I ran.
Nothing was more important as I ran as fast as I could. Far off into the distance, the turrets of the castle lay ahead of me, the black mist close by. It gave chase, inching closer and closer, casting a deep gray overcast on everything it came into contact with; everything behind me was devoured, never seen again. Those things didn’t matter to me because I, too, was at risk of being swallowed by this darkness.
All this didn’t make much sense. No one could ever believe it was possible, not even dear Cadance. The only thing that mattered was to run back to the empire and cast the shield spell from the topmost tower, the crystal heart’s resting place. There was no way he could have returned but the situation I’ve gotten myself into is more than enough to prove me wrong. Ahead, the perimeter guards stood, weapons ready, but they wouldn’t be here soon; they stood their ground nonetheless.
I turned to watch them, casting my force field spell on my comrades. It helped them for a while but I knew I’ve let my comrades down as I was forced to relinquish my power over them. And all that followed was the sound of their screams, crying out for me.
But those cries fell on deaf ears.
There was no time to mourn for them and if I didn’t get to safety, there wouldn’t be any mourning. All around me, the citizens of the empire ran amok, out of their minds, and seeking protection. The remaining guards in the city lead the evacuation while the alarms blared, their ear-piercing tone blasting the one sound that was never heard in all of the empire’s history. With all this chaos surrounding me, the only thing I can think of is reaching Cadance in time.
Just as I entered the city, the mist was already too close to keep it from entering the city but should it go in any further, the citizens of the empire would be lost. The best I could do is to deter its passage. I turned once again and fired up my force field spell, casting it all over the city. It was my last hope but who else would I turn to in the empire’s time of need? Only one other pony could do it but she needed time to get to the top of the castle in order to cast a more powerful magic than mine.
Holding on to everything I held dear, I didn’t let go of reality but as my ordeal went on, I felt my life slipping before me, lapsing in and out of unconsciousness. And then came the grip of darkness.
I don’t remember anything between the time I blacked out and came into subtle consciousness. What I did notice was that I was back in my castle quarters and feeling very weak. Mobility was impossible; even moving my head was already a feat in itself. Vision was impaired as well, being blurry and all. As I tried to make sense of what was happening to myself, I could hear the voice of a familiar pony calling out to me. Her voice bellowed with the sound of sadness as if she was losing something she cared for.
“Please... don’t leave me... ”
A hoof held on to mine; That meant somepony is leaving, maybe for good.
And only did I realize, it was me.
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I’ve awoken from another one of those nightmares I’ve been having for quite some time. I guess I still have those bad memories from confronting the unicorn king from a while back. Good thing today’s the day I’d always want to wake up to after a rough night’s sleep.
Hearth’s Warming, the one holiday I look forward to every year. There are plenty of other festivities to enjoy but this one is the closest to my heart because I could spend all the time I want with mom, dad, and of course, Twiley. The snow covered footpaths of Canterlot really brings out the beauty of the town, all white and soft; it really complements the hues of white that the city is known for. Even the castle blends perfectly well with the snowcapped mountain side.
This year, however, didn’t feel like the usual Hearth’s Warming that I enjoyed. This is the first time I’ve spent the holiday with Cadance and it just doesn’t feel complete without my family. I’ve learned to accept this but still, the nagging feeling of being apart from my old home just makes me want to go back. I really want to go but my responsibility is to my kingdom. Cadance does make the experience worthwhile. Aside from having the ability to spread love wherever she goes with her magic, she is an excellent cook, probably at par with Gustave le Grande in terms of pastries.
I strolled through the streets, covered with a thin layer of powdered snow, not as much snow compared to Canterlot, though. I just finished my rounds of checking the empire’s perimeter in case any wild animals ever gone astray and threatened to ransack a small portion of town; the frozen north does have its fair share of wildlife. Today’s shift wasn’t what I’d like to call hard work, the only thing I’ve noticed was a white tiger wandering aimlessly around some crystal spires jutting from the ground just west of the train station. Judging by the color of its fur around its mouth, it looked like it just finished its meal. The one feature that stood out was its right paw; it had something sticking out of it. I stealthily crept up from behind, trying to get a better look at the strange object.
And when it began to lie down, I made my move. I grabbed the tooth-like object from its pelt without getting attacked. That tiger must have been in a calm mood, moving away without even thinking of coming at me; at least, that’s what I thought.
“Hmm... what could this be? Maybe Cadance knows...”
Heading on home, I strolled through the streets of the empire, greeting everypony I passed by. There was this couple sitting by the park, looking like they are in the prime of their lives. I thought about leaving them be, seeing as they were just about to smooch but they saw me and said hi; I returned their greeting with a bouquet of flowers, courtesy of Cadance’s materialization spells. It wasn’t the most useful one she’s taught me, but it’s come in handy in more than one occasion.
Typical of Hearth’s Warming, I’d find myself greeting everyone in the palace and finding Cadance a gift. I’ve been with her for a long time now and I just noticed, I never found the time to ask her what she wanted! Oh no, this is definitely a bad time to go present hunting. All the stores are closed and I’m not the best at fabricating things from scratch, not to mention the lack of training in crafting even the most simple things. Would she like flowers? What about jewelry? Ugh, too much work to even guess what she likes. I guess I could resort to the materialization spell but Cadance knows it so well, she can tell when something’s a fake. Of all the things I chose to forget, it had to be the gift. All I can hope for is that she’ll let it go when I show her that little object I found on that tiger.
I was just by the entrance of the throne room when she was standing by the doors. Cadance, why must you be so excited whenever it’s a holiday? It’s not like your life depended on it.
“Hey there, Shining Armor! Happy Hearth’s Warming!”
“You too, sweetie. I know we should be taking a break from royal duties, why don’t we go out for a while?” Ok, so maybe that little mystery can wait. I think I can stall my wife long enough for me to slowly bring up the topic. I had to think of something inconspicuous enough for her to think everything’s normal. “How about some coffee and fritters?”
“You know, I could always make some for us. It’s no problem at all!”
“Yeah but you could use the break; besides, you should be enjoying yourself on this fine day.”
She thought about it for some time. With her lips pursing and eyes rolling from side to side, I think she saw through my diversion; she’s sure taking a while to decide...
“Oh alright. Why not? Perhaps I should go out and see more of the city.”
Thank Celestia!
We continued our day with some coffee and fritters at the cafe just a few blocks south of the castle. It’s a really small cafe, with most of the seating area outside of the main building, but it definitely serves some of the best pastries in the empire. The fritters alone are already very sumptuous. The atmosphere is simply divine, almost like Canterlot’s; the temperature is just right and the sun was shining ever so brightly. It’s just like the time I took Cadance out on a date at Pony Joe’s donut shop. It was a slow day of work for the stallion but we decided to give him a break and go to his place to get something to eat. I’m a regular at his place whenever Twilight wanted to grab a bite. He even gave Cadance and I a free donut each! With both of us enjoying the little snack, I decided to strike up a little conversation just to get the ball rolling.
“Cadance, do you miss Twiley?”
“Well of course I do. Why wouldn’t I?”
“That’s just it, I really miss her and all those Hearth’s Warming dinners with the family back in Canterlot. It’s the first time I’ve been separated from her during a holiday and, well, it just doesn’t feel the same.”
“Don’t worry about that,” Cadance began. “You may not be able to spend a day with her, but I think I got something that comes close....”
I listened closely and I liked what I heard. I’ve heard of this before and Cadance is definitely onto something. It’s a long distance communication spell, one that allows me to project my image to whoever I’m conversing with. It’s like I’m talking directly talking with the other pony without being physically there. This could come in useful for sending memos to the soldiers in times of war hassle-free.
“This could come in handy. Listen, I’d like to ask you about something. I found it while patrolling the outskirts of the city.”
I proceeded to pull out the object I found from my saddle bag. My wife studied this peculiar object for some time, using her magic to levitate it, rotate it from side to side, and examine anything that seemed out of place. The deep red hues didn’t fit in for something that could easily be mistaken for a rock fragment. What’s interesting to note is that the bottom section appears to be crudely sliced from its source, perhaps with a misused diamond-tipped saw.
“I think this looks familiar but I need to be sure.”
And Cadance’s fun-loving attitude kicked in.
“It’s nothing to be worried about, dear. No need to fuss about this.”
I really wanted to say otherwise but there’s no point arguing over small object such as this. Still, something was gnawing at me, telling me that I’ve yet to see everything. Surely there was something to this mysterious object being present, it’s magical aura pulsating a dark force conflicting with the Crystal Empire’s light.
I can only hope that Cadance is right, that there is nothing to worry about...