Radish and Spike pressed their faces to the glass of the games room’s claw machine.
“Look! There it is, in the corner!” yelled Spike.
The scroll was indeed inside the machine, in a back corner, under a stuffed seal.
“Told you no one ever wins at these things,” said Spike. He rolled a quarter-bit across his knuckles, flicked it into the air, and caught it. “You go get the key. I bet I’ll have won it before you get back.”
“Just guard the machine, okay?”
Radish rushed to the front counter. A clerk was leaning on his hoof, sipping a soda, and reading a magazine.
“I need someone to open the claw game!”
The clerk glanced up. “Sorry. A separate company is in charge of those games.”
“You don’t even have a spare key!?”
“Nah. But I’ll let you in on a little secret: everything in there is cheap junk. Worth way less than the cost to win them.”
“Ugh.” He upturned his coin purse onto the counter. “Just break all these into quarter-bits.”
Radish returned to Spike, who now had the stuffed seal and several more plush dolls around his feet.
“Spike! You’re supposed to be grabbing the scroll, not toys!”
“I had to move all this other stuff out the way to get the scroll out of the dead zone. Trust me. I have a method.”
He scampered around the sides of the machine. “First, you gotta check out the angles.”
He returned to the control, and dropped in a quarter-bit. A timer started counting down from ten. “Then you gotta get the claw just right…”
He maneuvered it into position above the scroll. “Wait for it…”
The countdown timer showed two seconds left.
“Spike!”
“Then… bam!”
He slammed the button. The claw descended. It closed on the scroll. It dragged it out of the pile of toys.
Radish held his breath.
The claw swung back and forth as it went. It stopped above the chute and released. The scroll fell sideways, then wedged into the chute, stuck.
Radish slammed his head against the glass. “Oh, come on!”
“Relax, Rad. Check this out.”
Spike stuck his face into the bottom of the chute, then blew fire. It whooshed up and engulfed the scroll, turning it into smoke once again. The smoke flew out of the machine, stopped in front of Radish’s face, then popped back into a scroll again. Radish snatched it and held it tight.
“Pretty cool, huh?” said Spike, gathering up the stuffed toys. “That may have been my shortest-range delivery ever!”
Radish sat down on the carpet, and fell over on his side. He started to laugh.
“Radish?”
Radish wiped his eyes and looked at the scroll in his hooves. “Come on. Let’s see what makes this so important.”
“I thought you were worried about breaking federal law.”
“Spike, somehow this was the most stress I’ve had all week.” He pulled Spike into a headlock and gave him a noogie. “No matter what happens to me, no matter what Halcyon turns out to be, nothing could possibly be any worse than you.”
“Gee, thanks.”
“No, thank you. Here.” Radish dropped his bag of quarter-bits into Spike’s arms. “Fifty bits, just like I offered.”
“Then, you take this.” Spike gave Radish one of the plush toys, a blue whale.
“Thanks. Wow, that clerk was right about these things.”
Radish and Spike locked themselves in a private study room in the library.
“So, want me to read this out loud?” asked Spike, hopping onto the table and opening the scroll.
“What, like you’re reading me a bedtime story?”
“It’s an advanced study technique. I do it for Twilight all the time.”
Radish cradled his stuffed whale and sat back in his chair. “Sure. Have at it.”
Spike cleared his throat and read.
“LOG #857-67.5. THURSDAY. 0900 HOURS.”
That means Celestia went down to Secure Storage hours after this, thought Radish.
“PRESIDING: PRINCESS CELESTIA. ON DUTY: CAPTAIN SHINING ARMOR, COMMANDER BARREL ROLLER, CORPORAL SAGUARO SHADE.”
The senior officers were all there.
“APPEARANCES: ROYAL ARCHEOLOGICAL SOCIETY HEAD CELADON, GUEST PETITIONER HALCYON. ALSO PRESENT: ROYAL PET PHILOMENA.
PRINCESS CELESTIA: I call today’s session to order. I understand we have a very special guest from very far away.
HALCYON: Greetings, Princess Celestia. I am Halcyon.”
“Uh, Spike,” interrupted Radish, “you don’t have to do the voices.”
“Yes, I do. Now, hush.”
He returned to the scroll.
“PRINCESS CELESTA: Greetings, Halcyon. I have been told quite the tale about you. I admit, I was a bit skeptical when I heard it.
HALCYON: That is understandable. I can scarcely believe this new world I have entered into, myself. I could have never imagined what wonders awaited beyond my homeland.
PRINCESS CELESTIA: And your homeland would be?
HALCYON: It has no name like yours.
CELADON: Your highness-
PRINCESS CELESTIA: Hello, Celadon. I wasn’t expecting to see you again for years.
CELADON: I believed Halcyon was important enough to personally escort here.
PRINCESS CELESTIA: How did you meet?
CELADON: We found him in the region of the Far Eastern Edgelands our cartographers designate “FC-78”.
PRINCESS CELESTIA: That is quite far, indeed.
CELADON: But he says he spent over a moon traveling from his homeland before we found him.
HALCYON: I was sent to seek help. I am a weary survivor and hopeful emissary of a once-magnificent people.
PRINCESS CELESTIA: The precursor race to all hoofed beings?
HALCYON: I believe so. There is much I do not know about the lands and peoples outside my own. Your ‘archeologists’ have taught me a great deal already.
PRINCESS CELESTIA: And Celadon, you believe his story?
CELADON: I can only tell you that we encountered Halcyon in the wilds- dehydrated, famished, injured, and alone.
PRINCESS CELESTIA: What manner of injury?
CELADON: Some very serious lacerations. They were infected.
HALCYON: A beast I had never seen before attacked me. I drove it off, but not before it clawed me.
[HALCYON turns to show claw scars on right foreleg.]
HALCYON: Had your people not found me, it no doubt would have kept returning until it finished me. I owe them my life, and as you are their leader, I owe you my life, as well.
PRINCESS CELESTIA: Please, your life is no one’s but your own. What happened next?
CELADON: We nursed him back to health, and he told us of his people’s situation. He also demonstrated his primordial powers to us.
PRINCESS CELESTIA: Primordial powers?
HALCYON: Yes. My people are not divided into tribes as ponykind. We have not what you call magic, and none of us can fly to shape the skies. But we have a close connection to all aspects of the natural world. It is like an extension of our bodies. May I demonstrate?
PRINCESS CELESTIA: Please do.
HALCYON: [claps hooves]
[A small whirlwind appears in front of Halcyon.]
PRINCESS CELESTIA: Quite impressive.
[The whirlwind dissipates.]
HALCYON: Through this connection, we marshaled the sky, as your pegasi do, we bonded with the land and its life, as your earth ponies do... [raises hoof]
[Swallows fly in from the balcony and perch on Halcyon, then chirp.]
[HALCYON points at PRINCESS CELESTIA.]
[The swallows fly circles above PRINCESS CELESTIA. They coo at her.]
PHILOMENA: [squawks appreciatively.]
PRINCESS CELESTIA: [smiles]
[The swallows fly out of the throne room.]
HALCYON: And we guided the sun, moon, and stars… as I have been told you do.
HALCYON: [stomps hoof]
[THE SUN sets.]
CAPTAIN SHINING ARMOR: [brandishing spear] Whatever you just did, you had better undo it. Now.
PRINCESS CELESTIA: At ease, captain. [to Halcyon] But he is right. This sudden loss of the sun will frighten my people. [horn glows] [exertion] [frustrated gasp]
HALCYON: Forgive me. [stomps hoof]
[THE SUN rises.]
PRINCESS CELESTIA: But… hmm. Thank you. [INTO THRONE’S PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENT MICROPHONE]: Attention. We just experienced a temporary lapse in sunlight due to a magical anomaly. Everything is under control. Thank you, and have a wonderful day.
HALCYON: I meant no harm. Ages ago, the sun and moon started to move on their own, and we assumed they had learned enough from us that they no longer needed our guidance. We had no idea the duties had actually been taken up by others.
PRINCESS CELESTIA: I had no idea the duty belonged to others before the unicorns of old. Is it your intent to reclaim that duty?
HALCYON: I have not come to lay claim to anything. I have come to beg for help.
[HALCYON kneels.]
HALCYON: Please, Princess Celestia, my people are dying. I believe this power of “friendship” can save them. Will you teach it to us?
PRINCESS CELESTIA: We will do all we can. I will send for my student and her friends. They are the nation’s experts on the subject. In the meantime, we will prepare shipments of relief packages for your people.
HALCYON: Thank you, Princess Celestia.
PRINCESS CELESTIA: Palace lodgings will be provided to you in the meantime.
HALCYON: Me? Live here? Surely not. I am unworthy of such splendor.
PRINCESS CELESTIA [smiling]: I disagree. [Approaching Halcyon] You risked your life for your people. Though you possess amazing power, you begged humbly for help. This speaks volumes about your worth. And Philomena seems to like you, too.
PHILOMENA: [squawks in agreement.]
PRINCESS CELESTIA: Please, stay with us. I believe you have as much to teach us as we have to teach you.
HALCYON: Thank you, your highness. I humbly accept your hospitality.
PRINCESS CELESTIA: Welcome to Equestria, Halcyon. [Extends hoof.] And to the palace.
HALCYON: I believe I will like it here.
[HALCYON kisses PRINCESS CELESTIA’S hoof.] [PRINCESS CELESTIA smiles.]”
Spike put down the scroll. Radish crossed his hooves, pondering it all.
“So Halcyon caused the blackout,” said Spike.
“And the senior officers knew the whole time,” noted Radish.
“But why keep that a secret?”
“Like Celestia said, it would frighten everyone. Heck, it frightens me now. The last beings with that kind of power were Discord and Nightmare Moon. And Celestia couldn’t bring back the sun on her own- she had to wait for Halcyon to do it. Things are starting to make sense now.”
“They are?”
“Spike… Halcyon isn’t Celestia’s guest. She’s his hostage. We all are.”
“What are you saying?”
“That demonstration in the throne room was a show of force. He was letting Celestia and Shining Armor know that he can take away the sun at any time, and there’s nothing they can do about it. With that kind of power, we’re all at his mercy. Heck, we’re all at his whim.”
Radish got off his chair and paced the floor. “This whole time Celestia’s been playing host to him, she’s been placating him. Keeping him happy while keeping him close. That way, she can suss out his intentions, study his powers, and work out a strategy against him.”
“You think so?”
“I hope so.”
“If he’s a threat, why wouldn’t Celestia just get the girls to blast him with the Elements of Harmony?”
“He hasn’t actually made a move against Equestria. Would they activate against an implied threat?”
“Like, a pre-emptive harmony strike? I dunno. Those jewels kind of have a mind of their own.”
“Besides, the Elements take time to work. When the girls used them against Discord, it took about forty seconds for them to complete that whole rainbow firing sequence. That’s more than enough time for Halcyon to stomp away the sun again.”
“How do you know how long it took?”
“Special intel.”
“Wouldn’t the Elements just undo anything Halcyon could do during those forty seconds?”
“There’s been some debate on that subject. They got rid of Discord’s chaos locally, but left some of his stuff in the world. Same thing for Nightmare Moon’s lairs and experiments. And Halcyon’s powers are a big unknown. To take on someone like him, you’d need a sure thing, plus the element of surprise… and overwhelming power.”
“Like with, say, a concealed spear supercharged with alicorn powers?”
Radish slumped against the wall. “Yeah. Celestia must be planning on taking him on, alone. That’s why the Guard ranks are being kept in the dark. That’s why she sent the girls back to Ponyville. And that must be why she… pushed me away.”
“Pushed you away? How?”
Radish put a hoof on his flank. “Convincingly.”
“So, what do we do?”
“First things first. Can you smoke the scroll back to where it was?”
“Sure.” He blasted it with a flame, and the smoke slipped under the door. “Now what?”
“I want you to return to your duties. Pretend like everything’s normal.”
“What are you planning?”
“Halcyon wants to wrestle? Fine, then. I’ll wrestle him.”
“What good will that do?”
“I’m going to up the stakes. Make him a wager he can’t resist.”
“He’ll pulverize you. He’s like four times your size.”
“The finest dust does the greatest damage.”
“Is that a guard saying?”
“No, I just came up with it.”
“I should write that down. Twilight loves stuff like that.”
Radish walked up to Spike and hugged him.
“Uh, Rad?”
“Twilight’s a good pony. Promise me you’ll take care of her, okay?”
“You’re scaring me, Radish.”
“Don’t be scared. This is almost over.”
Amazing chapter as always
Keep the up the good work!
Can't wait for the next one...
it's a trick, get the axe!
Egads! I think it's even worse than we thought, Halcyon is the stereotypically perfect Mary-Sue!
Equestria is lost, reality will bend around him to make him the main character who gets the girl (Celestia) and defeats the romantic rival (Radish) while making everyone love and admire him. There is no defeating a Mary-Sue.
11274594
The only thing that would make this situation worse if is the Mary-Sue (or Gary-Sue, in this case) was a human/brony turned pony.
Huh, so rather than finding out that Halcyon isn't what he appears to be, the scroll confirms that he's not only exactly what he seems to be (in terms of his stated origins and intentions) but has some serious power besides. And yet, we know that he doesn't photograph as what he looks like to others, and seems to have a vested interest in making sure no one follows up on that (if those birds that disrupted the previous attempts to take his picture are any indication). So...what is he? And what does he really want? Luna's worsening condition isn't mentioned, but is notable in this regard.
At this point it seems more and more likely that Halcyon is completely unconnected with the changelings. But in that case, what he's really all about is completely up in the air (more so if we assume, as seems likely at this point, that he's unconnected to the show canon). Given that we still have more questions than answers (though I think Radish is right about Celestia knowing that she's in a hostage situation), I can only hope that Radish knows what he's doing.
...though it's really good to see him back on his hooves and being proactive again! Honestly, this is the story being at its best, to my mind; giving us a lot of personal development for its protagonist while using the adventure as fuel for that, rather than a distraction from it. Let's just hope that this time, Radish actually gets some recognition if and when he (quite literally) saves the day.
EDIT: Also, my compliments to the author on maintaining the relatively lighthearted tone of this story so excellently, along with how well the characters are written. Something as small as Spike "doing the voices" was perfectly in keeping with what he'd do while also being a deft bit of levity. Bravo!
Congrats to the author to lead us in a way that makes us look back to see Celestia and Halcyon in a different view than what we have been speculating about for weeks on end. Huh, so... we can't forget that there might be other god-like beings besides Discord out there. The show never really dives into that but comics both canon and not did do that where there are other god-like beings in that universe or multiverse.
So far that scroll hadn't shown Celestia falling for him at that time. But I can understand she and the top ponies are afraid of him since Equestria has been always closed off to the world and a random big pony comes in with a power that shouldn't be possible would scare everypony for sure. Sure, there are mystery things going on like the camera not working on him, birds attacking anyone who tries to take his picture, and not having the M6 go to his land... which where is his home? Because if he needs help won't Celestia send Radish with M6 to check it out?
Then we have Luna is sick but... with what and how is it so bad? Like since he came Luna has been sick since then so... she had to gone into his dreams and saw the truth?
Whatever happens Radish plans to make a deal to even the fight which I think he needs something to help him out.
Huh. I had a theory that he was some kind of precursor changeling or something, due to the photograph thing. I was waaaaay off. Dang.
No, definitely scared.
You've handled this situation excellently.
I wish for Halcyon's immediate demise. However now I hope his fate is something far more cruel
11274727
That’s a good point he could aim for that spot.
I just realized that this is the longest arc in the story so far with 10 chapters right now. I bet we will see longer ones later on
11274594
Except, a Mary-Sue is largely defined by the way people don't react to them appropriately. You can have a very powerful character, and if everyone treats them like they're really powerful… not a Mary Sue. Same for any other characteristic. If they don't bypass peoples' sensible reactions, it greatly, greatly cuts into their Mary-Sue-ness.
That indeed seems like some info that most likely would cause major panic. And Celestia seems to be stuck keeping ”a sleeping giant” peaceful, or something like that.
Ironic and hypocritical that the ponies are upset about another party controlling the sun (and possibly the moon). Basically, they are going through what the rest of Equus considers to be another Tuesday.
11274735
A golden spear might do the trick, but Radish might need a black arrow more than anything.
11274746
That is really not how that works. I don’t think halycon actually is one, though, just projecting that aura
Woah, wait, hang on... If the letter is true, and if Radish's thoughts are true... the real implications of Haylicon spending evenings with Celestia could mean...
Oh... Oh damn.
11275058
Oh this story just took a dark turn fast...
Halcyon is Chrysalis !!Or, maybe our dear author has some tricks up their sleeve...
11275058
Yeah... that’s dark.
Makes you wonder if Celestia is the one who decided to sedate her sister in order to prevent Luna from sensing her nightmares of “involuntary companionship” (or a “tactical companionship” as the case may be).
11274575
Groovy reference.
........
........
......not apologizing
11275093
I hate you for beating me to that, you primitive screwhead.
11275014
Okay, it can also be if the universe itself bends to the will of Mary Sue (in a way not mechanically defined within world). Other than that, I think that was the core. You can have a smart, talented, strong, exceedingly powerful, beautiful character, even one who exceeds every other character and runs rings around them… without their being a Mary Sue. Like, say, Sunset Shimmer in this story. Exceptional people exist. But if their interactions with the world and other people don't make sense, that's just bad writing, and a common way it fails to make sense is called 'Mary Sue'.
I like how this rings new context to everyone’s thoughts about Halcon who were there for his first arrival and him getting rid of the sun. Shinning Armor must hate the guy for using a show of force against Celestia like and then trying to punch Radish and Then probably cheating during his wrestling match with that wind magic the judges couldn’t detect.
Well, consider my expectations THOROUGHLY subverted.
I’ll be honest, I wasn’t sure what to expect starting this. I’ve read the whole thing in one sitting and have to say I like it. Keep up the good work.
Also, it did end soon because it was a cliffhanger.
And in reality Halycon is perfectly legit, the staff is meant for discord, and Luna is being messed up by the Tantabus
Of course, that soap opera was also hilarious
11275167
Thank you for refencing this story! I agree it is a great one, and only getting better.
11274605
Agreed
Ah, I see. So that put my suspicions to rest. I was relieved to find that Celestia isn't being a bitch to Radish.
Well... I guess I wasn't wrong.