Chapter 21
Fluttershy leaned back in her seat near the table closest to the stage. Soon, her father would formally induct this restaurant into Ponyville and seal his chances of becoming Mayor of Ponyville.
Inside, she felt a twinge of remorse at how quickly she'd come to this decision. The current Mayor was her friend after all; wasn't it betraying her trust to vote for her competition?
Ultimately, she had been comforted by a simple truth. An election wasn't about picking one friend over the other; it was about who you believed would do the best job. While she was partial to her father for obvious reasons, the Mayor hadn't always been great at rallying ponies to support a particular cause or event. She was usually fit for the task but certainly not always.
Sure, she'd had reservations about her father becoming mayor. She was perfectly willing to give him a second chance, even after everything he had done, but was he really qualified for the position? His speeches were compelling, but far from the most inspirational she had ever heard. Though an illustrious position, a long career as a psychiatrist didn't necessarily suggest the ability to maintain order for an entire town either, even if it was one as small as Ponyville.
"No. I can't turn back now. I already decided to officially announce my endorsement tonight; I can't doubt myself now."
Fluttershy scanned the room. Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Rarity were all seated at various tables across the large housing area. Twilight and Crusher were oddly absent.
"Twilight's probably talking to Herodious or one of his campaign managers, but why wouldn't Crusher be here?"
She imagined he'd probably dozed off while writing his novel. Although he was dedicated to his work, she speculated his sleeping schedule was terribly chaotic.
She stared at the clock on the wall ten feet above the stage. In three minutes, the Mayor of Ponyville was going to start the event with a few words. Then, Herodious was scheduled to list several contributors he wanted to thank for the restaurant ultimately being completed. After that, both Fluttershy and Twilight would endorse Herodious for Mayor.
Having to reveal this to the Mayor for the first in public sounded harsh. But the Mayor was professional; Fluttershy knew she would understand.
From the corner of the stage, a spotlight settled on an orchestra. Particular focus was handled to Octavia Melody, a renowned composer and cellist from Canterlot. When the three second waiting period ended, they played a classical piece that fit the atmosphere nicely without distracting from the speakers.
The Mayor approached the stage on cue. Stepping behind the podium, she greeted the guests with a confident smile.
"Ladies and gentlecolts, I welcome you all to the official opening of the highest-class restaurant in Ponyville, 'Galalicious'!"
The crowd clapped in near perfect unison. Fluttershy unintentionally found the Mayor's statement humorous; the preparation process for this event had been anything but fancy.
"Before I introduce the stallion responsible for this impressive accomplishment, I would like to speak briefly about the incoming election."
Murmurs spread amongst members of the crowd. Fluttershy could tell the Mayor only heard a couple of them.
"I understand some of you have voiced concern that this election may divide us; that some of you feel obligated to vote for me or Herodius based on personal ties or obligations. I wanted to remind all of you that everypony should vote based on the decisions we plan to make for the sake of our beloved town. While the friendships and emotional ties you may have to us are certainly important, from a strictly political perspective, they are not relevant."
No one said a word. Fluttershy silently admitted she was engrossed as well.
"If you vote for either of us, I suggest you vote based off what we have spoken we plan to do in the future to keep Ponyville as homely and inviting as it has been since the founding of the town. Whoever represents these qualities best is the pony you should vote for,"
The Mayor stirred slightly, adjusting the bowtie around her neck.
"Now, with that being said, please welcome candidate for Mayor and founder of this restaurant, Herodius Marsh."
The crowd was in an uproar as Herodius stepped onto the stage. He mouthed a quick 'thank you' to the Mayor before taking his spot behind the podium.
"Thank you, Ponyville," he beamed. "I am glad so many of you decided to come to the unveiling of this restaurant. The work that has been done on this restaurant is astounding. Before we continue on with this evening's events, I would like to give my thanks to the many ponies who made this dream a reality."
"I would like to thank Highron Garret for his generous donations to this project's finances, Francis Andrew, for volunteering to be matrie'd and manager of this business from the minute I conceptualized it, and the Mayor herself, for agreeing to have this restaurant commissioned. Finally, I would like to commemorate the workers and laborers who worked their hardest in the rays of the hot sun to have my dream be realized. This extraordinary building, risen from collaboration, would not exist without all of you."
His gaze focused on Fluttershy. "With all that being said, please welcome to the stage my beautiful daughter, Fluttershy."
Roars sprung from every pony. She flushed bright red as she took her position behind the podium. She had rehearsed her speech countless times, but she still wasn't properly prepared to speak with this many ponies around.
"It's alright, Fluttershy. Take a deep breath, and remember people care about you."
She glanced at her father, her friends sitting on the lower level, and Twilight just offstage.
"I can do this."
"Good evening, everypony," she started awkwardly, but pressed on. "I wanted to take the time I have up here to explain why I believe my Father would be an excellent candidate for Mayor."
She stole a look at the Mayor. Just as Fluttershy had predicted, she looked as composed as ever.
The yellow mare continued. "My dad is an accomplished individual in his field. He earned his PH.D in psychology, and has received a unanimously positive reaction from all of his clients. Ponies who have seen him,"
She paused before this part. "Including me, have been satisfied with the honesty and care he shows in sessions."
Every eye in the crowd watched her closely. Her stalling period ended, Fluttershy nodded to herself. "In his job, he has shown the ability to influence ponies to make the right decisions in their daily lives. He has shown the strength and fluidness of character to earn ponies' trust by following through on his promises."
She looked back at him. He met her eyes in an oddly solemn manner.
"And the sense of responsibility to tie up loose ends,"
He turned his eyes to the ground. Worried, Fluttershy relented to finishing her presentation. "He has done his best to lay out the plans he has to make Ponyville an even better town than it already is. That's why I feel he should be Mayor of Ponyville,"
The crowd cheered once again. Flushing, Fluttershy stood to the side of her father who patted her head once she arrived. Recognizing her time had come, Twilight now stood behind the podium. Fluttershy noticed something odd was sticking out of her pocket.
"Thank you, Fluttershy, for that rousing endorsement," she shifted her eyes back to the crowd. "Now, I think most of you may wonder why we are so convicted that Herodius should be Mayor of Ponyville. My friend, Fluttershy, has effectively relayed some of these reasons, but I want to explain in more detail why I argue he is the best candidate for Mayor,"
Twilight
Twilight had been surprised at herself for ultimately deciding to support Herodius. But it was just like the Mayor had said; she hadn't chosen him because she liked him more.
She had chosen him because she determined he was the best candidate. She didn't care what supernatural force or prophecy come true Highron Garret was or who he threatened to kill. Backing down to him would be the same as admitting defeat. If she refused to back down, he might well be intimidated.
And if she wasn't, she and her friends had the power to stop them.
"I have spoken to Herodius in private of what he plans to do. His goals are not extreme, all-encompassing, or grand. He admits that the last thing he wants to do is make promises he can't keep."
A couple ponies in the crowd nodded in agreement.
"I believe one of the true measures of a pony's character is whether they'll quick to agree to obligations. The best of us would consider the possibility of being able to fulfill a promise or complete a job before agreeing to do it. Many of us, including myself at times, have not been able to claim such ability. While
Herodius has made mistakes in his youth, his determination to keep his obligations from then on has proven true through his actions."
She sighed briefly. "I have seen this conviction followed through upon by very few ponies I've met in my lifetime. Since Herodius has succeeded on following this philosophy, we can all have faith that he will keep his commitments."
Applause permeated every section of the room. Twilight stepped back to await the next part of the ceremony.
"The question is, when will they make their move?"
Suddenly, the lights dimmed. Several screams cried amidst the chaos.
Three green lights appeared in the center of the stage. Twilght promptly cast a strong purple light from her horn to give some additional light to the darkness.
The figures above her still resembled the ponies who had kidnapped her earlier. But now, they were hideously deformed. Bones poked out through paper-thin fur, and their faces were elongated and ghastly. Each now shared the same fur coat.
Their glowing red eyes turned to the crowd.
"Citizens of Ponyville," a horrifying growl erupted from the highest floating member. "In your distant past, there were ponies like you who were tired of the pitiful conditions earth ponies lived in. We spent ages travelling the land in search of finding a way to end the bitter winter that befell Equestria."
A grin that revealed charred, black teeth emerged from his lips. "One day, we encountered a hidden chamber under the grounds near Tartarus that contained dozens of magical artifacts, talismans, and spell books. One book contained detailed instructions on how to destroy anything in one's path."
More screams came from the crowd. Herodius watched the newcomers, his face locked in horror.
"Although we had no magical talent, we read a passage that allowed normal ponies to use the power at a grave cost. We sought to use this ability to permanently end winter, and destroy everything that polluted Equestria with discord."
Twilight gritted her teeth. They hadn't made any sudden moves, so she didn't expect they would start attacking the crowd just yet. Near the back of the crowd, she motioned for Spike to run out the door.
"The spell worked as outlined in the ancient texts; but each of us were consumed by the dark magic contained within the book and lost our eternal bodies. At the cost of not only gaining the power to annihilate anything in our way, but immortality as well, we lost our flesh."
"At the time, none of us knew what to do. We spent centuries bemoaning our fate. Back then, we had no desire to cause pain and misery to everything in our paths. But, as time wore on, evil subverted our desires and turned us into servants of its will. Although we initially planned to take on all of Equestria, we feared the Elements of Harmony might contain the power to defeat us. So, instead, we sought to subvert ponies into believing in our cause. That is why we destroyed rich business man Highron Garret and using the dark magic present within me, posed as him. After meeting with Herodius, I realized how diplomatic a figure he was. We planned to use him to make ponies trust us, so we could strike Equestria at its weakest point!"
I glared as harshly as I could at Herodius. To his side, tears stung Fluttershy's eyes.
"However, we put too much faith in him. The fool had grown too attached to his daughter. If he gained too much of a conscience, he might decide to reveal our identities. So, we blackmailed Twilight into killing Herodius for us. Despite her supposed acceptance of our request, she refused,"
Each of the creatures' eyes expanded, revealing black flames circling in the midst of their eyes that stood in as pupils.
"Because of her disobedience, we decided to take advantage of the Mane Six's presence here, and destroy them before the Elements of Harmony made their appearance. And now,"
He smirked as the green light expanded all across the room.
"All of you will die,"
A/N: Wow, it had been a long time since I updated this. Two-and-half years; man, time flies. I took the opportunity of having finished two of the stories on my FF account to continue this story. For those readers who have stuck around, holding a small hope that I might continue this story, thanks a lot.