Chapter 11:

Revelations: The Truth is Revealed

It was a familiar setting for Prince Rogue Storm, fog. Like the previous few nights it was cool and damp. A shiver shot up the prince's spine and goosebumps formed beneath his fur. Whether or not it was because of the weather or fear was inconsequential. Unlike the other few nights, the grey alicorn knew he was dreaming. It wasn't a time for fear. Rogue was trying to focus his mind. Though it he was aware of his surroundings being a dream, he was trying to take control. Countless times in his life had the prince been aware that he was dreaming. But it was a different matter of taking control of it.

The prince took a few steps around the area trying to find something familiar. To the left was nothing. To the right was less than nothing. Up above was an endless abyss of fog and mist. The ground was a black stone with a high gloss finish. It looked like it was made of obsidian. Rogue Storm took a few steps forward to try and find a clearing. His greaves clicked on the black stone. If only he could find something familiar. A pillar, a door, even a candle would be enough to help the grey alicorn focus. After a dozen steps or so, Rogue continued to see nothing. He stopped after a few more steps and realized he was getting nowhere fast. It was time to do something.

"Hell no," the grey alicorn whispered. "Not this time. I know I'm dreaming. Focus, Rogue. Focus… Focus… Find your center. Think of something sturdy and constant." White magic charged Rogue's horn and started to crackle and pulse as the prince concentrated. Random sparks jumped from the prince and sizzled as they fluttered in the fog. "You can do this. I am in control. This is my mind, my world, my will." Rogue closed his eyes and pictured a clear horizon in his head. A mighty hoof rose up and briefly paused as the magic charged. "Be gone!" Rogue shouted as hoof collided with the ground and sent his magic in all directions. The spell created a gust of wind that blew away the fog.

It was gone. The cold and the dampness were gone. Finally, something was going the prince's way. When Rogue opened his eyes, he saw a doorway in the distance with two figures flanking it. Rogue's brow furrowed as he recognized the two ponies tormenting him the last few nights. "You two…"

"Of course us," the male pony figure said.

"And not us," the female said. "Your eyes deceive you."

"And reveal the truth," the male pony said.

"Yea, yea," Rogue said defiantly. "My eyes saw you watch while my father beat me while I dreamt last time."

"Quite so," the two figures said in unison.

"Dreadful," the male said.

"And necessary," the female said. "Quite necessary." The grey alicorn snorted at the two figures. Rogue started to walk towards the door. He had had enough of these two invading his dreams.

"Did you find that funny?" he asked with scorn. "Did you like watching me be tortured? Where do you two get off treating me like that?" Rogue's pace quickened to a steady trot and his horn charged again. This time he formed a saber exactly like the one Luna gave him for their wedding. "Well, I'm in control now. And I have had enough of you!" Rogue roared as he opened up into a sprint. His rage had taken control. The gap drew smaller between him and the male pony form. Closer and closer the two figures came until… "From the depths of hell, I stab at thee!" Rogue thrust his blade forward as quick as he could and ran the shadowy figure through its chest. But the figure did not react to the strike. It blew away and joined the other figure by the door.

"Such violent behavior," the female said. "Are you injured?"

"Indeed," the male said. "But only my pride."

"Shut up," Rogue snapped raising his blade. "I'm done with your crap. Who are you? And what do you want?" The two figures shimmered and started to grow. They lost their equine forms and adopted human forms. Clothes began to form on their bodies. Shades of brown invaded and formed a suit and dress. Rogue took note of the style of the clothes. Early 20th century around 1912 he guessed. But it was when their faces formed that Rogue released his spell. The sword disappeared into nothingness as Rogue Storm shook his head. "You've got to be kidding me," he mused. The two standing before him were not possible. "Robert and Rosalind Lutece?" Robert bowed to the prince while Rosalind gave a curtsey to him.

"In the flesh," Rosalind said.

"And not so," Robert added. Rogue turned away from the two and tried to make sense of what was happening.

"More games and tricks of my mind," Rogue said bringing a hoof to his brow. "You two aren't real. You're characters in a video game."

"Very true," Robert said with a smug grace.

"And yet, here we are," Rosalind said.

"I binged on your game before I packed up to move and I am dealing with some conflicting matters at the moment," Rogue snapped. "Of course my mind would bring up you two walking contradictions. Just cut to the chase and tell me I lost what's left of my mind."

"Conflicting?" Rosalind gasped. "Contradictions?"

"The Prince seemed rather sure of himself when he stabbed me," Robert said.

"Quite sure, as though he was his old self again," the female Lutece said.

"He also appears to be quite mad," Robert added.

"Which mad, the angry one or the insane one?" Rosalind asked.

"Perhaps both," Robert said.

"Or neither," Rosalind added. Rogue sat down and brought his hooves to his eyes and pulled down. The greaves gripped at his lower eyelids. Unknown to the Luteces, Rogue was charging his magic as strongly as he could.

"What should his next course of action be?" Robert asked his other self. But before Rosalind could respond a massive surge of lightning flashed from Rogue's horn. It impacted the two fictional humans and tossed them back away from the now scorched door. The Luteces squirmed in pain on the black floor for a moment. Their bodies smoked and black char invaded their brown clothes. Rogue took a few steps up to them and splayed his wings out proud and strong. His brow furrowed with anger and confidence. His grey horn still crackled with electricity. The two humans sat up in pain and said nothing as they stared at the pony before them.

"Since I got back from my honeymoon, I have been plagued by nightmares," the Prince of the Sky began with quiet rage. "The waking world has taxed me to my limits and I refuse to be the whipping boy anymore." The Luteces looked at each other with a twinge of fear. "I can control my dreams again. I have access to my magic and can create lightning on a whim now. What you two just felt was 100,000 volts but I managed to keep the milliamps low enough so you'd survive." Rogue started to charge his magic again and left the lightning leap from his body again. "This is my mind, my world, and my life. I won't have any more interference from ANYONE! So who's ass do I fry first?" To Rogue's shock, the Lucteces began to laugh. But before Rogue Storm could discharge again, the two humans faded back into shadows on the floor and slid along the floor under the door.

"You are ready to know the truth," the two voices called as the door opened. Rogue witnessed a soft glow coming from the door and the crackling of a fire filled the quiet void he was standing in. With an angry sigh, the prince marched into the room and the door closed behind Rogue.

It was a library. A small private library one would have in their home. Two maroon chairs sat before the roaring fire. Rogue's eyes widened at seeing them. He remembered them. On the walls were mahogany bookcases filled the brim. He had read quite a few of them. To his left was a minibar with a decanter and three crystal glasses. Next to the liquor was a glass display case with service medals and ribbons, all very old. He knew them well. They were his grandfather's from the war. And this was the study he played in as a child. Rogue darted to the case and reached to pick it up. But a hand reached out instead of a hoof.

"What?" the former pony said as he looked up and beheld his former self Joseph Rigetti in the window's reflection. Joseph reached up a touched the flesh on his cheek. He was shaved and smooth. A green button down shirt and tan slacks clothed the human. Daring to go further, the former alicorn parted his shirt and saw the scar from the arrow was still on his chest. Joseph dropped his head and reached for the liquor. He pulled the stopper out and smelled the amber liquid. "Bourbon…" he mused and reached for a glass. But Joseph found only one where three used to be. Something was amiss and Joseph was not about to have it. He focused again to bring another charge to his hands. But this time his magic failed. "No not now…" the former alicorn cried.

"Your grandfather had excellent taste in spirits," a voice called from behind. Joseph spun around with balled up fists to face whatever creature his unconscious had dared to conjure. But upon seeing the figure, Joseph's eyes widened in shock.

"It can't be," he whispered. Fists of rage lowered as confusion set in. There by the fireplace stood King Solaris in all his glory. The King of Equestria stood tall and strong with his flaming mane and tail flickering with the burning hearth. His coat was full with the white of fresh snow. It was a far cry from the last image Joseph had of the king prior to his death months before. Joseph just starred at Solaris as he swirled a glass of bourbon in his magic. It was an impossible sight.

"Speechless, my boy?" the king said. "Never did I imagine such a day."

"Then again," another voice called. "He has been acting unlike himself, Solaris." Solaris looked at one of the two chairs in front of him. Joseph's eyes followed as well. The chair began to turn on its own. Had the human been holding the last glass, Joseph would have dropped it in shock. In the chair sat the other half of Solaris, Discord. The draconequus sat with a drink in one claw and the Rosalind's brown dress on.

"Really, Discord," Solaris said with annoyance. "Must you maintain that disguise?"

"Would you believe me if I told you it was comfy?" the irrational one said with his usual charm. Solaris gave no reaction the Discord. "No? How about I only wished to demonstrate my character range?" Discord downed his drink in the time it took Solaris to blink and blew the glass into a balloon.

"Why must you vex me?" Solaris asked with a cocked eyebrow.

"It's fun," Discord said. But before the two entities could continue Joseph spoke up.

"Stop, both of you?" he snapped. "I'm standing in my grandfather's study with a hodgepodge and a pony both of whom should be dead."

"We are dead," Solaris and Discord answered at the same time.

"Like the chickens," Discord said as two roasted chickens ran by clucking. "Hmmm, those look a little undercooked."

"That tears it," Joseph said going back to the bourbon and pouring a triple serving for himself. A flash of light appeared in the glass and the bourbon was turned to black coffee.

"As much as I would like to see what you are like when you drink, Joseph," the draconequus started. "We can sense your confusion and the many questions in your mind. Can't have you drunk at the moment. The time has come for you all to be revealed to you. Have some coffee. You know you can't think straight without a strong cup." Joseph scoffed at the notion and put the coffee down to grab the whole decanter.

"Stay your hand, Joseph," Solaris commanded with power in voice. The former human stopped and turned slowly to the two others in the room.

"We know you think us just another illusion or nightmare created to plague you these past few nights," Discord started. "We both sense your trepidation."

"More likely manifestations of my mind attempting to bring logic to an illogical situation," Joseph said crossing his arms.

"A proper assumption," Solaris added.

"Or equally likely is my mind is finally starting to cave under sleep deprivation and you two are the beginnings of a downfall that will lead me into a psychotic episode. Thus resulting in a stint in the looney bin whereas all sorts of new security measures will have to be devised to contain an alicorn while my beloved wife…" Joseph paused to inhale a fresh breath before continuing. "…bangs her hooves on the door of my cell begging for her husband to come back to her…" Joseph said with a dead serious look on his face. Solaris blinked at his son-in-law's rant while Discord burst into laughter.

"I like him. He's silly," Discord stage whispered to Solaris. The King rolled his eyes and stepped up to his son-in-law.

"Rogue Storm," he said looking eye to eye with the human. "Joseph, there is no way we can convince you that we are real as we claim. All Discord and I can do is explain ourselves and let you draw your own conclusion. Yes this is a dream and you can wake up if you wish. I only ask that you hear us out." Joseph looked upon the alicorn and the draconequus. After a moment he nodded with skepticism. "Do you recall when Discord used the Lazarus Spell and I bestowed your crown upon you?"

"Yea," Joseph said recalling to void he escaped from. The feeling was unnerving to bring up.

"We anticipated something might come in the future and that you might need some assistance," Discord said rising from the chair. "So Solaris and I did more than just give our life for you and crown you prince." Joseph raised an eyebrow.

"Discord and I placed a small portion of ourselves into your subconscious," the former king revealed.

"Say what?" Joseph interrupted. "You two are real?"

"Alive and kicking," Discord said appearing on Joseph's shoulder.

"Not now!" Solaris and Joseph said together.

"Tough room," Discord said as he disappeared and reappeared between the two. "Yes, son. We knew there were some trials that may come your way and you needed us to protect you." Joseph scoffed again and took the bottle of bourbon. He walked over to the fireplace and took a swig of the liquid. It stung on the way down, almost as much as his pride stung.

"Even if I believed you two were real," the human said leaning an elbow on the mantle. The fire illuminated only half of angered face. "You got a lot of brass sticking your noses into my business." Discord tugged at one of his ears to grow it 9 times its normal size.

"I'm sorry could you speak into my good ear," he said. "That's not really what you are thinking."

"Joseph, your true words are 'Who the fuck are you to say anything to me?'," Solaris said. "You are torn between being a good prince and the one you truly are." Joseph thought back on his life of the last few days, the promise he made to Celestia was changing him. And he didn't like it one bit. It was a touching moment of self-realization until Discord opened his mouth.

"We've also been withholding your full powers while letting it out in small bursts to see if you can use it responsibly," Discord continued. Solaris choked on his drink at the draconequus's sudden confession. "Testing to see if you miniscule human mind could fathom what you have been given." The former alicorn was beginning to lose his patience.

"Come again," Joseph said gripping the neck of the bottle tightly.

"We had to be sure you could contain the full power that comes with being an alicorn," Discord said. "It's an incredible amount of magic for a novice to wield. We limited your power when you first arrived from your honeymoon while you studied. And then let it out while you called the elements before you selected the Storm Corp."

"Your power was then limited until your workout," Solaris said. With the cat out of the bag, the king had to contain Discord's idiotic words. But Joseph's mood was not lost on the two others in the room. "Even Dive Bomb thought your magic was the latent abilities of Discord." But Solaris's words did not quell Joseph.

"We can sense your anger growing," Discord said. "But would you let a loose cannon out with unfathomable power?" Both Joseph and Solaris looked at Discord with absolute disdain. The draconequus looked at the two with a sheepish look.

"The point is Joseph," Solaris continued. "You proved that you could use your powers responsibly and we will no longer restrict it." Joseph relaxed his growing rage and set the bottle on the mantle. Solaris charged his horn and Discord snapped his talon. A glow suddenly flowed over Joseph and subsided after a moment. "You now have full access to your powers."

"But we advise you to continue studying to gain newer powers and abilities," Discord said. "But feel free to test them at you earliest convenience."

"So I am all powerful now," Joseph said. "No more struggling?"

"There will still be a struggle ahead, but we can't help you with it," Discord said.

"What are you two talking about?" Joseph asked.

"You'll know how to contact the one who can help you when the time is right, son," Discord said. The hodgepodge of a creature walked up to the human and waved his claw at the fire. Joseph watched as the fires danced and formed the image of a grotesque monster and with razor teeth and blood dripping from its claws.

"What is that?" Joseph asked recoiling from the fireplace.

"It's the nightmare from last night as it truly was," Solaris said. "Or as it would be if we hadn't intervened. The others were just as bad. There is a traitor amongst you trying to warp your mind for some purpose. The subterfuge is both in your dreams and possibly in your waking moments as well."

"For what purpose?" Joseph asked.

"We know only what we can see through your eyes," Discord said as he waved away the image. "We've been able to reduce the severity of the nightmares and took the form of the Luteces to keep your mind focused and hide in plain sight without raising suspicion. Had we not acted your mind would have been destroyed and whatever the saboteur had planned for you would have come to pass."

"But with our powers diminished from our death, we couldn't fully block the nightmares," Solaris said. "We tried our best but even Discord's infinite powers are only a fraction of what they used to be. We're sorry we couldn't full block the nightmares." Joseph took the bottle again and walked around his grandfather's study. He took into everything that had been revealed to him and another hit from the bottle.

"Even if I believed all of this was real and not simply a dream," Joseph said. "What would you have me do?" Solaris finished his drink and set the glass down. He trotted up to his son-in-law and put a hoof on Joseph's shoulder. "Protect our home. And protect our family, Joseph. Keep our beloved Celestia and Luna safe. Above all else, my boy. Rule and be as you would. Be a prince when you should and be the man you are when you have to." Joseph smiled and pulled his father-in-law into a hug.

"I will," Joseph said kindly.

"By the way we saw everything through your eyes," Discord said mischievously. "Even the honeymoon."

"And on that note, I'm going to wake up now," Joseph said dryly.

"You idiot!" Solaris yelled at Discord.

Rogue Storm's eyes shot open with a jolt. He blinked a few times and darted his eyes around. He was back in his room in bed with Luna. The Princess of the Night was still sleeping peacefully at his side. It was late in the day and Luna would have to raise the moon soon to start her night. Rogue rose up in the slowly to not disturb his resting bride. With a crane of the neck, Rogue popped his joints and shook out his slumber. He felt great. The prince was well rested for the first time in days. Once the day's sleep was removed from his eyes, Rogue noticed the bubble shield surrounding the bed.

"Hmmm, what's this," Rogue asked. He reached out a grey hoof to touch the magic. Once limb touched energy, it shattered and Luna shot up in bed with her eyes darting all about.

"Who disturbs our slumber?" she blurted out in a Royal Canterlot Voice. Rogue was caught off guard by the bellowing and fell from the bed. Luna looked around and found nopony was in the room with her, until she peered over the bed. "Oh did I wake you, Rogue?" Luna was surprised to watch her husband pop right up with a smile.

"Nope I was already up," the grey alicorn said. Rogue stood up and stretched himself out. His limbs still ached from his workout and would for a few days. But he didn't care.

"You seem well rested," Luna noted with a grin.

"Better than I have in a few days," Rogue said as he trotted to the bathroom and started the shower. "Let me shower up real quick." He hopped in quickly and began to let the heat of the water soothe his muscles. As the water cascaded down Rogue's body he thought back on his dream. Was it real? Eyeballing the shampoo bottle, Rogue charged his horn and focused on an image in his mind. The bottle floated up in a white aura and instantly changed into apple. Rogue smiled and quickly changed the apple back into shampoo. "It was real. I've never done a transformation spell on anything but myself," he whispered. Rogue peeked out from behind the curtain and saw Luna was no longer in bed and out of sight. Rogue looked out the window of the bathroom as water dripped from his charging horn. Outside a cloud appeared effortlessly in the sky. He willed it to twist and turn in the air and the cloud followed his will. Reducing his magic, it disappeared. Going back into the shower Rogue beamed with pride. He had full control of his powers. His dream was real. It really was real.

"Darling," Luna called. "Celestia left us a scroll. Desert Flower and Sand Storm arrived an hour ago. But they were so tired from their journey they retired for the evening. You'll meet them at the party."

"Ok, Luna," Rogue said lathering up. As he did, Rogue thought back to the rest of the dream and the warning from Discord and Solaris. Somepony was out to get him. But who? After the disastrous brunch there were several ponies he suspected. But with no evidence he couldn't act. The grey alicorn decided to keep his dream and full power under wraps for now. A final plunge under the shower and Rogue Storm was clean. He turned off the water and used his magic to repel the droplets from his body. "Fuck yea!" he said to himself. Out of the bathroom he came and saw Luna before her vanity brushing her mane. Before Luna could notice her husband, he had snuck up and placed a passionate kiss on Luna's lips.

"Mmm," the blue alicorn moaned in surprise before she closed her eyes. Rogue pulled back and left a blush on his wife's face. "Somepony did indeed sleep well." Rogue winked and quickly got dressed.

"I got a busy day ahead of me, Luna," Rogue said. "Gonna study a bit, get an update on the Storm Corps' weapons and armor, and make our costumes for the party. I got an idea for a couple's costume that'll really turn heads. It'll be pretty damn awesome." Before Luna could answer Rogue kissed her again. "See you for breakfast with Celestia, Luna." Out the door Rogue went with pep in his step. All the while Luna beamed that her husband appeared to be back to normal.

Prince Rogue Storm walked calmly through the halls of the castle. His greaves clicked on the marble floor and echoed in the castle. He was alone and it was refreshing for him to be so. No aides, no constituents, and no guards. It was paradise. Soon he bumped into Page Master and Captain Dive Bomb. The two were likely on the way to wake him for the night. Rogue maintained the high headed poise Page Master had taught him with the mood he was in, nothing would get the former human down.

"Good Morning, Gentlecolts," Rogue said with great pride.

"Good Morning, Sire," Page Master said with a bow and Dive Bomb with one as well. Page Master opened his mouth but was cut off by the prince.

"Page Master, take the night off," he said. "I'll be making my own schedule tonight. Have coffee sent to the library with some pancakes. Dive Bomb, with me."

"Uh y-yes, Sire," the blue unicorn stammered. "But won't you…"

"No, I won't," Rogue said as the Captain of the Storm Corp followed along. "Hold my messages and I'll see you at the reception." Page Master was flabbergasted. The prince's good night sleep had undone all his work of the past few days. Chrysallis had to be informed at once.

"What can I do for you, Sir," Dive Bomb asked as the prince walked with him.

"Is the armory finished with all my requests for the Corps' weapons and armor?" Rogue asked.

"Sir, yes sir," the Captain of the Storm Corp said. "The black powder charges are still being prepped. The blacksmiths called in an engineer to design a proper casing."

"Don't let the other members of the Corp near them until I have had a chance to inspect and approve of them," the grey alicorn chuckled.

"But, Siiiir," Dive Bomb said with a fake whine. "We want to blow something up." Rogue stopped dead in his tracks and looked at Dive Bomb. Both the prince and the former member of the Lunar Guard looked at each other with mischief in their eyes.

"Tell the Corp to cool their hooves until the night after the reception," Rogue said after a moment. Dive Bomb spoke for the whole Corp and frowned at the idea of having to wait a while longer. "We can't go willy nilly with high explosives and me with electricity."

"Well, technically…" Dive Bomb mused as the two continued on. "You are the Prince of Equestria, Sir. You can if you wanted to." Rogue rolled his eyes at his Captain. He was just as bad as some of his old college buddies.

"The answer is still no, Captain," Rogue Storm said as they came to the royal library. Dive Bomb let out a sarcastic sigh of defeat. "But…" Rogue mused and leaned in close to the bat pegasus. "Tell the engineer I want varying sizes of the charges besides whatever they already came up with." Dive Bomb let out a hearty laugh with his superior joining right away. Both knew the good times that were soon coming their way. After a moment the laughter died down. "Tell the Corp to get suited up and used to their armor and swords. Leave the crossbows and charges until after the reception. But I want you all ready to debut tomorrow evening."

"We'll be ready, Prince Rogue Storm," Dive Bomb said with a salute.

"Ready to show my new warriors to Equestria?" Rogue asked as he opened the door to the library. "Or ready to blow some shit up?"

"Dealer's choice, Boss," Dive Bomb said and took his leave. Rogue smiled and entered the library. The smell of old paper and shelf dust hit Rogue Storm like a ton of bricks. Oh how the seasoned historian reveled in the odor. It was time to hit the books. Onward Rogue strode and passed his trench coat on display. He passed the librarian and started to look through the card catalogue. After a moment he found the books he was looking for.

"Advanced Transmogrification, that works," he said. "And Star Swirl's Decoding of the Magical Arts. These should prove interesting." As Rogue moved to a more private area of the library his meal arrived and was brought to him. As he looked for the perfect spot to set up shop, Rogue saw an alcove through a mahogany arch with tied curtains. Above it were the symbols of Celestia and Luna. He surmised this must have been a special area for them to study if they weren't using their private studies. Inside Rogue went with his books and food. He drew the curtains and illuminated his horn to see in the setting sun. Inside the alcove were hundreds of tomes organized on the shelves. Wall sconces hung dark and cold on the walls while a large bay window split the wall the center of the room. Rogue stole a glance out the window and smiled at Luna's rising moon. When he turned away from the window Rogue saw two desks. One was glass with a white frame and the other was a dark a dark wood roll top. It was an easy choice to sit at Luna's desk. The pancakes and coffee went in the middle of the desk flanked by the two books. Rogue's best judgement told him to practice his new abilities on his meal. But the pancakes disappeared into his mouth leaving an empty plate within 2 minutes.

With a full belly and empty coffee mug Rogue closed his eyes and pictured with candles in the sconces. His horn charged with magic and it flickered on the wicks. Slowly a flame rose from each of the candles and brought light to the room. Rogue opened his eyes to the gentle glow of a job well done and felt great pride with this new found power. But he had to go further. Rogue opened both books and stepped back from the desk. His magic charged again Rogue sat down to raise his hooves out in front of his body. Up went the books into the air. Brown eyes began to glow bright blue and the texts on pages began to glow the same color. The prince quickly jolted his hooves out and to his sides causing the words to jump off the pages. The glowing words hovered in the air like holograms. Spells and incantations swirled around the grey alicorn like a tornado. Rogue lower his hooves causing the swirl to slow down. With the glow still in his eyes, grey hooves rose up and began to conduct the surrounding knowledge like a symphony. One by one each verse came to the prince and he drank in the knowledge. Rogue took care as each spell came before him. Hoof met chin in contemplation as Rogue's trained mind took in each piece of information. It was incredible. Such knowledge was beyond anything he had ever studied before. Not even the most poignant of chapters in his history books could move the former human like these words would. It was powerful enough to bring a tear to his eye.

Another book on the shelf took on a glow and levitated off the shelf followed by another. The new books swirled in the storm of knowledge. More spells joined the swirling as Rogue ate all the new information. The swirl went faster as Rogue's knowledge grew. Soon the prince came to the end of books. The holograms returned to the pages. The glow in Rogue's eyes subsided as he took a deep breath.

"Incredible," the prince panted. He stood tall and eyed the empty plate on the desk. "Let's try something a little more challenging." Rogue's horn regained its white glow. His magic entered the plate and the glazed china levitated. Slowly the grey alicorn manipulated the very core of the plate. It changed from a solid to a liquid. The goop ungulated in the aura and changed shapes. It formed a cube, then a sphere, and a ring. "Alright, let's kick this pig," Rogue mused. Rotating gears formed from the gunk, then a rose, and finally a hydrogen atom. The former human couldn't be prouder. His new powers were stronger than anything he could have imagined. With a final pulse from his horn, Rogue reformed the plate and put it back on the desk. "Amazing," Rogue continued as he wiped the sweat from his brow. "I better cool it and process this information." The librarian took this moment to check on the prince and took the two books he brought in. She also recovered the plate and coffee mug. Rogue blew out the candles with a gentle breeze and left the alcove. As he walked through the library, Rogue noticed something about his surroundings. Colors were brighter, edges seemed sharper, and the ambient noises were clearer. "Awesome," Rogue said. Then Rogue got an idea on how he could process his new knowledge and ponder what will come next.

In a flash of light, Rogue disappeared from the library and reappeared in the menagerie of the palace gardens. The sound of night filled Rogue's ears. And just as he suspected, Rogue noticed the colors of the flowers were more vivid. The aroma, oh Lord the smell of the flowers was intoxicating. Honeysuckles smelled sweeter. The lavender calmed Rogue so deeply he could have fallen asleep on the spot. The roses were beyond description. Even the most expensive perfume in Celestia's possession would weep in humiliation.

"Is this what a Luna and Celestia see and feel every day?" Rogue asked himself. Thinking about Luna made Rogue look to the moon again. It shone brighter than the grey alicorn had ever seen in his life. He could swear he could see the light radiating of the space dwelling satellite. Rogue Storm's stroll continued on. As he walked, the prince's mind thought back to the vast knowledge he had assimilated. It all was starting to make sense to him. For the first time in days, the former human's mind was clear. It was time to let it wander and wonder.

The prince continued his walk for a couple of hours. When he was satisfied his mind could be cleared anymore he decided it was time to be creative. After all, both he and Luna had to wow everypony at the reception. With a charge of his horn Rogue Storm disappeared. Unknown to the prince he had been watched from a distance during his whole walk.

"Oh my," Moondancer said hidden in the garden. With flashing green eyes the white pony placed a hoof on her chest. "Quite the impressive specimen to behold. Rogue Storm you are wasted on that simpleton Luna." The disguised changeling made her way back towards a lesser traveled path and to a massive stone slab. With green magic glowing the slab moved granting a passage to the crystal catacombs. "So handsome and strong. I wonder if he looks as impressive without that armor on. I'll find out soon enough and Luna will be forced to watch. After all, every queen needs a king."

A/N: Power grows and tension grows,

so much is here and there all around and everywhere.

Another chapter has come and gone,

But story continues with plot to bare.

Will love conquer all or be crushed so fine,

tune in again for the next chapter of Cross the Line.

/)*(\

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