hiding what was doubtlessly a fresh wound.
>This pony had been through hell.
>Literally.
>Were there other agents hiding scars like these?
>She desperately hoped not.
>Lyra quickly searched them to find a few egg shaped objects in their bag.
>There was a pin stuck in the top of each one.
>Presumably the light thingies they’d thrown at her.
>She briefly considered taking them, but decided against it.
>For all she knew they were dangerous.
>And she wasn’t certain they were all meant to disorient.
>Some might be meant to hurt!
>It was too dangerous.
>What else was there…
>This pony.
>Had.
>A flashlight.
>They had a flashlight and they didn’t use it.

“WHY?”

>Did they think they had an advantage in the dark?
>Actually, they probably did think that.
>They could dodge while blind.
>And they thought Lyra was blind too.
>She got lucky with that one.

“Ah!”

>S.L.I.D.E. thingeys.
>Exactly what she needed.
>Hopefully there was some way to recharge them.
>Fighting an agent every time she needed one seemed like a bad idea.
>Lyra would worry about that later.
>She was out of here.

>The next day…
>Lyra sat alone in her home wondering.
>Was it safe to go meet up yet?
>There was lots of stuff to go over.
>On the other hoof they’d attracted lots of attention last night.
>If ever they were being watched it was now.
>For all she knew, the guard was going to be knocking on her door any minute-

*thud thud*

>”Royal Guard! Open up!”

>There they were.
>Hopefully the cover story stood up.
>Lyra approached the door, legs shaking slightly.
>She did her best to compose herself and appear calm.

“H-hellosh!”

>Her best wasn’t that great.

>”You thought you could get away with it, didn’t you?”

“Wait, what? No! What are you talking about?”

>”You know EXACTLY what we’re talking about.”

>This was pretty bad.
>Pretty extremely bad.

>”Yeah, you SHOULD be sweating. The sign said to stay OFF the grass!”

“I swear I- pardon?”

>”Don’t play dumb! We’ve got everything we need. Witnesses, security footage, you even left your I.D. card at the scene of the crime.”

”Oh.”

>”It’s almost like you WANTED to be caught.”

>Well.
>That was one way to create an alibi.

>”I’m writing you a ticket for 100 bits. If you pay it within 30 days it’s only 50 bits though.”

“Okay.”

>The pony before her tore a ticket out of his book and passed it to her.
>He began to walk away the moment Lyra had accepted it.
>All in all that wasn’t so bad.
>She had all she needed to cover her hide.
>Surely it was safe to review what she’d found.
>Surely.
>Lyra fetched her camera and began flipping through the images.
>Most of what she was reading made no sense to her.
>They were talking about photon emissions?
>And emergent behaviours?
>There was something about erratic outputs.
>They were looking for something called a heat exchange and they were saying there was no receivers.

“As far as we are able to tell article 1 has no means of receiving or interpreting the signals.”

>The signals?
>She still wasn’t certain what they were talking about.
>Was it the tide?
>All these documents kept referring to ‘article 1’ without actually saying what it was.
>They often truncated it to just ‘1’.

“Article 1 continues to confound us. For every minor discovery dozens of questions are raised. It exhibits numerous anomalous properties that defy all known models of physics.”

>All known models?
>Were there different physicses?
>Some mentions of attempts to measure conductivity.
>There was a LOT of information here.
>She spent nearly the whole day reading through it piecing together what she could.
>She was starting to put together a decent picture of what article 1 was.
>But there was still one piece of the puzzle miss-
>Oh?

“Though the means through which the Black Tide is able to reactivate itself following an electromagnetic pulse are yet unknown, relatively weak pulse trains operating upwards of 3 gigahertz have proven able to inhibit reactivation almost indefinitely.”

>There it was.
>Article 1 was the black tide.
>Lyra had to go share the news right away.
>She began to sprint to Derpy’s home.
>Soon she was out of breath and forced to a slow trot.
>By the time she reached her destination Lyra was weak and ragged, her stamina completely drained from her overexcitement.
>She was a ragged mess when she finally knocked on the door.

>”Lyra! Oh my goodness, are you okay?”

>The voice came from above.
>Derpy was perched on the roof.
>Why was she perched on the roof?
>No time for that.

“Big! NEWS! Got- know! IN!”

>She pulled the door open and moved to the den.

>”What did you find out?”

“Is it safe to talk?”

>”Why wouldn’t it be?”

>Hadn’t they already gone over this?
>What was the solution again?

>”I’m pretty sure we aren’t being listened to. Should I try to call Starlight?”

“Please. I know what the Black Tide is!”

>Derpy jumped up in excitement and ran to the computer.
>A few moments later she shook her head.

>”Looks like she’s not home.”

“What about Floor? Is she home?”

>”Umm…”

“Yeah, I realised the moment I said it. She deserves to know, get her on the line.”

>”Done. Can you hear us?”

>A single grating note sounded from the machine.

>”One means yes.”

“I thought it was two. Whatever. Article 1, also known as the Black Tide, is a tiny little machine that eats everything around it to make more of itself.”

>”Called it!”

“No you didn’t.”

>”Yuh-huh. I totally called it! And that stuff around the teleportation nexus is the tide, right?”

“Yeah. How did you know what it was?”

>”A hunch.”

>A hunch.
>She had a hunch that there was a self replicating machine that nopony can understand that had eaten entire planets before.
>Whatever, it was Derpy.
>There was no understanding her.

“They don’t know where it’s coming from and they don’t know how it works.”

>”Oh. Well, that explains everything.”

“No it doesn’t. It hardly explains anything! What’s with the 12 year deadline? What’s with the whole hell thing? What’s with Luna and Celestia’s magic? Why can’t they just blow it up?”

>”Huh. There ARE a lot of questions left. Okay! Let’s figure it out together. What’s with the schools?”

“Oh yeah. That’s what got you roped into this mess in the first place isn’t it?”

>Lyra had kinda forgotten about that.

“Well, there is a math problem involved actually. The tide is talking.”

>”Ooooohhhh! Okay.”

>She nodded happily.

“That wasn’t supposed to make sense yet.”

>”Oh. Whew! I was so confused.”

“It’s sending out E.M. signals from time to time, bursts of light. And they’re pretty sure that this light is supposed to be a message of some kind. They’re trying to replicate that message.”

>”Why would they want to talk like the tide?”

“I dunno. For some reason they think that’d help. The answer’s probably in what we found but I haven’t gone through it all yet.”

>”Where does the math come in?”

“They can’t find the pattern. Just having light isn’t good enough for a message, there’s light all over the place. You need some way of knowing that the light is coming from the right source, like having a specific frequency or amplitude. There has to be some kind of identifying marker that says that this is the message and everything else is noise.”

>”Kinda like an address marker on an envelope!”

“I don’t see the parallel, but whatever helps you understand it. Whatever the case may be there’s some kind of key that can be written on a wave. They’ve got ALL of the computers sifting through all the signals they’ve caught trying to find a pattern, and they’re desperate for ponies who know enough physics and math to work on the problem.”

>”And?”

“And it doesn’t make sense. There’s lots of mentions in their notes that say that that’s not how light is supposed to work and how this is all impossible.”

*Beep*

>The computer let out a grating tone.

>”Hm? Oh. Floor says that the files about the tide talking are often accessed at the same time as the files talking about how the tide behaves. She thinks they’re related. It looks like it changes strategies just before it sends out these messages. Strategies?”

“No idea.”

>Lyra offered the camera to Derpy who began looking through the pictures.
>She stuck her tongue out in thought.

“This was supposed to tie it all together, but we’re still missing so much. When did they find out it was coming? How do they even know it’s coming in the first place? This was supposed to tie it all together. This is their biggest secret. Article one! Unless… We don’t need to find article one, we need to find article ZERO!”

>”You think they have an article zero?”

“I mean, they have an agent zero, and I’m pretty sure one of the princesses signs their documents as AL-0. The lower the number the higher the rank. If these articles are ranked based on how secret they are or how important they are or something like that then the tide is the SECOND biggest deal, not the first.”

>”Starlight never mentioned anything like that.”

“She probably doesn’t know.”

>”Really? I sorta got the impression that she was getting her information from Twilight’s notes.”

“Maybe even Twilight doesn’t know. Whatever this is it’s a bigger deal than ANYTHING else they’re trying to hide. A bigger deal than even the Black Tide. I’m willing to bet it’s where they’re getting all their information from. Think about it, what’s a more important secret than their giant bombs and the tide put together?”

>”Whatever TOLD them about the tide and how to make the giant bombs!”

“Exactly! If somepony were to find article zero they’d know EVERYTHING! We NEED to find article zero! Any ideas?”

>”Nope.”

“How ‘bout you, Floor?”

*Beep beep*

>”Two means no.”

“I thought two meant yes? Hey, Floor, does two mean yes?”

*Beep beep*

>”That’s a no.”

“That’s a yes.”

>The spoke simultaneously.

”Wait, so if one means yes and I ask if one means no and she beeps twice then- umm…”

>”Does two mean muffin?”

*Beep beep*

“Oh. Well, there ya go. So how do we find out about article zero?”

>Derpy opened her mouth and raised a hoof excitedly.
>She held that pose for well over a minute.

>”I dunno.”

>This was hard.
>They’d never even heard of article zero, much less what or where it was.
>How were they supposed to find it?

“We have to aim higher. Somepony knows. Probably Luna and Celestia. We might have to try prying into their affairs.”

>”Whoa, that’s pretty serious!”

“Yeah. It’s risky. Very very risky. If we’re going to do that we need insurance of some sort. Some way to convince them to let us go if we’re caught. They keep letting me go, but I don’t think I can count on that forever. What do we have?”

>”Secrets! We know lots of stuff they’re trying to hide, right?”

“Good point! We just need some way to spread the message if we’re caught.”

*Bong*

>Derpy looked at the screen for a bit.

>”A virus.”

“How is making ponies sick going to help?”

>”A computer virus. A piece of software that spreads to other machines through the internet and implants themselves.”

“She can do that?”

>”She says that she can make it dormant at first but activate if it’s left alone long enough.”

“A dead man's switch.”

>”What is a man?”

“And we leak our miserable little pile of secrets to the masses unless they let us go. I like it, I LOVE it!”

*Beep beep beep*

>”But we’re going to have to plug her into one of the exchanges if she’s going to spread it everywhere.”

“Well then. That’s what we’ll do!”

>But first they needed a plan.
>Step one, don’t get caught...


                                                *       *       *       *       *

>Lyra hated going to Mana Tide practice.
>She really did.
>It was exhausting and sometimes painful.
>Throwing around more magic in one hour than she otherwise might in a month was not her idea of a good time.
>It left her sweaty and weak, and sometimes with a roaring headache.
>Worse still was the beratement.
>There was no denying it.
>Tranquil Streams was a HUGE jerk!
>He seemed to revel in petty barbs and jabs at one’s self esteem.
>From what she could tell, he lead a miserable existence in which there was no joy save for that which he took from others.
>How a pony could wind up in such a state she’d no clue.
>She often thought about skipping her lessons and staying home.
>But that really wasn’t an option any longer.
>She’d seen too much.
>The horrors of Everfree were merely the tip of the bloody iceberg.
>She hoped she never came face to face with any of it.
>But S.M.I.L.E. was going to slip up sooner or later.
>And from what she could tell it was probably going to be sooner rather than later.
>Lyra pushed the door open with a groan.
>A bright flash assailed her eyes.

“Again?”

>Hundreds of paper balls were flying her way.
>Her teacher did this pretty much every day for some reason.
>Normally she’d wrest control of a few of them and use them to bat the others out of the sky.
>She’d keep that up for a while until finally one slipped through and bopped her on the muzzle, at which point her teacher would mock her.
>Loudly.
>And repeatedly.
>But she was still tired from her sojourn to the office building.
>It was a short encounter.
>But taxing no less.
>Despite all her advantages fighting an actual agent of S.M.I.L.E. had taken pretty much everything she had.
>Thankfully there was an easier way of doing this.
>Lyra closed the door.

>”Finally!”

“Huh?”

>The door opened again unbidden.
>The old coot was standing on the other side with a wicked scowl on his face.
>Lyra was pretty sure that meant he was happy.

>”Took you long enough. Sometimes magic isn’t the best answer. Use the environment to your advantage whenever possible. Stay outside, I’ll be right out.”

>That was a lesson?
>His teaching methods were bizarre.
>It was like he didn’t really understand how ponies thought.
>Like he was presenting all this knowledge wrapped up in a neat little package, but written in a tongue that only he spoke.
>Was he insane?
>He eventually came out with a limp.
>She knew better than to ask if he was okay.
>The answer was no.
>And he would be infuriated if she noticed.

>”Nice sunny day out. Why don’t we blow something up?”

“Right.”

>He’d been obsessing over this one attack.
>Previously they’d go back and review the basics from time to time.
>But ever since they’d started working on Eruption, they’d pretty much eschewed everything else.

“If I may ask-”

>”You may not.”

“Why is this spell so important? We haven’t worked on anything else in weeks.”

>”You’re well suited for eruption. You always pull back at the last second, but with eruption that doesn’t matter. And your spellwork isn’t terrible so you should be able to pull it off.”

>By his standards, that was a compliment.

>”There. That concrete block. Blow it up.”

“Is it yours?”

>”No. Now blow it up.”

>Huh.
>At least he was honest.
>Lyra called on her magic.
>She drank deeply of Cancer and formed hundreds of plates, making a large shell by her target.
>She called upon Sagittarius and began to crush the shell ever smaller.
>The plates of her container shifted smoothly, the plates merging into each other when they were no longer needed.
>The shell grew thicker and sturdier by the second, just barely keeping up with the mounting pressure.
>Before long the growing pressure stopped.
>No matter how hard she pushed, Lyra could get no more pressure.
>It simply pushed back too hard.
>She sat on the ground trembling, not entirely certain when she’d sat down.

>”Release.”

>She ended every part of the spell at once.
>A thunderous roar rang through the sky.
>Small chunks of concrete flew into the air amid a massive cloud of dust and dirt.
>When it had all settled there was no sign of the block save for a bit of twisted rebar.

“Well?”

>”Lyra? I don’t know how to say this. That was… it was- ugh. That w- it- uhh…”

“Decent?”

>”Much too strong of a word. Much much too strong.”

>What was wrong with it?
>She thought back on all the encounters she’d had.
>Which of her opponents could have endured that?
>None, as far as she could tell.
>But she had actually tried to cast that spell in battle once.
>It failed miserably.
>Not because of any mistake she’d made in casting.
>There was something else.

“I’m too slow, aren’t I?”

>”You’re too slow in everything you do. The unicorn is nearly defenceless against any major threat. Shield spells don’t work for long, you lack the mobility to reliably dodge or disengage. Every second that passes in combat puts you at ever greater risk. You need to decisively change the encounter immediately after starting. Wipe out your opposition before they have a chance to strike. But there are limits to how effective you can be in this. Right now you’re pouring all your focus and power into one attack. What happens if your enemies come two at a time?”

”You want me to be able to use two different attacks. At the same time.”

>”No. Not two. Twenty two. Even if you aren’t facing that many opponents it’s a valuable skill to have. Say you’re flanked. Enemies coming from both sides.”

>He gestured vaguely up and down the street.

>”No matter which way you face you’re going to leave yourself exposed from behind. What do you do?”

“Run into the building?”

>”Well, yes. But pretend that’s not an option for some reason. One big monster coming at you from either sides and you can’t run. They’re tough enough that you can’t beat them with a single strike. What you have to do is control the terrain.”

>A mad flurry of gravel and stones leapt up into the air forming a dense cloud of rock in the distance.
>It began to move and surge about at high speeds, blocking the streets.

>”Undertow’s not a particularly effective attack for a number of reasons. It takes a lot of mana and focus to maintain. Most of that energy is wasted attacking thin air. And to top it all off it doesn’t really hit that hard. But you can use it to reshape the battlescape in your favor.  Unless your opponent is highly durable or a flyer they won’t get through that unharmed. Even in single combat this can be a useful strategy. If your opponent is swift you can block off most angles of attack, forcing them to engage head on. You might even be able to block all angles of attack allowing yourself to safely disengage.”

“What about monsters that can just go through that?”

>”That’s not as rare as you might think. That’s why we study heavier attacks than just Undertow. If you get used to weapon based attacks you can make good use of those sometimes. You haven’t really studied those at all, but they’re fairly similar to undertow. Sooner or later you’d accidentally hit with the sharp end. There are a couple of spells designed specifically to do this job, but you probably shouldn’t waste your time studying those. Not for a few years at least. You’ve got a couple spells that can be used to control space, and there are other skills that are more likely to be important.”

“Sorry, I know a couple spells?”

>The cloud of gravel fell to the ground harmlessly.
>He drew in his magic with what appeared to be a fair amount of strain.
>Lyra recognized this spell.
>Eruption.
>But there wasn’t just one.
>There were HUNDREDS.

>”Eruption is a versatile spell because you can choose how much power you put into it. You can make one overwhelmingly powerful strike to deal with the most durable foes. You can make a small one that’s just barely dangerous enough to get the job done to preserve mana. Or…”

>He scattered them about the streets.
>A thick blanket of explosive orbs were littered all throughout.

>”You can make a bunch of them. Chain Eruption can takes a lot more finesse than the standard Eruption; you need to manage and distribute your mana better and you need to deploy them properly. But it’s an extremely valuable skill to develop. If you make the shell exactly strong enough they will rupture when something steps on them, triggering the spell without you having to even watch. Toss a rock in there.”

>She looked at him in confusion.

>”I, uhh, I don’t think I can manage to levitate anything right now. I’m tapped.”

>He blushed and averted his eyes when he said it.
>It seemed as though he was self conscious about his magic.
>Which was strange.
>It was top notch.
>Lyra levitated a bit of the gravel and threw it into the street.
>Every single eruption detonated seemingly at once.

>”The shockwave of one going off will breach the others. This is sometimes a good thing; you’ll deal a lot of damage in short order. But it can be a weakness.”

>He was panting heavily as he spoke.

>”If your opponent is intelligent you should try and hide them. You don’t want them spotting them and detonating them intentionally. If you can’t hide them you’ll have to make them with a stronger shell and set them off manually. This is bad because you have to watch them, but sometimes there’s no choice.”

“They’re going to have to repave the street.”

>”These techniques should be used sparingly. Every time you do this you’re spending time, mana, and focus for a tactical advantage. You’re making yourself weaker and you might not get anything out of it. Even a small chain eruption can exhaust the user enough to make them defenceless.”

“How much property damage do you cause on an average day?”

>”We’ll start with teaching you to run multiple spells at the same time, then we’ll move on to how to identify the right time and place to control terrain. Multicasting isn’t easy and I wouldn’t recommend it for most ponies. For others I’d be emphasising efficient spell usage and precision. How to get as much work done as possible with a limited amount of mana. But you seem to have mana to burn.”

“Was that a compliment?”

>”And a complete inability to use it effectively.”

“Oh.”

>”You’re not going to win with precision or finesse. You’re going to win by completely overwhelming them. If we can’t have quality we’ll have quantity. Now. We’ll start small. Get the undertow running-”

>His horn sparked a bit.
>But nothing happened.

>”I said, cast Undertow!”

>He strained and pushed.
>He gritted his teeth.
>Nothing happened.
>Lyra felt so very thirsty.

>”You’ve gotta be kidding me.”

>Lyra tried to draw on her magic.
>Nothing.

“It’s not just you, it’s me too.”

>”You caught my palsy?”

“What? No. All the mana’s in use. This has happened a couple times before.”

>He seemed to grow distant as though lost in a world all his own.
>The pony before her was working through a thought process too arcane for Lyra to guess at.
>Whether it was because of the forbidden knowledge he held or just the years of experience, the news of what was happening affected him more profoundly than it did Lyra.”

>”Is number one okay?”

“Who?”

>”Agent one! Is she okay? Is she alive?”

>He asked in a panic.
>This was very troubling to him.

“I don’t know agent one.”

>”Sweetie Drops! Is she alive?”

>Lyra reached out to her magic.
>It slipped through her grasp no matter where she looked.
>But Aquarius was totally numb.

“Yes.”

>She let out a breath she didn’t know she’d been holding.

“And she’s Zero now.”

>”Oh right.”

>So she used to be agent one when he was still working.
>Why would she have been a lower rank back then?
>What made her the highest ranking agent when she wasn’t before?
>Oh.

“You used to be Zero, didn’t you?”

>”Damn straight.”

>Well, Bonny DID say he was the best.
>That explained a lot.
>How else could a geriatric pony be such a potent and dangerous wizard?
>This was him at his worst.
>Lyra couldn’t help but wonder what he must have been like in his prime.
>And now Bonny had the same rank.

>”So you say this has happened before?”

“Yeah. Is it really that bad of a sign?”

>”Most monsters draw their magic from a different source than we ponies. You mentioned Eurynomos. His infernal magic is completely different from pony magic. He’s not at all responsible for the drain.”

“Meaning?”

>”Meaning literally all of the unicorn magic available is in use, and it’s probably in use fighting him. And if this has happened before…”

>Oh.
>Oh no.

>”Yeah. If they’ve done this before that means it wasn’t enough to finish the job. Literally all of the unicorn magic isn’t enough.”

>That was bad.
>Incredibly bad.
>They were at a theoretical limit of how powerful they could be.
>And they were still losing.
>They needed some other kind of edge or it was all over.
>Something like the bomb…
>But even that hadn’t stopped him from the sounds of it.
>They needed something bigger.
>Did they have anything bigger?
>Was that even possible?
>The magic began to slowly seep back into them.
>Again it bore the oily taint.

>”Are you feeling that too?”

“The greasiness? That happened last time too. Do you know why?”

>”I don’t know what it is. But it’s disgusting. Practice is over for the day.”

“Really?”

>”I don’t want to use this mana. It’s gross.”

“It really is. Is it demonic magic?”

>”I wouldn’t know. I’ve never fought a demon.”

>He’d never fought a demon.
>The top agent of his time who’d run a long and eventful career.
>Never once faced a demon.

“Seriously?”

>”They don’t get topside very often. I read about them in passing back in training, but it was always presented as being purely academic. Something that was worth knowing from a historical context that I’d never actually run into.”

“Then why are they such a problem now?”

>”I dunno. You’d have to ask somepony who’s studied demonology. Good luck finding one though.”

“H-heh. Yeah. What kind of pony would spend their time studying that?”

>Lyra knew EXACTLY which pony would.

“I’m going to… go… now.”

>”When you’re talking to them, mind asking a few questions for me?”

“Am I that transparent?”

>”Yes. Ask them if there’s any known way to create demonic magic. I know you can’t destroy the stuff, but can you add to it? And ask if there’s a way to interfere with a demonic spell. If you can’t destroy the magic, how do you stop a spell that’s already started?”

>Both good questions.

>”Now shoo. I want answers.”

“Right! See you later!”

>Lyra walked off, forgetting to bow.
>Should she go today?
>She’d rather deal with the job Floor had given her.
>But she was waiting on Starlight for that.
>They didn’t even know the actual physical location of their target yet.
>She’d also rather look for article 0.
>But without insurance that was tricky and risky.
>She’d also love to find out how Bonny was doing.
>But she had no leads.
>Maybe it really WAS time.
>Time to do something she should have done long ago.
>Time to talk to somepony who had studied demonology.

Later that day...

>Lyra stepped out of the teleportation nexus.
>She was glad that her S.L.I.D.E. dealies were working again.
>It was as Derpy said, they needed to be recharged.
>A process that seemed to take about 20 hours.
>They were painfully hot by the time they were ready.
>How much power did it take to use them?
>She wasn’t certain.
>But she did know she’d have to stop charging them at home.
>The spike in her power bill might draw attention.
>The busy but orderly streets of Canterlot unfolded before her.
>The capitol had grown far bigger in recent years.
>But much like the Crystal empire it had adapted well.
>The heart of the city was largely unchanged.
>And the periphery, while much uglier than the old architecture, had grown about the old city fairly organically.
>It seemed to be Ponyville alone that was struggling to adapt.
>Was it because it had become a major city so abruptly?
>Had Twilight just done a bad job planning its growth?
>Perhaps it wasn’t really that much worse.
>Maybe these other cities had their fair share of troubles to which Lyra was simply oblivious.
>Or maybe it was just because she expected Canterlot to be a city while Ponyville was still a sleepy little town in her heart.
>Whatever the case was she didn’t resent every highrise that she saw.
>Nor did she despair at the cracked and decrepit roadways that snaked through the dirty back alleys.
>Canterlot wasn’t as it was meant to be, sure.
>But it wasn’t as nearly wrong as Ponyville felt.
>Lyra marched her way uphill towards The Campus.
>There were many campuses in Canterlot.
>A great deal of educational facilities had popped up over the years specializing in all sorts of fields.
>But amidst all the campuses there was only one Campus.
>The School among the schools.
>Princess Celestia’s school for gifted unicorns.
>The premier academy for unicorn magic the world over.
>Getting admitted was no small feat.
>Staying in the school was often times harder.
>Precious few ponies managed to actually graduate.
>But anypony who could stick it out was bound to be one of the best educated unicorns alive.
>Versed not only in spellcraft but also in the arts and sciences.
>Lyra had spent many good years here.
>And while she had wound up failing a few years before getting her secondary school equivalent, her credentials could have gotten her into any university.
>To fail at Celestia’s school was a higher honor than to excel in another.
>All of her other friends and classmates had wound up failing or dropping out.
>With one exception.
>Not Twilight.
>She’d moved to Ponyville shortly before graduating.
>It was Moondancer that held the honor of graduating from one of the most exclusive academies in the land.
>And she’d done so despite abysmal grades on friendship in the last few years.
>After Twilight had abandoned her…
>But that was in the past.
>Lyra had managed to get her to open up just enough to pass.
>And with that done the diploma was all but signed.
>How it was possible to get a 3.6 G.P.A. while just barely passing friendship Lyra had no clue.
>But she’d done it.
>Lyra went down the cheap row housing and knocked on the door.
>No answer.

“It’s Lyra!”

>The door swung open immediately.

>”LYRA!”

>Moondancer’s face was twisted in a rictus of joy.

>”I thought you’d forgotten about me!”

“Really? I sent a letter just last week.”

>”Oh. Well, the thing is…”

“You haven’t gone to pick up your mail.”

>”In about... half a year? I’ve been busy, you know?”

>Good to know those 10 bit stamps were being put to good use.

“You’re looking well.”

>She really was.
>Mane combed.
>Body odor minimal.
>Sweater washed.

“You showered this week, didn’t you?”

>”Yup! It’s a whole new Moondancer. Clean, awake while the sun’s up, and… what month is it?”

“Two out of three ain’t bad!”

>”How’s Bon-Bon? Still grumpy?”

“She’s away visiting somepony right now. But to answer your question? Last time I saw her she was chewing out a furniture store’s manager because their exterior was ugly.”

>”That sounds like her alright. Is she ever not angry?”

“Sure!”

>She just leads a high stress life.
>And doesn’t want to deal with any shenanigans while at home.
>That’s all.

“Besides. She didn’t threaten to burn it down this time.”

>Though she might have been building up to it.

>”So what brings you all the way down here?”

“I can’t stop in to check on an old friend?”

>”You can. But you usually do that when you come home for Hearth’s Warming. And I don’t see any snow. Something made you show up early.”

“Well. Guilty as charged. What can you tell me about demons?”

>”Pfft. That was just a phase, Lyra! I was going through some rough times and I needed to distract myself somehow. I grew out of it.”

“Oh come on, you can tell me!”

>”Nope. Sorry. I’m more interested in magic and friendship these days.”

“C’moooon. You felt it, didn’t you? Earlier today? That weird sickly taint in the magic right after it was depleted. That vile oily slick that coated the ley lines with its dark, corrupting influence-”

>Moondancer shoved a hoof into Lyra’s mouth.

>“Not so loud. Quick, come in.”

>She dragged Lyra indoors and slammed the entrance shut.
>She then proceeded to lock the door and shove a chair in front of it.

“What’s the matter? It’s not illegal to talk about them.”

>”I don’t want my psychiatrist to hear about this. Please, don’t tell him! It’s not an obsession! It’s NOT!”

>It kinda was.

“What drew you to study them in the first place?”

>”The magic, Lyra! The magic! I want to know how magic works. I want to know how all of it works! But theirs… we know so little about it! Where does it come from? What are the rules behind using it? Can we harness it? What can we do to get rid of it? Demons are one of the biggest mysteries in the study of magic, and if you try to study them everypony thinks you’re crazy!”

“And?”

>”And what?”

“Why demons as opposed to, say, chaos magic?”

>”Because they’re cool.”

>There we go.

“So, was that taint related to demons?”

>”Yes. There’s no doubt about it. But that doesn’t make sense. Demons can’t use pony magic, and ponies can’t use demon magic. How did the two get mixed up?”

“I dunno. Maybe they worked together on a spell?”

>”I’m not sure that’s possible. Maybe? There’s so much we don’t know about them.”

“I’m trying to piece something together and I was hoping that maybe you could help.”

>”I can try, but like I said, most of it’s a mystery.”

“Who is Eurynomos?”

>Moondancer ran off to her room.
>She returned a short while later with several books in tow.
>One was open as she flipped through the pages.

>”Eurynomos. The Rotten Prince. The demonic aspect of disease, decay, and poison. He’s said to be one of the weakest of the lords of Hell. But this was all written thousands of years ago. Things change.”

“What would happen if he were to kill Deimos and Phobos?”

>”That would be extremely bad. He’d probably consume their demonic power and wind up way more dangerous. You can’t create or destroy demonic energy, there’s a limited amount out there.”

>Can’t create.
>Got it.

>”So they spend most of their time fighting each other for their power, trying to consolidate it within themselves. If one of them gets strong enough they’ll be able to consume all of the other ones and become basically unstoppable. That’s their goal. That’s also their weakness. They’re so single minded about that that they tend to ignore anything else. That’s how they were locked away. They were too busy fighting each other to even notice what was happening around them.”

>So every time one of the lords kills another they get stronger.
>And it sounds like there are only maybe 3 left.
>As deadly as they were back then, when there were…

“How many lords are there?”

>”Thirty. Or at least there were.”

>Thirty.
>They were nigh on unstoppable when there were thirty.
>And now there were three.
>And they’d sent Bonny down to Orcus to fight that.
>Orcus.

“And the place they were locked up in. Why is its name dangerous?”

>”Oh, yeah. Definitely don’t say that name. Their prison is alive.”

“What.”

>”That realm of hell is the mouth of one of the infernals.”

“I’m just going to repeat myself. What.”

>”The infernals used to rule over the demons much like the lords now rule over their subordinates. But long long ago the demons revolted and killed their erstwhile overlords. All except one. The last remaining infernal collected all of its power for one final ritual; to turn its own body into a prison to trap the rebels.”

“It protected us?”

>”By accident. It was purely spite, I assure you, but it wound up being very useful for us.”

“And the name is bad because?”

>”Names have power. If one of the demon lords learns the true name of the last infernal, they’ll be able to control them. It’s probably not very dangerous anymore; whatever power it once wielded would have been consumed in the ritual. But they’d be able to open the gates. Permanently.”

“That sounds preeeeeety bad.”

>”Yup.”

“Why isn’t that common knowledge? If everypony knew that then they’d be less likely to spread the name around.”

>”I think princess Celestia is trying to erase that name from memory. Sooner or later somepony will do the wrong thing or get tricked in some way. But if nopony even knows the name anymore then it’s safe. She can’t tell us not to say that name without telling us the name.”

“So the only thing protecting us from being wiped out is that they don’t know a name?

>”Maybe? There are… inconsistencies in the books and stories about the demons.”

“Such as?”

>”There are detailed accounts of encounters with demons in the past. Major fights from before they were sealed, minor skirmishes with a couple of stray ones that stayed hidden or broke out. Every couple of centuries one will be spotted and cause a big panic. But we never hear about how they’re dealt with, just that they ARE dealt with. I know it sounds crazy, but I think that the princess might have something in place just for dealing with demons. A super weapon, an elite team, something she’s not telling us about.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right on that one.”

>”You don’t think I’m insane?”

“I think you’re right. What can you tell me about Achlys?”

>”These are awfully specific questions. Why Achlys?”

“Umm…”

>She shouldn’t say it.
>Every time she spills the beans she’s taking a risk.
>But she could trust Moondancer.
>Surely.
>Yes, of course she could!

“The princess has a super elite team of ponies that secretly deal with monsters using super weapons and I’ve been investigating them. I know they’re in hell, I just don’t know why.”

>”Pfft. Sure, pull the other one.”

“I’m serious!”

>”Right. Ponies going to hell voluntarily? I have to admit you had me going for a while. You know it’s real rude of you to make fun of me. I know it sounds crazy but I think there really is a plan!”

“But it’s true! And during my investigations a few names keep showing up. Achlys, Deimos and Phobos, Eurynomos, Erebus.”

>Her ears twitched at the last one.

”What?”

>”A long time ago Erebus disappeared. The rituals to contact her stopped working and the escapees that pop up are never her servants. It was weird. Normally when a demon lord dies they’re consumed, and whoever took them down becomes the target of those rituals. But with Erebus it all just… vanished.”

“See? I’m telling the truth!”

>”How does that follow?”

“Umm… I didn’t think that all the way through.”

>So Erebus wasn’t dead.
>But for some reason she couldn’t be reached?
>Lyra wished she’d taken a picture of a demon for proof.
>But there was no way she was going back to hell.

“What else can you tell me about Erebus?”

>Moondancer flipped through the pages a bit.
>Lyra noted that she didn’t check an index of any sort.
>She already knew where to look.

>”Erebus. The black maiden. Said to be an oppressive darkness that consumed light in all of its forms. I’m not sure if that’s a bad translation or just poetic license. She was one of the best at deception and misdirection. She was no Dolos, but she was up there; never got in a fight that wasn’t hugely stacked in her favor. Unlike most of the others she didn’t have any lesser demons, and only a few hundred greaters. But each and every one of them was equivalent to a small army, and they were all as sneaky as she was. They lurked in the shadows trying to exploit weakness.”

“So they were guerilla warriors.”

>”I don’t think there are any gorillas down there.”

>Huh.

“So about this disappearance. Do you have any idea what it means?”

>”No.”

>There was a bit of a pause before her statement.
>Not the kind that would suggest reluctance or hesitance.
>It was more uncertainty than anything else.

“No? You don’t know anything? That doesn’t sound like you.”

>”I, uhh, I don’t KNOW.”

“You have a theory?”

>”Oh, heavens no! Nothing so robust! I’ve got a good hypothesis, but I’m nowhere near a comprehensive theory! I, uhh, I think she escaped?”

“That sounds bad.”

>”Summoning rituals lock onto a magical signature, but you need a rough idea of where the target is to actually find them. Summoning rituals for demons always assume that they’re in hell. But if one of them were to leave hell?”

“And stay hidden in the shadows like Erebus would, it would seem like they’d just disappeared. But Luna said she’d killed Erebus. I said that out loud didn’t I?”

>”Yup. It’s not impossible I guess. Hard to imagine, but not totally impossible. They can be hurt. If she caught Erebus in a moment of weakness, MAYBE? But she’d need some kind of vessel to imprison Erebus’ essence, otherwise she’d just keep on getting up.”

“And what kind of vessel would that be?”

>”I dunno.”

>What a tease.
>So Erebus was presumably dead, and her vessel wasn’t in hell.
>Hopefully it was well guarded.
>Even so.
>That sounded dangerous.
>But SURELY Luna knew where it was.
>And SURELY she was keeping track of it.

“Is there anything that can be done to interfere with demonic magic?”

>”You’d need an angel for that. They can bless something to destabilize the demonic magic for a while.”

>Lyra thought back.
>Celestia had mentioned something about that.

“What about an angels tears?”

>”That would… yeah? Maybe it would hold some holy energy? Anything bathed in pure holy light for long enough would be blessed to some degree. I’m not sure why tears as opposed to other bodily fluids, though. I don’t know that much about angels, except that they seem to have disappeared long long ago.”

>Then where did Celestia get her angel tears?
>She outright said she had them!
>Celestia must know where at least one angel is.
>And if they’re relying on them to deal with the demons, she must be in frequent contact with them!
>Lyra DEFINITELY had to stalk Celestia.
>Investigate.
>Not stalk.
>There were more questions to be asked about these angels.
>But Moondancer probably wasn’t the right pony to ask.

“What’s the difference between a lesser and a greater demon?”

>”Most demons don’t actually have any magic of their own. If you give them some there’s a risk that they’ll lose it and someone else will get it. Rather than actually sharing their magic the lords enchant some of their minions. The ones who are empowered like this are called greater demons. There are only so many of them to go around so they usually don’t wind up on the front lines, instead they act as overseers, managers, and generals. The lesser demons are subservient to the greaters and if they have any enchantments at all it’s done through artifacts. The lords are the bosses, the greaters are middle management, and the lessers are the grunts.”

“The distinction is mostly based on the command structure?”

>”Yup.”

“So the main difference between a lesser demon and a greater demon is… bureaucracy?”

>”It’s hell.”

>Oh yeah.

“Well, I’m sure I have lots more questions. But I can’t think of them right now. Wanna go get a coffee?”

>”It’s too early for caffeine. How about iced cream?”

“Even better! I’m buying. So, tell me about your work!”

>”Well, funding’s been a bit tight lately. Actually, I’m unfunded right now. But I’ve found work elsewhere.”

>They stepped outside into the afternoon sun.
>Moondancer immediately shielded her eyes, unaccustomed to the light of day.

“So you’re not studying magic anymore?”

>”Not professionally. Magic is still and always will be my passion, but you can’t make a living at it anymore. These days everypony’s invested in the physical sciences.”

“Yeah, I’ve noticed that. What have they got you working on?”

>”Sorry, I signed an N.D.A.”

>Figures.

“C’moon. Any hints at all?”

>”Well, there are a FEW things I can say. Right, so, we’re trying to develop a new form of electrical power generation.”

>Sounds boring.

“Sounds interesting.”

>”Electric power is still pretty primitive in a lot of ways. Nearly everything we do involves burning stuff to make steam, and absolutely everything we do boils down to turning a crank. Really it’s just a bigger and faster way of putting a yoke on somepony and making them walk in circles to run a mill.”

“It can’t be that similar.”

>”It really is. A turbine is basically an oversized and overengineered egg beater.”

>Lyra couldn’t help but smile at the idea of the power grid being run by giant egg beaters.

“Well, you’re not an engineer. I’m guessing you’re not trying to make a better egg beater. Are you trying to replace them?”

>”Nope. We can’t think of any way to replace egg beaters. I think we’re stuck with them for now.”

“Trying to get rid of the steam?”

>”Steam is great though. Water’s cheap and safe. And it’s really good at turning turbines. No, we’re looking for ways to make heat without fire.”

“Okay, I was lying before, but now it really DOES sound interesting. How would you make that much heat without fire?”

>”N.D.A.”

“Boo.”

>Hrmm.
>Lyra had a bit of a hunch.
>If it was electrical generation then it was probably funded by the crown.
>Or at least Rarity’s company.

“Can you say who you work for?”

>”Well, let’s see. First it was NexTech. But then it was merged into E.E.A. before being restructured into Neogen. And then we were bought out.”

“By R&A incorporated, right?”

>”How’d you know?”

>She worked for Rarity.
>Which meant she was working with S.M.I.L.E.’s tech.
>Which meant she was connected to the source of their information!

“Does it ever feel like you’re following instructions more than actually inventing?”

>”What?”

“Like, if you’re trying to develop something totally new there’s be a lot of questions all the time. Things would go kinda slowly, right? You’d need to test every idea all the time. But it’s moving faster than that isn’t it?”

>”Yeah. It goes really fast.”

“And they’re way more sure it’ll work than they should be.”

>”They already started building the power plant. And we’ve never actually had a stable reaction.”

>She spoke softly, almost as though she was speaking to herself.

“And most of the pieces are already figured out. You just have to fill in the gaps.”

>”How do you know all this?”

“Have you ever wondered how they know so much? It’s like… five years ago we lived in a totally different world. The only electricity we had came from pegasi messing up. Now, think about what you’re working on. Does that really seem like it’s part of the same Equestria?”

>”What are you getting at?”

>What WAS she getting at?

“Do you think this stuff is equine in origin?”

>”How do you figure?”

“Do you think that maybe, just maybe, something other than ponies invented it and we’re just copying them?”

>”Oh, sure.”

“Wait. Seriously?”

>”Absolutely. It’s all coming from space monkeys.”

>Space monkeys.

>”They touched down in the badlands and used their super amazing technology to become the most powerful force in the world.”

“Stop.”

>”And they’re more machine than flesh you know. In fact, everything about them has been engineered to absolute perfection.”

“Fine, I get it.”

>”They control their machines with their thoughts you know.”

“You can stop making fun of me now.”

>Moondancer didn’t reply.
>She just walked along with a sly smile on her muzzle.

“But you know I’m right.”

>She rolled her eyes.

>”So what have you been up to?”

“Nothing legal, I assure you.”


>”Fine. Don’t tell me.”

“I’m trying to figure out what’s going on. Why are they building walls everywhere? Why are prices getting so crazy? Why do we never see the princesses in public anymore? And where are all these crazy inventions coming from? None of it makes sense. Not at first.”

>”Oh? And what do you figure is going on?”

“Well, it could be that they’re preparing for something big and digging deep for all the resources they can find.”

>Why was she even sharing this?
>It would do no good.
>Best case scenario Moondancer didn’t believe her.
>Worst case she DID.
>Then she’d be worried all the time about the Tide and S.M.I.L.E. and Orcus…
>She’d worry about the bombs.
>She’d worry about the poisons and weapons and battles.
>She’d worry about the surveillance and data collection and tracking chips.
>Maybe Celestia was right.
>Maybe knowledge gained WAS innocence lost.
>But was innocence not then synonymous with ignorance?
>Was innocence bad or ignorance good?
>Lyra didn’t know.
>But she DID know one thing.
>There was no reason to worry Moondancer.

“Either that or it’s space monkeys.”

>”Giant green simians from beyond the stars!”

>The largely empty streets were beginning to fill up as they approached commercial zoning.
>Prices were high.
>As was stress.
>But ponies always found a way to cope.
>They were going to make the best of their rapidly vanishing spare time, and fit as much living as possible between work.
>They were more tired than Lyra remembered, but the smiles and laughter of the masses were no less genuine.
>Their society was eroding and their world was in peril.
>But they still found time for joy.
>A small smile crept onto Lyra’s face that had nothing to do with the fast approaching iced cream parlor.

>”So. What flavour are you getting?”

“Mint chocolate chip. You?”


                                                *       *       *       *       *
>Lyra stood in Derpy’s living room, swaying slightly.
>She yawned drowsily.
>It was well past her bedtime, yet she was still up and about.
>But not awake.
>Not really.
>She was supposed to be receiving her briefing from Starlight for the upcoming mission.
>She’d met up at Derpy’s several hours ago.
>Starlight was supposed to contact them digitally with instructions for their next operation.
>But she was late.
>VERY late.
>And Lyra was starting to nod off.
>She stretched and bumped into something warm and soft.
>Lyra grabbed onto it and cuddled in.

>”Are you chewing on my mane?”

“Uh?”

>She sat up straight, quickly disentangling herself from her friend.

“Sorry. I need sleep.”

>”It’s okay. I was actually wondering. Does it taste like mango? Because I’ve been using this new shampoo that-”

>”Is this thing on?”

>Starlight was finally here.

>”I think so. Hold on, I’ll check.”

>”Okay, great. I don’t have long so listen up. I’ve got a plan.”

“You can get Floor into the network?”

>”Yeah? But you’re not going to like it.”

“Oh, come on. It can’t be that bad.”

>”It really, really is. There’s really only one target for what you’re trying to do. Every city has a hub, but…”

“But?”

>”Floor tells me that they can easily get rid of the virus if they know it’s there. Minutes after you leave they’ll have us locked out. And they’re likely to study the virus and figure out how it works, so they’ll patch the exploit she’s using.”

>”I don’t get it.”

“Nor do I.”

>”If they know you tampered with their system the mission’s a failure, and we only have one shot. You need to get the job done without them noticing.”

“Oh. Yeah, that’s a problem. Like, even if they find out after we’re gone it’s no good?”

>”Yup. And it gets worse. There aren’t many ponies around the access point, but it’s a cramped area. Nowhere to hide.”

“So we need to go when they’re not there.”

>”Yup.”

“And let me guess. There’s always somepony there?”

>”24/7. It’s effectively impossible to get in unseen.”

>”Well, that’s a shame. I guess we’ll call it off.”

>”Wait, no! We can do this-”

“I’m with D on this one. If we can’t do the job we shouldn’t even try. What’s the point?”

>”We can do this, girls! I have a plan! The Canterlot Exchange is in the western wing of the royal palace where security is at its highest.”

“You were right earlier when you said I wouldn’t like this.”

>”If a dangerous pony is sighted in the area all non-security personnel evacuate. They’re trying to keep them from being taken hostage.”

“So if a dangerous pony is sighted they’ll clear out and the network will be accessible. We need to be seen. But we also need to not be seen so they don’t know we were there. I’m confused.”

>”But there are other important things there. Lots of them in fact. Like the royal treasury.”

“Okay…”

>”If the royal treasury is raided all civilians will evacuate and the guards will reposition away from the network. You need to go in horn blazing and scare everyone away. Fight off the guards as long as you can, and if you’re able, blast the vault open and take what you can.”

“You want us to raid the treasury? What? Are you insane?”

>”Not ‘us’. You. Just you, Lyra. Derpy will split off and go for the actual mission objective. You have to break into the treasury by force on your own.”

>This was an extremely bad idea.

>”And you need to get out by hoof, and without your weapons. There can’t be anything to tie you to our investigations. This has to look like it’s completely unrelated.”

>”Wow! Glimmer, that’s a great plan!”

“I STRONGLY disagree. How many ways can this go wrong?”

>”Do you want your insurance policy or not?”

…

“How do I get out?”

>”I’ve picked up chatter about S.M.I.L.E. deployment. Two days from now at 14:00 they’re going to have all available agents attacking a monster at the same time. If we hit then, it’ll just be the guards. You can handle that, right?”

“What monster would be so bad that they need every agent at once?”

>“I think it was called… Yuri something.”

“Eurynomos! That’s a demon lord!”

>”Right, right. The demons are out to get you. Everyone’s a demon. Can we focus?”

>No.
>Not when Bonny was being thrown at that thing.

>”This is probably the only chance we’re going to get, so we’ve got to do it right. Lyra, I’ll disguise you with an illusion spell,. Derpy will use her cloaking. At five after two you go loud, make sure that every guard in Canterlot knows you’re there and knows you’re going for the treasury. Derpy will split off with the virus and plant it as soon as it’s safe.”

“Then once Derpy’s done I leave?”

>”No. If you suddenly turn tail it’s going to be suspicious. You try to finish the job, only turn back if absolutely necessary. It’s VERY important that you take as much as you can from the vault when you get there. They need to notice the loss instantly for it to be believable.”

“No. Not a chance. I don’t know what you’ve heard about me, but I’m not a thief.”

>Derpy looked at Lyra with a puzzled expression.
>She spoke in her usual goofy voice, betraying no anger, only confusion.

>”Haven’t you stolen a lot of S.M.I.L.E. stuff?”

>”She has. And it’s worth a lot more than some gems. Lyra’s probably one of the biggest thieves alive.”

“What? No, it’s not like that!”

>”Weren’t you complaining earlier that the gadget YOU STOLE was worth too much? It was millions of bits that YOU STOLE. You’re a thief, Lyra. Get over it.

>Starlight’s words hit hard.
>Lyra couldn’t believe it.
>How could she possibly be a thief?
>That wasn’t her!
>She was a good, law abiding pony!
>But she also couldn’t deny it.
>She’d stolen millions of bits worth of equipment.
>She took stuff she didn’t need, and stole things without even knowing what they were for.
>Somehow, somewhen, Lyra had become a thief.
>And not just any thief.
>One of the worst thieves ever.
>She’d taken a fortune worth of ill gotten gains.
>And she hadn’t even noticed it.

>”I’ll get you two a map so we can go over the plan in more detail. Derpy, your job should only take about 10 minutes. Lyra, you might be there for a while. Pack a lunch.”

“I don’t like this at all.”

>”It’s the best we’ve got. Unless you want to start poking around into the private affairs of the princesses without any insurance at all.”

>No.
>No, that sounded worse.

>”I’ll take care of the alibi. Don’t worry, you’re not going to get another ticket. All you need to worry about is making as much noise as possible. If you don’t actually get to the vault that’s fine, just so long as you make it clear that’s what you were after.”

“Is this really okay?”

>”Why are you hung up on this one thing? You’ve broken plenty of laws before, what’s different?”

“Every other time I’ve used my magic it was to protect myself. Violence just kinda… happened. Sure, I shouldn’t have been in those places. I was inviting it. But it still wasn’t what I wanted. You’re asking me to go in there PLANNING on hurting another pony! Hurting others is part of your plan! It’s terrible!”

>”I’m not asking you to kill them. Just rough them up a little.”

“Mana tide is dangerous, I could do some serious damage if things go wrong!”

>”We have no choice. You need to do it!”

“It’s wrong!”

>”You are going to do this!”

“You’re trying to boss me around now? Want me to tell you where you can shove that order?”

>”Fine. I’m turning you in!”

>She was bluffing.
>Starlight still needed Lyra.
>And she couldn’t risk Lyra turning her in in response.
>She wasn’t scared by the threat.
>She was enraged.

“Oh, really? You’re going to have a hard time talking after I’m done with you!”

>”STOP THIS AT ONCE!”

>There was no anger in Derpy’s voice.
>Her command was presented firmly and unwaveringly.
>Without no emotion save for urgency.
>She wasn’t pleading or scolding.
>It was an order that was to be obeyed without question.
>Much like a mother telling their foal to back away from the stove.

>”Starlight. You can’t tell Lyra how she uses her magic. That’s up to her to decide. If she thinks this is wrong, then it’s wrong.”

“Thank you.”

>”And Lyra. Right and wrong aren’t simple.”

>Was Derpy really defending Starlight’s position?

>”We have a choice. We can expose S.M.I.L.E. for what they are and show the world all their secrets, or we can let them keep going as they are. Either way we’re choosing. Are S.M.I.L.E. good or bad? But we need to know everything about them before we decide.”

>”Thank you D. Lyra, I’ve seen them mind control ponies. They’re acting like the monsters they claim to fight. If they’re evil then we have a duty to expose them. But if they’re really justified in what they’re doing, then we can’t afford to expose them. We need to know EVERYTHING. And we need to use every tool we’ve got to get there. Violence included.”

>Derpy put a comforting hoof on Lyra’s back.

>”Doing this is bad. But not doing it is also bad. Sometimes you can’t go with what’s good because nothing’s good. You need to go with what’s least bad. I don’t know what that is, you have to decide for yourself. Do you think you can do it without seriously hurting anypony? Do you think that it’s worth the risk? Don’t worry, I know you’ll make the right choice.”

>It made sense.
>But was it really okay?
>Was it right to use her magic for this?
>She’d promised her master she’d be a champion of justice.
>And despite how cheesy that was, it was a promise.
>Could this really be considered justice?
>No, it wasn’t.
>But was there any justice in the world?
>Bonny, the bestest pony ever, was in hell.
>Celestia lead some of her agents to their death for basically no reason, but she was still in charge.
>The whole planet was in danger of being destroyed with not even the good ponies spared.
>How could it be a just world if the kind and the cruel alike shared the same fate?
>No, not even the same fate.
>The cruel and the selfish were rewarded.
>The gas and the bomb, the two most horrible things Lyra could think of, were greatly rewarded while Celestia’s mercy was punished.
>With the bits becoming worthless, justice was not served.
>The ponies who’d worked hard all their life and saved up had lost everything they’d earned.
>While the ponies who carried debt were rewarded.
>How could that be just?
>The more she thought about it the more examples she could find.
>Rarity owned everything, and it was all given to her through the crown.
>Fillies and colts were given impossible work for no fault of their own.
>Applejack’s body had been ruined because she was brave enough to help.
>Again and again, bad things happened because ponies were good, and good things happened to those who were bad.
>They needed to know what S.M.I.L.E. truly was.
>The last hope for a dying world, or the reckless oppressors who’d invited ruin to their own kind.
>If they didn’t know, that was bad.
>Maybe she had to be bad to make something good happen.
>Because if she was good, something bad would happen.
>So no. Lyra couldn’t claim she was a champion of justice.
>But that was fine.
>Because she served something greater than justice.
>She served truth.

“I’ll be ready.”

A few days later…

>Lyra Heartstrings approached the Canterlot palace.
>No, not Lyra.
>A navy blue unicorn stallion.
>Her- his cutiemark wasn’t an instrument of any sort.
>It was a big cloth sack with a couple of bits spilling out.
>A bit on the muzzle in Lyra’s eyes, but she couldn’t deny that it was good spellwork.
>She gazed at her reflection in a window as she approached the palace.
>It was bizarre to see the red eyes staring back at her.
>Unnerving too.
>Something about them seemed off.
>Not off as in unbelievable.
>Off as in unstable.
>Like they were focused on something that wasn’t really there.
>As though they were the eyes of a mad pony who saw a world nopony else could see.
>Those red eyes seemed to glare straight into her soul in an accusatory fashion.
>Her mask knew what she was about to do.
>And he was judging her.
>She pulled her gaze away and continued her approach.
>It was a gorgeous sunny day outside, like most days in Equestria.
>A Lyra took a moment to take in the wide open skies above.
>Down below, Bonny was-
>She shook her head vigorously.
>Bon-Bon would be fine.
>She was the best of the best.
>Lyra had to focus on the mission!
>The palace courtyard was mercifully empty, a sign that there were relatively few ponies present today.
>She’d still have to worry about the palace staff.
>But the civilians would mostly be out of the way.
>Lyra moved to the west wing entrance.
>The large, ornately carved oaken doors towered above her at the massive gate.
>A guard stood on either side of the doorway, eyeing her warily.
>They carried with them the traditional armor and spears, doubtlessly for show alone.
>Because Lyra could see the distinctive glint of shining metal around their legs.
>These ponies were carrying pistols.

>”This place is off limits. Move along, sir.”

>Lyra opened her mouth to correct them.
>Who could mistake her for a stallion?
>But she managed to stop herself just in time.

“Uhh.”

>Come on, Lyra!
>Think!
>You need a good one liner!

>”Sir?”

>She backed away a bit, racking her brain for ideas.
>The guards seemed to be getting worried as they watched her.

“Oh! Got it! Don’t worry, that rule’s only for the public.”

>So cool!

>”What?”

>The two guards’ pistols were ripped out of their grasp.
>Their spears were snapped in half.
>The points were turned at their former owners.

>”Oh my goodness. Would you look at the time? I’m going on my break.”

>”I’m going on his break too.”

>They both galloped off, heading towards the front entrance.
>A shrill shriek filled the air as they passed.

“The royal guard, fillies and gentlecolts.”

>Lyra cast eruption.
>The sturdy wooden doorway before her was no match for her magic.
>The barrier exploded into flinders making a horrendous sound.
>If she went in she was cornered.
>But she’d be in a defensible position.
>She had to extract herself somehow.
>Hopefully the guard deployed too slowly.
>If not, she had a plan.
>Lyra walked her way into the room before her, snapped spears in tow.
>The ancient building was a mess of hallways and corridors.
>A poorly planned mishmash of annexes and additions built around a relatively small base.
>It had been expanded time and again over the centuries, growing to meet the needs of the ever expanding state.
>What had once been a relatively modest home for princess Celestia was now an enormous complex that housed nearly every aspect of the Canterlot bureaucracy.
>Why they hadn’t simply put these things elsewhere Lyra couldn’t say.
>The layout would have been far simpler if they’d decentralized their offices.
>Maybe it would have made communications too slow and clumsy?
>Maybe the princess just didn’t like walking?
>If memory served her target was straight ahead.
>She galloped down the snaking complex, alarm blaring in the background.
>Administrative offices and janitorial closets alike blurred past as she pushed through.
>A heavy wall of polished granite lie ahead, pathways splitting both left and right.
>She COULD go around.
>But it would take too long.
>Lyra cast what was quickly becoming her favourite spell.
>The eruption erased the masonry before her in a flash.
>She stepped through the dust cloud before it had settled.
>The small, cramped chamber was brilliantly lit, light pouring out from bulbs affixed to every wall.
>Lyra immediate spotted a security camera in the ceiling.
>She ripped it down with a yank from her telekinesis before moving on to the clerk opposite the entrance
>He was a middle aged chocolate brown stallion with a receding mane and eyes like pinpricks.
>Lyra could see him frantically mashing a button behind the reinforced glass.

“‘Sup?”

>”H-hi!”

“Where's the vault?”

>”Uhh…”

“Really? I've been to ‘uhh’ and they said it wasn't there. So somepony’s lying. But not you, right? Oh. Excuse me.”

>Lyra grabbed the rubble with her telekinesis and prepared a thick, destructive cloud in what remained of the wall.

“Forgot to close the door. I do hate it when other ponies interrupt my conversations. So, where’s the vault?”

>”I don’t know, I swear!”

“So what you’re saying is that you’re of no use to me?”

>He ducked down out of sight.

>”STEP OUT WITH YOUR HOOVES UP!”

>A call came from behind her. 
>Reinforcements had arrived.
>Far quicker than expected.

>”How would he walk with his hooves up, Nitwit?”

>”I keep telling you, my name is Knit Witly! Not Nitwit!”

>”That takes too long to say though.”

>”Then just call me Knit! That’s what everypony else does!”

>”But it’s so informal! We’re supposed to be the ROYAL GUARD. We need to be proper!”

“Are they always like this?”

>The clerk didn’t answer.
>She turned around to look at the guards.
>Two of them were arguing heatedly, presumably Nitwit and his partner.
>Several others had congregated.
>Spears and firearms were visible.

“Eep!”

>She ducked behind the undamaged parts of the wall to get out of line of fire.

>”Look, I’m just saying that being called Nitwit is hurtful, okay?”

>They'd come WAY faster than she'd expected.
>For the first time in memory, Lyra was impressed by the royal guard.
>She split some mana off of her undertow.
>Its intensity faded faster than she'd expected; the once deadly wall of flying stone was now entirely traversable.
>One would not get through unharmed, but one would indeed get through.

“Something to work on.”

>She scraped together her spare mana and hefted one of the snapped spears.
>It would have been easy to link her mana.
>Then she'd have power to spare.
>But if they saw her do that they'd know who she was.
>Lyra strained to make the best strike she could with her limited resources.

“I’m gunna smash the window. Might want to step back.”

>The clerk ran to the right, going out of sight.
>Lyra had no idea what lie there.
>She hurled her spear at the glass point first.
>To her amazement, the glass did not shatter.
>It flexed and cracked into thousands of pieces, but it did not fall.

“WHAT?”

>How could glass withstand that?
>That had been a brutal hit!
>This was… bad.
>It would be easy enough to break the glass down.
>An eruption would surely do the trick, and if not, she’d just blast the wall down.
>But she’d been counting on having that glass.
>She needed some way to look outside without exposing herself, and she’d been planning on using it as a makeshift mirror.

“Right. Always bring a mirror. Okay, think.”

>Scrying spell would work.
>But she didn’t know how to do that.
>She could summon a mirror.
>But with her evocation skills, there was no way she’d be able to maintain the undertow.
>The camera’s lense was too small.

>”Could you at LEAST put a pause between Nit and Wit?”

>Maybe there’s something on the desk?
>Lyra groped blindly with her magic, tossing whatever she could find in the air.
>Papers, a ledger, a clipboard…
>Nothing good.
>She couldn’t see them.
>She COULD attack blindly.
>But that would risk seriously hurting them.
>She couldn’t just wait, she’d run out of mana eventually.
>There had to be SOMETHING-
>The spears!
>She positioned the point in the doorway.
>The reflection was lousy, but she could see what she was doing.
>Kinda.

“Ugh. Lazy guards. Polish your… there!”

>She formed a geyser strike on the other side of the wall, seeking to weaponize thin air.
>But she quickly dissolved it.
>Last time she’d attacked a guard, she’d given them a concussion.
>She couldn’t do that again!
>They’d done nothing wrong!
>Knockouts were off the table.
>They were just too risky.
>But there were no shortage of vulnerable points on a pony.
>She formed a new air geyser strike and blasted one of the guards on the side of their leg.
>The unexpected strike to the peroneal nerve came as a shock.
>The guard collapsed to the ground, leg numb.

>”We’ve got a class three ouchie! I repeat, a class three ouchie!”

>Another was brought low by a jab to the celiac plexus.
>A third felt her wrath hit their brachial plexus.
>They stumbled in a daze for a moment before tripping on their own legs.
>The remaining guards fled, leaving their fallen comrades behind.

“COWARDS!”

>This was getting sad.
>Really, REALLY sad!
>It was amazing to Lyra that not long ago these ponies were better trained than her.
>Were the standards of the royal guard really that low?
>Surely not!
>But the alternative, Lyra realised, was that she had a flair for violence.
>That couldn’t be it either.
>She was a peace loving musician, not a soldier.
>How could SHE be suited for combat?
>A mystery for another time.
>She took a moment to ensure the injured guards were disarmed before moving in.
>They wouldn’t stay down for long so she had to be quick.
>In their dazed states it wasn’t hard to wrest their weapons away and pull them in.
>She prepared yet another eruption to blast a path through the shatter proof glass.
>Her constant spellcasting was beginning to take a toll.
>The barrier before her exploded with a deafening blast.
>She brushed the broken, but oddly shaped glass away with her magic as she walked through.
>A large, vault door lay to the right.
>And a cowering clerk stood before it.

“Oh, you found the vault! Thanks, buddy! Why are you shaking? Are you cold? Why not go get a hot drink?”

>She gestured away with one of the broken spears and stepped aside.
>He bolted, and Lyra saw no reason to stop him.
>She even stopped her undertow long enough to let him out.
>Once her wall of destruction was back in place Lyra turned to focus on the vault.
>A massive steel door covered in keyholes and dials set into a stone wall barred her entry into the royal treasury.
>Through that door lie all the crown’s liquid assets, or so she’d been told.
>Starlight’s intel had been good before.
>And this place certainly looked important.
>But did she have enough power left to get through?
>Not as she was.
>But there was nopony watching anymore.
>Surely it was safe.
>Lyra linked her mana.
>She drank deeply of the arcane as she prepared her eruption.
>Lyra stepped back for safety before she unleashed all of her destructive might in one cataclysmic blast.
>It took awhile for her to catch her breath, and even longer for the dust to settle to reveal…
>Nothing.
>An empty chamber, totally devoid of any treasure.
>Not a single bit could be seen within.
>She already knew they were broke.
>But seeing it spelled out before her was still something of a shock.
>The crown was quite literally penniless.
>Lyra herself was richer than princess Celestia.
>Or was she?
>She mostly owned plastic bits.
>Bits that were supposedly exchangeable for real money at any time.
>Bits that were backed by the bankrupt state.
>She knew they were cheating.
>That they issued more bits than they actually had.
>But to learn that there was absolutely nothing behind it at all, that was something else entirely.
>The entire Equestrian economy was a lie.
>It was time to go-
>Her undertow was gone.
>She couldn’t see that it was gone, of course.
>But the magic had just failed.
>Somepony had just ripped her spell apart in the blink of an eye.
>She was about to run into somepony competent.
>She prepared another eruption as quickly as she could.
>Luna casually flew in.
>It was a strange sight, seeing somepony fly in such a cramped place.
>But her movements were graceful and smooth.
>The low ceiling was not a hindrance.

>”I must admit I’m impressed. Hold your head high, for it is rare that somepony earns my accolades. Perhaps, had you been discovered at a younger age, you may have been an agent yourself. I suppose we’ll never know. But I must ask, why is it you’ve come here?”

>Had she not noticed the burning hot ball of air?
>Or was she just not concerned?

>”You didn’t strike me as one who cared so much for wealth, Lyra Heartstrings.”

>Not exactly what she was hoping to hear.

“I-”

>”Yes, yes. You’re not Lyra. She’s in Ponyville sitting on a bench. She’s attracted quite a crowd sitting like a normal pony for once.”

>My reputation is ruined!
>CURSE YOU STARLIGHT!

>”The spellwork on your illusions is impressive. Very impressive. I doubt that I could have picked you out of a crowd. But this fighting style is unmistakably yours, I can think of none other who is so far above the average pony, while also so far below the average agent.”

“Lady, I got no idea who you’re talkin’ bout.”

>”Ha! Is that your stallion voice? It’s hilarious! Do it again, again!”

“I don’t got time for-”

>Luna’s laughter drowned out Lyra’s voice.
>She took the opportunity to gallop away.

>”Oh, that is PRECIOUS!”

>An overwhelmingly powerful telekinetic field grabbed her leg.
>The vice like grip felt as though it was intent on pulverising her bone.
>Lyra was very much stuck.

>”You’re a very dangerous pony. But I doubt you’re enough to deal with me.”

>She was right.
>Lyra had no chance of overpowering Luna.
>She couldn’t move either, so running wasn’t an option.
>But there was still one way out.

“Let me go or I level everything.”

>She dug deep, pumping all of the mana she could hold into her eruption.
>Her linked magic made it trivial to maintain the spellform.
>The destructive might of her spell was growing rapidly.

“I go free, or I destroy the entire annex. The vault and everything around it will be GONE. There’s no way you’ll be able to hide it either. I’d like to see how well your fake bits are received when everypony learns you’re broke.”

>Luna’s eyes widened.
>This had caught her completely off guard.

>”I- you- oh. I’d assumed that spell was meant for me.”

>She thought it was meant for her, yet she wasn’t afraid of it.
>That seemed odd.
>Did she seriously think she could survive a blast like that?
>Maybe.

“Better hurry up. I can’t hold it forever.”

>”Well, you’ve caused no significant injuries, and I appreciate that you’re not trying to kill me; I’m often threatened with that these days, so this is a nice change of pace. And I doubt that even I could contain that blast in time. Sister WOULD be quite upset if her ruse was revealed. Very well. I hereby absolve you of all the crimes you’ve committed today.”

“Not good enough. I’m not going to fall for your tricks twice! You’re just going to haul me in for something I did earlier!”

>”I shan’t arrest you for any of your past crimes either.”

“So you’re going to have somepony else do it. I’m losing my grip here.”

>”I hereby absolve you of all your past crimes. Every single one. You don’t even need to pay that littering fine.”

“I’m trespassing right now, you could still get me for that. I want immunity.”

>”Done.”

“And let Bonny come home.”

>”No. I need her. Go ahead, blow it up. I can’t afford to lose her.”

“You’d rather have an enormous financial crisis and ruin your reputation than send Bonny home?”

>”She’s too important. I doubt she’d wish to come home yet anyway. She doesn’t strike me as the kind of pony who’d leave her comrades to face hell on their own.”

>That was…
>True.
>The idea had never even occurred to Lyra before, but she couldn’t deny it was likely true.
>Bon-Bon probably WANTED to be in hell.
>Well, not actually to be in hell.
>But she probably wanted to do her part.
>And she’d be furious with herself if she sat at home idly while all this mess was happening.
>It was a shocking revelation, but Bon-Bon would doubtlessly choose to go down there if asked.
>Her eruption slowly began to swell as she reversed the process of forming the spell.
>It grew and expanded slowly, decreasing the pressure within.
>Wait.
>There was something else.
>It was a shot in the dark, but it was worth trying.

“You have to stop blackmailing me too.”

>”Oh.”

>She suddenly looked extremely uncomfortable.

>”Okay, but you can’t tell Sweetie Drops about that!”

>The spell continued to swell and weaken.

“Wait a second! You’re the princess! You don’t need an excuse to arrest me.”

>”I shall make no moves that are intended to lead to your arrest.”

>The eruption faded away into nothing.

“Do you ALWAYS cheat on your deals?”

>”It’s something of a reflex. Not one that I’m proud of mind, but a reflex regardless.”

“Pretty weird reflex.”

>”I think you’d find it’s quite common among my kind.”

>Lyra wasn’t sure what that’s supposed to mean.

“So you need my help with something. What?”

>”Same as usual. I wish to consult you from time to time. Ask you your opinion.”

“Why would you need my permission to do anything?”

>”I don’t need your permission.”

“Okay, fine. Why do you want my input?”

>”You’re unusually well informed for a civilian.”

>Still not actually what she wanted.
>Why did Luna need ANYPONY’S input?
>She was clearly dodging the question.
>But…
>Lyra had noticed a pattern.

“Every time you ask me you’re planning on disobeying princess Celestia, right? She didn’t like the gas or the bomb, she didn’t want to betray, those were your ideas. Not hers. You obviously don’t trust her judgement, otherwise you’d do what she said. But if you’re asking me you also don’t trust yourself. Why?”

>”Right. Why would I have trouble trusting my own judgement? Why me of all ponies? It’s not like I’ve ever done anything wrong before.”

>The sarcasm was palpable.

>”I am well aware that the things I do are morally questionable. But I am also aware of the cost of my other options. Morality has a price, and it’s one I’d rather not pay.”

“Sometimes you have to do a bad thing so that a good thing can happen. And sometimes doing a good thing is bad.”

>”I must sound like a lunatic.”

“Actually? It makes sense.”

>A small smile tried to form on Luna’s muzzle for a fraction of a second.
>A small twitch of the sides of the lips, quickly vanishing as though it had never been there.

>”That’s a relief. The reaction I elicited from the others when I mentioned using the bomb had me frightened. It’s extremely rare that sister shows genuine anger. She wasn’t even mad at Sombra, merely saddened by the pain he caused. Yet she was angry at me. Was it really such a vile thing to propose? Was my soul truly so tainted? I was going to consult everypony I could on the matter, but you came to me. You let me know that it was possible for a sane pony to agree with me, that there was a civilian out there who agreed that it was the right thing to do.”

“I don’t think it was right. But I think it was necessary.”

>”Hm. I am no longer who I once was, Lyra. Sister claims I’m going too far, that I’ve crossed a line. I can’t see the line anymore. Is there a line? Was it ever there in the first place? From my perspective it’s all so simple and clear. But I wonder if I’d have said that before…”

>She trailed off, seemingly staring into empty space.

“I’m not the one you should be asking.”

>”I ask many ponies. Any and all who know enough to offer a meaningful response. Sometimes it’s many, but increasingly often it’s been few. There are precious few who understand the scale of our problems.”

“Why not just, I don’t know, TELL somepony?”

>”How should I say this… ah! Have you ever wondered how S.M.I.L.E. has stayed hidden for so long? Very few even know it exists.”

>That was true.
>Even Moondancer, who basically worked for them, didn’t know.
>How would one hide something so big?
>Sooner or later somepony would let something slip.
>If not by choice then by accident.
>Unless they couldn’t.

“Mind control isn’t a good pick though. It’s noticeable. Not the kind of thing you’d want to use too heavily.”

>”Indeed. Mind control has too many drawbacks. You’d want to avoid that form of magic when possible, perhaps a backup plan.”

>Avoid that kind of magic.
>But not magic in general.
>They had some kind of magic that affected a pony whether they wished it or not.
>Something that lingered, possibly for their entire life.

“A curse. But it would be next to impossible to encode all the dos and don’ts into a spell. The spell matrix would be unbelievably big. You’d want something simple and concise.”

>”If one cannot curse somepony to follow a thousand rules, how might one do the same thing with a single order?”

“You list the rules in some other way then curse them to follow that list. The contract! I keep hearing about this contract, Applejack mentioned it, you kinda mentioned it.”

>Bon-Bon mentioned it.
>She said it needed updating.

“You’re cursing ponies so that they have no choice but to follow it. And you’re cursed too, aren’t you?”

>”If I were cursed I’d likely be unable to confirm or deny.”

“But every contract has loopholes. And you cheat on your deals.”

>”It’s something of a reflex.”

“So you can’t tell me what’s happening, but you CAN lead me to the information I need.”

>But something wasn’t right.
>Bon-Bon was able to talk about it no problem.
>Maybe she’d found a loophole too?

“I know that you’re not actually inventing all your gear yourself. Can you lead me to your source?”

>”It’s been quite convenient for me that you’ve taken such initiative in your search. I’ll be contacting you again with more questions, hopefully later rather than sooner. Good day.”

>Not an answer.
>She probably wasn’t getting one.

“Wait a second. What do I get out of this?”

>”What is it you want?”

“I want to know how Bonny is doing! I want to know everything!”

>”Hrmm. I’ll start letting her letters through. They’ll have to be redacted, but they’ll arrive.”

“You’ve been withholding her mail?”

>She walked away without answering, ignoring the rubble as she moved.

>”You have to escape on your own. It shouldn’t be hard, the guard is terrified.”

“What about S.M.I.L.E. though?”

>”I wouldn’t worry about that for now.”

>Right, they were busy right then.
>Wait a second.
>Why wasn’t she with them?
>Wasn’t Luna like, their leader?

“Aren’t you supposed to be fighting Eurynomos right now?”

>Luna flinched when she heard the name.
>She looked around herself in a panic before collecting herself.

>”Something came up.”

“Is it that bad?”

>”We have a plan.”

“Right, but is it a GOOD plan?”

>Luna stopped and turned her head to face Lyra.

>”That’s EXACTLY what Zero said this morning. Word for word.”

“Are you going to tell me the plan or not?”

>”She said that too.”

>Luna turned again and continued to walk away.
>Lyra wasn’t sure at first, but there was something off.
>It looked like Luna was swaying slightly as she walked.
>Was she unwell?
>Had she been wounded in some way?

“Are you okay?”

>”I’ll live.”

>She was definitely hurt.
>That was extremely bad.
>She had thrown everything they had at hell, and still princess Luna was wounded.
>At every step they seemed to be just ahead of the enemy, barely able to scrape out a win.
>But with Eurynomos consuming another lord…
>And now their leader was hurt.

“You’re losing, aren’t you?”

>Luna stopped.
>She vanished with a sickly wave of corrupt mana.
>Primary objective complete.
>Time to leave.
>Lyra met minimal resistance on her way out.
>She saw guards from time to time.
>But they all seemed eager to keep their distance.
>As she disappeared into the back alleys of Canterlot she couldn’t help but wonder.
>Wonder at what she was becoming.
>At who she was.
>Those fake red eyes were not her own.
>They couldn’t be!
>They were angry.
>Violent.
>Dangerous.
>But so too was she.

“Is this me?”

>She didn’t know.
>She made her way to ponyville, still with no answer.
Continued in part 3
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