NiktoBarada

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"Some, but if you're talking about the big ones that was caused by a manticore." He answered back easily enough. "Poor thing was infected with a strain of rabies and by the time I even reached the town that was having issues with the nearby wildlife, it was far passed the point of no return. Picture a large winged lion with a scorpion tail consumed by pain fueled rage to the point of berserk mindlessness, a desire to try and relieve that pain by lashing out at everything around it and its ability to feel its own body heavily numbed and you'll be able to understand why it was a terrible time for everyone concerned."

Because it was a lovely day at the moment, Copper was taking his time rather then going all out and it was only polite to ask questions back, he asked "What about yourself? What do you get up to when you're not running through the woods?" 

"The fact you still live and are reasonably intact is rather impressive." TT replied, "Manticores can be extremely dangerous even when they're not rabid.  Being a very large carnivore means they have to eat quite a bit.

We used to work for the Manehattan Museum of Natural History as a linguist." TT stated, "Wandered about temples in Tenochtitlan, pyramids in Pharoah's Vale, and anywhere a sample of ancient languages or cultures could be found !"

She sighed heavily.  "But we were downsized at the museum, so for now we are unemployed.  So now we're trying to set up a consulting business; the ability to speak all languages  - even Bureaucrat and Legalese - should be of value to somepony.  

We don't know who, but we don't have to.  We just came to town to set up a post office box so clients can send requests and payment."

 

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"Looks like we finally got some decent weather for this leg of the race," the aerion stallion Midnight Oil said with a friendly smile. "Here's hoping it continues. This is my first 'Running of the Leaves.' I take it you two are newbies as well?"

"I can't speak for the mare but this is my first year running. Shame about the bridge but... well, it looked rather old and due for repair or replacement soon anyway. How are you both enjoying it so far?" Strong Copper replied.

 

"A rather enjoyable run so far."  TT answered, "This is our first year running.  We've heard about the race, but since we're here, and have time to kill, we thought 'Why not ?'

And that was some good work at the bridge." she continued, "That could have turned out - very badly.  Are foals that young supposed to be running in this race ?"

Tongue Twister trotted along at her moderate pace as she watched the other racers that took the long path filter in.  

The aerion Midnight Oil.  Berry Punch.  A unicorn mare that gave her the creeps for some reason - like the dying echoes of a near forgotten nightmare.

The unicorn mare took off at full speed, and Berry Punch did as well.  

 

She noted a pale yellow/orange unicorn stallion ahead.  

"Ah !  That's the unicorn at the bridge that helped those two youngsters.  Looks like he's trying the slow and steady routine too."

She noticed his Cutie Mark - a magnifying lens over an unusual animal print.

And quite a few scars.

"A few of those cryptozoological mysteries get a bit testy upon being discovered ?" she simply had to ask him.

 

Not going all-out.

Hidden Texts - dad had trouble with busybody.  Turns out antique book had clues to untouched vault in Tenochtitlan.  They went there, but got in trouble.  TT had to rescue them.

Datum : parents Caveat Emptor, Shady Dealer.  Caveat is a 'curio merchant' (kind of the Stan Pines of Equestria); Shady ships packages (can get things from point A to point B fast, safe, or under the table, depending on how much you want to spend).  Used to be a card dealer in Las Pegasus decades ago.  Math Cutie Mark (probability/game theory).  Shops in Canterlot (where the money is). 

Polar Vortex - pompous pegasus that stole the treasure from the vault : a sample of Primal Clay that could be used to create or repair any living thing.  Why TT was trapped in Maretropolis for a week or two.

Where she returned after being corrupted by Hou Shuren.  Picked up a few useful books and a few quirky artifacts.  

Dad set up the Devil's Business Card enchantment for her; the mailing address to contact TT is a post office box in Ponyville.

Currently running and open, due to Right of Survivorship (everyone else sorta disappeared/stopped posting)

 

STAR, Shadow Of Ice, Hidden base north of Las Pegasus - few misadventures while working for this group.

Datum : TT may or may not have been an agent for a secret organization (at least 3 looking for whatever was in that vault in Tenochtitlan)

Currently running and open, due to Right of Survivorship (everyone else sorta disappeared/stopped posting)

 

Dark Rendezvous - encountered Hou Shuren

Datum : tried to observe the conversation between Hou Shuren and Sombra; got caught and corrupted.

White on bottom third of legs now black; wings now made of mystic mercury - can shape into anything EXCEPT a functional pair of wings.

Currently has a mass of dark magic living in her head (since it took over one of her tulpas, she can't expunge it just yet)

Thread actually ended !

 

Running of the Leaves, 2020 - she won !  Leading to Cooling Off before Warming Up

 

X-marks-the-spot - 'interesting' conversations with Trixie and Scootaloo.

 

Secrets-of-black-sands-libraries-of-saddlelon  - forcibly ended months ago.

 

Loose Ends and Gates Ajar - currently active.

 

Bridge

"Wow.  A lot of ponies chose the bridge ..." TT noted to herself as she trotted along, "Quite the crowd here !   And - ARE THOSE FOALS ?!
How did that colt get ahead of us ?"

"You must be more pathetic at running than we first surmised." the Abomination offered.

TT internally glared at the collection of dark magic inhabiting her head.

The bridge was becoming more unstable by the moment - a unicorn stallion announced that they shouldn't stay here.  Once the colt was safely one the other side, he took off down the path.  Soon followed by Tempest and the rest of the crowd.

"Perhaps we should take the other route." Abomination stated, "I see no point in risking our lives for this, and since you don't care about winning, what's being a few minutes behind the others that already took the long way matter ?"

"I chose to go this way.  So this way we shall go." TT replied as she took a few deep breaths to focus on a technique she learned, completely shutting out the outside world.

 
She then strolled towards the bridge, one hoof perfectly placed in front of the other in a precise straight line.

Oddly, when she strolled onto the bridge, there was no sound of her hoofsteps.  Or the boards groaning from her weight.

She stayed near a wall as she walked forward, since that is where the strongest support beams were.  If the bridge were unmaintained for decades, the outside spans would be the only parts left.

"The Leaf Drifts Upon the Wind ?  Where did you learn this technique ? "

"I spent a few years in Neighpal.  Trying to get what was left of my mind back together.  Picked up a few things."

"I thought you were too straight-laced to cheat !" the Abomination chided, "The rules specifically stated 'no flying' and 'no magic' !"

"This is a mental discipline.  Not magic.  And thanks to Hou's corruption, I certainly cannot fly !"

After a few moments of focused walking, she reached the other side of the bridge.

 

Bridge crossed.

Bridge

Tongue Twister looked up to the cloudy skies and groaned as she trotted along.  Even though her heavy cape was made from alpaca wool and virtually waterproof, there were limits !

"Well,  SOME pegasi really messed things up !" she groused as she glared at the roiling, rain-laden clouds.

Further down the trodden path the way diverged into two routes : the main route across a bridge, and another route that went around the long way.

She could hear rushing water from somewhere behind the trees in the distance.  "That is most certainly NOT the bubbling of a brook !" she mused, "All this water must have flooded it !

 

Oh joy.  So now I have a choice : the long, safe way.  Or the short, risky way ..."

She smirked before laughing maniacally.

"I spend months every year wandering through jungles !  Searching ancient temples, tombs and vaults all over Equestria for examples of ancient languages !

 

Faced down all sorts of tricks and traps both magical and mundane !  I rescued my parents from a Tenochtitlan vault just a few months ago !

'Risky' is a relative term - and my baseline is a bit higher than most others !

I am NOT the incompetent Nothing everyone thinks I am !

Or wants me to be !" she continued before defiantly heading for the bridge.

Tongue Twister had looked around a bit to familarize herself with the town.

She noted a mare selling bon-bons, and made a mental note to buy one or two boxes from her after the race.  TT's dad's birthday was coming up in a week, and that stallion does love his sweets !

She swiveled her ears a few times, and smelled the breeze.  She looked thoughtful for a moment, but got over it.

"Good thing I'm wearing this heavy cape then !" she mused when the race coordinator stated there was some poor weather in Whitetail Woods.

She remembered a rather recent and - unpleasant - encounter in Whitetail Woods.

She was off into a fast trot once the coordinator blew his whistle.

After a few moments, she blinked, and her eyes changed to gold with vertical slit pupils on oily black.
 

She blinked again, and her eyes returned to normal sky blue with round pupils on white.
 

Sounds like something She Who Should Not Be might do for fun while she's in town.
 

Tongue Twister signing up !

 

https://www.canterlot.com/topic/23213-tongue-twister-ready/?do=findComment&comment=599243

 

Tongue Twister disembarked at the Ponyville Station, and looked around for the Post Office.

 

Finding it rather quickly (for despite being home to five of Harmony's Chosen, the town wasn't all that large or busy), she made her way over, keeping her corrupted wings hidden under a large, dark blue cape.

 

Setting up a post office box for her new business wasn't difficult - for just a few bits a year, she had a valid mail address so others could contact her.

 

She pinned one of her 'Phantom Consulting, Inc' business cards on the bulletin board, since it never hurt to advertise.  And it could be quite some time before she got a response from that "Devil's Business Card" enchantment her father had set up with her.

 

She meandered off to the closest restaurant for something to eat.

 

While waiting for her order of a daisy sandwich and some hay fries, she pondered what she was going to do next.

 

 

TT looked around the infamous town of Ponyville.

 

"There must be something interesting going on around here somewhere ..."

When the sun hit the card a certain way, she noticed some writing on it.  It was a very tight and tiny script.  Her father's hornwriting.

The script was an explanation : 'look in your saddlebags for more information', an instruction : 'hold this card up when you speak the verse', and a simple rhyme.

So Tongue Twister read the rhyme enough times to be sure she'd memorized it perfectly, then looked around to verify no one was watching.

Holding the card aloft, she intoned : 

"The message wrote upon this card
Now cross any distance - mile, inch, feet or yard,
To reach any who might have need
Of any skill I possess, I shall take heed !
Be the cause small or be it great, 
I commend ye now to the Winds of Fate."

With the last word, the card began to burn with a golden flame, until there was nothing left but ashes that disappeared into the etheric winds.

"Thanks daddy !" TT thought to herself with a broad smile on her face.
 

Upon returning to the real world, she headed for the train station to buy a ticket for her trip to Ponyville.

While contemplating her next irrelevant move, Tongue Twister is scribbling notes in her journal while singing ""Hey There Cthulhu" very quietly.
 
 

Tongue Twister noticed that she'd filled two pages with near random phrases in multiple languages - they were mnemonic keys meant to jog her memory later.

"Well, at least the train ride to Ponyville will only be half as long as from Las Pegasus to here." she mused as she looked over one of the 'Phantom Consulting, Inc.' business cards she had.  "Just have to stop by their post office to set up a mail box.  

Shouldn't be too trying an ordeal ..." 
 

 

Tongue Twister took a few moments to assess what she was looking at as she slowly walked around the statue.

"Queen Chrysalis, fighting with everything she had to the very end, even though it was pointless.
Raging against the dying of the light.  I can respect that !

Cozy Glow, in way over her youthful head.  She may be a manipulative genius, but she's still just a kid.  She saw what she wanted, and went after it.  Too bad it was the wrong target.  She doesn't know what's ahead for her; thus the look of fear.

Lord Tirek, always a slave to his appetite for power, no matter how much power he had.  A hamster running on a wheel is still a hamster, no matter how fast it runs.  He's been in Tartarus before, thus his look of cringing despair.

I wonder what form of petrification the Royal Sisters and Discord hit them with ?"

"How many forms are there ?" the dark magic Abomination in TT's head inquired with a chuckle.

"At least three that I know of."  TT replied, "The first is the gaze of the cockatrice.  If they turn you to stone, time essentially stops for you.  A thousand years could pass, and you wouldn't even notice.

The second is thanatological preservation.  The process killed them, and this statue is composed of their petrified corpses.  Possible, but not likely, given the standard reverence Equestrians have for life.

The worst is the Soul Death .  They are aware but frozen in immobile stone.  I suspect Discord could withstand such treatment, but only because he's an immortal spirit needed to maintain the balance of Order and Chaos.

For mortals trapped like that, the mind can consume itself.  Rage will burn away all sense and sentience in an attempt to maintain its existence.  If you were angry before, there will be NOTHING left but rage afterwards, since there is literally little else to do but fixate upon and plot vengeance.  The more spiritual or contemplative folk might hold up better though.
But 'spiritual' or 'contemplative' are not adjectives I would apply to the Terrible Trio.

Turning foes to stone is at worst, torture and at best, a delaying tactic.  It's hoping that someone in the future can do what you could not."

 "And your paragons of virtue, the Royal Sisters, did this to them ?" the Abomination asked while chuckling, "Doesn't sound too friendly to me !"

"No.  It sounds like kicking someone when they're down." TT replied flatly, "Mercy falls upon the just and unjust equally - THAT is why it's considered a virtue.  I've found that when someone says 'you do not deserve mercy !!!!!!', they never had any intention of showing any.

Harmony's Judgement was to restore them to their weaker forms.  I'd guess as a form of shunning - walking a world that wants no part of you can be quite punitive."

"Let those three walk free ?" the Abomination asked, actually surprised, "They are the greatest threat your world has ever seen !"

Tongue Twister laughed hysterically within her mind.  "Those three ?  A threat ?!  They are not a threat to Harmony's Chosen !"

Her mind went dark and cold briefly as she continued flatly "No one is anymore." before returning to normal.

"Lord Tirek can pull the magic out of living creatures, but has to get fairly close to do so." she continued, "All one needs do is throw rocks, insults, javelins, spears, poisoned darts, kitchen sinks, rotten fruit, or stun spells from range.  Anything BUT magic would do.

Cozy Glow could only manipulate ponies that didn't know what she is like.  Now that everyone knows how she really is, she'd have trouble convincing any creature to lend her even a single bit for food, even if they could see the shape of her ribs under her skin.

Buck, they'd probably attack her on sight !  Despite all the talk of friendship and getting along, some ponies can be VERY vicious, petty and vindictive.  After all, it only took the 'Terrible Trio' a few weeks of spreading rumors to bring back the Windigoes !  One would suspect that if the three tribes were as united as they claim they are, that shouldn't have worked so easily.

And Queen Chrysalis ?  Needing to skulk about in the shadows, trying to gather what few crumbs of love she can stumble upon ?  Hating ponies, but unable to do anything too horrible to them, for fear of drawing murderous attention to herself ?

Letting them wander would be a cruel mercy." she continued before finding a bench and pulling out her notebook to begin some work.  "The Wheel has turned further than I thought.

"Let's see here : 

0.  Find out this mare's name !"  TT took out a pencil and wrote in "Hou Shuren".
"1.  Check/find ancient records from Kastrot and of the Serpent King.  Verify any and all data.
2.  Check with Mom's older 'acquaintances'; Uncle Legbreaker ?  Verify any and all data.
3.  Check with Dad's less savory contacts; acquire new bottlecaps ?  Verify any and all data.
4.  ? Talk with Celestia or Luna (might be easier now that they're retired) ?  Verify any and all data.  Or the Pillars, since they were from all over Equestria and alive a thousand plus years ago and may have heard something.  Verify any and all data.
5.  DON'T GET KILLED from attracting too much attention with all this investigation !"

She noted the arrow from #5 to above #0 to indicate proper ranking.  Then the added 'infinity plus' in front of #4, figuring that the odds that she would have the chance/ranking/permission to do that task at about one hundred fifteen quadrillion to one against.  But there was always a chance that if she didn't do it, someone else would.

After all, Harmony's Chosen are not ALLOWED to fail.  Good will discover what evil is up to.  Somehow.
 

Rays of golden sunlight shone through the train windows at dawn, crudely awakening Tongue Twister from her slumber.

She disembarked from the train and trudged along the streets of Canterlot, hiding under a dark blue hooded cloak and trying to look like a self-absorbed, conceited snob to blend in and thus go unnoticed by the locals.  

It worked.

"Been so long since I've seen dad's shop from the ground." TT mused to herself as she stood before Caveat Emptor's Discount Emporium.

She slipped in through the front door and looked around - and was quickly engulfed in a carrot orange aura and pulled into a hug by her father.

"What's wrong honey ?" he asked.

"What makes you think something is wrong ?" TT asked, "Can't I just surprise my parents with an unannounced visit ?"

"No." Caveat replied immediately, "You've never made an unannounced visit to anyone in your life.  It's just not you.

And, last we heard, you were way out there in Las Pegasus !  Nopony would go all the way across Equestria just to visit someone out of the blue.

So whatever's wrong must be pretty bad !  Shady's been a nervous wreck for over a week !"

Tongue Twister's ears drooped as she looked around nervously.  "Mom's not here, is she ?"

Suddenly, there was a thump on the second story balcony, a rustle of feathers and a descending shadow -  TT's mother Shady Dealer had arrived !

TT was glomped by her mother, then suffered through a quick exam of her  eyes, ears and teeth.  "WHAT IN CELESTIA'S NAME HAPPENED TO YOUR WINGS ?!"

TT sighed before starting her explanation.  "Flew past a sorceror's battle.  Stayed hidden to watch what was going on, so that when I report to the Relevant Authorities, I could be a bit more informative than 'GAAAAAAAAAAAAA !!! EVIL !!!' " while flailing her forelegs in mock noodle-like terror.

"She detected me.  Not too surprising, since a soul-eater would be able to SENSE nearby souls, and mine was the only other soul around !  

Captured me with some weird, high level spell.  Then she did this to me just to see what happens when a partitioned mind is corrupted !"

Tongue Twister took a few deep breaths to calm down.

"She took out an entire copse of trees just by powering up !  She corrupted my mind, body and soul.  I had no way to prevent the corruption of my body, so THIS is the way I am now.
I scattered the aspects of my mind just before she zapped me, so she got only one of them."

Caveat thought for a moment before asking "Which one ?"

"Yin the Negative." TT replied, "So now the angel on my shoulder is the size of a breezie, and the devil on the other shoulder is the size of a $^@#$%#$% ursa minor !
And if I pull myselves back together, all that negative energy will get mixed in and blended with me; the only way to remain me is to keep myselves seperate !"

Shady Dealer looked at her daughter oddly for a moment before asking "Is that safe ?"

"Not really." Tongue Twister replied, "The technique was never meant to be done for long periods of time.  But I'll adjust."

"And what about your soul ?" Caveat asked.

"Oh, that ?  I made peace with my dark side years ago." TT replied, "Since the dark side of me IS me, when Hou boosted my dark side, she boosted BOTH SIDES OF ME at the same time !  For no relative change; after all, a rising tide raises all boats equally."

She then twitches, mane flares, and she flattens ears against skull for a moment.  Earning an odd look from Shady.  

 

"Sorry.  That abomination Hou shoved into my head just started screaming because it can't win !" 

Shady blinked.  "Ohhhhhhkay.  So - why are you really here ?"

"I need some rather specialized help." TT replied glumly.

"I don't think I can help with the curse on you honey !  It's beyond anything I've even seen before !  And I've dealt with items from the Vendredi collection !" Caveat stated.

"I know." TT replied quietly, "I doubt a curse from a soul-eating, multi-millenium old Fenghuang sorceress would be easily broken.  I'm just wondering if you have a way to work around the more horrible parts of it ..." she continued, twitching her altered wings.

Caveat mused for a bit.  "I - may have something that might help.  Give me a minute or two to check the 'Special' Collections upstairs."

"Thanks daddy !" Tongue Twister said cheerfully as he meandered into his shop.  

She turned to her mother Shady Dealer and stated "I'm going to be doing a lot of travelling in cognito, so I need to have funds available from just about anywhere.  Any way to disperse money in an untraceable net amongst many banks ?"

"I haven't needed to do that for quite a few years, but I can still manage it." Shady replied, "The simplest way would be to start a business.  Then all I'd need to is just inform one bank, and then they'd sent memos to all the others, enabling you to get at your funds from anywhere.

So if you withdraw from Bank 'A' way out in the boonies, they'll pay with funds on hoof, then send a request to the bank with your main account for repayment.  As long as you keep below about five hundred bits a withdrawal per month and make sure to keep sufficent funds in your main account, there should be no problems."

"That sounds rather legal and above the board for you." TT replied.

Shady merely smirked. "The initial set up should be, to ensure no pony has a reason to notice it.  Where the money going into the account comes from later need not be.  And the cover 'business' can be anything legal.  You have something in mind ?"

"Yeah.  Remember when all the magic in Equestria was drained away ?  Daddy had some pesky items in the 'Special' Collections, didn't he ?"

"Yeah.  At last count, seven." Shady answerd, "And as soon as the wards failed, they all disappeared."

"Yeah, the 'Trouble Maker' enchantment on cursed items does that.  If the item isn't used for nefarious purposes or warded, it teleports to where somepony can find it.  Did he get them back ?"

"Oddly, yes." Shady replied, "He put out a flyer offering a lot of bits for old, oddball items.  Got all the cursed items back, plus more regular stuff he sold later at a big mark-up."

TT smiles.  "He did it the right way !  There are probably dozens of organizations out there dedicated to keeping Equestria safe by tracking down and containing dangerous items - but they insist on doing everything in secret !  They'd skulk about in the shadows, taking months - if not years - to track down a single item, before trying to steal it !

Mom, when did common sense become so rare ?"

"Did it ever exist in the first place ?" Shady answered with a broad wing shrug, "After all, if it were common, would we need a specific name for it ?"

TT  laughed tearfully, before calming down.  "Well, back to business.  I had most of my assets transferred to Uncle Legbreaker to transfer to you, once everything is set up."

"How much did he charge you ?" Shady asked.

"Only twelve percent of the total.  Family discount." TT replied.

"Yeah.  That's uncle LB.  So, what are you going to do for money ?  Track down weird artifacts ?"  

"Maybe." TT sighed.  "Maybe translate ancient writings and stuff like I did before.  Just on a more freelance basis.  Or do everything all those secret organizations do, just out in the open.
Or I could always go walkabout and live off the land and the generosity of strangers.  I honestly just don't know !  I - don't quite fit in or belong anywhere any more." she continued with a  wave of her mercury wings.

Shady gives her a big hug.  "Well, you could always be a consultant.  There's usually some pony that needs specialized help on a temp basis.  You'd be working with different ponies - and I suppose creatures now, thanks to Princess Twilight's friendship work - pretty much all over Equestria and beyond.  I suspect some of the work will be of questionable legality, or make no apparent sense."

TT thought for a moment.  "That actually sounds like a good idea.  Thanks mom !" 

"Me and your dad can probably slip a few bits your way every month or so.  Maybe do a bit of investigating to help you ?  Find a way to deal with this curse on you ?" Shady offered.

"Thanks, but no.  I have enough funds to last about a year, even with no employment.  This situation should be resolved one way or another before then.  Hou probably has spies everywhere.  Sending money to me or asking too many questions might draw her attention to you and dad.  I'd - rather not risk that."

"If she has spies everywhere, she'd already know your parents." Shady noted, "So we might as well carry on as if she doesn't know or care.  It's not like she's watching you every second of the day.  No offense, but I'm sure an evil immortal working behind the scenes would have more pressing concerns than what you're up to."

"Mom, she told me that I'm an experiment !" TT exclaimed, "She also said she might come back and do 'some more work'.  I don't know if she was telling the truth, or just trying to freak me out, and I don't care !  I don't want you and dad caught up in that !"

Shady was quiet for a moment.  "Oh, speaking of sneaky ponies, have you been visited by a pair of unicorns lately ?  They were here asking about you, because two OTHER ponies were asking us about you !"

"Yeah.  They wanted to know if I got anything from that vault in Tenochtitlan.  I told them there was something there, but the meathead I was with stole it from me and LEFT ME THERE TO DIE !" she replied as her eyes glowed green with vertical pupils and her voice dropped almost an octave. 

Shady flinched, then backed away slowly and waited for her daughter to calm down.

"So, what happened ?" she asked before Caveat chipped in "Yes, I would very much like to know as well !"

He was levitating a small box with his telekinesis.

TT took a few deep breaths.  "We went deeper into the vault.  Found the treasure - a sample of Primal Clay.  The murals on the wall describing what was in the puzzlebox, how to get the box out of the chamber and how to open it were EXQUISITE !  The colors were glorious !  A peerless example of early Quetzalcoatlan glyphs unparalleled anywhere in the world !  I could've run through a whole BOX of film just taking pictures !  It ... "

Both parents coughed to interrupt her.

TT took a moment to recover from the embarassment of her geek-out.  "Well,  while I was distracted reading how to safely get the box out, PV just grabbed it and used the one-way teleporter, which was powered by a crystal; he used the last one there !

But taking the box set off another defense : guardgoyles !  Half a dozen stone golems programmed to tear any invaders apart !"

"Sweet Celestia !" Shady exclaimed, "How did you escape from that ?!"

"The enchanted Power Ponies comic book dad sent in that care package a few months ago.  I read the incantation on the last page and got pulled into the story.  The guardgoyles weren't living things, so they couldn't follow me in.  But what they could do was destroy the comic so I couldn't go back out there !"

"You were trapped in an alternate comic book dimension ?!" Caveat inquired.

"Yep !  I had to spend time in Maretropolis as the supervillain Shadow Wing until some other creatures read their copy of the issue to give me a way out.  By Somnabula's Headdress !  Those two ponies in Vanhoover were rather surprised when three ponies came out of the book when just two had gone in !"

Shady twitched.  "You were in ... Vanhoover ?" she asked with a shudder and a brief look of horror.

"Yeah.  That's why it took me so long to get back.  One week in Maretropolis, then one week in Vanhoover to earn enough money to take a train from there to Las Pegasus.  
Found the twit.  Beat him up.  Got put in the brig for insubordination and assaulting a 'superior' officer.  Possibly derelection of duty.  Quit the organization and walked out because of 'insufficient relevance'."

"You joined a military organization ?" Caveat inquired harshly, "Is that the secret one you didn't want to tell us about ?"

TT looked about shiftily.  "Technically, it was a paramilitary organization.  I didn't know it was like that when I joined dad !  Honest !"

"What in the world is 'insufficient relevance' ?" Shady asked.

"I told the guards that I wasn't important enough to press charges against; they believed me !

Well, at least I think they did."  TT continued while aimlessly gesturing with her mercury wings, "So I may or may not still be a member of the organization, and there may or may not be charges outstanding against me."

Caveat looked at his daughter quizzically with one eyebrow raised; his wife Shady Dealer merely facehoofed.

"Oh, I managed to find something that might be of use in the oddballs collection." Caveat stated to break the awkward silence as he opened the box he'd found.

Inside the box were a set of four royal quality silk slippers with delicate and colorful embroidery.  And wings on the backs.

Shady looked at them closely, then gave up. "What in the world are those ?"

"Winged slippers of course !" her husband answered, "One of the students at Celestia's gifted school was trying to enchant an item to cast that 'Giant Butterfly Wings' spell they use for buckball games.  He couldn't figure out how to create the magical wings, so he improvised a workaround.  That didn't quite work the way he wanted it to, so he sold them to me to recoup some of the expenses."

TT looked at him suspiciously.  "What's wrong with them ?"

"Well, they don't actually enable you to fly, but walk on air instead." Caveat replied as he put the slippers on.

"Like so !" he continued as he steped forward, then started walking up an invisible ramp into the air.  

TT can see very thin clouds forming under his hooves for him to step and stand on.  

"Those are just cloud-walking slippers with an enchantment to create your own clouds !" Shady noted once she felt the thaumic currents that enable pegasi to fly and shape clouds.

"Pretty much." her husband Caveat answered, "You can't move very fast, and you're nowhere near as agile as a pegasus.  You can only do things that you could do on the ground.  Just in the air."

"Uh huh." both Tongue Twister and Shady deadpanned in reply.

"All that means is you can't use these to fly upside down, or perform complex aerobatics." he continued, "Just simple stuff like 'walk an inch off the floor to not set off traps', or 'stroll across a wide chasm instead of falling in.'  The enchantment is also lazy - for every minute the slippers are in use, they must be rested for two minutes." he stated as he descended a pair of invisible stairs, then took the slippers off.

"Then I'll just have to use them sparingly, so they don't quit while I'm hundreds of hooves up !" she stated as she tried them on.  They adjusted to fit her hooves perfectly.

"Magic airwalking or no, these are VERY comfortable slippers !" TT stated.

"Well, when you're crafting an artifact, you have to use components of the absolute highest quality." Caveat stated smugly, "So those are literally the best slippers money can buy, even without the enchantments."

TT decided to test the slippers out, so she vividly imagined a steep flight of stairs, then galloped up them at full speed, going upward as quickly as forward in a broad spiral, then standing on a misty ledge on the second floor.

"These.  Slippers.  Work.  Great !" she exclaimed between deep breaths, since running upward against gravity is exhausting when you can't fly.  Shady looked at her daughter morosely, since it should have taken just three wingflaps and almost no effort at all to reach the second floor.

"That's why he sold you those slippers, isn't it ?" Shady quietly asked her husband, "They wouldn't have been very effective for what he wanted them for : playing buckball !"  Caveat merely nodded.

"Beggars shouldn't be choosers." TT stated as she walked down a far more gentle slope, "You said you got these from one of Celestia's students ?  Did some of them sell you their out of date books by chance ?"

"Of course they did !" Caveat replied, "There are always someponies looking for a little extra spending money at the end of the semester.  Reselling old texts has been a small but very reliable source of income for me for years."

"Oh.  Good.  I'm ... just going to pick out a few things.  Be back in a few." TT stated as she wandered off into the labyrinth of shelves of her father's curio shop.

"Our daughter is planning on going against an ancient sorceress." Shady whispered to Caveat, "She doesn't want us to help or be involved because she wants us to be safe.  
You're going to secretly help her too, aren't you ?"

"Of course I'm going to help !" Caveat replied, "I'm not going to let our only child face off against an ancient evil all alone !"

"Well, we could try to talk her out of it." Shady offered.  

"You really think she'd listen ?" Caveat asked.

"No."  Shady replied, "I wouldn't.  And neither would you."

Caveat mulled for a moment.  "It's still going to be rough going for her, no matter what we do.  Unchosen Ones rarely catch any breaks."

"Well, if you can't catch a break, make your own." Shady replied, "And we can still help.  I'll make a few suggestions to my Las Pegasus relatives to keep an ear out for 'the unusual'."

"I know a few ponies and other creatures that could use the help of a linguistics consultant." Caveat replied, "I'll mention that TT is available.  Just in passing, of course."

"Of course." Shady replied, "Hmm.  Come to think of it, I might have a few business cards back in my shop.  I just need to fill in a few lines and print them out.  And a few other details to iron out.  I'll be back in a few !" she finished, kissed her husband quickly, then gracefully flew out the second story window.

"So mom has a Plan ?" TT asked as she walked to the counter, piles of books and scrolls held in massive hands.

"How are you doing that ?!" Caveat asked.

"Not sure."  TT replied as she placed all her items on the counter, "I think I corrupted the corruption !  I can shape my 'wings' into anything except a functional pair of wings !" she continued as her wings shifted from clawed hands to tentacles to long blades.

"... please don't do  that." Caveat stated, looking rather green and twitchy.

"Sorry.  I'm still getting  used to my new 'condition'." she replied meekly, "They sometimes shift into something hostile when I'm angry.  Maybe if I get used to shaping them when I'm calm, they won't be so prone to doing that."

"That's as good a plan as any, I suppose." Caveat stated with a shrug as he started totalling up the items his daughter had selected.  "Hmm.  Rather random collection of topics you've got here dear !" he continued as he looked at a few of the titles, "Ancient Fenghuang funereal practices ?  Metamagical themas # 113 : Manipulating Thaumic Fields ?  Advanced Tulpamancy ? The Florilegium Mischiefii ?  'Artificing For The Non-Magical' ?

I - hate to tell you this dear, but I don't see how any of what you've got planned from this can work !  Hou has a millenium or two more of practice, and you're, well, a pegasus !"

TT rolled her eyes.  "I'm not going to go up against her directly !  And the idea that only unicorns can do powerful magic is just a few millenia of propaganda !  There were many ancient, NON- unicorn races that could perform spells the likes of which no pony today can do !  

And Cozy Glow came close to eliminating all magic in Equestria.  You'd expect a unicorn to pull something like that - but she's a pegasus filly !  All she needed to do all of that was the know-how !"  TT continued, before getting an idea and happily scribbling in her notebook.

The street level door to Caveat's shop opened, and Shady Dealer walked in.  "I found some blank business card stock in the back and ran off a few samples !  What do you think of these TT ?"

Tongue Twister took a card from her mom.  It showed a silhouette of a pony, but when the card was tilted, the pony shadow disappeared and the words 'Phantom Consulting, Inc.' and an address appeared.

TT sighed.  "Mom ?  Did you 'borrow' these from one of your old jobs back in Las Pegasus ?" she asked Shady.

"No !" she exclaimed before furtively looking away, "Well, sort of.  But that was years before you were even born !  You have to admit, those are some snazzy business cards !"

Tongue Twister mused for a bit.  Yes, they were indeed snazzy business cards.  Then she looked at the address.

"This post office box is in Ponyville !  WHY ?!"

"Well, the job requests, bills and checks have to be sent somewhere." Shady Dealer replied, "Ponyville is centrally located.  
But you don't have to live there.  You can just stop by once a month or so to check the box to see if there are any job offers."

"Ponyville is also the home of most of Harmony's Chosen." TT replied quietly, "If even one of them thinks the dark magic I'm corrupted with is a threat, they'll probably try to blast me with that 'Rainbow Friendship Death Laser' they zap all their enemies with !"

"But that might be a good thing honey !" Shady replied, "Look at what it did for Princess Luna !"

"But Harmony's Judgement - what the beam does - is unpredictable !" TT replied as she rubbed her forehead, "It sent Luna to the moon the first time it was used on her, remember ?

I could be turned to stone !  Or sent to Tartarus !  Or to the moon !  Or it may do nothing at all, since I'm not evil enough !  Or it could strip my darkside away from me !  And since the darkside of me IS me ..."

"It might tear your mind or soul in half !" Caveat exclaimed.

"No !  It would most likely remove the evil that sorceress infected her with !" Shady stated, trying to convince her daughter and herself.

"Yes - and whatever other 'darkness' is in me that doesn't conform to the Perfect Pony Template !" TT replied, "My mind has a different build !  Harmony's Judgement has only been used on ponies with 'standard' minds !  I'd rather not find out what it would do to me; frankly, I'm getting tired of ponies throwing energies at me just to see what happens !  Once was enough !"

She took a few breaths to calm down.  "Besides, they only use the Friendship Laser against major threats.  I'd probably have to come close to taking over Equestria before they'd even think of using that blast on me."

She quickly wrote another idea down in her notebook, then starting packing her purchases into her saddlebags.

Shady noticed that TT was filling both sides equally.  "Don't you usually keep Ace and Deuces in one of those ?" she asked.

TT's eyes got a bit watery.  "They're .... afraid of me now.  I left them with cousin Overcast back in Las Pegasus.  Ace and Deuces are easy to care for, so they shouldn't be a bother."

Shady and Caveat looked at each other for a moment while they figured out how to proceed.

"TT, it's very impressive that  you're working so hard to solve your problem," Shady began, "but this is out of even your league !  Hou is more of a princesses or the Elements level threat." her husband Caveat continued.

TT snorted.  "I know that !  I'm eccentric, not stupid !  I'm going to inform the princesses about Hou.  But really big problems should be attacked from as many different directions as possible.

You know how all the stories end, right ?" she continued with a sigh, "The messenger is of no further use or relevance once the message is delivered.  They fade back into the background, to become Nothings again, while the Special and Important Ponies go off on the Special and Important Mission.  Which is too special and important for the likes of a mere messenger.

Buck that !  

 

There is no actual rule that says other ponies CAN'T do important things if they want to !  So I'm following the script I wrote for myself, instead of blindly following one history and tradition wrote for me !"

"One's place is what they earn, not what the fates or destiny or somepony assigns you." Caveat stated, earning an odd look from Shady.

"The Aesop at the end of 'The Determinator Strikes Back', issue three." Tongue Twister answered her mother's unasked question.

"You two are insufferable sometimes !" Shady stated, "And I wouldn't have it any other way !"

And with that, Tongue Twister headed out towards the palace.

But made a slight detour to the Castle Gardens first to view the latest addition to the statuary.

"It seems the Wheel has turned further than I thought !" she mused to herself as she examined what became of the Terrible Trio.
 

"Everything seems to be in order." Tongue Twister muttered to herself as she smoothed out the padded mat on the floor.

Rummaging around deep inside her own mind was always a tricky procedure, but she just had to make sure she could still do it.  She had to know how much she'd been damaged by Hou Shuren's corruption and so, despite it being risky and potentially disastrous, she pressed onward.

Fortunately, "Meihui's Respite, Peaceful and Still" was a very simple and effective meditation technique to remain focused and calm.

 

Good for just a quick, shallow check.   And maybe a bit of simple effort.

She lit the incense sticks, sat in the center of the circle printed on the mat, then took a few deep breaths that grew slower as the seconds ticked by, her wings of mercury draped around her.

 

Tongue Twister shook herself once she awoke from her meditation.

"Omnia Vincit Insania - 'Madness Conquers All' she mused for a bit, before writing down the ideas she managed to retrieve.  "The good news is it looks like the meditation techniques still work; I'll just need to be mindful of that mass of evil magic congealed around Yin."

"I can hear your thoughts as well as your speech, mortal !" the entity inside complained.

"I know, and don't care." TT 'spoke' back to it, before rummaging through her saddlebag to retrieve an item.  It was a small circlet of gold, with one spot flattened with a clear jewel embedded.  "Let's see what's been going on lately." 

"You have a Mnemnosine's Circlet ?!"

"Yup.  Picked it up a few years ago in Neighpal." TT replied, "Sort of a thank-you gift from a village elder for helping them translate some ancient scrolls.  His chief advisor thought no pony was worthy of anything from the village, so he gave me this pathetic thing !  It doesn't have sound, the image has no color, can only view the Akashic record about a month back, and can only show me things that everypony else already knows.

Which means it will actually work.  After all, I must be one of only a dozen or so ponies that WEREN'T at the Final Battle ..." she finished as she carefully balanced the ring on her hoof by the flattened spot, sung a chant in Neighpalese before gently striking the circlet on edge, making it spin.

The circlet began to spin faster as it levitated slightly, an image forming inside.

"Wow !  Tirek, Chrysalis and Cozy Glow got a major boost in power !" she noted to herself, "And what is that thing they're carting around with them - Grogar's Bewitching Bell ?  They actually FOUND that darned thing ?!

Well, that would make them think they had a chance of winning." she groused to herself as she watched the early part of the battle.  She continued watching the conflict unfold.

"Are those yaks ?  AND hippogriffs ?  Geeze !  Was every creature in Equestria there except me, Sombra, Hou Shuren and her servants robbing the secret vaults  ?
...
Oh come on !  A TRIPLE Friendship Beam ?!
...
Annnnd what is Harmony's Judgement on the Terrible Three ?" she asked herself as she watched the beam descend, "Banishment to the moon ?  A cell in Tartarus ?  Petrification ?
Hmmm - stripped of all stolen power and reverted to their much weaker, original states ?"  For a moment, she felt that was a bad idea (and far too lenient), but upon further musing upon the big picture, decided IT WAS PERFECT !

"How is letting the three most dangerous beings in Equestria go free a perfect punishment ?" the entity inquired.

"Those three ?  Dangerous ?" TT replied before laughing and freezing the image, "Not any more.  

Cozy Glow is a filly, so most ponies would be nice to her and do what she wanted.  But now that every creature knows that she's a manipulator, no one will ever listen to her again !  If she showed up at a hospital with a broken leg, they probably wouldn't let her in until after they were sure she wasn't trying to pull something.

Tirek once absorbed the magic of every pony in Equestria - including Celestia, Luna, Cadence, and Twilight.  And even Discord.  

And he still lost.  He is now much weaker than he was then, and the Mane Six are more powerful.  No one is going to let him get close enough to drain their magic, so he's stuck as he is !

And honestly, I'm surprised Chrysalis didn't starve, or succumb to the madness of isolation sickness from all that time alone.  Why she wasn't yelling at rocks or talking to trees I'll never know.

Think about it." she continued to the entity in her head, "She's ruled over thousands of minions for a millenia or two.  Their thoughts a constant, comforting sound in her head.  And now - NOTHING."

She sighed.  "Solitude has a cruelty and a  beauty all its own.  One she gets to experience once again.  When no one will interact with you, the world is just as much a prison as the smallest cell.

It's a very hard and long road they're on.  But it is one they CHOSE to be on of their own free will.  

And who knows ?  Maybe after a decade or two they might give up being so evil, given they have absolutely no chance of succeeding at anything evil ever again.

Hmmm - I wonder if those three will stick together, go their seperate ways, or try to destroy each other ?  Taking all bets !" she continued before willing the image to proceed.

She frowned as she kept watching.  "What are the royal sisters and Discord doing ?"

The circlet dropped to the ground, and Tongue Twister heard the entity in her head laughing.

"Oh, THAT was perfect all right !" it stated between breaths, "They took the law into their own hooves - for if Harmony wanted those three turned to stone, it would have done so itself !  If that were a court of law, Discord and the Royal Sisters would be guilty of contempt of court !  And the judge they showed contempt for - was Harmony itself ! 

For by taking action and kicking the villains while they were down, they questioned Harmony's Judgement !  That - cannot be a good thing !"

 

The entity laughed for a bit more before continuing "You have an appreciation for Taoist philosophy, so tell me : what happens when the Light burns away all Darkness ?"

TT sighed.  "Some of the Light becomes corrupt and turns into Darkness, to restore Balance."

"So your resistance is futile and pointless !" the entity replied, certain it had scored a perfect and irrefutable 'Gotcha !' in the argument, "Now that Light is on the rampage, Darkness must rise to balance it !  If you gave in to Hou Shuren and accepted my  power, you could actually make a difference in the world that is yet to come !  For a change !"

"And then the Wheel would turn once more, and Light would overcome the Darkness.  Meaning yourefforts are just as pointless as my resistance." TT replied, turning the 'irrefutable' argument against itself and crushing it with its own weight, "And the restoration of balance is by Light becoming Dark, not Dark overpowering Light.

So, in the grand scheme of things, attempting to bend the universe to anyone's will is foolish."

With that, she began packing for a long train trip back to Canterlot - and her parents - early the next morning.

"Well, THIS turned out to be a horrible week !" she muttered to herself, "Getting cursed by an ancient evil !  AGAIN !!  But this one's going to be much harder to get rid of than that Tenochtitlan shaman's misguided curse years ago !

At least I arranged better living arrangements for Ace and Deuces." she continued with a sigh, "Not sure how safe they'll be with me - or FROM ME - while Hou Shuren's corruption is affecting me !

 

And my cousins were able to shift my savings into more liquid assets; Mom can probably set up a network of accounts so I can get my money anywhere.  I should be fine unless I have to spend more than I have in my bags."

Her grumbling was interrupted by a voice calling her name from a nearby alley.

"How did you find me ?" she glowered at the unicorn stallion, noting there was another pony further back in the alley.

"Your mother suggested we look for you here in Las Pegasus." the unicorn replied, "It seems there were a pair of criminal agents looking for you back at your parents' shops, which drew our agency's attention."

 

"So, what do you want from me ?"

"You were in a temple in Tenochtitlan a few weeks ago, correct ?" he asked.

"Technically, it was a vault.  What of it ?"

"Did you retrieve anything from that vault ?"

She sighed.  "No.  The pegasus I was with, Polar Vortex, stole the 'treasure' and left me there to die !"

The two stallions quickly conferred with each other.  "So there was an artifact there ?"

"Yes."

"Would you happen to know what it was ?"

"Yes.  Primal Clay.  With the proper rituals, it can be used to make any living thing.  Or heal or repair any sort of damage to a living thing.  Well, at least it used to."

"What do you mean by that ?"

"The ponies that built that vault were extremely protective of their artifacts, so they placed a dead mare's curse on it." she replied, "The curse they used randomizes the properties of whatever it is placed on.  The only way to remove the curse is to do the proper chant BEFORE removing the treasure from its pedestal.

Polar Vortex grabbed it before I could do that.  So I have no idea of what the clay would actually do now.  Assuming, of course, anypony could even get the puzzlebox open.  The Zen/Paradox lock can stop anything !"

"The what ?"

"The enchantment on the puzzlebox.  The more force you use against a Zen/Paradox lock, the stronger it becomes !" she replied with a chuckle, "You could summon enough force to split the planet in two, and the lock would meet it with an equal amount of force, cancelling out your attempt, and leaving the box locked an unharmed !"

The two stallions mulled that over for a bit.  "So, this 'Polar Vortex' pegasus has a box that cannot be opened, which contains an alchemical substance of unknown function then ?"

"Pretty much." TT replied.

"Then how was anypony supposed to use what's inside ?" the other pony - another unicorn - inquired.

TT smirked.  "By doing things the RIGHT way !" she stated, "The ponies who were permitted to use it would know the chant to shut down the curse, and the correct way to open the Zen/Paradox lock."

"Would you happen to know either requirement ?" the unicorn asked.

"Of course." she replied haughtily, "Any native pony would know the curse-breaking chant; I've studied the cultures down there long enough to have an excellent idea of which ones to try.  I was distracted by reading the instructions on just how to defeat the lock when Polar did the smash and grab.  

According to the riddle, the lock cannot be opened by any amount of force; if you want it to open, you must ask it to nicely and sincerely.  That is something an invader or thief would never think to do !"

"Where is Polar Vortex now ?" the earth pony asked.

"I would dearly love to know that myself !" TT replied with a stamp, "I owe him a beating for abandoning me in that vault !"

The two agents stepped away for a bit.  "So this whole mission was a wash ?" one agent pony groused to his fellow agent.

"Well, unless tracking down an unusable artefact is relevant, then yes."

They thanked TT for her help before returning to their base to file their report.

Nopony noticed the two ponies on a nearby roof doing surveillance.

"Did you catch that Grab ?" the unicorn stated to his companion, "It appears someone else has snagged our objective.  But since it can't be used, our rivals gained nothing as well."

"Yeah.  But what is up with Tongue Twister ?" Agent Smash inquired, "Is changing some of her colors and hiding her Cutie mark under a heavy cloak supposed to be a disguise ?  Who would she be hiding from ?"

Agent Grab thought for a bit.  "I don't know.  But something seems off about her.  There was  nothing in her files about being so angsty and hateful.

But, then again, there is almost NOTHING in her files at all."

He thought for a bit.  "Contact the Director, and inform him of our progress.  I'll remain here and maintain the watch on her, in case something unexpected comes up."

 

Quote

 

The king looked back up towards the sky, in the direction he'd seen the earlier multi-colored glare of light. The Elements of Harmony in use, he assumed. He never wanted to have to actually deal with that, as he was certain it was light magic of some sort. Like the Crystal Heart, though that particular relic had failed to kill him in any way that mattered. His tail flicked and Sombra stepped away to pick up his crown with a flicker of his dark magic. "Part.. ten?" he turned to look at Tongue Twister, confusion on his dark features.

 

"I'm not sure what you mean by that." The most he understood was that Equestria was frequently nearly conquered many times, and he understood this from both the kingdom's history books, its newspapers (when he read them when a particular headline caught his eye), and her statement.

 

"Regardless, I think I will head to Canterlot. At least, once whatever that was calms down a bit," Sombra stated, jerking his head in the direction of the earlier lightshow. Maybe it was the fight he had with Hou and the excitement it'd stirred up that had him so tempted to commit a wild, and impulsive idea, or perhaps because he'd just fallen into a routine too generic for his liking as of late.

 

 

Tongue Twister smiled a bit.  "Yeah.  For a realm that is so full of peace and friendship, it gets threatened disturbingly often.  At least once a year or so it seems.

 

First, it was the return of Nightmare Moon," she stated, starting the count with her wing pinions, "Then the Return of Discord, and the First Changeling Invasion.

 

Then the return of the Crystal Empire and, well, you.  Then the magic-eating centaur Tirek absorbing all power, growing to the size of a building and tearing up the landscape.

 

Then Starlight Glimmer's Equality cult, the Second Changeling Invasion, the Pony of Shadows, then Cozy Glow's nearly successful attempt to eliminate ALL magic in Equestria, and then finally whoever just got blasted over there."

 

She had ten pinion feathers extended on one wing - far more than normal wings have.

 

She flinched then rapidly shook her wing.  After a few moments, it was back to its new normal.

 

She sighed heavily as she looked at her wing.  "I'm going to have to get used to that sort of thing, aren't I ?

 

No matter.  I have some loose ends in Las Pegasus to tie up first.  Then off to Canterlot to square things with my parents."

 

 

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"I just can't help but wonder if we could tell Celestia. It might not hinder Hou in any way, but.." he trailed off and shrugged. That wild impulse was still in the back of his mind, and when he could try to straighten that situation out to boot.

 

Tongue Twister had to think about that for a moment.  "Well, that WOULD be something nopony would expect." she stated, "And some warning is better than none at all.  Celestia has dealt with Hou before.

 

But how to tell her ?  For now though, I think that question should be tabled for later." she stated as she looked around, "Now that the 'Final Battle for the Fate of All Equestria' part ten is over, every creature will be heading for home.  This road might be getting busy soon, so best to get lost !"

 

 

 

Quote

 

"What do you know? Hou hinted to something about Canterlot, and my being there despite having never set foot in the castle itself- but she never told me much more than that. Only accused me of playing dumb." His brow furrowed, and the red of his eyes blazed beneath them with the hope that Tongue Twister could give him more information about this imposter who was possibly tarnishing his name- not that he hadn't done that plenty enough on his own.

 

"What is it about Discord? What exactly happened in Canterlot, and why are others claiming I was there?" His tone was insistent, and the stallion himself was visibly agitated. His tail was sweeping behind him, his gaze trained solely on her as he waited.

 

 

Tongue Twister took a deep breath as she ordered her thoughts.

 

"It all started a few months ago, the day the royal sisters first decided to retire." she began, "A unicorn stallion matching your description, using dark magic and crystals, strolled into the Crystal Empire and took it over with very little effort.  Then Harmony's Chosen - Princess Twilight and her friends - showed up and hit him with that 'Elements of Friendship Laser of Automatic Victory' they always use.  

 

It was thought he'd been erased from existence, but he wasn't.

He somehow returned, destroyed the Elements of Harmony, and then turned the citizens of Ponyville into a mind-controlled army to storm Canterlot Castle.

Since the royal sisters weren't there at the time, it was a rather easy victory.

As usual, Twilight and her friends showed up to save the day, and somehow found a way to summon the Friendship laser without the Elements, and disintegrated 'Sombra' yet again."

 

Turns out the whole thing was a ruse !" she growled a bit.  

"Apparently, Discord decided to help Twilight get over her insecurity by having her and her friends defeat a villain.  So, he brought 'Sombra' back for them to slap around.

Since they've already 'destroyed' you twice in one day, if they find you again, they'll probably try it again.

Hmm - I wonder if Celestia told Twilight anything about Hou Shuren ?  Or even if she has hidden vaults full of dangerous artifacts ?  Those would be REALLY good things to know about ahead of time !"

Tongue Twister was trying to figure out a way to find out what was stolen from the royal sister's secret vaults while Sombra was pondering his next move. 

Competent thieves leave no sign they were there (the longer the mark doesn't realize he's been robbed, the better chance of escaping), and she doubted Hou would employ anyone incompetent.  So there was an excellent chance that nopony in Canterlot even knew anything had been taken from the vaults !  "Hmmm … now, how to alert the proper authorities that a robbery DID occur …"

 

"So, you'll be heading for Canterlot ?" TT inquired of Sombra before continuing "I would strongly suggest staying out of sight, since Harmony's Chosen killed you twice in one day, if the newspapers are to be believed. 

Of course, who can be sure of anything when Discord is involved ?" she finished with a shrug.

"

Quote

I get it, but we still don't know what her plan is. What is her goal? Absorb more souls? Conquering Equestria? Slay the royal pony sisters?" There were quite a few more possibilities Sombra didn't bother to name, but most of it seemed too.. petty for Hou. Maybe he could be right about one of them, maybe not- he'd have to wait and see what unfolded. 

TT thought for a moment.  "Actually, I think she'd consider conquering Equestria or slaying the royal sisters too short sighted and petty." she stated, "When she was SHOVING THAT DARKNESS INTO MY HEAD, she said things like 'When sentient life will forget what Equestria or Long Guo were, I will be there. When Equinekind will leave it's cradle, and spill to the sea of stars, I will still be there. When this universe collapses unto itself and gives birth to a new one. I. Will. Be.There.'

It sounds like she wants to outlive the universe.  I'm - not really sure what the point of that would be.  Unless she wants to influence and control a universe when its born, essentially making her a god."

She took a few deep breaths.  "But that's just idle and horrible speculation at this point.  It would help if we knew what was stolen from Celestia's vault in Canterlot Castle.

 

That is not going to be easy to find out."

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"Considering what she's done to you now, you probably should've fled while you still had the chance. Hou Shuren has gone far with her practice in dark magic, as well as.. whatever the rest of it was, so I can't be sure what can be done about.. this.." Sombra gestured to her with a hoof, indicating her altered coloration and the earlier, fluid strangeness of her wing. 

TT's ears perked up.  "Her name is 'Hou Shuren' ?  Good to know." she stated before writing a few notes; Tongue Twister hadn't completely trusted her own memory for years.

She smiled and sighed.  "Yeah.  I could have just fled the scene.  I may have even lived a few more years happy, ignorant, and unaltered.  Until whatever plot Hou has in mind got underway.  Then I could look out over the misery and wonder if it could have been stopped if only somepony had given a warning in time.  The whole 'walk away and let somepony else deal with it later.' routine never sat right with me.  It is way too risky !  And relies on the invader making a critical mistake.  Not a very sound strategy."

She thought for a bit.  "Hmm - now who to give the information to, once it's been verified ?" she mused for a few moments, deep in thought.  And who would believe it ?  She already had three strikes against her : she wasn't overly important, she now reeked of dark magic, and could be considered a madmare.

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"My idiot of a father decided that staring at a bright light was a good idea, and somehow it was my fault he went blind from it. I saved us from being stranded in the ocean, and they kicked me out for it." He said, anger seeping into his voice. Clearly he hadn't forgiven or forgot that incident, even after all that time.

She then regarded the red-maned stallion a bit.  "Your family threw you out over a mistake ?  An accidental blinding is extreme, but still !

Living well is the best revenge.  They tossed you aside, so toss them aside and be greater than they could ever hope to be.  But if they insist on going after you, I sort of agree with Sombra on this one.

But I'm not really somepony to take advice from at the moment..." she stated with an apologetic smile as the pupils in her sky blue eyes turned to vertical slits for a moment.

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"Y..Yourselves?" Sombra queried, confusion flitting across his features, softening the scowl he'd fallen into.

"Yeah.  I spend quite a bit of time alone when doing field research." Tongue Twister replied, "Found that talking to myself kept me focused.  After that trip to the Fenguang Valley though, I may have overdone it.  Now that old 'angel and devil on the shoulders' routine is a bit more literal than figurative for me."

She took a few deep breaths to calm down and come up with a cover story.

"Oh, where are my manners ?  I am Tongue Twister, intern reporter for the Canterlot Historical Society¹." she stated with a polite nod to Sombra and the other stallion, "I may not be a rising STAR in the Organization yet, but if I can find a big story, I could be !"

She turned to look at the trees twisted earlier by the sorceress' power and sighed.  "This - was a bit more than I was expecting though." 

She looked at one of her altered wings and scowled.  "Definitely more."  

 

 

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"How cute, she thinks she's resisting." sorceress summed up pegasus fit of laughter. "Nothing is Forever? Well, then it pleases me that I will be the first..." Shuren leaned over ground-sprawled pegasus. "When sentient life will forget what Equestria or Long Guo were, I will be there. When Equinekind will leave it's cradle, and spill to the sea of stars, I will still be there. When this universe collapses unto itself and gives birth to a new one. I. Will. Be.There." unciorn said with emphasis, wearing - simply put- a terrifying expression. "Now be silent, or I will rethink skipping dinner." she ordered before focusing at Sombra once more. 

Tongue Twister managed to remain silent until the sorceress disappeared in a flock of jade-eyed crows.  

 

Meanwhile, inside her mind : 

 

"Why do my wings feels so heavy ?" she thought as she returned to the normal world. 

 

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Grunting, Sombra sidestepped towards the mad pony, eyeing her. "How long had you been watching us?" was all he could think to ask.

"I was flying past just as the battle started." she replied, struggling to get to her hooves, "That fog may have hidden both of you from view on the ground, but not from the skies.  When I saw all the power that was being summoned, I figured it was yet another threat to Equestria.  

I didn't know how big a threat until she started talking.  And throwing around flaming skull blasts.  And talking.  And mercury shaped and controlled with her mind.  And talking.  And talking.

I figured someponies in power really needed to know about all of that.  So I took notes." she stated as one wing turned to mercury and retrieved her notebook from her saddlebag and passed it to her hoof, with her too absent minded to immediately notice "This isn't horrible writing, it's shorthoof." she explained to Sombra, showing him what she'd written, "A way of transcribing spoken sounds as fast as they're spoken.  I was keeping up with both of you .. until ... ?"

She looked at her hoof - she'd just noticed that instead of the bottom third of her leg being white, it was now pitch black.

She waved it in the air vigorously to shake off whatever was on it.  The color didn't change.

She tried to use her wing to wipe off whatever was on her hoof.  She looked with horror upon the silvery liquid shape where her wing was supposed to be.

She flexed the alula and pinions; the shape obeyed.

"GAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH !!! WHAT DID SHE DO TO ME ?!!?!" she screamed before running around in a panicked circle.

She tried to fly away, but she couldn't get off the ground.

Breathing heavily, she frantically willed the mercury into the shape of longer, narrower wings.  They were perfectly formed, but flapping as hard and as fast as she could didn't even get her into the air, for mercury is much heavier than flesh and blood.

She dropped on her haunches and spread her wings forward, trying to sense the familiar mana currents in the air.

Nothing.

"I -- can't fly any more ?!" she whispered in horror.

"She took my flight ?!  For NO REASON AT ALL ?!" she stated in a strained tone as rage began to replace fear.

Tears ran down her face as her pupils became vertical slits and the sclera changed to black.

She ground her teeth as they became more like a shark's than a pony's.

The black part of her legs began crawling upward, until she was completely encased.

"SHE DID THIS TO ME !  SHE KNOWS HOW TO UNDO IT !" she screamed, "I'LL TEAR OFF THE TOP OF HER SKULL AND PROBE HER BRAIN NEURON BY NEURON TO FIND OUT HOW !"

She stood up and started to wander off, until she heard a mare's laughter in her head.

"It seems the silly little mortal's control isn't as perfect as she thought it was !" the voice said, "I can work with that !"

Tongue Twister stopped where she was and took a few deep breaths.

As she calmed down, the more extreme changes reversed themselves, leaving her as a gray pegasus mare with black socks and silver wings.

"Sorry about that." she meekly stated to the stallions, "I'm not quite myselves today."

 

Musical Interlude : Skillet's Monster

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"You know, it would be a lot less unpleasant if you just give in. Then again, it's no fun if that would be the case. It makes you think about things does it? Like all the times you turned the other cheek....when instead you should break his or her legs." Hou said, putting a suggestive imaginary in Twist head.

 "...it's so much more...interesting on the other side little mare. Especially in the world so unbalanced, so long under tyranny of the light. What point of living safe and sorted out life...if instead you can aim at the impossible and become a legend?" sorceress said. 

Tongue Twister actually managed a laugh at that as the sorcercess turned her attentions to Sombra.  "Tyranny is tyranny, no matter how well it's lit.  If I wanted to become a legend, I could just do something considered impossible by others.  

Like resisting your corruption !  Didn't think of THAT, did ya ?" she continued to herself with a pained chuckle.

"The Light has legends of its own.  And how does one become a legend of the Light ?  Usually by destroying a Legend of the Dark.  

 

In an endless cycle of misery, blood and pain.   The Wheel is beginning to turn; why would I want to be under it ?
 

The world has cycles and rythms of its own; trying to force things to happen on your schedule is like trying to shove a mountain down to the sea.  Or roll a recalcitrant stone uphill, as in the legend of Sisyphus.

What would becoming a legend actually gain me," she asked herself with as much of a shrug she could muster while ensnared by the Blood Sun, "other than lifetime of paranoia ?  If the lightsiders don't kill me, one of the Dark will.  Or she will - should I become too successful and become a plausible threat to her, or she no longer has any use for me, or just because she buckin' feels like it !"

She managed a smirk.  "In the end, it is all the same.  I'm doomed if I yield, and doomed if I do not !  The First Path of the Way of the Nothing is 'Glorious Irrelevancy'.  Since nothing I do matters, I can do anything I want !

So I think I'll just stay where I am.  Not too light, and not too dark.  I might even see if I can bend this curse to my will, to serve my ends.

Succeed or fail, it will be interesting either way.  And on MY terms." Tongue Twister finished - before launching into a bout of booming maniacal laughter as her wings started to distort from the ongoing corruption.

She became rather quiet after that, listening to the battle of wits between Sombra and the sorceress.  

"Hmmph !  She's trying to gaslight him.  Typical !" she mused as she labored to keep what was left of her mind together.  

To that end, she just started chanting 'Nothing Is Forever.' in every language she knew.
 

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"Clever little mare...but not clever enough. You thought you can remain unnoticed, but you can't hide a soul. I don't know how long you been there, but the moment you became agitated, your presence was revealed." Long Guo mare explained, while stroking Tongue cheek in a creepy manner.

 

"Well, of COURSE she could sense my soul !" TT groused to herself as she futiley struggled to escape the Blood Sun's grasp, "She consumes them !  And mine would be the only other soul here not her's or Sombra's !"

She didn't know whether to be impressed or flattered that she could detect Yin and Yang's quarreling (she didn't think their combined energies were enough to BE detected; but, then again, she'd never been around anypony that COULD detect such things).

 

"And now she's going to do something horrible to me !" Tongue Twister realized.

Accepting that there was no escape, she focused on the image of a jigsaw puzzle, and a single word : SCATTER !

 

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Twister could feel Hou's magic - her dark corrupting magic - seeping into her mind, body and spirit, poisoning it. One could recall what she did to the plants around her without noticing. 
 And then it stopped. Her magic was less intense when she was flexing' against Sombra earlier, and it couldn't be more then a second....but a cruel, horrible second regardless! 

Within what passes for her mind, the last thing Tongue Twister felt was everything going cold, like burning frostbite everywhere.  Then shattering like glass.

When she recovered, she was drifting in a dark space, with no light in any direction.

Then she noticed some movement out there - a tiny dancing light, like a firefly.

She extended her hoof and let the glow land.  Looking closely, it was Yang.  A bit on the small side for even a Breezie.  She was alive, but very much diminished.

"That isn't good..." she noted to herself, before the darkness around her shrugged.

Cautiously turning her head to look, the noted the darkness was Yin.  Now the size of an Ursa Minor.  Wrapped in the coils of a very heavy set of chains and shackles, staring blankly ahead with glowing blood red eyes.

"THAT'S EVEN WORSE !!"

Back in the real world, Tongue Twister was flailing as the corruption continued.  But she somehow managed to stay conscious enough to hear the sorceress' monologue : 

"I think it would be enough for now. After all, the fist time can be.....pretty rough for the unexpirinced. Ufufufu!" Shuren allowed herself a small giggle. 

"Perhaps if we meet again, I will do some more work on You. But! Let's go back to the lecture at present...." she mused before addressing Sombra once more, or rather both of them. 

"I didn't lie when  told that whatever happens in Ponyvile benefits me. It is however, only a secondary objective at best. If - by some means - neither predicted scenario happens? Oh well." Hou shrugged. 

"The true jackpot, was the Canterlot Castle. Or rather, the Castle's Forbidden Library, and Celestia's hidden vault where she keeps quite....interesting collection of items. Unattended. And both opened by scrolls infused with my dark sorcery. Scrolls that I handed to my servants...." Hou leaned towards Sombra "....Another resource you desperately lack. But of course they wouldn't be good enough to stop you. Which is why I had to make you busy. Perhaps if you have turned tail, and rushed straight to Canterlot, you would have had a chance at averting my efforts. But oh, that would mean running from the fight wouldn't it? No, you too proud for that.....and I was counting on this.... You lost the moment you chose to take this fight, Sombra!" white mare said in triumphant tone.

 

"This battle is getting more intense as time goes on." Tongue Twister groused to herself as she watched the carnage below, "Is there still even any point to this ?  The 'Battle To Decide the Fate of All Equestria (take 11)' could be over by now !  And there is no way anyone can influence the results of a battle once the battle is over."

She had a few minor artifacts in her saddlebags that could answer her questions (she'd cashed in a few favors, and favored a few with cash to get them), but decided against using them just yet - all of them required intense concentration to use, and given the firepower being thrown around by Sombra and that mare, being distracted could easily lead to her becoming dead.  Or worse. 

"Why am I even here ?" she asked herself as the mare's sphere of mercury started tearing around the landscape, "There is literally NOTHING I can do to help or hinder either combatant in any significant or relevant way !  The only choice is to let things play out.

If Sombra gets the upper hoof, she'll just use one of her backup plans to escape.  Then deal with him later.

If she gets the upper hoof, Sombra can just escape and deal with her later.

Unless she has a way to prevent his escape, then tries to absorb his soul or something.  She did mention it would take months or so for him to recover from her attacks.  That suggests that the window of opportunity to interfere with her plans is not only open, but will be open for awhile yet."

She sighed again.  It was as Sun Tzu noted : one can know how to conquer without being able to do it.

 

Sometimes she felt the world was an Ogres and Oubliette's game, and she was a first level character when everyone else was at least a twenty seventh level multiclass.

"I really should visit my cousin Cacophony to finish that song : 'The Down and Dirty, Fetid and No Fun First Level Blues' "