//------------------------------// // 24 I want to go home // Story: Trials of A Princess // by Rose Quill //------------------------------// All things considered, I’ve had worse plans. I mean, I had seriously thought that by taking a bunch of zombified teens through the mirror would be enough to defeat Celestia.  But to use a modified teleport ban spell to try and hold an Umbrum in its host against its will? This was risky and it could very well do some permanent damage on the soldier that was being possessed if held too long and too firm. I mean, I’m literally holding an extradimensional creature in place by pretty much closing off mana access. This is the sort of thing that is done by several Unicorns and made into talismans, but it was all we had to keep the nasty thing a prisoner. Twilight came over and peered at me critically. “Do you want to take a breather?” I nodded my head, the red glow of my magic still steady. “I wouldn’t turn down something to drink.” She nodded and moved off. I could dimly hear Queen Luna giving orders to soldiers, moving wounded out, and setting sentries. The amount of damage that a few carefully placed spells was terrifying. If not for the limitations that needing a host set upon the Umbrum, their spitefulness could have destroyed the army before anypony could make a move. Twilight returned with a tin cup filled with water. She sat beside me and took over the binding so I could drink. “Are we sure this will help?” Twilight said, her horn glowing brightly. “How do we know this one will be able to tell us what’s happening?” I drained the cup and set it to the side. “We don’t,” I said. “But every bit of information helps. We know there are mana confluences around these points and speculate that we can use them to get home. Presumably, that’s also how Chrysalis was able to escape to do her little terrorizing on the Cervids, which in turn draws us into this. What we need is why they stole the Elements and how to get back.” “What about our wings?” “I’m guessing they’ll be there when we get back.” I looked away for a moment and rolled my shoulders. I could almost feel the phantom weight of them on my back, but couldn’t feel the muscles that moved them. “For all we know, they might never have been gone at all, like we speculated when we first got here.” “So what do we do when it wakes up?” Twilight tossed her head at the unconscious pony. “It's not going to be happy that it’s bound here.” “Do we have any indication they’re ever happy?” I sighed. “Here are the important questions: Why they helped Chrysalis and sprung her, why trap us here, what are they planning, and how do we get back. Beyond that, I couldn’t care less if the Queen orders us to burn this thing out of her soldier.” Twilight sighed. “I hope it won’t come to that,” she whispered. Luna strode over and nodded to us.  “Has it regained consciousness yet?” she growled. “Not yet,” I said. “I might have hit it a little harder than I thought.” Luna stared at the pony, the twin wisps of purple mana barely visible with the eyes closed. “How could we have missed this infiltration?” “Everything I know about them is that they can take years to enact a plan, slipping members into the right places at the right times. If this started when I think it did, then they’ve been planning this for nearly five years, waiting for somepony capable of fooling us like our Chrysalis did, then helping her get free and work through their plans.” Twilight rubbed her neck. “If it wasn’t so twisted, it’d almost be a lovely bit of planning.” I smirked. “Think of the lists it must have needed.” “I know!” she exclaimed. “The logistics alone would have needed a manual of some sort and -” “Twilight?” Luna said softly. “The prisoner?” “Oh, right,” Twilight nervously giggled. “Since Umbrum can scan a host’s mind and use the information there to help avoid detection, Sunset and I have theorized that the opposite might also be true.” “The hard part is getting the host to wake up but not the Umbrum,” I said. “Very little is known about just how they take a host let alone what happens to the host during the possession. We’re basing a lot of this on historical mental compulsions and other similar spells cast by ponies on other ponies.” “So it may not work?” the Queen asked. “It may not,” I agreed. “It would be a lot easier if I had access to my full powers and could just enter their mind myself, but something about the way they trapped us here stripped us of our powers. As we told you when we passed the castle the first time.” “And has nothing come from the Archmage’s research? She is one of the wisest mares I know.” Twilight shook her head. “By the time we had returned from Saddle Arabia, she had already been placed into a coma by the explosion of her scrying something. We’re not even sure what, but one of our friends is keeping an eye on her.” “Was,” came a voice from the entrance of the cavern. We turned to see Moonrose and a somewhat haggard-looking Archmage stepping forward with Bernie and a young filly, some books hanging in a violet magic glow from the younger pony. “Your Majesty,” the Archmage said. “I believe I might have an answer as to the question of why they attacked the Tree. Where my counterpart and her friend come from, the Elements were given to seven ponies that demonstrated their unique properties; Honesty, Loyalty, Generosity, Laughter, Kindness, Empathy, and Magic.” “I’ve never heard of the seventh,” Luna replied. “It manifests rarely,” the Archmage continued. “And considering that when you withdrew them last it was for the defeat of Discord and later for your sister, I don’t think the Tree would have released that one for such purposes. But putting that aside, here no bearers were ever called, because no need existed. “But it does now,” she continued, pulling one of the floating books from her companion. As the pages flipped by rapidly, she continued. “The attack on the Tree, and the displacement of the Ley lines associated with it and some other magic-rich spots, has started a calling of sorts. The Tree of Harmony has selected bearers and has begun gathering them. It doesn’t have much power left, but the Elements will seek to join with those selected for them. I have been feeling the call of them since I entered this cave.” I stared slackjawed. “You’ve what?” “Have you ever felt a pull towards something, even if you dismiss it as something you’ve always wanted to do?” The Archmage turned the book towards me, showing me a complex thaumaturgical circle. “Years ago, I came across this but was unsure what it was for. While I was unconscious, I kept seeing it flaring to life, myself and five others within it. I think it might bring us together.” “And that helps us how?” Twilight said, eyes locked on the symbol. “I think it can summon the other bearers,” her counterpart replied, returning the book to her sidekick. “And since they are one of the most powerful artifacts in the known world, they might just be able to get you home.” I felt tears gather in my eyes. “Then we need to go get them back,” I said. “There’s a little more.” Another book flashed over and flew open. “I also think I know what has been blocking your powers. I have a theory on how to unbind them, but I need to speak to that creature before I try.”  I turned to see the possessed pony had awoken and was glaring hatefully towards us. “I see the sleeping princess woke up,” it hissed. “It was a very restful sleep,” the Archmage quipped. “Now, we have a few questions for you.” “You’ll likely kill this youngling trying to torture me,” the Umbrum within laughed. “So go ahead and ask.” The Archmage smiled a cold smile as a bit of mirrored glass drifted out from her robes. “I think you’ll answer just fine.” For the first time, I saw fear flicker across the eyes of the monster. “What’s that?” Luna asked. “A shard from the mirror that once linked Sombra and their Celestia,” the other Twilight said. “It’s been partially repaired, but required new pieces of glass to bind the refreshed spell into it. I was given the extra shards for safekeeping. I theorized that they might serve as a suitable prison for these creatures. Seeing how they were part of what I was scrying and the fear in our friends’ eyes, they may just work.” “What good does putting him in another trap do for us?” I asked. “Because then you won’t have to use mana to hold him,” she said, drifting the shard closer. “And for every crystal pane within, it will show him the truth of his existence. And, if I enchanted it properly, force him to answer questions truthfully.” “That’s a pretty big if,” I muttered. It was greeted with a harsh glare from the Archmage. “Setting aside my own personal assault,” she snapped as she drew a circle around the prisoner. “They are tampering with your timeline and natural magic flow. There’s a geas placed on you both that also affects those that see you. Your wings are very likely still there, just hidden behind magical compulsions.” “That makes sense,” Twilight mused. “If a blanket compulsion was laid over us, then the spell would also make us forget any offhand sensation from our wings! That also explains why we still have Alicorn level magic levels!” She was bouncing from hoof to hoof in excitement, barely keeping from prancing. I turned to the Umbrum, and it shrank from me as red light started to flicker across my horn, suddenly aware of the tiny pricks from the points that were still healing from my encounter with Entropy. “Bind him,” I growled. As Acrhamge Twilight began working her spell, I closed my eyes to practice breathing exercises to calm myself. Slow and steady, deep in through the nose, gentle out through the mouth. If I was being held under an enchantment, I should be able to sense the irregularity in my mana flow.  I turned my thoughts inward, feeling the pulse of my magic flow through me. As I did, I felt a flicker inside, one that suddenly flared to life as I focused on it. It was warm and familiar, but it was covered by a heavy weight, like a blanket thrown over a birdcage. I wrapped the tiny glow in my mind, and brought it to the forefront, and I recognized the feeling of my geode, which had long been sealed into my peytral as part of my chain of office. I put a hoof where it would have hung and felt a slight weight. “Release,” I breathed. Bright light burst forth, illuminating the cavern with pink light as I was lifted off the ground. I felt the wind throwing my mane around, and there was a horrible tearing in my mind, like something was fighting to remain embedded and I grit my teeth against the pain. When I touched the ground again, I slumped down for a moment, catching my breath. As I staggered back to my hooves, I could feel the extra weight of my wings and my peytral jangled slightly as it moved.  I took in a deep breath and leveled my longer horn at the shaking prisoner, ignoring the looks of awe from onlookers. I spread my wings and reveled in the feel of the feathers lacing together and the strength in the limbs. I could feel my posture moving to the same straight-backed position from when I had held court. It felt familiar. It felt good. It felt right. “Are you ready?” I asked the Archmage, bringing my wings back to rest. She shook her head as if realizing I had been standing there the whole time. “I think so.” “Good,” I said, turning and going to place a hoof on my Twilight and looking inward to find her bound power and guiding her to break her enchantment. “Because I am beyond ready to go home.” I turned back to the Umbrum as Twilight unfurled her wings, sighing as she shook them out. A violet light encompassed the shard of glass as it was pressed to the Pegasus’ forehead reflective side down. A few muttered words slipped from this world’s version of Twilight, the circle she had drawn flaring to life. Then, slowly, the shard of glass was pulled back, rotating slightly so we could view the reflection. A long strand of purple-green light shimmered between the glass and the pony, looking like a sticky bit of slime from the Schmooze. Slowly, it drew the Umbrum out of the pony and towards the glass like a bit of flotsam circling a drain. It made one attempt to lunge away, but it slammed against the circle and flailed as it was pulled into its prison, a horrible wail clawing at my ears. Once it has been completely enclosed in the glass, the shard drifted down to rest on the ground as the Pegasus collapsed. “Medic!” Luna called. As the unconscious soldier was born away, she turned and looked us both over, our wings bearing particular attention. She stepped up to me, very curious. Her hoof reached out and touched my peytral. “A seventh element,” she murmured. “Maybe if I had been able to draw this one, I wouldn’t have had to…” She turned and walked away, ears tilted down slightly. Archmage Twilight stepped up to me. “We can question him soon, once his defenses are torn down.” “There’s only one question we have for him,” I said, glancing at Twilight. As her eyes met mine, she nodded. “How do we get home?”