A/N: Oh shit! I'm sorry guys, I had a very busy Wednesday and I forgot to post. I still have chapters don't worry. To make it up to you I will post on Tuesday for chapter 21. Sorry, I truly am.~ sci-fi

Chapter 20: Shooting blanks.

Dominic Brightstone had explained the situation to Zecora and in turn she told what she knew. Zecora knew the ritual Dominic spoke of but she had some concerns. They could not perform the ritual on Heart's Vision if he fought them. It took too much time and effort to do it on a willing pony. Zecora also explained that they would need a living vessel or a particular device to contain the windegoes. Twilight Sparkle refused to have any creature be forced to have the spirits in them.

Zecora understood. She told them that she would begin searching for the artifact they needed. She told them that she did not know how long it would take to locate one. They were very rare and old. Once located the problem would be acquiring it. Rainbow Dash was not happy about this. "How great, more waiting!"

Dominic looked at the pegasus. "We can't rush this. One wrong move and many ponies die. You have to be patient."

Rainbow didn't know this creature and didn't appreciate his wisdom. "Why should we listen to you? We don't know you. Judging from Zecora's actions we shouldn't trust you."

Dominic did not get angry. "You don't know me, that is true. Whether you trust me is your choice. I don't want to see anymore war. I am tired of death. Have you ever seen war Rainbow?"

Rainbow didn't understand why he asked but answered the question. "No. Equestria has been at peace for like, ever."

"Do you want to see it? That is what your way will bring. Heart's followers verses the old rulers. The elements will most likely stop him but how many will die before they can? What if one of you die before you have the chance? Who will stop him then? We don't have enough alicorns to stand up to Heart. It would take so many more normal ponies for us to stop him. He won't show the mercy we will. The windegoes will ensure that. He will be filled with so much hate who knows what he will do. I have seen what hate can do. Unless you want to see horrors you never could imagine than I suggest you shut up and listen to Twilight." Every pony watched as Dominic tore into Rainbow.

Rainbow let out a growl before storming out of the hut. Twilight looked at Dominic. "She is just trying to fix this. There is no need for that."

"I think otherwise."

Twilight walked out in search of Rainbow.

Heart's Vision sat on his throne as he had grown accustom to. Today he seemed different. He usually was in a happy or impartial mood but today he held a angered frown.

Chaotic Love caught onto Heart's mood and feared for the others. "What is on your mind Heart? You seem upset."

Heart slowly turned to Chaotic. Heart's eyes were cold but it didn't seem it was directed towards Chaotic. "If you must know I have received some…" Heart stopped mid sentence and broke his composer. "Some really fucked up news. I finally decide to have a kid with Scoot and life decides to spit in my face once more! Why can't I get a break? Why everything go wrong with me!? I just want to give Scoot what she wants? All I want to do is make her happy but NO! I can't even do that it seems!"

"You make her happier than you know. but what problem did life dish you this time? maybe I might know of a way to help. so please if for nothing else then ranting so you do not hurt your subjects without thinking, tell me what this hindrance is."

Heart calmed himself down. He took some deep breaths before speaking. "I went to the doctor some time ago for a regular check up. I was talking about me and Scoot trying to have a kid. The doctor asked if I would give her a sample of my uhh…. You know and I got the results this morning. It turns out that I am infertile." Heart eyed the floor disappointed in himself. "I can't have a kid. I can't even give Scoot what she really wants. I am a failure."

Chaotic was almost shocked at the information but was also saddened by it. he may not like how heart had turned out, but he didn't think he didn't deserve to have a child. and he liked Scootaloo, so it was unfair to her as well. "It may not be as hopeless as you think it is. I know of a few magics and brews that might just be able to help you. it might take some time for me to find them again, but I can look if you wish me to. and this doesn't make you a failure, it just means you have to try harder than the rest of us. you are the king so I have no right to do so without your consent, so it is your choice if you would want me to try and find something to help you."

Heart thought about it. He was still unsure if he could trust Chaotic but he couldn't let that stand in the way of Scootaloo's joy. "Very well. I would appreciate it if you could help me fix this problem. I don't know what else to do, and I don't want to disappoint Scoot."

Chaotic nodded. "As you wish. and i can't blame you either. i will be in the lower levels of the archives if you need me further. i will keep you filled in on what i find. i think i remember right where it is, but don't quote me on that statement. and i will work as fast as possible. but you still might want to think about telling her so she knows why she is waiting and doesn't think worse of herself. mares tend to blame themselves when it comes to things with foals. and yes i am speaking from experience. but it is your choice." Then Chaotic got up and left.

Heart debated whether to tell Scootaloo or not. 'What if she blames me? It is my fault after all.' Heart thought about his dreams. All the times he has seen Scootaloo leave him. It was one thing to wake up and realize the truth but he didn't think he could bare. 'I will just blame it on luck. I'll convince her it isn't her fault. No pony will be at fault and everything will be alright.'

Lightning Hoof walked into the throne room to trade with Sun Petal. Petal whispered into Lightning's ear as she passed. His eyes went wide and looked at Heart. Heart saw this happen but didn't care if he knew. Petal left the room and Lightning sat next to Heart. "Are you ok?"

"I am fine Lightning. It is my problem to deal with."

"I can't know how you feel but it will be alright. Maybe you can convince Scootaloo to adopt."

Heart wasn't looking for advice but he did think that Lightning was onto something. "That is actually smart. I will see how she feels about it."

Lachrymose listened and debated whether to say anything. She thought it would bring Heart some misery but se was held back by two things. The most important was what Petal would think. Lachrymose didn't want her to be upset. The second was how Heart had defended the changeling. She was torn. She couldn't understand how he could torture one changeling and then go out of his way to save another. Lachrymose had to think more on this before making a decision.

In another part of Canterlot Petal walked into a Lantern learning center. It was a large building that was made shortly after Heart became an adviser. It was built by Lanterns with the intent of teaching. It had many large classrooms where ponies could learn anything from chemistry to woodworking. As Petal walked into the room she was told to go to. The little ponies waved and smiled at her when they saw her. She regularly stopped by and the kids seemed to like her. Today she was going to teach some alchemy. The instructors asked her to teach it because it was Petal's special talent. It was ironic that this was her special talent but she knew nothing that could help Heart.

She had around twenty students during her lesson. Some did better than others. A few couldn't grasp it at all. The learning center had a different atmosphere than the public schools. The children didn't form groups to separate each other. They all worked together. The ones that understood it helped those who didn't. Petal enjoyed teaching the kids. They were full of spirit and ready to learn. None of them were forced to be here. They had all signed up to be Lanterns. When they were in the center they learned useful skills as well as the Lantern guidelines. This was the first level of being a Lantern. With Petal's Beacon rank being the highest.

There was other ranks as well. There were hunters, recruiters, instructors, as well as more. As a Beacon Petal was one of the highest ranking members in the Lantern's. She only had to answer directly to Heart. The other Beacons were her equals and every other pony was below her. She had finished her lesson and was talking to the little ponies before leaving. A little colt raised his hoof to ask a question. "Why does Heart's Vision kill the bad ponies?"

Petal corrected the pony before answering. "King Heart. He does that so they can never hurt us. They have a chance to redeem themselves and if not they are removed from this world to prevent harm to the good ponies."

This pony was young and had not experience much. He was naïve. "But isn't killing ponies bad? Aren't we not suppose to be like that?"

"It is different. We aren't killing for our own selves. We are doing it to protect ponies."

"But why kill them? Why not just lock them up like we did before?"

Petal was getting a little irritated by this colt. "That cost money. We feed them and take care of them. That isn't the punishment they deserve. They get what they deserve with death."

The colt said something that was very odd for such a young pony to say. "Who decides what they deserve?"

"King Heart."

"What if he is wrong? My parents say it is wrong to kill ponies. Does that make Heart wrong."

Petal stood up. She walked over to the pony. She had lost every bit of her happy mood. "Every other pony leave." She received some odd looks and whys. "Leave!" The second time the students listened. After the group left, the colt was still sitting on the floor. Petal stood over the colt with cold eyes. "You are trouble."

"What?" The colt did not understand what was happening. He was afraid. His fear was well placed.

Petal didn't explain. She hit the small colt in the face with her hoof. He was knocked to the ground and dazed. He yelped and was starting to cry. He didn't try to get up. Petal placed her hoof on the colt's head. "I don't like trouble." Petal saw this pony as a problem that needed to be dealt with and she dealt with problems. She slowly applied force on her hoof.

The colt started to scream as the pressure increased on his head. Petal didn't let up. She simply applied more force. "Don't ever doubt Heart." The colt could hear his skull pop and squeak as it began to give in. The colt begged for it to stop. He got his wish. The colt's head caved in killing him. Petal looked at the pony dead on the tiled floor. Blood pooled around him. Some of it got on her hooves. She felt no remorse for her actions. She walked out of the room. Before she left she told one of the instructors that she left a mess in the room. The instructor didn't think anything of it and told her he would take care of it. Petal went back to the castle. She wasn't doing anything else today and wanted to spend time with Lachrymose, After she washed the blood off her hooves. No pony noticed it as she walked down the street.

Heart and Lightning went to the outskirts of town. Heart brought was planning on going alone but Lightning had insisted on coming. "Lead Road can handle things while were gone."

"You are right but I would rather you there."

Lightning didn't understand. "Why? Lead is better with ponies. Also better at writing down information."

"I am unsure where his loyalty lays."

This was the first time that Lightning was hearing about anything of this sort. "Why do you say that? I haven't noticed anything."

Heart only had suspicions. "I am not sure myself but it is the way he acts around me. He looks at me differently. He questioned when I took over as well." Heart and Lightning stood at the entrance of an old prison.

Two guards stood at the gate. They bowed and opened the door. Heart chose this location because of it's security as well as being remote. They went into the cell blocks. Walls had been torn down to form large rooms for the scientists. Heart walked up to a female unicorn that was ordering the others ponies around. "How is the research going?"

The unicorn turned around. "Oh, my king I didn't see you come in." the flustered pony bowed.

Heart smiled. "It is ok."

The unicorn was a scientist for Heart's gun project. She turned to Lightning. "I see you brought Lightning Hoof."

Lightning Hoof had never met this pony and didn't know her. "I'm sorry but I don't know your name."

The scientist held her hoof out. "I am Philic Knowledge."

Lightning thought the name unusual but said nothing. He shook the mare's hoof. "Nice to meet you."

Heart brought business back up. "Again, how is the research going?"

"It is… ok. The information you gave us helped but are having trouble finding other uses for the explosives. As well as finding the best materials for it. Some of our experiments had some unfortunate results."

Heart wanted to know what it was costing him. "What happened?"

"Some pony got the wrong type of fuse and the explosive went off way too early. The pony was badly injured."

Heart showed no emotion. "Have we yielded any positive results? Any military applications?"

Philic had nothing for her king. "Nothing like what you talked about. The main problem is the it would take a unicorn to operate any kind of small gun. The best we can give is the large scale, with cannons. We could probably use our explosive powders for mining."

Heart was happy with the advancement but he wanted to see. "Show me."

Philic wasn't expecting to demonstrate anything but made rush arrangements. It didn't take long when the ponies found out Heart was the one watching. The experimenters set up their crude device outside in the courtyard of the prison. It looked similar to human cannons but it was a prototype and wasn't held to a standard yet. It had no wheels. It consisted of a meal tube with a solid wooden stand. The stand seemed pretty sturdy but the metal didn't look like it would last very long.

A unicorn put a long fuse down the barrel of the cannon before loading a misshapen metal ball. The pony stepped back and lit the fuse with magic. The cannon was faced a huge stone wall that had previously held prisoners inside the courtyard. The pony ran away back to a safety zone.

Heart stood in a watchmens tower far away from the cannon he could still se what was happening but wasn't in any harm. After some long seconds of waiting nothing happened. Philic sweat as her work faltered in front of her leader. She grabbed a pony and growled at him to go get that thing working. He rushed out there to see what was going on. The fuse was completely gone and the pony didn't know what was wrong he examined the barrel.

A massive boom shook the air. The barrel of the cannon exploded but not how it should have. The ball went flying out but the barrel split open as well. Shrapnel went flying through the air at high speed. A piece lodged into the pony's forehead. He dropped dead on the spot. Blood ran down his face and onto the dry dirt of the courtyard. The ball had hit the wall and dislodged large pieces of it.

Heart didn't show much emotion. "Shit…"

Lightning was wide eyed. As paramedics rushed to the pony.

Heart could tell it was too late for the pony. "Looks like we are a way off from the desired product. Unfortunate that a pony had to be harmed in this process." Heart turned to Philic. " Give me something I can use. I like the cannon but it needs improvement. We may need it in the future. I believe that evil will show its fangs soon enough."

"Yes sir."

Chaotic went to the archives and started to look for the information to help Scootaloo. but while he looked he couldn't stand not being able to have the normal mental connection to Luna. it was taxing on her to keep it open now that her powers were gone. Heart might have left her enough to live, but not much more than that to spare. Her and Celestia were down to the level of magic of a foal in school. so now Chaotic had to fall to the level of asking a friend of his that was changeling to hook Luna up to the hive mind for shot phone calls. it pissed him off, but was still better than nothing, or having her and Moon anywhere near this psycho for the time being.

'Hey Sunny are you near Twilight's castle? And do you mind if I talk to Luna? I have some news for her and just miss her like crazy.' Chaotic could feel Sunny roll her eyes and laugh lightly. 'Hey give me five an I'll be at her room. mind if I ask what the news is?' Chaotic smiled. 'I will when i tell Luna. its not something the King would want every pony or Changeling around to know. especially since he is actually trusting me to try and fix it. so I cant let it spread.' Sunny nodded. 'Understood big c.' it only took the rest of the 5 minutes till sunny told Chaotic that he was at the door and Luna was coming to it.

Luna answered the door not knowing who it was and was happy to see Sunny. "Oh Sunny how are you? And what brings you by at this time of day?" Sunny just smiled back and fake saluted. "Message from the captain ma'am." Luna couldn't help but laugh at the antics. "You really are to much like my husband for our own good." Sunny laughed as well "It must be being connected to him all the time. now mind if I come in and start the connection?" Luna nodded and walked to the side. "Of course! please do!" then Sunny walked in and sat down on a pillow that was set up for this purpose and Luna took her spot on her pillow and closed her eyes. then Sunny put her horn oh Luna's temple and Luna was thrown into the hive mind.

'Oh I still can't get used to that.' her answer was hearing Chaotic's voice. 'Ya but I just hope it's worth it to hear my voice, sine I'm going crazy not hearing yours all the time.' Luna couldn't help smiling. 'Thank the moon I can hear your voice again. So what has you calling me at this time of day? usually you are stuck next Heart right now.' Chaotic shut off the hive mind to all except him Luna and Sunny. 'He found out he was infertile and was fuming. so I offered to try and help him so that he wont let Scoots down. and so he wont hurt others out of spite of his own fault. so I'm in the archive looking for ways to make him fertile.' Luna and Sunny both gasped at the new information.

'Why would you help him?' Luna was confused and had to ask but Chaotic answered simply. 'because he's not fully evil, and Scootaloo deserves to be happy. and with her as the mother I am hoping it will make his love out way his hate and anger. besides that. as of now he still deserves the chance to have a foal. so speaking of which, how's Moon?' Luna could understand Chaotic's hope that this would help Heart stay away from evil. 'Moon is doing well in school and growing in magic fast. and Illusion is doing just as well. they are study buddies so its keeping them busy and helping them both a lot. so are you still going to be home this Friday?' Chaotic smiled wide. 'Wouldn't miss it for the world.' Luna smiled. 'We will be waiting for you my love. until then try and find a way to help them. see you later love.' Chaotic returned the goodbye and sent off the hive mind to Luna. 'Thanks again Sunny. it means a lot.' Sunny nodded. 'any time my friend.'

A/N: ok so DLB here and Sunny is just a changeling that came into play as a friend that wanted to help out her king and queen. and ya Dan is still considered a king of changelings. Heart is just a leader to them but the loyalty is still with Crissy, virus and Dan, and somewhat Luna. Sunny was not mentioned before and will be back almost every time Luna and Dan talk now that she can't keep the mental link. she will be there in prompt to link for now. so don't wonder to much on where she came from like Sci-fi did. hehehe. oh well gotta mess with him some how while working on this with him. so enjoy, and please leave a review to tell us what ya think and how we are doing. ~DragonLovingBrony

A/N: When you introduce a new character out of nowhere I'm gonna be like what the fuck. I thought I had missed a step or some shit but no it is just DLB messing with me. Well I hope you all are enjoying the story so far. Remember kids don't play with experimental weaponry.~ sci-fi