Upheaval: Reckoning

Chapter 8: Truths and Lies

The day after FangBreaker's reclamation started out with a chorus of pained groans from the ponies who had indulged themselves with last night's celebrations. The courtyard was a mess, not just from the remains of the wolven occupants, but also from the leftovers from all the partying. Empty barrels and mugs were scattered everywhere. More than a few ponies were still lying on the ground, feeling the consequences of their excess.

Work still had to go on despite the mess. Restorations were already being done as laborers assembled scaffolding while waiting for the construction materials to be moved into the fort. Commander Dreadstep wanted FangBreaker Fortress not just operational, but completely repaired before the spring offensive. Working through the winter was a tall order, but a lot of the ponies stationed at FangBreaker found themselves enthused. The harsh conditions will serve as an additional penance for even allowing the fort to reach such a state of disrepair.

Though she had stayed up past midnight, Applejack was up with the dawn. It wasn't because she was needed for pressing matters though. Until she received some kind of order from Vanguard or his higher-ups, she had to stay in this newly formed squad with her friends instead of going to Infantry. For now, this squad didn't seem to have any other duties other than dealing with Nightmare Moon, leaving her with free time that she had to fill up somehow.

The rest of her friends were already preoccupied. Twilight had volunteered to sort out what was left of the fort's library and re-shelf the books that the Legion had saved during its retreat. After Rarity's talk last night, Applejack felt that maybe she should talk to Twilight. However, when she tried to approach the purple unicorn, something inside her shrank back. The information was…too fresh. She was still so unsure about how much of Rarity's words were true. She needed some time to figure this out.

"You have a crush on him! You're in love with him! You want to push him to the ground and give him a kiss!"

Applejack shook her head indignantly. 'Rarity's overreacting like she always does,' she told herself. 'She's fussing over tiny details and making them out be more serious than they really are. So what if I like being around Vanguard? Nothing wrong with enjoying a friend's company! And what's not to enjoy? He's brave, reliable, honest…kinda good looking…' She shook her head again. 'Darn that Rarity! Now, I'm starting to doubt myself!' She looked around to see if she could find any recognizable faces. Fluttershy had slept in the medical ward last night and got right back to work in the morning. There were plenty of injured ponies to keep her and the rest of Medical busy. Both Rarity and Rainbow Dash were sleeping off headaches although Rainbow was already recovering when Applejack left their quarters and had mentioned getting some target practice once she could aim straight.

With nothing else to do, Applejack had gone over to the training grounds for earth ponies. The place was still a mess with the walls and floor covered in wolven graffiti. Most of the debris had been cleared, however, and somepony had been considerate enough to set up a few target dummies. She looked down her chest, painfully remembering that the Element of Honesty had shattered just like the rest of the Elements of Harmony. She didn't know what caused the necklace to shatter, but she instinctively assumed that it was her fault. With the elation of reclaiming FangBreaker and the celebrations now behind her, all the foreboding feelings began to crash down. Nightmare Moon was just one problem and she wasn't even sure if they had dealt with her completely. More problems loomed ahead. She felt restless just sitting around waiting for somepony to tell her what to do.

That was why she had come to the training grounds. She had brought the length of chain she had received from Crow Quill, the supposed chain of Apple Slice, on a whim. She had no idea what to do with the thing, but she figured that something that was passed along generations of ponies just to be given to her had to be useful. Despite being metal, the chain was as light as rope and its length made it easy to carry. However, its shortness also made it useless for anything but tying up something small.

"Hey there!"

Applejack didn't quite recognize the cheery greeting that came from behind her. She had heard the soft-speaking tone somewhere before, but she couldn't place it. She turned around and saw a dark blue unicorn whose purple mane came down in elaborate ringlets. A few more seconds passed before she found the name that went with this pony's features. "Captain Nightcanter," she said with a salute.

"So formal!" Nightcanter remarked, her crooked smile widening slightly. "No need to stand on ceremony there, legionnaire. By the way, you're that mare that Vanguard was dancing with last night, aren't you? He mentioned your name before. What was it? Applejack?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"I've never seen Vanguard dance before and I've done my share of trying to get him to." Nightcanter leaned forward and nudged Applejack slyly. "So what happened after that? Did you start rolling your oats once you got somewhere private?"

"Rolling my oats?" Applejack asked in confusion. "No, ma'am. I'm more of an apple farmer. Don't know much about working with oats. I do have an uncle who tried his hoof in the oat business once." Her tone grew grim for a moment. "The Oat Family didn't take too kindly to that."

The smile on Nightcanter's face lessened slightly. "I meant did you do some horizontal dancing?"

"Uh…no, we just stuck to 'Snakedodge'. That was pretty hard too. Not as hard as 'Horizontal Dancing' I reckon. How do you even do that?"

Nightcanter stared at Applejack incredulously and then shook her head. "Nevermind," she muttered. "I'll just assume you didn't do what I thought you might have done." More ponies began to enter the training grounds. Some of them worked on cleaning up the place while the others started exercising to get rid of the lethargy brought about by last night's partying. Nightcanter focused on something else, her eyes landing on the chain that was currently coiled around Applejack's neck. "So what do you have there?" she asked. "Not planning to strangle ourselves, are we?"

"No," Applejack replied. "This here chain's supposed to have belonged to Apple Slice, but I don't know what to do with it."

Nightcanter's eyes widened. "Apple Slice?" she asked incredulously. "As in 'The Last Great Apple' Apple Slice?"

"There's that title again! There are a lot of great Apples out there. Not just whoever this pony is! Why there's-"

Nightcanter put a hoof up. "You can list off a hundred of your chosen Apples, Applejack. They might be great, but not in the same way Apple Slice was. May I have a look at that chain?"

Reluctantly, Applejack handed the length of chain to Nightcanter. The dark blue unicorn inspected it with her horn glowing. "Obviously magical," she said. "How'd you get this?"

Applejack narrated her encounter with Crow Quill back in Bastion City while Nightcanter listened intently. She felt a little embarrassed having somepony focus on her so much as if she was something special. "You should be honored," Nightcanter said. An enchanted weapon requires powerful magic."

"Magic huh?" Applejack remarked. " Twilight mentioned that. I'm sure the unicorns here have a lot of those stashed away."

"Not really. We can create temporary ones with some effort, but an enchantment to last through centuries…a unicorn died to make this, Applejack. Probably several." A grim look flashed on Nightcanter's face but she quickly replaced it with an enthusiastic smile. "Anyway, there are a lot of stories about Apple Slice bringing down ursans by lassoing them," she suggested. "Have you given that a try?"

"Lassoing?" Applejack asked skeptically. "Just look at how short it is! Sure, I could lasso things with it. If those things were a spitting distance away."

"That's your earth pony-ness talking."

"My what?"

"Your earth pony-ness: that stubborn, no-nonsense tendency of yours not to trust anything that you can't get a feel of with your senses. This is a magical object, an artifact even. You have to trust in its magic, not in what it looks or feels like."

"I've never used magic before," Applejack said. "I'm no unicorn. Guess I'm better off giving this to Twilight or Rarity."

Nightcanter's horn was still glowing as she stretched out the chain. "Then you'd be handing them junk," she said. "The enchantments here are pretty specific. Think about it. There aren't any stories about any pony in the Barrier Lands wielding a magic chain after Apple Slice. You'd think somepony would have taken up some magical equipment, but no. One explanation I'd consider is that it doesn't work for just anypony. If you really are related to him in some way, you're the best candidate."

Applejack now looked at the chain with even more distrust. For a moment, she didn't want to have anything to do with the chain now that she knew that some unicorns died to make it. She thought about it for a moment and then decided that it would do those unicorns a disservice. After all, they had sacrificed a lot to create this thing and made sure that only her family could use it.

"Just give it a try," Nightcanter insisted.

"Alright." Applejack tied the chain into a lasso and then gave it a whirl. Nightcanter pointed her to a distant, unoccupied practice dummy. With a shrug, Applejack tossed the lasso, expecting the chain to jerk once it reached its very short maximum distance.

The links stretched out…and then kept flying. Applejack nearly dropped the chain as she watched the looped end reach the target and land on point. Reflexively, she gave the chain a tug once it landed to tighten the loop. The target dummy snapped near its base and then clattered on the ground.

Nightcanter walked forward and examined the extended chain. "Force," she said with awe. The other ponies had noticed now and were moving in to see the strange weapon.

Applejack chuckled nervously at the increasing attention. "Sorry about the target," she said. "I didn't mean to. I swear I just gave it a good tug."

"Did you really?" Nightcanter asked. "It boosts its wielder's strength too. Probably important seeing as trying to lasso say, a rampaging ursan, would be impossible without such an enchantment."

The murmurs among the crowd flustered Applejack further. She pulled back the chain and wanted to put it away when links suddenly clicked together, even going so far as undoing the loop. In an instant, she was holding a simple, short length of chain again.

"You lucky pony," Nightcanter said. "To wield the weapon of the legendary Apple Slice…I'd cut off a leg for that honor."

A loud, mocking snort came from the gathered ponies around them. Nightcanter frowned and then looked over to them. "Who did that?" she asked the crowd angrily.

"I did!"

An orange pegasus stallion with a cropped, bright green mane stepped forward. Applejack noticed his barding, which was similar to the one Flight Captain Tailwind wore, including the special, stylized wing. "I heard what you were gushing about. 'Legendary' Apple Slice my flank! The stallion is a glorified murderer who dragged his ponies with him to a massacre!"

"Hey!" Applejack said indignantly. "Don't you badmouth my family like that!"

"You've only stayed in this place for a short time," the pegasus said offhandedly. "It only makes sense that you have no grasp of our history." He shifted his gaze back to Nightcanter. "I'm surprised that a Special Operations captain is feeding a legionnaire the same sugar-coated tripe that they tell earth pony foals before bedtime."

"And I'm surprised that a flight captain thinks I won't strangle him with his own tail just for that snort!" Nightcanter hissed. "You better stay out of dark alleys, Sunray!"

"You should hear the truth if you really are related in some way to Apple Slice," Sunray told Applejack. "The stallion is no hero. During the division process, Princess Celestia chose the Apple Family to settle in the Heartland. That same family cast Apple Slice out because he was a budding violent psychopath. He then worked his way up the Legion's ranks by being a ruthless murderer until he snapped, led his ponies against a horde of ophidites, and got massacred. It was such an embarrassment that the Legion whitewashed the event as a 'heroic last stand'." He looked at the chain with disgust. "I can only imagine how many…creatures he strangled to death with that thing."

"Celestia drill my backside!" Nightcanter scoffed. "You're one of those conspiracy nags! Don't listen to this idiot, Applejack, he's a damn chosen apologist who thinks Apple Slice must be garbage because his high and mighty clan tossed him out!"

The two ponies sized each other up while the crowd continued to watch. Now, most of them were more for seeing what would happen between the two quarreling captains than checking out the mysterious chain.

"That's enough quibbling!" another pony from the crowd said. It was a unicorn stallion this time, a bright blue one with a long, curly white mane. "You're both wrong anyway," he said haughtily. "Apple Slice couldn't have possibly been a hero or a psychopath. He'd have to exist to be either."

Nightcanter rolled her eyes. "Here we go," she said, "another 'earth ponies are useless' lecture from Mage Captain Drizzlecloud!"

"I hate to disappoint you, but Apple Slice is not real," the other unicorn said to Applejack. "He's a myth created by the Legion to inspire earth ponies during that time. Prior to the legend of Apple Slice, earth ponies had no heroes to look up to. Pegasi had Wind Runner and Ash Frost. Unicorns had Afterthought and Moonrage. To keep Infantry recruitment going strong, the Legion invented Apple Slice, the noble farmer turned hero who gallantly refused to join his family in the Heartland to continue protecting Equestria. A few centuries later, when the earth ponies finally had actual heroes, some pegasi started spreading stories about how Apple Slice was actually a monster. Likely because they felt that the earth ponies were getting too proud."

"Of course the unicorns had a clear conscience in the entire affair," Sunray muttered. "They always do in Drizzlecloud's 'historical facts'."

Drizzlecloud turned his nose up. "Don't blame me, blame the truth."

"Hold on for one pony-picking minute here!" Applejack finally interrupted. Despite being faced by captains, she wasn't going to sit there while they threw one story after another about somepony who might be family. "The Queen told me that Apple Slice fell valiantly in battle during his last stand!"

The three stopped and looked at Applejack.

"The Queen?" Drizzlecloud asked. "The Queen as in our prince's mother and one of the Eternal Herd's omnipotent rulers?"

"Yes, that Queen," Applejack said.

"I believe her," Nightcanter added. "I heard it from Vanguard Clash. The Queen spoke to our prince through this one."

"Then I will not doubt that the Queen did speak with you," Drizzlecloud replied. "But, as to what she actually told you…that I can throw some doubt on."

"What do you mean?" Applejack asked angrily.

"Rather convenient to say that the Queen told you that now that Apple Slice's story is the topic of the conversation."

"Are you calling me a liar?" Applejack stepped closer towards Drizzlecloud. "I oughta-"

"You can roast me over a slow fire if you want," Drizzlecloud interrupted. "It doesn't make you more truthful in anypony's eyes. You're better off showing proof."

Applejack fell silent. There was no proof. To be doubted like this was painful, irritating and humiliating to a degree. She wanted to lash out, but Drizzlecloud was right, hurting anypony would prove nothing.

"And I suppose you have proof, Drizzlecloud?" Nightcanter asked.

"I can show you documents if you want," the other unicorn replied. "I happen to have done some research into this personally."

"And I've got a few books about the subject back in Bastion City," Sunray said.

"No doubt written by pegasi," Drizzlecloud retorted.

Before anypony else could say something a sudden blast from a horn sent everypony scrambling. The training grounds cleared in less than a minute.

"What's going on?" Applejack asked. "What was that horn blowing for?"

"The prince is arriving," Nightcanter said. She didn't panic like the others, but she did show some surprise. "It's to be expected though. Don't know why everypony's in a panic."

"Uh…Captain Nightcanter?"

"Yes?"

"Thank you kindly for helping me out with this thing."

Nightcanter smiled in return. "No problem, Applejack. If you and Vanguard do start doing it and need some company, give me an invite. I really want to see him cut loose." Her smile widened playfully. "You don't look so bad yourself."

Applejack didn't know if she should smile back or be afraid.

"You better get back with your squad. I'm willing to bet that our prince is going to want to see all of you!" With that, Nightcanter walked off. Applejack coiled the chain around her neck and made her way back to the shared quarters.

Despite the initial scramble, FangBreaker's occupants were quick to provide Prince Terrato the best welcome they could manage. The audience hall had been cleared of debris and cleaned up enough to be presentable. Most of the fortress wasn't too worried after the surprise. Their prince didn't care much for pomp anyway.

Terrato had arrived by teleportation, appearing within the audience hall to the shock of the workers still there. He had not come alone either. With him were Commander Dreadstep and Celestia. Whispers quickly went rampant throughout the fortress, especially when the sun symbol on his sister's flank was noticed. The word was out, Celestia was in FangBreaker Fortress. Rumors were already abounding in Bastion City, and they only grew in number now.

Most of the morning was spent on inspection. Terrato surveyed his newly-reacquired fortress with a sense of pride for his legionnaires and grim speculation. If he was going to use this place as a launching point for his invasion, expansions will probably have to take place. By noon time, he was sitting by the audience hall, receiving reports with Dreadstep and Celestia. His eldest sister had fallen silent ever since she spent a day in Bastion City as an earth pony. The glumness on her face made his heart ache but, when he tried to ask her about what happened, she had not answered with anything. He had called for the Elements of Harmony. Perhaps the sight of her beloved student would put some cheer in his sister. Then, he had an execution to attend. He thought it best to do that without her at his side.

When the Elements of Harmony did walk in, however, he realized that they might end up doing the opposite of what he wanted of them. It didn't take long for Celestia to notice as well. Her eyes widened with concern and she leaned forward. Before she could say anything, Terrato spoke first. "You're looking significantly less gaudy than when we last had a meeting," he told them. "Are my aesthetics starting to rub off on you or is there something you'd like to tell me?"

It was Twilight Sparkle who stepped forward. She kept her head low while she spoke. "Your highness, the Elements of Harmony….well…they shattered."

"Twilight…" Celestia stepped forward and then went to her student's group. All of them gathered around her seeking some comfort. Terrato let them stay that way for some time while Dreadstep looked to him nervously. The old stallion knew the signs of his prince's growing impatience.

"That's enough feeling sorry for yourselves," Terrato finally said. He turned towards Celestia in exasperation. "Stop coddling them, Celestia! Harmonia Intus!"

Applejack's eyes widened. "Hey, I recognize that! The Queen said it to me before."

Celestia shot a disapproving look at Terrato before addressing Applejack. "Harmony comes from within," she said. "Don't be so sad, girls. It's true that the loss of the physical elements is a terrible thing, but all is not lost."

"What do you mean, your highness?" Twilight asked.

"True Harmony does not rely on metal and stone," Celestia said with a reassuring smile. "The jewelry you held served as focuses to channel the power of harmony. Without them, it will be difficult to call forth the power of the Elements, but not impossible."

Twilight Sparkle's face brightened a bit. "How do we do that, your highness?" she asked.

"Tell me first as to how they came to shatter," Celestia replied.

Twilight narrated their last encounter with Nightmare Moon. Her friends added their experience after she had disappeared. Celestia fell silent when Twilight mentioned the voices she heard when she was transported into the middle of nowhere. Terrato also fell into a frowning contemplation.

"From what you've told me, I can only guess that you and your friends were not in harmony when you tried to use the elements," Celestia finally said. "The devices sensed your great need and activated anyway, but the strain of doing so was too much."

"So we broke the elements…" Twilight said glumly.

"No, Twilight, you broke the devices," Celestia said firmly. "Whatever has come between you and your friends must be dealt with, and then…" She hesitated briefly before going on. "It is difficult to explain. You must simply remember that Harmony has personal as well as social aspects. You must grow in both."

"We will, princess," Twilight said with determination. She looked to her friends who nodded in return. Terrato noticed that both Rarity and Applejack were doing so with less enthusiasm.

"I have full faith in you, Twilight. One more thing." Celestia leaned forward to whisper to her student. Curious, Terrato listened in anyway. "Later, I would like to talk to you about this Pyre Valor."

Twilight nodded with less enthusiasm and Celestia walked back to her place next to her brother. "Good that you have that settled," he said. "With Nightmare Moon gone, there won't be much of a need for you to remain a squad. I want you to return to your previous positions and concentrate on your training."

"Terrato, perhaps you should let them see their families first," Celestia suggested. "They were forced to leave their homes so abruptly."

Terrato paused to consider the option and then returned his gaze to Twilight and the others. "Would you like that?" he asked them. "Would you like to see your families?"

"That would be lovely!" Rarity said. The others nodded in agreement.

"Go then. I'll give you a couple of weeks. While you're there, I want you to help facilitate the drafts. Having fellow chosen tell them the importance of what needs to be done should move your neighbors along. You are dismissed."

Twilight bowed along with her friends and then left the audience hall. Once they were gone, Celestia turned towards Terrato. "Lunalux Umbra and Solis Coruscaria," she said. She spoke quietly, just out of Dreadsteps hearing. "The handmaidens of Oceanus. Is he on the verge of returning?"

"He's one rebellion short," Terrato replied. "I had thought that all the betrayers had fallen into dormancy. I don't know how those two stayed up, but we'll deal with them when the time comes. Hopefully, with you back in full power."

A knock on the doors of the audience hall drew both alicorns' attention. The guards opened them and a legionnaire and entered and bowed low before them. "Your highness, we have a pony here who teleported into the fortress asking for an audience with you."

"You sound pretty urgent, legionnaire," Terrato said. "Something else I should know?"

"Yes, your highness. He said that his name was Blue Moon, leader of The Thorns, and that it was imperative that he see you at once."

Terrato's frown deepened at the mention of the name. "Bring him in," he said.

"Terrato, who is this pony?" Celestia asked.

"Blue Moon is Black Rose's younger brother," Terrato said. "The Thorns served as her special tasks group. They should also be dead, but the fact that they aren't shouldn't come as a surprise when dealing with her."

Terrato felt his sister tense. Black Rose: the pony who had brazenly stolen her power during that fateful day. It had been some time since he last heard of the newly formed alicorn. He looked towards the doors and watched as a unicorn stallion, flanked by a pair of guards, walked through them. Blue Moon was so slender and delicately featured that it was easy to mistake him for a mare. He had a flowing, silvery blue mane and his coat was a very pale blue. He wore an elaborate soft-clothed coat, partly armored around the neck and shoulders with gracefully curving plates of metal. On his collar was the emblem of a black, five-petaled rose with six thorns protruding symmetrically around it.

"Blue Moon," Terrato said. "Your sister has been quite a headache lately." He unleashed his magic as he spoke, looking to break down any magical defenses around Blue Moon before trapping the stallion in a cage of diamond. To his surprise, he found none. He delayed the caging spell for now. "I assume the rest of The Thorns are up and about as well?" he asked.

Blue Moon knelt with his head held low. "Lion Court, Longstride and Sablesteel have all been given their assignments, your highness," he replied. "Rhapsody failed to revive, but Black Rose still has Warsinger and only needs somepony skilled enough to play it. Frenzy Heart also failed to revive and will have to be replaced completely."

"That's…unusually informative," Terrato said. "What are you up to, Blue Moon?"

"Your highness, I am here to warn you of my sister's plans."