//------------------------------//
// Chapter 28: Recaps and Recollections 
// Story: Destiny's Call: The tales of a foreigner in a familiar land 
// by Zenith Starwalker 
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	The glass of the cosmic mirror of realized destiny (which was in all likelihood just a regular mirror) rippled as I stepped out of its aperture and down from the platform. The light that I was still radiating began to pulse with brightness one last time before I felt it absorb back into my body, with my wavy hair returning to its natural, straightly combed state. This was perfectly fine by me, since being permanently lit up like the Vegas strip was not a preference of mine. The source of monumental power that was always present within me and only recently brought to full potency by the starry Constellar Congress surged as strong as ever, though I would have to exercise singularly judicious prudence in its usage. That is… if I ever had to use it, which I sincerely hoped I would not. Knowing how my life’s events typically played out for me though, that was likely to be the case.

I spared a short glance back at the surface of the portal, which had by then returned to that solid, reflective state as was befitting of a mirror. A cursory touch from my fingers was met with stiff resistance and a smudge that sullied the mirror’s pristine glass, and only placid red pools of unfathomable depth answered my pensive stare. The mysterious means powering the portal resulted in over a thousand years of history passing me by in the literal blink of an eye, and it made me wonder just how much I had missed in the intervening period between those two points in time. Arcania’s past itself didn’t have much turbulence beyond the occasional spat with aggressor countries like the fledgling (‘Heh’) nation of Gryphondria some years after its inception, though I suspect that much of its hidden past was left out of the history books at the Princesses’ behest. 

I stopped my ponderings for the nonce to let my own past catch up to me. When I had left this Scintillating Citadel, I was still reeling from inadvertently revealing to Arcania as a whole that I was the fourth Trifect (Or the first, depending on how you look at it). Sure I saved some people from what would have been a nasty case of ice splinters wedged in their everywhere, but now I had no choice but to accept the Princesses’ offer to stand vigil over the country beside them as one of its official rulers. If it really came down to it, I could swallow my misgivings and become the Prince that the nation needed me to be, even if I’d hate practically every moment of it. But I couldn’t let Arcania alone dominate my political priorities now, as I had an equal responsibility to the world at large, as was confirmed by my…inauguration.

It still wasn’t a tenure that I was looking forward to however, taking a position of power next to the Princesses would put me in the spotlight on the world stage, and I worked most efficiently when I was relatively unknown to the larger players on the game board. Fighting and questing alongside an important figure like Starswirl had given me a taste of what it was like to make a difference in the grander scheme of things, even if it was for a comparatively short period. I found that I enjoyed it, though the whole act of the gracious do-gooder could do without the bloody butcher’s work that’s rarely if ever hinted at in the heroes’ stories that I was hooked on when I was growing up. My trip was additionally a teaser of what it was like being a wanted individual, in the eyes of the ancient Valkyrians sent after the wizard and the Acolytes who were equally out to get us. I didn’t flinch or bend under the pressure then, I didn’t expressly see why it would affect me now. Perhaps I was a fair deal more prepared for the trials ahead than I had at first presumed.

I unsheathed my Tantō and stared at the immaculate blade for a time, noting the faint shimmer on the pommel clueing me in on my constant connection with the supernal sentinels who had brought me here for their purposes (‘No… my purposes now’). I couldn’t even begin to imagine the full ramifications of what it meant to be charged with guardianship over this Earth and all of her people. It was exhilarating, terrifying, and rather humbling in a way. Not so long ago I was merely a foreigner exploring a strange and yet altogether familiar world, no particular direction for my life in mind. And now here I was, empowered by the Constellar Congress as their ‘representative’ with boots on the ground and a firm sense of purpose in my heart. The time for exploring was over it seemed… now was the time for effecting action. The Great Dissonance that had wreaked unspeakable horrors on the world was once again gathering its strength in the shadows, biding its time, and I did not know how long we had until it lashed out with it. I’d have to make Celeste and Sele-… I mean, the Princesses Celestia and Luna, aware of this fact.

The door to the room was closed and all of the furniture and portraits had remained untouched, so I had assumed that when I opened up those doors, I wouldn’t find a desolate, dilapidated statue of liberty scene right out of Planet of the Apes staring me in the face. Sure enough, when my hands grasped the circular door handles and pulled inward, the regular, sparkling hallways of the Crystal Citadel were there to reassure me that no notably significant leaps forward in time were made in my absence. I strode forward as I tried to remember my way around the joint. I rounded a corner and into a hallway that had a duo of guards posted there, they noticed my presence and hailed me with the usual postured salute of their spears.

“My Lord Zenith!” They greeted me; mildly taken aback, “Prince Shining Armor was close to assembling a search party for you, had you been absent from the citadel any longer” They apprised me.

“At ease. I’m here” I told them with a lazy wave of my hand, “What day is it?” I inquired, once they had resumed their regular stance.

“Tis the afternoon of the fifteenth. The third day of the athletic events” The one closest to me answered, “I also see it fit to inform you that we were ordered to direct you to the nearest person of the group you arrived with before the start of the games. They would most likely be lunching in the dining hall at this time. Miss Sparkle and her friends were quite distraught to find that you had gone missing on them” He added his own observations.

‘I’ve haven’t even been gone an entire day… weird, but not surprising’ I cogitated offhandedly about the relativity of portal travel between worlds and across time.

I rubbed at the back of my head, “I guess I’ve got some explaining to do. Thanks for notifying me. Back to your watch then” I scooted past them and made for the dining hall, thinking about how I was going to justify my sudden disappearance and reappearance to those closest to me. 

I could already envision the sundry reactions that I would be receiving from them the moment I showed my face. Twilight would embrace me and grill me for information on where I had been, Rarity and Fluttershy would do the same; except with more passion and stressed fear, Rainbow and Applejack would make hard contact with me and accuse me of slipping off without telling anybody, and Pinkie would… well, I knew better than to categorize Pinkie’s possible reactions as a single response.

Outside the open window slits of the citadel, the strident and faintly echoing sound of cheering could clearly be made out, signifying to me that the events of the last day of the games were in full swing. If I recalled correctly, Magiville didn’t have many competitors that would participating in the end events, so it didn’t come as a shock that my friends might be chilling inside of the citadel instead of cheering on their neighbors in the stadium. I idly wondered how the Princesses suppressed the press, given my parting display of heroics on the second day. I was okay with a few Magivillians catching on that I was more than I seemed, but with the Athletic Games being covered by most of Arcania’s news agencies, I somehow doubted that they would simply let that question lingering on everyone’s minds recede. I shook my head as I descended some stairs and drew closer to the dining hall of the citadel. That was a headache for future me to deal with.

I soon reached the wide, crystal filigreed arched doorways to the dining hall and the guards posted at the door kindly pressed their hands against them and pushed it open for me, giving me a nod of recognition as I passed by. Inside the oddly long hall (the Crystal Citadel was a tall structure, albeit not a terribly wide one. So a dining slash feasting hall that could contain roughly one hundred and fifty people sitting abreast was a fairly impressive accomplishment) were rows of trestle tables that had elongated sheets of multicolored cloth draped over them. Silver candelabras held up indigo wax candles that burned with a bluish tint and lightly infused the air with a lavender scent that was underwhelming enough that it would not interfere with the taste buds as one sat down to eat. 

The hall didn’t have the impressive animated atmosphere that the one in Concordia did, but the snowflake shaped chandeliers that bathed the hall in prismatic light were no less inspiring. There was a smattering of people scattered up and down the tables, most of them looking to be the distinguished types from all over. Servants would ferry platters of crystalline (yet somehow palatable) food back and forth to the tables’ occupants before scurrying downstairs to the kitchens to retrieve additional servings to keep their influential guests’ bellies filled (It makes a favorable impression for auspicious business transactions in the future). Others were refilling silvered cups of Hippocras and mulled wine that sparkled like everything else in this Kingdom. Nobles from the Capital, renowned artisans and tradesmen, diplomats from the various countries that Arcania shared the world stage with, all of whom were present and watched my entrance with barely concealed interest. Some of them likely recognized me from ‘yesterday’ if their susurrus and mutterings to each other were any sort of hint. I ignored them, their subdued prattling, and their scathing gazes. The people who directly mattered to me were my only concern here. Speaking of whom, seated at the end of the dining hall was Twilight, who had yet to see me. 

Across from her and chatting amicably was a guard who was wearing a different set of armor from what I’d come to expect from the security in the Krystal Kingdom. Encased in swirling golden plate armor that had a blue star clasp holding up a peach colored cape, the blue haired guard’s face struck me as being familiar, my face screwing up in rumination as I struggled to place an identifier to it. It clicked when I recalled that this was the young Skyborn lieutenant assigned to Cadence’s personal protection detail that had caught Twilight’s eye in the past. What was his name again? Flash Sentry? The well groomed man was roughly my age, with a shine in his complexion that made him seem younger than that somehow. Whatever the context of this rendezvous together, they seemed to be having a good time in each other’s company, though Twilight’s smile seemed to be half genuine and half a mask for something that was troubling her. The two of them were so immersed in their conversation about the particulars of Flash’s rounds shadowing Cadence from a close but unobtrusive distance that they had scarce noticed my entry, let alone comprehended my identity. And I saw no reason to intrude upon their little ‘lunch date’.

I stopped pacing down the floor between the table rows and twisted around to double back when I heard Twilight make a flabbergasted noise of recognition and shouted out after me, “Zenith!” She got up from her seat and I heard her footfalls pitter patter down the hall as she jogged to catch up to me. I ceased moving and sighed. There went my carefully laid plans for beating a stealthy retreat.

I turned about to face her, “Hello Twilight” I acknowledged her with a thin, vaguely contrite smile. She was wearing a purple sweater vest coupled with a long sleeved, well insulated shirt and pants. She had been among those on the train ride to the Kingdom to complain of the stiffness the cold air imparted to their skin, so she had packed heavier raiment suitable for winter. As could be expected, most of our Skyborn neighbors had no such issues.

“Zenith! Where have you been? You missed the entirety of this morning’s games!” She surrounded me in a hug that belied how strong she could be. She pulled back as her nose immediately wrinkled up, “Ugh! You smell like the bowels of a Hydra!” She commented, recoiling back from me.

‘I guess being officially instated as a protector doesn’t come with a free dry cleaning. I wonder if Eau de Hydra would be a marketable product?’ I mentally quipped, not noticing the distinctly sour fragrance until she had pointed it out. The selectively permeable membrane spell I had shielded myself with when I was eviscerating the guts of the multi headed beast only prevented caustic damage, but did nothing about any unwanted odors.

I chuckled briefly at her adorable expression, “Funny story that…”

“One that I would very much like to hea-…” She stopped dead in her sentence once we had made eye contact.

“Why are you staring at me like that?” I asked her, wary of that shocked look.

She shook herself out of her daze, “Your eyes… something about them feels… older” She barely spoke above a whisper.

“I’m going to presume for your sake that wasn’t a disguised jab at my age. And there’s a story behind that too” I dismissively waved a hand, “Though let’s just sum it up as this: I went places, saw things…” I paused, faint flickers of memories replaying themselves in my mind, “Did things” My expression darkened considerably for an instant before I banished it with a mirthless smirk, “But it’s not that important, since I’m back anyway. What else did I miss? Other than the games, that is”

“We were only pulling at our hair in our desperation to find you! I went to knock on your door yesterday and you weren’t there! It was like you had just vanished! Even the Princesses’ scrying spells came back inconclusive…” She gasped as the words rang a bell in her head, “THE PRINCESSES! They need to know that you’re back right this instant!” She made to grab at my arm, but I pulled away before she could snatch me up.

She gave me a confused look, “Zenith? What’s wrong? We need to get going right now! Princess Celestia was beside herself with anxiety when she couldn’t find you with magic!”

I wasn’t going to be dragged to the Princesses by the bookworm like I was some overdue library tome that was drastically required to be turned in, “Then you can tell Celestia that if she wants to talk to me, she can do so at the top of the Citadel in an hour or so. I have other things I need to take care of first”

Twilight couldn’t comprehend this, but had begrudgingly grown accustomed to my attitude of non deference to their Royal Highnesses, “What could be more important than telling everyone that you’ve returned to us?”

I quivered my head side to side, keeping my positive grin, “Absolutely nothing, as I mean to do just that. But I intend to do so in my own way. Tell me, where are the others as of this moment?”

Twilight frowned at my explanation but went deep into thought, “Well… Rainbow Dash and Applejack are probably in our usual seats at the stadium cheering for our local pole vaulting team. Rarity and Fluttershy are biting at their nails and fretting together over what happened to you in their rooms. Pinkie is…” She glanced about in a perplexed fashion, “…or was with me a while ago. The Mana Mark Maidens are exploring the Kingdom and are probably asking the natives here how they earned their Mana Marks, at least I hope that is what they are doing” Her forehead creased as she chastised herself for the likely mistake of letting them out of their sights again. Those girls could get themselves into quite the pickle if they put their minds to it.

“Business as usual then” I exhaled casually, contented by this stab of normality, “Anything else to report?”

“What am I? A member of the Royal Guard?” She frowned at my strange phrasing, but scoured her brain for more, “There was a girl in green outside your door at dawn who wanted a word with you before I shooed her off” She muttered before shaking her head dismissively, “And Spike has… locked himself up in his room and refuses to speak to anyone, even me! He doesn’t even know that you’ve been missing!” She grabbed me by the lapels of my robe, “He told me that you were disappointed with him just before he sealed himself up in there to hide beneath his sheets” Her protective glare was menacing, “What did you say to him that has him in such a self demeaning rut?”

‘Girl in green? Lyra?’ I thought in puzzlement. When had she snuck along on the train with us? No matter. I would speak with her later.

I hummed regretfully as I remembered how curt I was with him, “I was… unnecessarily cold towards him after the frozen cloud incident. I’ll speak to him now… if he’ll hear me out” I offered in order to placate her.

She let go of me, giving me an approving nod, “Good. Spike looks up to you. You know that, right?” She apprised me in a softer tone.

“Does he?” I instinctively expressed my doubtfulness, “I’m not exactly an anchored influence in his life” Though even a minimal amount of exposure seems to have a profound emotional effect on people in this world. The culprit had to be that ‘Magic of Friendship’ jazz that the bookworm is so fond of trying to hammer into my skull, along with everybody else it seemed.

She crossed her arms together and simpered, “Don’t sell yourself short, Zenith. When we first arrived here, he kept me up all night with how enthused he had been with the prospect of lighting the ceremonial torch, and how that wouldn’t have been possible had you not been there to inspire him to find his courage when fear gripped his core under the eyes of so many people” She threw the memory in my face. My urging wouldn’t have been necessary if Spike wasn’t so weak kneed at the idea of being within sight of thousands of spectators to begin with.

“Fear is the only time one can be brave” I recited in monotone, only partially believing that adage. My brow pinched into itself, “And how does he feel about Rarity and I… being in a relationship?” I discreetly cadged from a second hand source. It wasn’t something I would normally look into, but I needed to gauge that nuance to determine whether or not it would become a future issue.

“He’s… jealous, to say the least” She sighed and ran a hand though the pink streak of her lustrous purple hair, “Though I find it very mature that he trusts you with Rarity’s happiness to the point that he won’t interfere, tempted as he is. He’s very sweet on her, as anyone with eyes can tell… which makes it that much more of a testament to his respect for you” Twilight then scanned about the hall nervously, as if she had taken a great risk by breaking some sacred agreement that was bound with eldritch power. Her face paled as she spotted something behind me that I was too indifferent to look at myself. The Pink One’s ways were as frightening as they were mysterious, as Twilight was presently being reminded of.

‘Perhaps he shouldn’t’ I mused darkly. Rarity is an upstanding woman that I respect in the highest for both her skill with a needle and her giving virtue, but she is a love struck fool to place her tender heart in my care. Regardless… there is some shade of chivalrous honor in me somewhere, and I don’t intend to abuse that sacred trust.

“I’m honored by his faith in me” I remarked. ‘Even if it’s probably misplaced’

“I’ll have a word with him straightaway. You can get back to your lunch date with a member of Cadence’s personal guard now” I said to her, not unkindly. I personally didn’t care that much about whom the bookworm fancied, any chances of taking an interest in her myself was dashed when she intruded upon my innermost sanctum with such careless disregard. I had forgiven her… but I would never forget that.

Twilight misinterpreted this anyway, her cheeks going flush with blood, “We’re not-…! I’m not on a lunch date with anybody!” She deflected in a flustered tone that no one with a lick of common sense would believe. She chanced a backwards peek at her not lunch date, who waved back at her with a patient, if slightly bemused toothy smile.

“Uh huh…” I droned, letting her know that her charade wasn’t fooling anyone, “At least have the courtesy not to brazenly deny it to someone who’s been inside that orderly head of yours. I know you, Sparkle… almost as well as you know me” I reminded her of the forced connection that gave both of us a better understanding about the other that we now shared.

“Oh all right!” Twilight admitted in a hushed tone, slumping her shoulders in defeat, “So what if I’m taking time out of my schedule to socialize with Flash Sentry? He’s an interesting guy!” She defended her reasons, even though I was hardly accusing her of doing anything unsavory.

“I don’t doubt it if he’s been personally handpicked to be assigned to guard Princess Cadence’s person herself” I told her with a hidden grain of salt, “But need I remind you that he’s posted here… and therefore not available to be anywhere else unless otherwise reassigned” Cavorting with the local guard was all well and good, but she couldn’t be nearly naïve enough to think that a viable relationship could come of it, her standing as a bearer of an Element of Harmonious Virtue notwithstanding.

“I know…” She demurred with a disheartened sagging motion, sounding like she had put that pertinent thought to the back of her mind, “But I can make the most of the time we have together now” She declared resolutely, standing as tall as her slim, bookish figure allowed.

Our conversation at an end, she returned to her place in front of the young guardsman, laughing with more believable sincerity as he japed about his early tenure as a raw recruit. I was just relieved that I adequately misdirected her so as to not go loping off to Celestia with all haste. I exited the dining hall and made for our clique’s personal quarters higher up on the citadel’s levels. Soft, orange light poured in through slits in the windowless walls, earlier than in the months prior. In accordance with wintertime, Celestia would lower the Sun sooner and Luna would promptly raise the moon in a similar method. Winter would only last in Arcania from December and ending in early January (I was oddly looking forward to the fabled Winter Wrap Up collective ceremony), but the same could not be said of lands across the sea and beyond its borders. Not that it really mattered up here in the North, where the snows and crisp chill of the air were ever present.

Within ten minutes I was standing before the doorway leading into Twilight and Spike’s shared room. To a normal man’s hearing all was silent, but my keen ears could pick up on muted sniffling that leaked out from underneath the slit of the door in truncated intervals and bursts. It made me feel guilty about the harshness that I had shown Spike after the falling ice cloud, but he could have saved the crowds from harm just the same as me dammit. So why did he fall prey to cowardice? It was almost sufficient to make one doubt the potency of the dragon’s blood flowing in his veins. I grit my teeth and stuffed down the grievances I carried with an oft practiced ease. It would not do to go and comfort the boy if I still felt steamed at him.

My knuckles rapped against the door twice, the knock echoing inside the chamber like a loosened pebble tumbling onto the floor of a tomb, “Spike, are you in there?” I didn’t use magic to sense if he was, preferring to do this the old fashioned way.

“Who’s that? Twilight?” A muffled voice vocalized from within, “Go away!”

I snorted, “Last I recalled, no one ever mistook my baritone for Twilight’s esoteric, librarian voice” I quipped, wondering if the half-dragon boy’s ears had gone on a sad strike too.

“Zenith?” I heard his footsteps pace the solid, crystalline floor before the lock to the door slid open and the equally crystalline portal gaped wide, revealing the room’s dark eyed occupant to me. 

Suffice it to say in this artificial climate, but Spike was looking under the weather, his eyelids drooped, his shoulders sank submissively, and his emerald green irises had lost their peppy shine. He was clad in his pajamas, which indicated that he hadn’t even gotten out of his bed to change since going to sleep previously, content to be a sad sack safely enwrapped in his silky sheets. I’ve opined this before and will inevitably opine it again: people here were just too freakin’ sensitive. Though to be fair, those who knew me well would probably assert the opposite about me.

“Hello Spike” I greeted him carefully, “You been catching up on yours and Rarity’s beauty sleep combined? Believe me when I tell you that she has plenty of it” I playfully prodded at him, hoping to lighten the somber mood in him and soften him up.

The joke had no effect on him whatsoever (Mentioning Rarity wasn’t very prudent of me either), “Uh… sure. What are you doing here? I figured I was the last person you’d want to see right about now” He got to the point rather than beat around the bush, which I always admired in folks.

“There are far worse people I pray I’ll never see again, Spike” I conveyed candidly in a flat tone that did not do how wholehearted I was about that statement justice, “And you are nowhere on that list. May I come in? You and I need to have a chat, friend to friend” I emphasized, buttering him up the unctuous way instead.

He was relieved that I still considered him a friend, “Uh, yeah!” He shouted, before getting a grip on his previous demeanor to save face, “Yeah, come in” He stood aside and granted me entry into his and Twilight’s bedchambers. 

It was surprisingly spartan in furnishing, all things considered, with a crystalline dresser, two four post beds lacking curtains, and nightstands for each of them. Not that this setup was that much different from my own just down the hallway, though I would have thought that an Element Bearer’s quarters would be more fulsome than this. Unsurprisingly, Twilight’s nightstand had a large, myriad pile of books stacked on it as reading material for the knowledge hungry woman. I stifled a chuckle when I saw ‘One hundred and one ways to cheer’ labeled on one of the spines. That explained all the weird hooting noises that she had made on the second day of the games.

I sat down on the unruffled sheets of Twilight’s bed at the foot, the thousand year old (but still supple) mattress absorbing and evenly distributing my weight like sponge cake, “So…” I began with a pensive drawl, “I hear that you’ve been isolating yourself in here to sulk, unable to be roused by even Twilight”

The boy bristled at my brusque broaching of the subject, “Yeah…? What about it!?” He growled irritably.

“It’s not healthy to shut people out, Spike. Particularly those that care about you” I scolded him, instantly feeling like the biggest hypocrite in the world for saying that with a unwavering, flat expression. I was fortunate that my reticent personality naturally gifted (or cursed, depending on how you look at it) me with a face as expressive as stone.

“I opened the door for you didn’t I?” He countered coolly.

“And only me… now why is that?” I crisply posed aloud, staring him down.

His composed attitude crumbled under my withering gaze, “Your words to me out there in that stadium touched me twice, Zenith” He admitted, “You helped me find my courage when the thought of all those eyes on me unnerved me like the thought of re-cataloging the entire library blindfolded and by myself” He shivered at the idea, “But they also hurt me too… people here called me Brave and Glorious… still call me that, even with evidence to the contrary. But when you uttered it to me in that chilly tone after I failed to act during the incident” He shivered again, “It made me realize that I wasn’t as brave as people made me out to be. I was yet afraid that there might have been a repeat of my birthday incident had it continued. I was possessed by greed to such an extent that it slowly pushed out my humanity… until only a massive dragon of incredible avarice was left” He looked to me desperately, “Pride won’t turn me into a monster again, will it!?” 

“It seems unlikely” I voiced my doubts, “Even if it were so. Your friends would be there to bring you back from the brink” I stated with confidence. They did it before, after all. Especially Rarity, I’m told.

His alleviation was palpable, “Thank the Princesses! I’m not even that big of a deal in all truthfulness… I only kept the Crystal Heart free of Sombra’s shadowy clutches long enough for Princess Cadence to awaken its true power. She’s the Brave one. Not me” He lessened his importance, whether in a show of humility or accepted disgrace was hard to tell.

“Nonsense!” I sharply rebuked him, making him jerk in surprise, “Sombra was an evil man… and evil men are more than capable of doing despicable things in the name of advancing their own ends (‘Or that of others’)” I waxed philosophical, “You are very brave indeed to resist such a man for the sake of this Kingdom and your friends. Don’t let anyone gainsay you otherwise, not even your own self”

He smiled a little at that, “Heh… it’s too bad you weren’t there. You could make him out to be no more than the black fart of air that he appeared to be” He joked.

“You’re probably right” I chortled, amused at his unflattering description of the mad, slavering, slave king. Though I would do far worse to a tyrannical, slave driving monster such as him if we were to square off. 

I got up from the bed and knelt before the boy, clasping my hands on his shoulders, “I meant every word that I spoke to you on the balcony that day, Spike. You’ve the body of a young man, but the soul of a dragon… and a noble one at that. It is my sincerest hope that you’ll grow to be as valiant as you will be tall” Assuming he gets a normal growth spurt anytime soon, anyhow.

His eyes glinted with childish excitement for that future, “I can’t wait! I want to be tall as Big Macintosh someday!” He declared, “Or you! Nobody would dare to look down at me! Not that they could!” He puffed himself up, reminding me that he was still a boy in most regards.

I sent him a dry smirk, “Be glad you are at the height you are now, Spike. I have to duck my head to avoid bumping it on things more often than I care for, and some of the beds I’ve tried out there in the vast, wide world have felt like they were built for dwarves. Once, I had a shorter woman complain of neck pain to me after five minutes expended talking to her. Though to be equitable to her, I was on horseback at the time” I alluded to my time spent questioning locals of the Dreamy Vale about the whereabouts of the two sisters. 

The aforementioned woman was a lady of the minor Agrarian noble house of Greywood, which controlled a village that the Sisters supposedly passed through. She wasn’t of much help, but she showed us hospitality and wined and dined us in her main hall after we introduced ourselves. It certainly didn’t hurt that I tossed in a few honeyed words here and there regarding her comely countenance (Albeit her glimmering, turquoise eyes were fixed firmly on my companion Starswirl, who had squirmed uncomfortably in his seat, unused to being measured up in a vaguely carnal fashion). There had been another guest of hers staying there that swore he interacted with the roaming Sisters, and caught wind of where they might have gone next. Starswirl added his two cents whenever he saw the need, but I was the appointed speaker of our adventurous duo. I truly wondered about what became of that land, and all of its noble houses. The only noble houses that I came into contact with in Arcania seemed to be concentrated in Concordia, and most of those people were snobs. Society there more or less collapsed with the onslaught of the Windigoes, and people were forced to flee eastward to safety and warmth, presumably over that land bridge I spied on the map.

“If you say so…” Spike sounded unconvinced, “So are we… cool? As Rainbow would define it?”

I smiled at him and tapped both his shoulders with my fingers twice, “Frosty as the air outside the climate barrier” I assured him.

He looked singularly relieved to hear that when part of what I said to him caught up to his brain, “Wait… since when were you on horseback? I’ve always seen you walking when in Magiville, or teleporting away when too many people were bothering you. Twilight says that’s a rude thing to do, by the way” He added as an afterthought.

‘Maybe it’s a rude thing for too many people to get up in my face for their trivial, frivolous reasons’ I griped silently. At least now whenever people bug me, I can use my wings to make a quick getaway.

“That’s a bit of a tale, Spike. Besides, it’s nothing worth hearing about” I attempted to downplay how much of a lie that was, and how my unnoted absence to him of one day was endured nearly a month elsewhere and elsewhen.

He looked disappointed that I was withholding from him, “Alright… if it’s not a big deal to you” He shrugged it off, “What about the girls? They tend to get protective of me and Twilight doubtlessly told them all how I was moping in here. Wouldn’t take much for them to connect the dots” He put out, not realizing how they took greater concern with my brief disappearance.

“I’ll manage them piecemeal” I ran a tentative hand through my hair, “I still need to give Rainbow her favorite band’s autograph that I had signed for her” She had been so enamored with her precious Wonderbolts that the specialness of having a signed piece of paper from one of her favorites bands would have dulled in comparison so I held off on it. Now that I’m back in the Kingdom though…

“I can give it to her for you, Zenith!” The boy offered graciously, “As my way of apologizing for getting cold feet in the stadium” He clarified, not wanting to seem too overeager.

“Ironic, given the fire that burns within you” I jested with a grin.

“Yeah, I’m only a half-dragon after all” He nodded, playing along.

“Take heart, Spike. That just means you get the best of both worlds (‘But hopefully not the worst of each too’)” I mussed his ruffled, spiky hair, earning a feigned yelp of indignation and an unamused glower as he pulled back to return it to its natural state with his hands.

We parted ways after I imparted Spike with an extremely crumpled, waterlogged autograph signed by all four members of the Star Seekers (it was remarkably clean, all previous events taken into consideration) that I had stashed in the many inner pockets of my robes. Spike goggled first in awe when I handed it to him, perhaps having listened to a few of their hits himself, and then in puzzlement once he previewed that it was in less than perfect condition. I followed down the hallway for a few meters until the door to my chambers was in view. Despite myself, I hummed pleasantly when I saw that the rudimentary sign taped across the door labeled ‘Go away, I’m brooding’ was left hanging there. I was only gone for barely a day’s worth of real time, but relatively speaking it was like seeing a nostalgic piece of memorabilia. 

I reached out to grasp at the handle when an inexplicable sensation prickled in the back of my mind. I didn’t know what this mysterious Hypersense was or how it came to be, but it never failed to buzz in my skull whenever it was informing me that something was amiss. The last time it went off, I was nearly blindsided in the tub by three armed assailants. Not desiring a repeat of such an unwanted close encounter of the sharp kind, I slid my Tantō out of its sheathe and pushed the handle down as if I was entering normally. The room was obscured in shadow since I had drawn the curtains over the open apertures in the walls and the light from the hallway only illuminated a miniscule portion of it. I stepped inside quietly, all of my muscles tensed and ready to spring at a moment’s notice. 

Nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary; with the room more or less the way I left it after I had waltzed off to rig Cadence and Shining Armor’s personal bedchambers (I was dying to see how that scheme paid off). The odd sensation hadn’t gone away though, so I kept alert until I was sure any dangers had been accounted for. I sidled along the wall of the room until I was close enough to wrench the curtains back and finished lightening up the chambers. My adventure pack was resting next to a solid writing desk of pure, ruby red corundum crystal where I had left it. The immediate warning sign that someone had been in here though was that the sheets of the bed had been tucked and neatly straightened out (I had yet to grow out of that messy bed phase). 

There wasn’t anybody here that I could see hiding in ambush for me, so I slid my Tantō back into its sheath and sighed, untying the various bags and purses on my person and depositing them on the tabletop. I guessed to myself that my substitute Spider-sense must have been on the fritz as I sat down at my desk to deflate where no one could see it, pinching at the bridge of my nose to support the brunt of my skull as I mashed it into my left hand. I had been gone for what I would have deemed a transient time in the past (quite literally), but it had felt like a lifetime ago thanks to how much I had experienced in that interval. I tried fruitlessly to convince myself that the person who had emerged from that mirror was still the same person that went in, but it was a boldfaced lie no matter how many times I ran it by myself. I didn’t know what to make of myself anymore. I had twisted the truth at my leisure, threatened cat’s-paws, tortured, and permanently shut the eyes of more people than I dared to count in order to stop great atrocities against guiltless, purefolk. But in doing so, I had also committed several of the same unspeakable evils myself, and sealed them in the same curse that I had inflicted Double Cross with, breaking the rules against blood magic in the process.

The man was a monster and deserved to suffer for what he did, but was I justified in making his existence a maddening blur of undeath? Perhaps… but I could not undo the past, and he was but a servant for a more diabolical evil, one which threatened the whole of the Earth and all living upon it. By imposing such harsh restrictions on Double Cross, I had indeed lessened his usefulness to this malevolent entity, which would either dispose of him or find new ways to make him serve its plans. I chewed over the memory of the severe wounds I gave him. Now that he was forbidden to die, those wounds would never heal, and would agonize him for the rest of his days until his debt was repaid in full. Would Double Cross attempt to redeem himself? Or were evil men as immutable as the depravity they operated in?

I was so absorbed in my stormy self reflection that I had neglected to pay strict attention to my surroundings. I gave a start as I felt a pair of arms enclose around my neck and squeeze. I grabbed them by the backside and thrashed forward out of my seat, flinging the two of us onto the floor with a muted thud. I reared up and extended a hidden blade, pulling it back with a snarl and ready to promptly plunge it into my aggressor’s neck. Strangely, my attacker let out a distinctly feminine shriek of fear as they held their arms above their face in a protective manner. I was adequately coherent to see through the filmy haze of adrenaline that my attacker was no attacker at all, but was in fact a very shocked looking Lyra, whose golden eyes stared at me with pupils the size of pinpricks. She was dressed in her favorite fir tree colored, recently repaired hoody and jeans. I recoiled away as I beheld her terror, totally caught off guard by my ferocious reaction.

“Jaysus, Lyra!” I exhaled protractedly to calm myself as I retracted my blade back into the vambrace, “Don’t sneak up on me like that!” I chastise her; inwardly alarmed at how close I was to ending the life of someone I loved over an innocent surprise hug. She must have been hiding under the bed, which I only now realized that I should have checked.

“I-I w-wasn’t expecting you to r-react like that!” She shot back, residual terror evident in her misty eyed face, “What was with that feral display!? I was almost certain I was about to die!” She whined with a pout, composing herself in the wake of our little misunderstanding.

“That… was one of the reasons why nobody who values their health ought to try surprising me, unless they’re in dire need of some new breathing holes” I snapped ill naturedly, displeased that the woman couldn’t try knocking on my door like a normal person.

I winced once I saw her disheartened expression, “Forgive me, my dear heart Lyra” I stood up and offered her a hand, which she tentatively accepted after a pregnant pause, “I’ve been on edge lately, so I’m bound to react to anything sudden with negative results” I’ve had one too many encounters like this not to be constantly on edge.

“Clearly” She commented with a scowl, “Why would you even react like that in the first place? It’s like you became a different person or something!” She threw her hands up in incomprehension.

‘It’s as I feared. I’ve changed… and not necessarily for the better’ I groused.

I rubbed anxiously at the back of my head, “I’ve been through a lot since you last saw me” I told her, “Had one too many circumstances waking up to knives in the dark, hovering just mere inches away from me” By knives in the dark, I had meant the countless cronies and bounty hunters that the Acolytes sent after Starswirl and I during our meaningful sojourn in the Dreamy Vale. The wizard’s wards usually picked up on them and notified us to their presence. Sometimes we fended them off. Most times I just slew them all in a cold fury. It didn’t help that I was cantankerous as all hell when I was refused my right to some sleep.

Lyra just stared at me in confusion, “You’ve lost me Zenith. What exactly happened to you?”

I looked away, “It’s not a tale meant for soft hearts” I warned her.

She huffed indignantly, “And do you take me for a soft heart now? Have you forgotten whom you’re speaking to? I am no stranger to hardship” She reminded me with a fierce, affronted shake of her noggin, “Please, Zenith… allow me to bear your burdens in the way you’ve borne mine” She pleaded to me, hugging me close to her. Her toothpaste striped hair smelled of eucalyptus mixed with mint.

“Very well” I consented, “But I don’t feel like relating it standing up. Let’s take this conversation to the bed” I suggested, clasping her hand in mine.

“Oh…?” She vocalized slyly, “Am I to soothe your woes that way?” Her devious smile made me laugh, which seemed to damper her playful mood.

“Not today, love” I gently shot her down, “There’s only one chair in here, and I don’t think you’d want to sit in my lap”

“I wouldn’t mind” She affectionately caressed my arm, before frowning, “Your outfit feels… encrusted with something… and it smells funny too” She observed with a crinkled nose, attempting to inspect it closer before I sat us down on the downy mattress, grateful for the obscuring dark coloration of my apparel.

“I need to wash it again… questing across a long forgotten realm lost to the past that was teeming with all sorts of dangers around every corner leaves little time for cleanliness” I wryly quipped. Thankfully I myself was more fragrant, since the antiquated guest rooms in the Crystal Citadel hadn’t incorporated modern shower stalls quite yet and I wasn’t hankering to take a bath in a tub anytime soon-ish.

Lyra was stuck between two adorable facial contortions somewhere between disbelief and curiosity, “Questing?” She parroted, eager for me to elaborate.

I did so by asking a question of my own first, “Twilight said that you were at my door this morning?”

She nodded, “Yes, I was. I thought I’d surprise you and show you this really neat Crystal Café I found where we could talk before the games started. But you weren’t there, and Twilight swatted me away like I was some kind of pest” She pouted again, put off by Twilight’s pushiness.

I suppressed a chuckle by disguising it as a cough, “We’re talking now. Though I fully acknowledge that Twilight can be as blunt as a baseball bat when it comes to social propriety sometimes. Don’t receive her brusqueness personally, she’s used to having people do as she says, having grown up in a Royal Castle with servants at her beck and call after all” That’s not entirely true on her part, as the girl had been locked up in her library tower for the majority of her apprenticeship, but I could not have Lyra developing a distaste for a member of the Elements.

She shrugged, “If you say so… but what does this have to do with your ‘questing’ thing?” She inquired with air quotes.

I examined the pattern-less smooth, glass like ceiling as I mulled over how I would go about this, “Between that point and when I returned here, a period of three weeks passed for me. The better part of which was jam packed with life threatening situations and a struggle against an utterly amoral faction that you probably wouldn’t know about if you were history savvy”

She scowled, “But how is that possible? Eight hours hardly translates into three weeks no matter which way you slice it”

I waggled a finger at her, “That’s where you’re wrong, Lyra. Especially if magic gets involved… as it is won’t to do”

And so the next fifteen minutes ticked by as I regaled the bright eyed woman with most everything that had happened to me in my absence, from beginning to end. She was dumbstruck by my discovery of the magical looking glass and I had to restrain her from seeking it out first thing to indulge her inquisitive mind. The girl was absolutely astonished with the idea that there were alternate versions of her world that incorporated elements of mine, like digital technology, and there was this mysterious simper on her face when I described the technicolor ponies that suspiciously resembled the people who lived here in most aspects. 

Her cheery smile sagged once I began to go into depth concerning the other details of my journey through time, and had melted into a flat pensive line that could have meant anything. She was aghast that I had to fight for my life and the lives of two others within the first day of materializing in the Towerwoods (I euphemized the outcome of the fight to seem nonlethal. I wasn’t ready for Lyra to comprehend that she was sharing the room with a killer), horrified by the retelling of Tough Cookie’s numerous injuries and poisoning by Hartsbane, and confounded by my tussle with the Grimworts (which she told me had been consigned to legend alongside Merfolk and Pixie people) in the caverns where an ingredient essential to her recovery could be found. To counter her sinking spirits I also sprinkled in the positive parts of my journey, such as my leal steed Night Wind, what kind of man the legendary mage Starswirl was like, along with how Tough Cookie’s indomitable strength had not guttered out thanks to our combined efforts and the skill of the healer Vitalitus.

“Zenith…” She breathed, embracing me and burying her face in my chest, “That’s horrible… you almost lost a friend to poisoning. Were you afraid that you couldn’t return to her in time?”

“Of course I was afraid” I admitted without hesitation, “I was afraid for her sake. I think I was also projecting the face of another of my friends onto her given their striking similarities… so that didn’t assist matters at all, but it did hasten my pace and lend me the resolve to see my mission through” I chortled mordantly as I recalled the last obstacle of the caves, “Heck… I even had to put the hurt on an Ursa Major who tried to stop me!”

At that her eyes became the size of dinner plates, “An Ursa Major? How are you still alive!?” She shrilled, “I still remember the time that two of the village morons brought back an infant Ursa Minor and it wrecked the place! Thank Celestia that no one had been killed!” She invoked the Princess’s name, as was per usual with many Arcanians living in this day and age.

Up went the eyebrow of sarcasm, “Oh, and was the Princess there to save the day?” Was my rhetorical question, even though I already knew how that story went down.

To her credit, she read between the lines, “Well no… her student Twilight coaxed it to sleep and delivered it back to the cave system from whence it came before its mother could notice. It’s just an expression” She snorted impatiently and stuck a petulant tongue at me, “But my point still stands! I’ve never heard or read about anybody disturbing an Ursa Major and coming out of it with a pulse”

I resisted the urge to smile and gloat, “I have. Turns out they have a weakness to magic nullifying metal and daylight. I simply used a combination of both to convince it that I was not some bite sized snack for it to digest” Regardless of my droll fortissimo, it was an uncomfortably harrowing matchup.

She crossed her arms together, “No kidding. Bite sized is an understatement. How big was it? Did you get a good look?”

“I did. Standing on its hind legs, its head would probably crest the top of this Citadel. Dodging that beastie’s attacks was not what you’d call a cinch. The average width of one of its arms would easily eclipse three of these rooms stacked abreast” I used my hands to illustrate how massive the Starbeast was, before realizing that I could do better than that and made a magic hologram based off memory. Lyra beamed like a kid in a candy store as she marveled at the animated depiction of one of the more phantasmal creatures to walk this Earth, prowling overhead. I was tempted to include a hologram of yours truly combating it to further enlighten her to the scale of the Starbeast, but I felt like it would be in bad taste.

Once the apparition faded, she spoke, “What happened after you saved Tough Cookie?” She asked, engaged in my incredible story that took place between her going to sleep the previous night and not half an hour ago.

I was happy to oblige, “Once Starswirl’s friend Vitalitus assured us that Tough Cookie was on the mend, the wizard entreated me to join him on his quest to fulfill an apposite prophecy… one which concerned two young heroines who had accomplished themselves by triumphing against odds both political and malevolent in the North”

The cogs were spinning together in her head, “Did you find out how far back you went in time?” I could almost see the connections being made in that quick witted mind of hers.

“Sometime over a thousand years ago. Well before the nation of Arcania was an official thing, that is for sure” I approximated, unsure of a definite answer to that one. 

Timelines here became a bit vague when it came to anything dating over seven hundred years back. This was likely explained by the turmoil that engulfed the newly born Arcania after Discord’s arrival and Princess Luna’s subsequent transformation into the monstrous Night Terror some time later. Historians would lose track of the time or record it inaccurately, so a lot of the events listed in the history books were approximations instead of month, day, year things. It made me reflect on Starswirl’s advice to me, and the ancient adage that one who fights monsters should be wary of becoming a monster themself.

She pinched at her chin, “Were you in Arcania, or another land? If it’s the latter, what was its name?”

“Not Arcania, no. It had many names, depending on who was queried” I rubbed my hands on her back where I had placed them, “My name for it was Precania”

“Clever” She complimented me with a pleased purr as I continued to massage her, “These two heroines… were they the Princesses, by chance?” She hit the nail on the head.

I withdrew and clapped my hands together slowly, “You’ve figured it out… but you are only partially correct” I specified.

The woman frowned, “Partially? They either were the Princesses or they weren’t. There’s no middle ground there”

I clicked my tongue thrice, “Again, Lyra… you’re mistaken. These women would eventually become the Princesses. But before that soon to be covered event occurred, they were just ordinary folk”

“Like you or me?” She gestured to herself before pointing to me.

I laughed heartily for a second occasion, “I was never ordinary… merely myself. Or have you forgotten what you saw in the mirror of my soul and your cabin dresser?”

“I’ll never forget that as long as I live” She murmured something in follow up that was so muted that it was just under the lower limits of my hearing, “What were Celestia and Luna like before became the Princesses?”

“Don’t skip ahead” I lightly chided her with a grin, “You’ll miss the delectable parts. There was a lot that preceded meeting them face to face before their extraordinary ascension into the beings they are now”

“Fine… save the best for last then” She patiently acquiesced, “You mentioned having a horse accompany you on this journey. How was that? I’ve never gotten the chance to try horseback riding… and with all of the hoof traffic that passes through town on their way to the capital, I’ve always wondered”

I hummed neutrally, “It’s a mixed bag. Obviously, journeys that span great distances require a faster mode of transportation than your own two feet can provide… and certain circumstances of a societal breed during those times prevented me from busting out my wings. So having a horse to convey me to where I needed to go was a blessing. Even if Starswirl started grumbling loudly and often about saddle sores after a week of travel” I reminisced with a fond curl of my lips. Queerly, I never was afflicted with those myself. Just an added benefit of being me I supposed.

“I see…” Lyra processed this, “…and you said his name was Night Wind? Was the title for my Snark Knight’s steed inspired by the Princess of the Eventides?”

“If it was, that horse had the foresight of the fates” I humorously remarked, “That was the name he gave me when I first met him in the misty Towerwoods”

“He spoke to you?” Lyra was incredulous, “Since when were you a horse whisperer?”

“Funny, Starswirl was also intrigued by that. I don’t see what the issue is. Fluttershy does it all the time. Though her understanding of their multitudinous dialects of speech is more refined than mine” Her affinity with animals would trump whatever rapport I could drum up with them any day of the week.

“I’ll be honest with you, Zenith. I’ve always envied that of her. Being cursed for the years I was wouldn’t have felt as lonely” She disclosed, “And now I’ll envy it of you too”

“They are simple creatures, not like us… and it reflects in their mannerisms. Albeit little birds can be bizarrely chatty, and they see many an interesting thing in their flights” They’d make for superb spies, if only they could be trained for that. I’d have to consult Fluttershy on that should the need for indistinct eyes in the sky ever arise.

She sent me an indecipherable sidelong glance, “Underselling your abilities the way you do isn’t liable to convince anyone of your modesty, Zenith. You’re a Prince! You should be as dignified and proud as their Royal Highnesses” She asserted, sounding like she was being genuine about it.

I chewed at my cheek in thought, “If I ever do take on the mantle of Prince, it won’t change who I am. I’ve been unbelievably blessed since waking up in this world, though I seldom credit that as much as I should. I have the three defining traits of the Arcanian people that help me to better relate to their livelihoods, I have fantastic friends in my life who legitimately care about me, and I have breathtakingly beautiful women like you who love me… despite my many, glaring flaws” My voice became strained at the end, fighting to remain emotionally static.

At that admission, her eyes became teary, “Of course I love you, Zenith. If you believe yourself unworthy of that, then you are a fool, a rather lovable one I might add. Without you, I wouldn’t even have the vestiges of my old life back. But today, I’m almost back to the point where friends from that lost life recognize me again” She closed the gap between us and pulled me into a heartfelt kiss, taking her time to make sure we both savored it. Her lips tasted of kiwi fruit and coffee, which must have been components of her breakfast this morning.

She moaned in satisfaction as one fiery kiss turned into two, which snowballed into three and four, each kiss more passionate than the preceding one. I knew that we were both sorely tempted for it to proceed further (even a man as continent as me needs release), but I chastely conducted us out of it. Both of us were drained of breath and gazing at each other with an expression that bordered between desire and hunger.

“Why’d you stop?” Lyra protested, although not heatedly, “It’s been a while since our last ‘rendezvous’. And I still… owe you back” Her eyes glinted mischievously as she stole another kiss. Not that I minded.

“Would that we could” I lamented melodramatically, “But if we do that, then I might forget where we left off in my tale of bravado and gallantry versus the vile forces of darkness”

“If you insist” She kissed me again before nipping at my earlobe with her teeth, whispering sultrily, “But we’ll have to continue this at your place in the near future”

She didn’t have to tell me twice, “You can count on it, my dear” I chirped roguishly, “Now where was I…? Oh yes!” I snapped my fingers, “The wizard and I were about to leave the town of Mirrmare and go due north to a place known as the Dreamy Vale; which was apparently the cradle of early Precanian civilization before they migrated south”

She input her opinion, “The Dreamy Vale” Lyra rolled the title on her tongue as if it were a wine of superb vintage, “There’s only a dearth of folk hymns that reference the Dreamy Vale, but I know all of them. It’s always sung about in a heavily mythical, romanticized sense”

My inquisitiveness overtook me, “May I hear one of these hymns?”

She smiled, “I’m glad you asked. It just so happens that I’ve my instrument with me” She reached under the bed and pulled out her namesake Lyre, “I was hoping we could have another music session where we could exchange songs, but I can’t see your guitar anywhere”

“You should have told me that you’d be going to the Games. I would have packed it with me” I said apologetically.

“No matter” She sat at the foot of the bed, tested the strings of her instrument, and inhaled deeply before beginning to sing. Her voice was trained to the height of euphony as her fingers plucked out chords:


“Dreamy Vale, O’ Dreamy Vale,
Times of tumult, when hearts were frail,
Blood against blood, the hate was strong,
None ever grasping that it was wrong,
Alack! Enmity and hostility tainted the womb,
It brought the ice, and wrought the doom,
Yet hope was not lost, it still burned bright,
As brilliant as day, as black as night,
Twin lights of wondrous display,
Come from Heaven to teach us all the righteous way”


I listened, entranced in the lyrics and the melody that Lyra’s dulcet tones commanded. But they were not cloyingly sweet, containing a woeful edge when addressing hardship. The notes from her lyre drifted into the air, feeling all but tangible with every reverberation of the strings. Unbidden, memories of those times flashed before my mind’s eye. Of the flagrant animosity fostered between the clans, in spite of their close blood ties, which would only be actualized in their descendants. But the music also called to mind those people who acted against the perpetual cycle of clan contesting clan, and stood for a higher purpose. People like Starswirl, and the members of the Triumvirate who worked in secret to ensure that the conflicts raging in Precania never boiled over into full blown war. 

I would have to read into it more (and likely requisition more untouched primary source records from the Royal Archives) to truly appreciate having a small role in catalyzing a profound series of events. Starswirl must have been faithful to his word, as none of the following songs about the pre-unification era ever mentioned anything about a companion to the wizard who happened upon the Princesses, and my transient figure must have been equally mysterious to them as well. I relished the rare opportunity to blow the minds of the monarchs who had seen hundreds of years with an unsung truth. Strangely, the Acolytes of Chaos were not included in these songs, with all the chaotic credit going to Discord, and those were preludes to songs immediately succeeding the unification.

Lyra finished lyrically regaling me with a commemorative ditty thanking whatever divine providence delivered the Princesses to a people who were otherwise undeserving of such beauty and grace that was as awe inspiring to look on as multihued stained glass and yet staunch and unbreakable as tempered steel. She sung it wholeheartedly as if she wrote it herself. Once the music had died down, she set her instrument aside and gauged me for my response.

“Has anyone ever affirmed how enchanting you are as a musician?” I shamelessly flattered her.

She laughed, a rich peal that bounced off the walls in the room, “Countless times… though an appalling number of them remember it” She snaked her way into my arms as we reclined. 

I clasped her hand in mind and stroked it, “I’m overproud to be the unforgetful first then”

She smirked at me, “Spoil me with your honeyed tongue later. For now, I want to hear the rest of your adventures”

“As you command, my lady” I inclined my head to her, “Before Starswirl and I could mount up and make a heading for the Dreamy Vale, we first had to contend with a sudden raid from the Valkyrians, who were searching for him. Starswirl and I devised a plan to deal with the unexpected visitors. I would sneak about town and free the scattered pockets of Agrarian men being held captive by the Skyborn and send them to the wizard to arm themselves and rally underneath his leadership. The Valkyrians were numerous, but not overwhelmingly so, and it would serve as more of a distraction than aught else”

“But you claimed that they were seeking the wizard” She interrupted, “Why would they bother the innocent townspeople?”

I snorted derisively, “Innocence had nothing to do with it, and would do nothing to dissuade them either. The Skyborn were there in force, and would take advantage of Mirrimare’s generous harvests to sustain themselves. To be fair to both sides, the Skyborn’s commander promised that they would only appropriate two fifths of their harvest while extending their protection over the town, and after acquainting myself with her, I dare she say she meant it”

Lyra seemed only to compute an unimportant detail, “This commander was a woman?” She had trouble wrapping her mind around that one. Warfare was an onus left largely to men.

“Well… she was technically their Wing Leader, though I did make out one of her men calling her a Flight Leader too. So I assumed the title was interchangeable” I conceded, “Anyhow, as soon as I freed as many groups of Agrarians as possible without rousing suspicion, I went off to find the Skyborn’s officer in charge and came across something promising in the center of town” I left out the part where her subordinate had almost beat the life out of the town’s official, wanting to preserve her somewhat innocent, ‘people are inherently good’ concept of the distant past.

I segued into the proceeding section, “The Wing Leader herself flew in with her entourage and made terms with town’s official, though the man was not readily inclined to surrender Mirrimare on his clan’s behalf. He cracked under pressure, eventually, and was about to yield the last known whereabouts of my wizard friend when I hopped down from the bell tower to make my dramatic introduction”

“Dramatic?” Lyra let the emphasized word linger in the air.

“I jumped out of the tower and landed in plain sight in front of a sizable portion of her troops” When facing an enemy alone, it’s better to show no fear. It keeps the smarter ones guessing for hidden traps that aren’t there.

“Some would call that brave… others would call it ill planned” She enumerated.

“My hastily forged plan was neither of those descriptors” I held up a edifying finger, “I may have been alone in that moment… but I wasn’t entirely by myself in this venture”

Lyra had a sharp mind for these things, “The blatancy of such an act served as a front to buy time for the men you freed and sent to Starswirl to prepare to oust the invaders, with the added function of keeping their main leadership off balance” She correctly inferred once more, stoking the fires of my admiration for her. I love a woman who can make the same connections as myself.

“If you only you could have seen it, Lyra” I bemoaned, “It was a gambit that merited being passed down orally by bards for ages to come” Okay, so maybe it wasn’t that special, but hoodwinking the Valkyrians was sufficient to get anyone’s blood running.

“You do a hammy enough job regaling me with this outlandish adventure” Lyra teased me with a pretty smile, “So you confronted the leader of the Skyborn. What happened after?”

“We exchanged a few words. I discovered that she was bidden by her government’s Senate and her Father to track down Starswirl, whom they deemed a threat to their interests in the region” I had a gut instinct that the Acolytes had a hand in that farce. They were justified to fear the intervention of the wizard, but who could have known that I would be there every step of the way? I surely didn’t.

I resumed my tale, “Maelstrom, as that was her name, decided that I would make a useful bargaining chip to pacify the wizard and sent a couple of her men at me who had been waiting in ambush”

Lyra actually gasped in shock, “They didn’t try to hurt you, did they?”

I chuckled, “You don’t have to worry about me, love. I’m a lot more durable than I look, not that it was necessary. The brutes were as slow in a fight as a herd of snails squirming their way through peanut butter. I doled out more punishment than I received too, and before five minutes were up, they were incapacitated”

“I imagine this Maelstrom character wasn’t too pleased with that” She wryly concluded.

It’s nice for someone besides me to have a gift for understatement, “Oh she was downright furious. But my diversion tactics had already set the rebellion in motion by then, and Skyborn all over town soon found themselves on the defensive. The Agrarians in those days were as hardy as their descendants today, and fought like lions. Thank the Lord no one was killed, but there were some injuries sustained on both sides”

“And Starswirl? Did you regroup with him?” She asked, listening intently. I know I’ve undervalued my skill as a storyteller in the past, but it was admittedly pleasant to have someone hooked on my every narration.

“I did. Though it was a close escape, complete with near misses from several crossbow rounds” I did a C-3PO and magically emulated the sound effects precisely next to Lyra’s ears, causing her to startle before she realized that I was taking my recounting up a notch, “We ran to our horses and mounted up, urging them to make all possible haste towards the mountain, where Starswirl was certain we could elude our pursuers”

I called up more magic based holograms on sheeted landscape of the bed to illustrate our fleeing from a flock of angry Skyborn, drawing the still fresh details from memory. They swooped in on the holographic wizard and myself in practiced maneuvers. Though that didn’t halt the two of us from foiling them with our wits and magical firepower. Lyra giggled as one of the Valkyrians that Starswirl slapped with a non lethal force spell planted his face into the trunk of a tree, comically sliding down into the dirt where birds circled his head and tweeted (That wasn’t quite the case, but it was hilarious none the less). I had to censor a few things, like the myriad of curses that Maelstrom screamed at us as she took aim with a crossbow and made scarily accurate shots at us.

“Sweet Moon above!” Lyra exclaimed, “I had no idea you had such an exciting life Zenith!”

“It has its highlights” I acknowledged impartially, “Events developed for the worse though, as Starswirl’s swift mare garnered a delivery of crossbow quarrels straight to her rear, tumbling to the Earth and spilling the wizard from his saddle” The hand sized hologram of Daybreak stumbled and skid on the grassy ground with a pained screech, and Lyra’s moist eyes hinted to me that she pitied the wounded creature.

“So they captured him? After all that effort?” She breathed, unable to take her gaze off the scene playing out before her.

“That…” I paused from maximum drama, “…was where I had to suspend the rules and get serious” The holographic me, looked absorbed in deliberation before two crimson wings sprouted from his shoulders and he took flight, bound to recover his friend. Dichotomy assembled itself in his hands and the closest Valkyrian got a face full of the flat of the blade, along with the next five stupefied soldiers to trail at his heels, “I landed at his side and carried him back with me to an abandoned mine entrance at the feet of the mountains. The man was coherent enough to advise me to collapse the entry, which I did using his own staff”

“You got to hold the staff of the legendary Starswirl the Bearded?” Lyra gushed in awe, “What was it like?”

I shrugged, “It was just a smooth, wooden staff. Though it did have some amplifying properties that very few objects I’ve encountered share” Like the one strapped to my backside for instance.

“Oh come on!” Lyra was harrowed by my unenthused reaction, “You cannot possibly tell me that holding the staff that conjured a thousand new spells wasn’t the experience of a lifetime!” As a Stellar Mage herself, it was likely that Lyra knew all about the accomplishments of the great wizard and fawned over him just like the bookworm.

‘Which is odd, because I don’t remember seeing any Starswirl the Bearded brand merchandise at her place’ I mused offhand. Mayhaps I wasn’t recalling with the proper effort.

“He was in all respects like any other man, Lyra” I told her with an amused expression, “He put on his robes one sleeve at a time, entirely like you or I” Not strictly true. I once teleported into my clothing after tossing it overhand. A lazy usage of magic, to be sure, but there was no one there to critique me.

Lyra made this aggrieved sound and sulked, “I know you intimately and there still quirks about you that bewilder me, Zenith” She muttered.

“I know… I’m frustrating like that” I confessed unashamedly, “So there we were… immersed in absolute darkness. We successfully evaded the Skyborn and were one step closer to the Dreamy Vale. Before I saved Starswirl’s skin, I dictated to my own steed to go ahead without me. With his ride out of the picture, Night Wind was the only one left that had our foodstuffs and other supplies” I glanced at Lyra, “Can you believe that a jet black Stallion with his name is afraid of the dark?”

“It’s not the strangest thing I’ve heard today” She remarked in a tone as dry as a desert.

“Well it was the truth” I insisted, “Poor guy was shivering the whole way as we braved the bowels of the mountain. His surge in anxiousness is what clued me in to the extended dangers that awaited us in the deep the places of the world”

“Woah, woah!” Lyra held up one of her hands, “Slow down! Did Starswirl simply dismiss the fact that you were a Trifect?”

“No. But we didn’t speak on the subject until nightfall… though it was near impossible to tell when exactly that was without the rising and lowering of the Sun overhead” I relayed, closing the curtains to enhance my point, in response to which Lyra merely rolled her eyes. 

It was more maddening an ordeal than she could comprehend, however. The surrounding blackness was like to choke you it was so oppressive. I had to occupy my mind during those hours spent meandering through the murky depths, lest I lose my nerve. People were not meant to be confined underground for too long without the warm touch of sunlight on their skin.

My head sank back into the pillows of the bed, with my ladylove likewise lying beside me, “We agreed that it was getting late and made camp in an icy recess, igniting a fire using some wood that we gathered from the collapsed braces of the mine entrance and hydrating ourselves using a cup that the wizard fashioned out of the ice. Starswirl broke his unspoken vow of silence before we went to sleep, grilling me on who I was and where I came from. I proposed a trade of questions. One for me, and one for him in return until we were equally satisfied. We learned a great deal about the other man sitting by the fireside that night”

Lyra nuzzled her head on my chest, draping a slender arm around my midsection, “And what did you learn? I’m sure the personal history of the wizard must have been enlightening”

“Just so” I agreed, “He was a man of conviction, since he was a lad in his father’s House in the Castle-town of Starwick. Starswirl was of a prestigious family: House Galaxy, whose members advised the highest order of the Stellar Mages”

“The Stellar Council” Lyra filled in, “The mages who would govern the movements of the celestial bodies before the advent of the Princesses”

“Which one of us is educating the other again?” I whimsically commented, “Yes… that very council. Netted Honors aside though, Starswirl was displeased with the way of his clan and their condescending worldview of the other two clans with which they shared the landmass with, and so he sought to rectify it proactively. He used his gift for inspiring speeches to open his brothers and sisters eyes to the wrongness that they were perpetuating every time they so much as disregarded their Agrarian servants. Alas, one of his House’s liege lords heard his ideology and forthwith declared it treasonous. He roughly seized the young Starswirl and dragged him through town before casting him at his father’s feet, notifying him as such”

Lyra’s brow wrinkled together, “I don’t recall reading or hearing about that detail. The history texts just state that he was considered somewhat of an outcast at an early age”

“From the anguish in his eyes when he uttered it, I believe it was a memory that was seldom brought to light” I said sadly, “An outcast he was, aye. And when his father was faced with a choice between preserving his family’s honor and his firstborn flesh and blood, he was readily chose the former. Starswirl was barely a man grown when he lived among the Earth working people living in the valleys under his Kingdom’s dominion”

“I can’t imagine how he’d be received” Lyra remarked, her eyes peeking up at the conspicuous Focal Gem sitting on her forehead.

“Indeed” I concurred, “He stuck out like a sore thumb, and received all kinds of hell for it. The Agrarians falsely accused him of so many things that he didn’t do; spying, stealing, sabotage… even rape” I demurred at the end.

Lyra gasped, “How could they be so ignorant!? Starswirl the Bearded was one of the most noble men to ever change the course of history!”

“People can be ignorant when blinded by hate” I bobbed my shoulders in commiseration, “More’s the pity. He was forced from their midst’s and the cycle of banishment began anew, with him never staying longer than three months in any given settlement, and leaving on his own terms before he succumbed to making any friendships that he would have to someday abandon. He made his coin performing all kinds of magic tricks for the people who otherwise feared their Stellar Mage overlords. He showed them that they did not have to fear his magic, and that beauty could be found even where they’d never suspect it. Like this vibrant jewel of a city, tucked away in all of this snow” 

“How poetic” She complimented me with a titter, “So when was he allowed back among his kin? Starswirl didn’t wander forever, after all”

“After the passing of many, many years” I replied, “During which he developed his talent with magic until he had innovated and mastered more useful spells than people older than three of his lifetimes. I discovered from Vitalitus that he tried his hand at other vocations too, like alchemy, but he simply have the… je ne sais quoi that it took, or so Rarity would call it”

Lyra perked up, “The seamstress? How is she, by the way?”

My view drifted to the edge of my vision, “Well enough, I suppose (‘Assuming she isn’t bawling over my disappearance with Fluttershy. I’ll tend to that when needs be’). We started dating not too long ago” Normally I wouldn’t be so open with the status of my relationships, but I felt she had a right to know.

Lyra nodded, demonstrating no signs of negativity to that information whatsoever. I don’t think I’ll ever be used to the polyamorous aspect of this society, “I was contemplating commissioning a few insulated outfits for this season. It gets unbearably cold in my clearing sometimes” She shudder, snuggling closer to me.

I wasn’t expecting that, “What about your hoody? I rarely see you without it”

She smiled shyly, “I’ll still wear it. But I wouldn’t mind a little variety every now and again. The hoody isn’t going anywhere. It’s precious to me… just like you” She pecked at my cheek.

My lip line twitched, as if unsure about what to do with the sudden increase of the feels, “Stop it, you’ll make me blush (‘As soon as hell freezes over, that is’). Starswirl’s skill passed by word of mouth until it incrementally reached his brethren up in their mountains. Good magic tutors must have been hard to come by in those days, since they invited him back home almost without stipulation to train the whelps of the wealthy highborn. He attempted to use his new position to proliferate his ideas by spreading them to the next generation through lecturing, as anybody with an idealistic, scholastic brain is won’t to do”

“Did anything come of it?” She inquired, “All that secretive lecturing on the side?”

I took Starswirl’s scrunched, apparition of a face into consideration as I consulted my memory bank, “With a few students, at least. Clover the Clever being the most notable of them, and his personal pupil moreover. Unfortunately, much of his ideology was rejected… and he had to keep the rest of it under wraps, lest he find himself banished again”

“You said that you traded a question for a question” Lyra interjected, showing me that she had been paying attention, “What did he ask about you?”

“Why I could sprout wings and cast magic all the same, obviously” I summoned them, the intangible yet soft to the touch appendages phased through the bed as I enveloped her in one of them, “There was no conceivable point in lying to him, so I made him aware of the existence of Trifects, and that I was from this world’s future. Being a combination of the three clans he was seeking to unite, you could see why he deemed my company fitting”

She giggled in delight as my ghostly feathers tickled her, “Did you reveal everything to him? Like you did with me?”

“He was struck speechless by one bombshell of a revelation. Any more and I swear he would have shut down from the sheer effort of processing all that ‘never before conceived’ knowledge. It didn’t prevent him from enquiring into the outcome of his grand, prophecy driven quest, but he grudgingly accepted the explanation that all would be work out fine in its own manner” I saw the inquisitive mien on her face and anticipated her, “What prophecy would that be, you might say? The same prophecy that was the reason he was so far north of all the action. The same fateful one that led me to him” I answered, “But that’s plenty of the backstory. You still don’t know about the perils we had stumbled into”

Lyra kept quiet, eager to let me do the talking, “The morning after our meager exchange around the pitiful, half frozen campfire, we set off to examine a lead that Starswirl’s path finding spell had automatically sniffed out in the night. It led downwards into the very heart of the mountain, and it was a foul heart if ever there was one” I burbled, “The air grew rank with the smell of rot as the pathways became less natural and more rudely carved. As if someone had taken a hammer to them without the chisel. The light emanating from Starswirl’s staff could only pierce so far into that blanket of darkness, and it was what was lurking in the blind zone that was cause for concern. With the aid of magic, I took a gander at what we had gotten ourselves into… and what I saw would chill your blood”

Lyra tensed up next to me; excited or scared or both, “Grimworts. Only these were more numerous than a dozen Glowworm Packs combined. It was a frightful situation, to be sure. We were beset on all angles by thousands of the hushed, slavering creatures. I couldn’t see them without the assistance of magic, but after applying it, I could tell that they were all too happy to see us. Starswirl, Night Wind, and me would have made for a lovely snack. The meat on our bones was a far cry in abundance and flavor than any blind cavefish or rotten, half eaten leftovers abandoned by the wolves outside, and there were those who were chittering on about the scrumptious taste of horse flesh. There was no easy way out of this… and the clock was ticking before we would get swarmed. Tick, tock, tick, tock” I alternated my tongue between sound effects.

“You are good at that” Lyra wheedled me, explaining her meaning when I was slow on the uptake, “Setting up suspense and leaving me hanging on every word. I’d almost believe that your doom was sealed if my eyes weren’t telling me elsewise” She poked me in the chest, whether in an act of harmless reproach or checking to be sure I really was there was beyond me.

I shied a tad at her praise, “I’m just relating it to you as I remembered it. Anyways… Starswirl was ignorant to all of this, but Night Wind could sense that danger was close enough for alarm, and it was a hassle reining him in, lest his panic trigger them to attack us. Pretending like nothing was wrong, I mutedly informed Starswirl that we had a bit of a problem. He suggested we double back and sagged in dismay when our circumstances refuted that option”

“Did Starswirl devise a means of escape?” She sucked in air through her teeth as an idea came to her, “A spell of concealment, perhaps?”

“He might have” I allowed, “But if he did, he preferred whatever plan I had cooked up instead. Maybe after what had occurred in Mirrimare he trusted in my judgment. Concealing spells wouldn’t have masked our scent though, and the Grimworts already knew that we were there. If we disappeared into thin air, they would simply fill the space where we had been standing with arrows and our day would have gotten off to a poor start”

Lyra winced, picturing that outcome vividly it seemed, “Were Grimworts really that fearsome?”

I laughed, loud and hard, attempted to justify that possibility in my mind and was not surprised to find that I couldn’t. I’d set my Mage-blade alight and they perceived me as some kind of deity, or at least a being they had the uncommon sensibilities to fear. They were wretches, and they fought and died like wretches. Lyra flushed red with embarrassment, as if she had made a fool of herself. 

I calmed myself so that I could speak, “I needed that” I rocked the woman lightly in my arms, “No, love, they were not. Grimworts are fodder to anyone with half a brain willing to fend for themselves. The trouble in dealing with them lies purely in their overwhelming numbers, and even then you could normally take down dozens of them with you. The fact that they can no longer be found anywhere save for nursery tales only supports that belief”

“Oh…” Lyra looked like she felt silly, “I had no idea”

“Be glad you don’t have any exposure to their breed, Lyra. They were some of the filthiest creatures I ever had the displeasure of acquainting myself with, and your nose would take offense to their presence long before your eyes ever did” A flaming sword did help burn away the stench, if only to replace it with the less offensive odor of cooked flesh.

“Can you blame them for their lackluster hygiene?” Lyra put out, considering conditions from their perspective, “They live underground where there is little to no lighting, water sources are no larger than stagnant pools, and they crammed themselves into cramped dens. It’s no wonder they didn’t smell like a basket of roses”

“A valid point” I acknowledged, “But it does not excuse their taste for man flesh nor their atrocious manners. If I hadn’t made the Glowworm pack fear me so that they’d guide me to where the mushrooms flourished, I doubt Tough Cookie would have lived the life she did (‘Urge to research centuries dead historical figures; rising’)”

“I try not to judge too harshly before knowing more about what I’m judging” Lyra stated her philosophy, “But if you claim that these Grimworts were as bad as you say they were, I’ll take your word for it. How did you avoid getting turned into their lunch?”

“I sang to them” I replied tersely.

Lyra snorted in astonishment, “How did that work out? Did it stump them like you’ve just stumped me?”

“I didn’t judge they Grimworts as harshly as you might assume. The tour guide they provided me in the caves beneath the rocky hills clued me in that they had a weakness for song, and would be as entranced by it as I was of your melodic voice” I returned the flattery she had showered on me, grinning when her face glowed a faint red.

“The influential power of music is rooted in magic, Zenith” Lyra told me, “But I’m glad you think so highly of the timbre of my voice”

“It was among the very first qualities I noticed about you, that day we spoke face to face in the park” I reminded her, “I was broodier than usual and you were there to pull me out of it. You had no reason to do so, with your life being in a bad way. But you had selflessly devoted your life to bringing peace to other lives, in spite of that same peace being denied to you” 

I rubbed her velvety soft hands in mine as I poured my heart out to her, “I’m honored to know you, and your example of hope in ostensibly insurmountable odds is an inspiration from which I draw great strength. I promise to live up to what is expected of me from you… and from the world that I now call home”

She cupped my jawbone in her palms, “The only thing I expect of my Snark Knight is that he always stays true to his bearing, as I know he shall not be led astray. You mean to be righteous, Zenith… and when our souls became as one, I knew this was irrefragable” She laid a chaste kiss on my forehead.

“If I ever forget, for whatever reason, I will be sure to recall to myself your genuine faith in me” I vowed, “Faith is what motivated Starswirl, you know” I asserted, returning to the story, “He always was going on about ‘the prophecy this’ and ‘the prophecy that’, but he chose to carry out the fulfillment of this prophecy out of faith and a yen to see his people united under a single, unsegregated banner”

“An act of faith, you say?” Lyra’s eyes rolled in their sockets as she mulled over the fallible humanity of the usual Stellar Mage role figure, “And did he ever have doubts about this quest of his, or his ability to see it through?”

Images of the wizard and I cradling the newly made Princesses in our arms replayed themselves in my head, “Not often, but they were there. I cannot speak for his state of mind when he expressed them, but those were extenuating and emotionally charged circumstances for him, so it can be safe to declare those doubts as spurs of the moment” I shook my head, “But we’re unduly skipping ahead. Where were we?”

“You were singing” Lyra helpfully said.

I made a noise with my throat, “Ah, right! It was an apt song too, and I pray that I did it justice. Regardless, the vast majority of those encroaching Grimworts were mesmerized by it, and so they were quite literally blindsided by the explosion of light that erupted from the wizard’s staff. He had mounted Night Wind while the Grimworts were distracted and as soon as they were rendered impaired, rode forward and snatched me up onto the saddle” 

My voice rose in volume as though I could feel the blood pulsing through me right now as I did then, “The encirclement of stunned Grimworts proved susceptible to a straight charge and Night Wind rammed them aside like pins in a bowling alley” I’d conjure the sound effect for that too, but that would have been overboard, “We galloped quickly and we galloped determinedly. We had only blinded the initial Grimworts at the beginning of the cavern, while their brethren further in shrieked in fury and scrambled to catch us. Their arrows were primitive, with stone heads instead of iron of steel ones, but they flew truer than either of us would have liked. I had to cut down many of them as they tried their damnedest to delay us, but we inevitably crossed over this rickety wooden bridge and severed it at the end, cutting off their only means of crossing a chasm so deep that it seemed bottomless” And if it was, then the bones of those Grimworts were still plummeting towards infinity. 

“How harrowing” Lyra remarked, “And now you had finally reached the Dreamy Vale? What did it look like?”

“A rather picturesque valley partially enshrouded by mists that crept over the mountains like wispy banners waving in the wind. Pines and verdant fields of flowers swayed in the wind and filled the air with luscious fragrances that invigorated the soul” I described the landscape, “There was more to it than initially met the eye, but for the most part that was it. The people of Arcania came from resplendent origins… I had difficultly comprehending why two of the three clans would forsake it entirely and head south” Perhaps the winters were too cold, although the arrival of the windigoes after I was sent back kind of made that a moot point.

I didn’t wait for Lyra’s comments, “Starswirl and I saw smoke drifting from a settlement that was not far from where we had egressed from the mountain. We trotted down the slopes and closer to it before we realized that the smoke wasn’t coming from the chimneys, and we entered into a dreadful scene”

Lyra made a face, “I’m not going to enjoy this part, am I?”

I made no effort to answer that offbeat statement, “The town had been razed, put to the torch. Four of five structures were ash and cinders, the others were smoldering ruins. I dismounted and searched for survivors, but the only person we could find was this adolescent girl, damp and shivering at the bottom of a well” I strained to breathe, “She couldn’t have seen over ten years”

Lyra was silent for a time, until she murmured, “What was her name?”

“Sweet Pea. Though those she lived with had taken to calling her Hemlock, on account of the groves where she would frequently play in” My eyes cast themselves downward, “We gently questioned her as to what had happened to the town, which was named Duskdale. She was engaged in childhood games with her friends when men in grey cloaks rode into town and forced the members of the community to flock together in the square. Sweet Pea’s mother saw an opening and used it, pushing her daughter through the gap and entreated her to find someplace to hide where the grey cloaks could not root her out. The cold water of the well provided an ample shield against the heat of the blaze… though I imagine that it must have been blackened from the constant rain of soot”

“And Sweet Pea’s family and neighbors?” Lyra spoke up, aghast at this dour twist of fate, “At least tell me that you found them!”

“I did” I monotoned emotionlessly, “There was nothing I could do for them” I suppressed the mental picture of the carnage before it threatened to send me into another ignition of magic.

Lyra struggled to comprehend my meaning before she uttered a noiseless gurgle in her neck and sobbed into my chest, her wheezing quaking the bed with each exhale. Her compassionate heart went out to the orphaned child, and I couldn’t pretend to understand the grief that she was expressing for a person who lived centuries before her. I hope Sweet Pea had a happy life replete with purpose. She deserved nothing less for what she suffered. Mayhaps Lyra commiserated with the newly made orphan who lost everyone she ever knew and loved (Save for that gate guard in Oxfort perchance. Maybe he adopted her?). That crushing sense of aloneness, the depression, and for all of it to be inflicted on a child no less! Even in a world as idyllic as this one, life could be unexpectedly cruel. I felt a morbid surge of satisfaction that while her friends and family couldn’t be pulled back from the grave, they were at a minimum avenged.

Lyra wept for another ten minutes or so while I held her in my arms, content to comfort her simply by proximity. When she had recovered, she stared at me with hard, reddened doe’s eyes and asked somberly, “Who committed this terrible act? Who could be evil enough to slaughter an entire village?”

My tone shifted solemnly, “The same men I had met in the Towerwoods. The ones chasing after Starswirl with nefarious intent. I was as shocked at their brutality as you were, and Starswirl was shocked even greater still. We spirited Sweet Pea away from the ruins of her village to the close by town of Oxfort, where we left her in the care of the town’s authorities. From there, we sniffed around for leads concerning the maidens so vital to the prophecy that attracted us there, the most promising of those leads was located at the local tavern: The Ox’s Brew”

Echoes of the raucous laughter resulting from a bawdy joke or the clinking of wooden tankards brimming with beer on each other rang crisply in my mind, “One of the men drinking there spoke about the deeds of the two maidens… whose names were not the same as those familiar to you now, but possessed similar meaning. The last he heard of them, they had settled some sort of dispute between two rival hamlets. The quaffing wizard was elated by this news… and well on his way to a decent buzz too” I sighed as wearily as I did then, “And so a grand scouring lasting two weeks and spanning up and down the vast Dreamy Vale began in earnest. I espied many fantastic sights during those days, and many dangerous ones as well”

“What about the men who put Duskdale to the torch?” Lyra demanded, “Were they brought to justice?”

“Patience, sweetling” I shushed her, “Their time came… and when it did it came down on them with grim finality. Two weeks the wizard and I toured the whole of the Dreamy Vale” I conjured colorful images from memory and cast them into the air above us in a type of slideshow, “We surveyed the results of the two maidens deeds and judged them to be good and born from pure hearts… or as close to pure as it realistically gets” I muttered, some of Celestia’s shrewder manipulations coming to mind, “Some of the altercations they mended were internal issues among the Agrarian folk too obdurate to follow their brethren south. The others dealt with the men who had been putting vulnerable villages to the sword, who called themselves the Acolytes of Chaos”

Lyra inhaled sharply, “They were agents of Discord!?” She spat scornfully, clearly not a fan of the now reformed bureaucrat. 

“Yes… and no” I ambiguously replied, “Though the truth of that matter did not reveal itself until the end of those two weeks. The Acolytes harrowed us ceaselessly during that period, with them putting a bounty on us and remitting their own men to do the dirty work when those bounty hunters failed. We never rested easily, even behind the warm walls of Inns… as was what happened at the Inn of the Squawking Bee”

Lyra frowned, “It’s not the name I would have chosen for my business establishment”

“I don’t doubt that” I concurred, “And you would be a hundredfold more honest than the owner of this place, a relatively unassuming woman known as Dew Drop”

“Did she try to hurt you?” Lyra questioned, defensive of me, which I found touching.

“Not directly, no” I extended my hidden blade and held in the air, inspecting it and watching the light reflect off the polished metal, “I was in the middle of bathing when they busted into my quarters, eager to get some knifing done” I retracted the blade, where it slid back into its sheath with a ‘shlicking’ noise, “I fought for my life as naked as the day I was born”

Lyra’s mouth twisted, as if she was envisioning that, “That must have been awkward” She understated yet again.

“When your life is on the line, it doesn’t occur to you the state of how you’ve dressed for it, or the lack of dress thereof” I smirked morbidly, “Besides… people who attack me tend to have an appalling mortality rate, as two of the three men attacking me found out straightaway”

“You slew them in naught but your skin?” Lyra was impressed, “I had no idea my Snark Knight was so capable in close quarters”

“You know a thing or two about my capabilities in close quarters” I contrived a randy jape, “Yes, I was compelled to slay two of them and knock out the third, which was exactly when Starswirl showed up to warn me that we had been sold out to the Acolytes” And was red as a tomato when he beheld my modesty. First he poked fun at my shying away from Tough Cookie’s nudity, but flustered at mine. It was so puzzling that I could feel it tickle my brain. Was there an ancient nudity taboo based on gender that I was unaware of?

“Dew Drop” Lyra growled, as if she had been somehow slighted by Inn owner’s overt willingness to throw her guests under the bus, “Did you teach that treacherous hussy a lesson?”

“I had short but germane chat with her” I affirmed, “It was safe for me to assume that she’d rethought her life’s choices afterwards” Right after she all but emptied her bowels out of fear, “Once that was out of the way, I sat my uninvited guest down for a chat of a disparate breed. He was stubborn, but I was ardent in my interrogation. Before long I had a neat, tidy list of where he came from and where the Acolytes were based in the Dreamy Vale, along with a badge of identification, his cloak, and other personal effects that would come in handy”

“What did you do with the captured Acolyte?” Lyra pondered, “I hope you turned him in to the local constabulary”

“I set him free” I euphemized in a carefree voice, “After I had guaranteed that he would not be troubling anyone in his immediate future. I had what needed from him anyhow”

Lyra looked at me suspiciously, but did not give voice to her thoughts, “So now you have uncovered their base of operations. What were you going to do with that information? Take them on yourself? Or with the wizard to lend support?”

I shook my head fervently, “Oh no, that would have been uncharacteristically unwise of me. Their base’s garrison numbered in the hundreds. Furthermore, I was not the only person offended by the atrocities that the Acolytes had committed” I pointed out, “Starswirl and I had not completely ditched our company back in Mirrimare. Wing Leader Maelstrom had trailed us over the mountains and was combing the Earth for us daily with scouts. I simply tailed one back to their cloudy outpost the next morning. I snuck inside to speak with their commander, possessing this crazy idea that I could recruit her to my cause”

“I’m going to take a wild guess here and presume that Maelstrom wasn’t too pleased to see you?” Lyra dryly remarked, walking a pair of fingers on top of my chest to amuse herself.

“No, she wasn’t” I confirmed, “And I was nearly flung back out before she’d give me half a moment to explain my purpose there. I had sullied her honor with a careless comment back in Mirrimare, so I had to face three of her best men in the ring of honor before she would hear me out. It wasn’t too difficult for me to do. Skyborn men had no idea how to counter proper martial arts techniques… especially when someone of my caliber is employing it against them”

That grabbed her attention, “Martial arts? I haven’t a clue what that is”

“Essentially what I did was analyze their movements in the fight and countered them with an assortment of grapples, strikes, slaps, and using their own momentum against them to gain the edge” I elucidated for her, “It takes a fair amount of skill to master but when you do people are hard pressed to best you in a fair and sometimes even and unfair match. The particular style that I was employing was known as Wing Chun”

“It sounds interesting!” Lyra chirruped, a sparkling glint in her eye, “Can you teach it to me sometime?” She requested.

“If it pleases you” I acquiesced, “Though I pray there will not come a day where you’d have to use it” Never hurts to be ready though, as I knew very well, “Maelstrom’s best men proved to be ill prepared for the likes of me, and in due time I had won the right to be heard by the commander, who slapped me for the slight in substitute” Lyra compassionately kissed my cheek as soon as she’d heard that, resulting in a serious case of the warm fuzzies, “We hammered out the details in her planning room. I made her aware of the threat to the Agrarians in this region and she disclosed that she already knew of their crimes, and was hunting for them herself”

“She hadn’t forgotten about Starswirl it appeared, but she had the good grace to keep that discussion heated on the back burner for later usage” I materialized the memorized image of the map she had crafted ahead of us, highlighting the same areas where Maelstrom had encountered additional villages that the Acolytes had ‘paid a visit’ to, and Lyra’s pupils shrank at the disheartening number of X’s dotting the topography, “Maelstrom was a woman of honor, and was morally outraged at the mass slaughtering of whole villages. She put her charge aside for the sake of justice, and was grateful for the location of the Acolytes hidden base, which was nestled in some boggy woods that were not difficult for her scouts to skip over on their patrols”

“Using the knowledge gained from the captured Acolyte, we devised a plan of attack on this fortification. Using the grey cloak as a disguise, I would pretend to be returning from a successful bounty alone. Behind me Maelstrom’s soldiers would be following on the ground and in the air, primed to rush in at the first sign of the stronghold’s infiltration” I held some fingers aloft, “I would present myself to the guards holding the gate and state my purposes there, they would open their doors and grant me entrance, and then I would pry those doors wide from the inside so that the Skyborn could join me in exacting justice for all those who had been ritually sacrificed like sheep”

Lyra picked out my specific wording, “They were sacrificed? To what end?”

I waved my hand dismissively, “I was getting to that. Pardon the slip” I rumbled my throat, “The plan went off without a hitch. I was greeted by some rather unsavory characters by the entryway, but I dealt with them swiftly and went to work dismantling their anti Skyborn defenses” I wondered why they even had them, perhaps they knew they would be attacked by those who could fight back eventually, “With that task done, I blew the gate off its hinges with a force spell and permitted the entrance of the Skyborn lying in wait. Not that they were idle by any means. They had taken the liberty of setting the wooden palisades outside on fire with rainclouds saturated with flammable fuels”

“The ‘Rain of Fire’ was a legitimate tactic?” Lyra was caught between incredulity and glee before she saw the look I was leveling at her, “What? I was never the most attentive in Celestia’s school for gifted mages, but I did pay attention to the history courses” After a second or two she went shy, “And I may have given myself a refresher reading books on what I didn’t learn during my time under the curse”

An exhalation ripe with merriment left my lips and Lyra thumped a hand on my chest in aggrieved dismay, “I meant no offense, love” I apologized, “I had just forgotten how cute you can be”

“And for that, I’ll forgive you” She declared in her most refined lady’s voice, “Provided you keep enthralling me with this tale of yours” She stipulated slyly.

“As you command” I obeyed, “The fighting was terrible. Bloody business it was. Steel clashed on steel with a noise like a metallic scream, armor was pitted armor as men attempted to outlast the other, and the night was awash in a flow of blood that was deep enough to coat your ankles crimson” My tone was tinged with absence, like I was not really there, “Battle is a terrible thing, Lyra. The singers and some overzealous historians might try to paint it in a glorious light, but the harsh truth is that it’s butchers work, through and through. After the fighting was fought, the air reeked of smoke, desolation, and the fecal matter of slain men who had soiled themselves in death”

I expelled a tired puff of breath, “We were fortunate that our sides losses were so few, in comparison to the two hundred or so men that had been left behind to hold the fort down. The element of surprise gave us an auspicious edge, I presume. I don’t think the Acolytes ever expected that they would put down in their own holdings” I chortled joylessly, “They had lost their rights to be recognized as human though, not after the malignant cruelty they had shown the people of the Dreamy Vale. They were a cancer” I spat, “And we excised them like a cancer”

“You feel strongly about this, don’t you?” Lyra observed, worry trembling her voice.

“Pardon me, Lyra” I said, “The memory is an emotionally charged one. I must tread carefully around it, lest I provoke myself unnecessarily” I inhaled steadily and continued, “We had demolished the main bulk of the fortress’s garrison, but the Keep was not taken. With some spare men that were not weary from battle, we rammed down their doors and stormed it. Those who did not give in, gave out… and the Acolytes were vanquished, at least the ones who weren’t encamped outside of the walls”

“Where were the others? If that wasn’t all of them?” Lyra admirably kept her features neutral, in spite of listening to so much talk of death.

“Gone” I answered, “I led a sweep of the keep after the defenders had been put to the blade and discovered vaults of gold that would serve as valuable spoils for the Skyborn. What I was seeking was just as valuable: knowledge. And there was plenty of it to be found in their master’s personal chambers. I happened upon his journal writings, and scanned them to determine what kind of man I was dealing with here, as well as his plans concerning the Dreamy Vale. What I found within was…” I let the quiet hang in the room, “…disturbing, to say the least. This man… Double Cross was his name; he was merely a power hungry servant of something far more evil… and far more ancient by several orders of magnitude. Its voice was malevolent, and punished even the faintest disrespect with disproportionate fury”

“That sounds ominous…” Lyra subconsciously huddled closer to me for protection, “…and frighteningly familiar” She enigmatically commented, a cold shiver wracking her body.

I filed that note away for later, “His foreboding master aside, he outlined his plans for the Dreamy Vale with pompous pride lacing every inky word. The people of the villages had been murdered to feed his master using some form of ritualistic blood magic. He would siphon off some power himself, but that was neither here nor there. The maidens that were to play such a vital role in the prophecy of unification were seen as a major threat in both his and his master’s eyes, so he had done his damnedest to end them. He had additionally been funding insurrectionist movements, though to what purpose had been vague” Mayhaps it was to cause actual chaos to keep up his false pretenses, or sow the hatred that would summon the icy windigoes, “As is to be wonted of our valiant, soon to be Princesses, they had foiled him at every turn though… and my meddling in their income generating operation in the hills beneath Fogmount had proven instrumental in choking them of the means to further fuel their insurrections with coin”

“And with their base snatched out from under their noses, it was curtain call for them?” Lyra guessed the rest.

“The penultimate nail in the coffin” I morbidly jested, “Double Cross had grown restless with the maidens and had set out mere hours ago with a sizable force of men to apprehend the maidens on a road running lengthwise along a red leafed forest of trees known as the Bloodgrove. They were to establish pickets in the tree line at various points in case the heroines eluded them” Not that they were in any real danger of dying, “After I had extracted what was useful. I exchanged a few words with Maelstrom and gave her a way out of bringing in Starswirl alive. His famous hat”

“He gave you his hat!?” Lyra exclaimed, astounded, “That would be like parting with his staff! Or one of his limbs!”

“Apparently not, since he gave it up without much fuss” I countered coolly, “With the hat in her inventory, Maelstrom could spin a tale to her superiors that she was unable to bring in the wizard alive, who had self immolated rather than suffer the indignation of capture. It was ambiguous enough that Maelstrom honor would not be too dirtied by its telling. Though the woman herself was interested in becoming a part of the same organization that promoted solidarity for all three clans, and I promised that I would relay her wishes to the man with the connections so she could join” I gazed at nothing, with Maelstrom’s ghostly magenta irises staring back at me from the depths of infinity, “We bid each other farewell, both of us knowing that was the last time we would ever see the other”

“You miss her, from the ring of it” The musician conjectured.

“We had an understanding” I amended for her, “And we fought side by side. Certain bonds forged in the heat of battle are as durable and profound as the one’s built over time” I glanced away, “But that was one part of my life that had to conclude, the same as when I parted with a still sleeping Tough Cookie. I returned to the Inn and woke Starswirl, notifying him that his former apprentice threatened his precious heroines evacuated his rheumy eyes in the literal blink of an eye. We took horses from the stable and rode down an obscure path in the Bloodgrove that Starswirl’s ever useful path finding spell mapped out for us. We were late by what had to have been a matter of minutes. The maidens had been waylaid at the first of the checkpoints and had retreated into the safety of the woods, presumably to shake off or separate their pursuers and pick them off one at a time” Celestia’s skill with a bow and Luna’s alacrity with a blade had seen to that task efficiently, “We had to ditch our mounts and follow on foot, as the foliage was too extensive for them to trail blaze without issue”

Lyra’s eyebrow rose, “This foliage was too daunting even for your vaunted Night Wind?” She didn’t seem worried about the Princesses’ safety, although with the answer so overtly obvious I can’t blame her.

“I left Night Wind back at the Inn. I was too fond of that horse to put him in harm’s way unwarranted, not after the faithful way he served us in those two weeks” It’s a shame I had to leave him permanently too, all other steeds might pale (‘heh’) in comparison, “Tracking them wasn’t impossible, as they had left a convenient route strewn with the bodies of fallen enemies. Starswirl did his best to keep pace, but his fitness was eroded by the ravages of age, so I had to press ahead to aid their future Royal Highnesses and protect them from harm” 

I sniffed at robes, wincing when the scent of Hydra remained Pungent, “I didn’t stick around long to learn the full assortment of beasties that lived in those woods, but Hydras were one of them. The heroines had made a stand in some ruins from a bygone era as they combated the remnants of their pursuers. Somehow, whether it was the noise, the scent of blood in the air, or if its lair was nearby, they had attracted the notice of an adult Hydra. The four headed monstrosity stomped towards the ruins and upended and uprooted trees underfoot like they were no more than twigs”

Lyra was joining the dots in her head, “You were swallowed fighting by this beast? Whole?”

‘Technically I forced it to deep throat me, but that’s a cleaner euphemism I suppose’ More tasteful too.

I chuckled, “I didn’t give him a choice on how he wanted to eat me. The Hydra’s very presence put the maidens, one of whom was unconscious from a blow to the head, in a position of peril, so I also had no choice but to interfere on their behalf” I sat up and swung my legs over the side of the bed, unhooked the hilt from my belt, and assembled Dichotomy. Lyra gaped at its glow with a wide mouthed expression.

“Hold it” I held it out to her for her acceptance, “Feel its weight in your palm”

Lyra sat up beside me and tentatively agreed to take it. Unlike what occurred when Double Cross grabbed the hilt, Dichotomy did not reject her touch. I already knew the answer to this beforehand. My Mage-blade was an extension of myself in the purest form of the conception, and I considered Lyra and I intertwined on a level that paltry words could not do justice.

“It’s so light” Lyra remarked, hefting it in her grasp, “What’s it made out of? This cannot be steel. Even lightning forged metal isn’t so elegant” Her experience with various metals intrigued me, but she’s had a lot of time to herself to occupy her mental faculties.

“It’s Arcanium metal, which is magically polarized” I told her, “Specially forged and folded multiple times and to such a precise degree of refinement that the edge of the blade can nullify anything affected with magic, while the main body is magically conducive. Like the enchantments woven into Starswirl’s shiny staff”

“So this is the blade of a Hero… I’ve never known such a thing, but its neat!” Lyra opined, waving it around like it was a glorified glow stick, “Why is it made out of shards though? Swords are whole… not broken”

“Broken is the wrong term. It’s more of an ease of transportability thing” I corrected her, “Thanks to Rarity’s creative design and forward thinking, I can carry them around in folds in my front robe tassels instead of lugging it around in a conspicuous scabbard” Even though having a highly wrought scabbard for my Mage-blade would be kickass.

She handed it back to me, “How’d you get it? There’s always an exciting story behind the Hero receiving his weapon to stand against the forces of evil”

My lip curled apologetically, “I’d hate to disappoint you, but I happened upon it in the ancient castle of the Royal Sisters while doing an errand for Princess Luna. They were sealed in a chest alongside a bag brimming with precious gemstones and my vambraces. When I brought them to Luna’s attention, she told me that I had the components to create my very own Mage-blade. She also bid me that I name it so we would function as one unit” 

There’s a cursory but nifty backstory to how the Princesses acquired the material required to forge their formidable weaponry, related to me by Luna during one of our many private sparring matches. It was bequeathed to them from the heavens (in the form of a meteorite) shortly after their ascension as a useful gift to aid them in engaging their foes, though they would have to wait many years before a smith skilled enough in both magic and metalworking could refine the raw ore to forge into swords worthy of the beings that had governance over the Sun and Moon. Even once they did, it took the man several years of laboring to produce the Mage-blades that would serve their Highnesses in countless emergencies necessitating tactical superiority on the field. And despite that meticulous effort, he could not forge them into complete blades, so they would be perpetually composed of shards that the user could only conjoin with their magic and the blade’s inherent connection to them (A quirk that was hard to elaborate on. They are literally extensions of our very beings, while also separate from us). 

There was some leftover ore to forge a third sword (In hindsight, that was probably some sly foreshadowing on the sender’s part), but the Princesses numbered only two at the time, so the fragments were left to collect dust. Coincidentally, that blacksmith just so happened to be the same Hephaestus Hammer Forge whose descendants would go on to found Hammer Forge Industries, which was currently absorbed in incorporating my designs for a breech loading, rifled cannon to replace the smoothbore muzzle loaders presently in service on Arcania’s Royal Naval ships. They were unforthcoming about how far they had gotten to full scale production and incorporation, but Celestia had implied that they would have a workable prototype within the first quarter of the new year.

I remembered Luna’s own Mage-blade: Blue Moon, and how it reflected the Moon Monarch’s personality, cool and composed but with a stern undertone that commanded respect. I had seen Celestia’s Mage-blade but once, during an afternoon in Concordia having tea in her chambers. It was resting on the mantelpiece in a scabbard encrusted with gemstones that were the same colors as her streaming hair, billowing in that invisible solar wind and near constantly veiling one of her gorgeous purple eyes. When she noticed how my gaze had wandered over to it, she giggled musically and asked me if I wanted to see it. I could only nod dumbly at being caught, saving face by masking it with the teacup filled with a special brew originating from the sunny Minosian Isles. 

She levitated it over to the tableside and allowed me to clutch the alabaster ribbed leather handle before drawing it out and appraising it. I can recall the warmth it radiated even in my memories, shining with a golden sheen coursing through the fragments that mesmerized me. There were three stylized fullers engraved into the flat of the white blade, each of which represented one of the clans that she had sworn to protect. The name she had christened it with was Helios, and it was sometimes referred to as the Sword of the Dawn. Unlike Luna, she rarely carried it anywhere with her except when visiting with foreign dignitaries and other figures of importance that needed a reminder that the might of Arcania was not a force to be trifled with. Such a habit was a testament to her confidence in her own capabilities and those of the Solar Guard assigned to her security.

“And what name did you impart on yours?” Lyra naturally inquired.

“Dichotomy” I disassembled the blade and slid the individual shards into their fashionable sheathes, “On account of it being symbolic of my two defining natures (‘And my tendency to alternate between them’)” My sword could also split itself into two blades of juxtaposing shades to reinforce that notion, but she had met her quota for mind blows today I think.

“Fitting” Lyra approved with a curt bob of her head, “If the picture you’ve painted of yourself now is any indication” She motioned with her hand, “Go on. How did you escape the redolent bowels of the Hydra?”

“By cutting it open with the selfsame blade I’d just shown you” I traced a line across my belly, “But not before I scrambled its guts and neutralized it. Pity it did little to improve the rancid smell” I bemoaned, resolving to take a French bath later, “I emerged from that dreadful pocket in front of Starswirl, who had known me well enough by that point not to question whether I had taken leave of my senses. We examined the spot where I had last seen them and discovered a mural depicting two characters with stunning likeness to the maidens. Whoever had constructed the site before it devolved into a ruin must have been blessed with foresight, or one of their artists was at any rate”

“The workings of fate must be fickle indeed, all the means were provided even waist deep in a wild locale like the Bloodgrove” I waxed philosophy, “The lingering’s of the maidens magical after-presence were still present, so we used them to reconstruct the scene before the two women ostensibly dissolved into thin air. They were right where I last saw them, with Celestia hovering protectively over her unconscious sister after taking a nasty bump on the head thanks to the blundering of the Hydra I had slain. Once Luna awoke, she began acting strangely, urging her sister to notice the same mural before wending towards a gap in some pillars that had endured the ravages of time” 

I wiggled my fingers in the air like I was performing a mundane magic trick of an illusionist or using sleight of hand, “I wouldn’t have believed it had I not witnessed it with my own two eyes, but the moment she stepped between those columns she just vanished. Understandably, her sister cast aside her confusion and replaced it with worry for her sibling, rushing in after her and likewise dematerializing”

“If this plot keeps thickening, it will become as edible as a nice potage” Lyra quipped, but was captivated none the less.

“Speak for yourself. I ate all of this up greedily. Life needs some wonder to spice it up every now and again” I stated, “Before we could test out the invisible portal between the columns for ourselves, Starswirl brought to attention something he had glimpsed on the mural that would have otherwise dodged my notice” I undressed the ceiling with my eyes as I recalled the name for it, “A depiction of the Apex of Apotheosis was etched on that mural, and the two dimensional heroines were to climb to the top for their lunch date with destiny. Evidently, Starswirl and like minded intellectuals consigned the tales of the Apex passed down through oral tradition as belonging to myth and legend” 

“So it exists?” Lyra interjected, before explaining herself, “It’s still told to children before they sleep. And why wouldn’t it? Young minds obsess over stories of Heroes with superb mettle earning a place inscribed in the very firmament”

I raised a critical eyebrow, “Your own self included, I presume?”

She smiled innocently at me and lifted her hands, “Guilty as charged. Though today it’s referred to as the Apex of Ascendance” She clarified.

I actuated an appraising squint, “That’s a more accurate description, I’d say. Our conversation over it was cut short however, as Double Cross’s cronies were converging on the site, having been informed by a straggler that the heroines were last seen in the ruins. Starswirl took the initiative and crossed over into the portal, with myself begrudgingly treading behind him” Lyra stared at me funny and I interpreted, “I had a bad experience with a portal once. Didn’t want to risk it a second occasion” I shuddered. I couldn’t decide which I disliked more, the trip to Crystal City, or the mind numbing oddities of the city itself. 

I sighed wearily, “Sadly, it was either that, or face down the host of Acolytes alone, so I picked the safer option. Thankfully, this was a user friendly portal and the conveyance was instantaneous. Starswirl was waiting for me on the other end with a smug expression on his features that labeled him momentarily as a backpfeifengesicht in my books, but I was willing to forgive him”

“How magnanimous of you” Her forehead creased, “And since when were you multilingual? And what does that word you uttered mean? It’s sounds like a term that Sturmfolk would throw at each other” Lyra hesitated, probably thinking about the characters who used it, “On second thought, maybe it’s better if I don’t know”

I shrugged, “There’s a few surprises in me that I keep in reserve. Always hold some back in case of emergencies. With any luck, Double Cross would only come across an empty ruin littered with rubble and a few of his dead Acolytes and think they gave him the slip. On the other side of the portal was humble, but had a natural appeal to it. We pressed on via a stony path that had silvery wisps of magic that undulated in a pattern that suggested that we should heed it and traverse it. Using a special magical technique that utilized my intrinsic connection with the Princesses, I could discern that they were doing exactly that”

“Likely they were spurred on by the destiny that prophecy had decreed for them” Lyra’s tone was suffused with the same dry, almost disdainful inflection that mine often had when referencing destiny. My personality must have been rubbing off on her.

“Each of us has a role to play in life” I said to her, “Sometimes we are informed what that is, and other times it is only hinted at. I will always be of a mind to claim that we shape our own destinies, but I also acknowledge that we make our choices in accordance with a grander scheme of things. Perhaps one day it will be revealed to us what that is” 

Lyra considered this, “You have profound insight… and that’s a compliment, coming from me. So you and the wizard were spirited away to a brand new, mysterious location and were hot on the path of the heroines. What happened next?”

I smirked as if it were obvious, “Why… we followed them, of course. Starswirl was unshakably determined on meeting these storied maidens before he ever set foot outside the Stellarian Kingdom. Seeing and hearing about the results of their accomplishments in keeping the Dreamy Vale intact whilst also resisting the foul influence of the Acolytes only magnified his yen. He urged me to get a bird’s eye view of this land we had been transported to and I obliged. The sight that greeted me after breaching out of the canopy was that of a heavily forested island, with an immense spire of black and white rock protruding into the air by several hundred feet” I relayed what I had seen. My keen eyesight additionally descried the motionless waters of a placid sea beyond the forests, but I still wasn’t sure if that was truly the case. What kind of island drifted on mirrored water?

“The spire was the Apex, yes?” The musician’s smile promptly soured when she had a realization, “But I get the feeling that it didn’t solely involve a leisurely stroll in the woods”

“No” I confirmed, “It didn’t. All it required was one glance to our rear to see the vanguard of Double Cross’s men advancing on us. He must have somehow known where to find the portal. And if I was a betting man, I would stake all of the gold I possess that he had help from a rather sinister source. Starswirl was still a tad winded from running in the Bloodgrove, so I employed my wings to airlift him to the spire and over the bridge of yet another chasm. On the opposite side, we stood face to face with our enemy”

“Face to face being a figurative term here” Lyra humorously added.

“At that moment, anyway” I foreshadowed, “Having toiled my fair share’s worth of heroics, I let Starswirl handle this one. Gathering magic into his staff, he proclaimed that they would not pass and struck the bridge with all of his magical might. In the first few seconds it seemed like nothing had occurred and the Acolytes began marching over the bridge. That was when whatever spell that Starswirl cast took effect. The stalwart bridge rumbled and groaned in protest before it lost structural integrity, with great portions of it splintering off and reaching its culmination with the entirety of it collapsing, as well sobering number of the Acolytes joining it into the abyss”

“Not ones to celebrate prematurely, the wizard and I trekked up the two toned spire and after the heroines” I stretched out my arms lengthwise to the roof to illustrate the immensity of the Apex, “The spire felt taller than it initially appeared, and the tedium would have settled in had it not been for the marvelous vista, or the not so marvelous fact that the destruction of the bridge had only slowed the Acolytes… as the Stellar Magi among them ferried their brothers in arms over the gap in a collective effort. It did have the welcome benefit of relieving the soldiers among them of their armor and most of their heavy weapons though” It made the task of killing them that so much simpler.

“These Acolytes just don’t give up, do they?” Lyra was unsurprised, “If I hazarded another guess and reckoned that you resumed the heroics and stayed behind to delay them, since Starswirl was the one so adamant about interacting with the Princesses?”

I spared her a sidelong look, secretly touched by how well she knew me, “You’d be correct. I assured him that he hadn’t seen the last of me and beckoned him to depart” I flagged the air dismissively, “You don’t need to hear about the fighting. I will sum it up as this. The Acolytes fell by the droves and found their way obstructed by a chunk of spire that a stray beam of my destructive magic loosened. It was a minor victory in comparison to what I had been doing in those two weeks, but with all of the sudden pressure on me it tasted sweet anyway. My reward was awaiting me at the summit in the form of a spectacular light show. One that this world has not borne witness to before or since” 

Hologram magic aided me for the umpteenth instance that day, “When I got to the peak of the spire, I was dazzled by the sight of the heroines, suspended in midair inside of the most ornate archway you’d even seen. Magic that could command the very heavens coursed through them. The skies were alight with swirling auroras and the Sun and Moon both stood vigil over us as if this were a ceremonial rite” 

Miniature, transfigured Princesses floated and their forms shifted to match the ones they wore today, “It ranks pretty darn high on my list of wondrous mind boggling displays that I’m not liable to ever see again. It’s a damn shame that the wonder would only endure momentarily” A dark figure in equally blackened robes emerged from the background and cast whatever evil means that allowed him to apprehend the Princesses in a phase locked field, who struggled feebly and were unable to do aught else, “This man Double Cross was nothing if not persistent. While the Princesses were in the middle of becoming… well, the Princesses, he and his men had been clearing the pathway up of rubble and had us trapped between rock and a very perilous drop earthward. We brandished weapons and demanded that he release them, but our threats did not deter him in the slightest. One mass sacrifice of his own men, chanted words, a lazy motion of his hand, and we were experiencing a mana drain so incapacitating that we were as helpless as the Princesses”

“You had your magic drained from you?” Lyra was horrified at this twist, doubly so since she had context as a Stellar Mage herself, “Was it painful?”

My countenance was grim and my mouth tightened, “Excruciating beyond measure. I had expended most of my internal magic fighting his men on the spiral pathway, so that’s probably one of the reasons why his foul powers lost their hold on me after a brief, agonizing period spent writhing on the floor. I barely had enough wits about me to detect that I had achieved a minor revenge when he tried to steal my Mage-blade” And when I perforated him with my Tantō, and vindictively shattered his spine with magic, “It bit at him like a loyal guard dog bites at a trespasser, causing him to withdraw a few feet and reflect on his ‘victory’, and what he would do with all of our power… completely oblivious to my approach”

The silence in the room was so thick you could cut it with a knife, “And then what?” She finally broke into it.

My lips twitched, “I carried out the prophecy and made an end to him, hardly aware that I doing it” I had remade him in doing so too, but she did not need to know that, “I had no regrets. Two dimensional villains who lust for power and control over being they deem lesser than themselves get what comes to them”

She understood, bless her heart, “And the wizard and Princesses?” She switched the subject, “They were unharmed?”

“Whatever Double Cross did to us only devoured our magic… and while it hurt like hell, it did no physical damage so far as I could tell” I reached into my belt and snatched an empty vial, “I had exceeded the amount of mushrooms that was necessary to revitalize Tough Cookie’s internal magic, so Vitalitus in his extensive wisdom made extra phials and bequeathed them to me, commenting that they might be useful in the future” His prediction took a couple weeks to actualize, and there were minor instances where Starswirl and I were almost forced to use them, but it did.

“It was down the hatch for me and then for the wizard. He complained that it tasted God awful, but I reminded him that being deprived of magic was worse, so he accepted it begrudgingly” The big baby, “Once he was back on his feet, we tended to the Princesses… both of whom were unconscious, so we had to practically spoon feed them the revitalizing agents” 

‘What in the world possessed me to sing the intro verse to ‘You are my Sunshine’ to Celestia? This planet is making me sappier than a cut tree in the summer heat’ I groused, borrowing a wordy expression in the style of Applejack.

“Wow” Lyra summarized what she thought of the extraordinary events of my journey in the past, “So you and the wizard not only found who you were looking for, but you got to save the Princesses too! Congrats!” She beamed at me, before lowering the intensity of her expression into a cheeky simper, “Though I expected nothing less from my ever resourceful Snark Knight”

“You keep inflating my pride like that and it’s bound to pop like a balloon” I drolly remarked, “As for how I got home…” My Tantō vibrated like my old cell phone, and I intrinsically understood that it was warning me that this part was private, “…well what does it matter? I’m here, and I’m here to stay. I’ve said my farewells to the past, in preparation for the future. The means to return to your loving arms were provided by my… let’s call them my guardian angels” The Tantō vibrated again, though weaker than before, as if the ancient beings on the other end were annoyed by my skirting of their rules but would abide it.

‘I wonder why they prefer to remain anonymous? Is there a danger to invoking them?’ I mused. 

The members of the Congress had all been pivotal figures in life, selflessly devoting themselves to a virtuous cause even in their respective afterlife. Mayhaps their intentions were to have their successors develop into heroes in their own right with limited interference on their part before they did withdraw the curtain. At least, that’s how it went with me. Heck, it was months before I even comprehended what power decided it required me here, if not for Femcord’s possibly deliberate slip of the tongue. On that vein of pondering; the basket case of a bureaucrat and I needed to have a talk.

If Lyra was bothered by my sketchy answer, she didn’t show it openly, “Whatever or whoever sent you back has my thanks” She hugged me, “Perhaps I’ll compose a song of your deeds someday, unless you’re inclined to remain unsung?”

“Your talent with music defines you, Lyra, It’s not for me to dictate what you do with that talent” I landed five lances of fingers on my chest, “I myself am ambivalent to having my deeds celebrated if the occasion fits, but if you wish to honor me with song, then I certainly shall not complain”

I stood up and stretched, sliding the luxurious statin drapes till it was fastened on the rail with a flicker of magic. The sunlight that streamed in through the apertures was dimmer and more pink than orange, heralding to me that sunset was upon us, with Evenfall shortly behind it. Below, people from all over the nation and even remote areas were moving about in crowds, and the vocalized sounds of their enthusiasm or disappointment in the results of the Athletic Games graced my ears. There were far too many of these conversations for me to sift out any mentions about yesterday’s unfortunate event with the ice cloud, but my cynical mindset assured me that the topic was on many of their minds as well. Watching the children of a couple scampering in circles around their parents and making outrageous motions with their limbs as they reenacted what they liked best about the games elicited a wan smile to sprout on my lips unbidden. The antics of the happy family drew me out of my brooding funk, but also reminded me of something very important, an untended affair that I’ve put off so long that I should have slapped myself.

Spinning on my heels, I turned away from the wall aperture and past a bemused Lyra, who had been observing me with that same shrewd stare steered sidelong at me when we first met in one of Magiville’s peaceful outdoor parks. 

“Zenith?” She spoke up concernedly, “Is there something the matter?”

“Yes” I told her, “I’d like to have the room to myself please”

Lyra shot up from the bed in surprise, her eye alight with fear, “W-why!? Have I offended you? I’m sor-”

I shushed her by closing the distance between us and pressing a finger to her lips, before affectionately replacing it with my own. She squeaked at my swiftness but after half a heartbeat began to mirror the gesture, “This has nothing to do with you, Lyra, nor can any fault be ascribed to you. There is…” My voice was hoarse, “…an issue that I must attend to alone”

She nodded forbearingly, “I understand… it’s about time I got out of your hair isn’t it? Oft-times I forget that my Snark Knight is a busy man, and not alone for me to enjoy”

“Before you go” I retracted a drawer of my nightstand and produced a crystal from it. I focused on it and channeled my magic into it, imbuing it with that which I believed Lyra might enjoy. Five seconds later and the crystal was inscribed and laden with energy. The musician peered at it inquisitively before looking at me to explain myself, “I thought I’d get you an early Christmas present, before my duties engendered me to forget” Let it never be declared that I was an inconsiderate beau.

She titled her head to the side, “Christmas?” 

I had an answer prepped ahead of time, “In this world, the nearest analog to it would be Hearth’s Warming. Though where I came from we celebrated it for entirely different reasons. Gift giving is the only constant the two holidays have in common. The latticework of the crystal is indited with Tycho, who is the artist behind that music you identified as exquisite. Just interlace your magical field with it and you should be drifting down a river with a chilled fruity drink in your hands, as if you hadn’t a care in the world” I instructed her, having ‘programmed’ the crystal to be malleable in the commands it was receptive to. I figured she would appreciate music that could soothe body, mind, and soul.

She held my gift to her as if, “That’s sweet of you” She flashed her teeth at me in gratitude, before her expression became naughty, “And when can I… unwrap my present?”

Somehow I doubt she meant the crystal, “Come the week of Hearth’s Warming, I suspect” I stroked at her hair, “We’ll speak again before the month is out. I’ll never neglect my obligations towards you, nor anyone dear to my heart” I swore to her, before grinning, “Take care, Lyra. And dress warm… it can get bloody cold out there” I jocosely japed.

We parted ways, one of us with merriment in her heart and the other with resigned solemnity in his. I returned to the task I had set for myself before mollifying Lyra of her undue apprehension. I ambled over to the corundum desk where I had popped a squat before Lyra ambushed me with her ninja hug, reaching for my adventure pack and stuffing my hand inside to rummage around for the only item in the world that would aid me for what I wanted to do. Mutely cursing the sheer amount of space that the enchanted pack contained, my hands brushed against anodized aluminum and I muttered a satisfied ‘ah ha!’ and I fished out my laptop. Even in a world where magic was largely favored over technology, I had never ceased using it, especially as it retained that wireless connection that kept it from being a glorified calculator.

Flipping up the screen and pressing the power button, the machine came alive with a classic chime and the background of an incredible battle in space greeted me, complete with dogfighting starfighters spitting multicolored, streaking death as they weaved betwixt capital ships with scored ablative armor firing a mighty broadside above a planet below with leagues of its surface glassed and rendered barren. That final detail being a grim reminder of what would occur should I misuse the power that the Congress awoke in me. Putting the disquieting thought to the side, I checked to see if the supernal beings had kept their word as I tapped on an icon meant for surfing the Internet.

Sure enough, the connection was upheld. News pages for the events taking place back home showed up in the newsfeed (same old business as per usual, from what I could discern), so I wasn’t entirely in the dark about what I was forced to leave behind. But… it was my choice to stay where I was in the present, where I could do some good. Before a minute had expired, all the means of contacting what few friends I had made along with my family were on the screen and awaiting my input. I leaned back in my seat and pondered just how I would accomplish this. 

Before I was given a new life in a new world, I was not what one would describe as gregarious. I spoke little to anybody when it wasn’t mandatory and even those familiar with me noted that I was leaning heavily on the reserved end of the spectrum, which was atypical of the majority of members in my family, both on my mother’s half and father’s half. I would often garner flak for it at large family gatherings where I was more content to linger in the background doing my own thing rather than socialize. This was compounded by the fact that I was the only child; certain commitments were expected of me. But my family had sparse choice but to tolerate my quirks, as I was too pigheadedly stubborn to change them. They loved me, flawed, reticent creature that I was… and still am, and that was sufficient for me.

I owed them more than just ‘Hello, mother, father. Hope you’re well. I’m not dead, just off gallivanting in another world. Kay, bye!’ So I took my time in composing my only goodbye, being wary not to go into too many specifics about where I was or what I was doing. They’d probably attempt to track it once they got my message, but even if they were to unveil the transmission source, it would be a dead end. I was additionally aware that my message would be unsealing wounds that could only now be in the slow, painful process of scabbing over, but this was a perforce burden that all of us would have to shoulder regardless. 

By habit I was not a man of many words, at least privately, but for one of those rare occasions in my life I made an exception. I typed an honest account of my life and how I spent it with each person, apologized for any wrongs I had committed and was too obstinate to admit to, and firmly stressed my love for them. I could not bring myself to envision how they would take to this final notification from their lost son. It’s probable that they would wince internally as if it was the thunderous hammering of the ultimate nail in the coffin ringing loudly. A fifth of an hour had passed and by then I had compiled enough of a farewell letter to my kith and kin that a manuscript would have been the apposite term for it. My hand was oddly calm and unshaking as I reached for the button to disperse the collated digital texts. With an ordinary push of a button, they were sent… and a defining chapter of my existence was brought to a close.

A solitary tear ran down my cheek, leaving a warm, salty stream in its wake. I didn’t doubt that I would have hiccupping fits if I didn’t steel my breathing. The only tear I would ever shed over this, “I’ll miss you” I whispered with a faint croak, allowing the emotions to bubble to the surface and have their sway before gently capping the lip of the laptop, neutralizing my unruly emotions, and pushing them into the depths of my soul to remain repressed forevermore. Such was the price of being this world’s champion, a price that I was willing to pay without a second thought.

‘Life was boring back home anyway. Too much tedium’ I told myself to lessen the residual pain as I wiped the tear from my cheek with a sleeve. 

It was made easy thanks to my penchant for being emotionally hardier than most, but I had to be careful to ensure that my unspoken strength did not prove an even greater weakness. If I went overboard with it, I would subconsciously start shutting emotions off for every little issue, and that was just as jeopardizing as being overly sensitive. Stoicism was like balancing the tip of a knife on a high-wire suspended above crucial functions, which was always swaying perilously in the winds of life’s daily troubles.

It didn’t take a clock to notify me that I would miss my rendezvous with the Princess if Twilight wasn’t too busy making googly eyes at that Flash Sentry guard to deliver the message herself. I would have knocked on Rarity’s and Fluttershy’s room to assure them that I was fine, internal hang-ups notwithstanding, but I reckoned that they could wait just a tad longer. Shutting the door behind me noiselessly, I strode down the halls until I found a balcony with unrestricted access to the sky. The Krystal Kingdom was short staffed on Skyborn to patrol the airways, but with the recent grand events, they’d likely see an influx of people willing to move here. 

And why shouldn’t they be tempted to set down roots? The Crystal Heart only grew in its positive influence the more people were around to sustain its love permeating nature, with made it difficult to feel like you had a bad day here for the uninitiated. More power for the Heart means a nifty expansion of the climate control barrier, and it couldn’t hurt them to obtain land that could be turned into farming fields or urban sprawl. With enough people feeding it, this Kingdom could very well grow to look like a legitimate Kingdom. Of course, there was also the matter of its official inclusion into the territory of Arcania. From what scant conversation on the subject that I can recall, that bet that I won for Celestia in the sparring ring meant that the Krystal Kingdom would at the very least become a protectorate of Arcania. Shining Armor protested that it would be annexation, but that word was saturated with negative connotations. The Krystal Kingdom was not conquered by anyone save for Sombra (and mostly because the bastard used black magicks against the mainly Agrarian population. Talk about overkill), and he’s in no position to conquer anything ever again, let alone his own destruction.

A momentary trek through the corridor and adjacent to a sharp right curve in the hallway was an outlet in the wall that led out into one of several tiny balcony slash oriels that dotted the lower levels of the citadel. They weren’t designed for much beyond offering a view outside. They had no chairs for casual lazing, they were only wide enough for two people to stand abreast, and would disappoint any stargazers looking for a crisp view of the night sky due to the light pollution emanating from the streets drowning out most of the stars’ splendor. Since none of these drawbacks were any concern of mine at the nonce, it mattered naught to me. I was fortunate that I crossed paths with no one who would recognize me, so my desire for a low profile was met. 

Grasping the handles of two folding wooden doors that kept the entrance secured and the outer wall seamless, I flung them open and a cool evening breeze caressed my face, blowing strand of greasy, sweat matted locks of hair on my head. I’d kill for a relaxing bath (and have killed for it after one, in fact), but could not afford the luxury of that right now. The setting sun meant that Celestia was actively guiding it beneath the horizon to make room for her sister’s moon, which shone as beautifully as polished milk stone as it peeked over the boundary separating earth and sky. 

I scanned the streets below my feet for activity, finding little of it. Evidently, the Krystal Kingdom had yet to implement a fun night scene for people to stay awake for. It was a common theme that I had taken for granted, and never meditated on until then. The people of Arcania were largely beholden to their Princess of the daytime, and only a few seemed to prefer nocturnal habits. It was discouraging to the point that a seed of jealousy had planted itself in Luna’s heart, and every night that went by appreciated by few watered that seed until it sprouted into a constricting weed that would become known as the Night Terror. The closest I had gotten to confronting that evil was the larger than life statue of it that had persisted in the decrepit ruins crumbling in the Neverfree. Why Celestia had commissioned a reminder of the being that had almost imposed a permanently fixed day and night over the hemispheres was beyond my comprehension. Perhaps it was made to serve as a reminder of what could go wrong even under her vigilant nose.

Satisfied with my findings, my wings extended sideways and I gave them a few experimental flaps to make sure that they were in working order before I took flight. The Crystal Citadel was by and large the tallest structure in the Kingdom, and would undoubtedly remain so for as long as it was the seat of Princess of Love’s power in the North. The Kingdom itself lay at a peculiar juncture that expedited the transportation of supplies to isolated snowy mining settlements like Yuema, which dug deep into the mountains to unearth precious minerals like magically conducive crystals, hard substances in the form of iron, copper, tungsten, and other raw materials that fueled much of Arcania’s formidable industry. I haven’t seen it for myself, but the books in Twilight’s treebrary supported the claim that Arcania was the most technologically and magically advanced nation on the planet, though only by a few centuries from what I could tell. Special cases existed where other nations would produce something that Arcania had never conceived (such as Gryphondrian guns and black gunpowder), but this nation had an affinity to taking new ideas and improving upon them, as I hoped our progress with the ‘covert projects’ was proving.

Ascending to the summit of the citadel was such a simple action that it made me lament all the time we had lost when Daring and I were plumbing its metaphysical ‘basement’ before clambering up those innumerable stairs to reach the apex. The fleeting act of thinking about the cocksure woman caused my already strained heart to ache. It was a good pain though, if that made any coherent sense. It bolstered me with the indisputable truth that I loved her, headstrong maverick that she was. I missed her something fierce, and would think about her often, asking myself if she was safe, if she was having any success uncovering these dire Shards of Sheol that had to be recovered before they could detrimentally fall into the wrong hands, and if she was similarly thinking about me. Even to this day, it tickled my humor that I could fall for one like her, and even more so that she could fancy someone like me. A lot of women in this land found attachment to me a straightforward process, and it made me wonder how much of that was swayed by the magic that made people living here slightly more emotional, and how much of that was fairly won by my ‘oh so lovable’ personality.





I alighted on the rigid surface of the citadel’s ‘roof’, where Daring and I first happened upon a projection (I knew that it was a hologram because it wasn’t there now) of the Crystal Heart showing us the way to recover Sombra’s ornate yet tainted Crystal Chalice. Curiosity led to a mental tangent on what Cadence had done with the Chalice, but common sense told me that she would have stowed it out of sight in a secure location isolated from the other relics in the depository if she was wise. With Jomar a ward of the Krystal Kingdom (one of my better decisions, I’d say), he would have valuable insight for Cadence on how he, his brothers in arms, and his employer gained entrance into the Citadel so stealthily.

The Sun’s descent and the Moon’s dominance in the firmament gave the impression of being rushed, as the partially obscured satellite was nearing its (if you’ll pardon the expression) zenith. Up here the lights coming from the crystal houses, cafés, and other places of business weren’t so over-illuminating, allowing for an unsullied perspective of the evening sky. With the Athletic Games at its terminus, people were heading back to the hastily established hotels to rest up from the return trip in the morning. The train lines had yet to implement railway turntable that permitted two way travel back and forth, but work had been initiated laying down a second set of tracks for that very utility. Now that the Krystal Kingdom had made its presence felt by the whole of Arcania and even the known world, it had a rather profitable economic future in its fortunes. The indigenous folks living here might have some difficulty adapting to the gradual yet imposing changes, but with capable people like Crystal Clear and Princess Cadence leading them, I had hardly any doubts that they would cope just fine.

The platform with the snowflake emblem stamped into the floor where the phantom Heart once floated glowed faintly, lighting up the outline as energy from the actual Heart below the citadel coursed through the building like a conduit, pulsing every so often like a living heartbeat. The pylons surrounding the Archroom (as I’ll refer to this special area from now on). The aperture in the ground leading from the endless spiral stairs Daring and I were painstakingly forced to climb wasn’t here, and no amount of tapping my heels over the spot where I could have swore it was would reveal any hollows. Giving up my nostalgically motivated scouring, I gravitated to the center of the Archroom and sat cross legged on the snowflake insignia that was representative of the Krystal Kingdom. I practiced some breathing exercises to calm the storm of thoughts and misgivings raging in my head and conjured the Sound Sphere to aid me in this endeavor, cueing it to play ambience from the Towerwoods to settle into the tranquility before switching to ‘Time after time’, which felt loosely appropriate for some inexplicable reason.

I hummed in contemplation as I took note of something interesting. The drain on my mana reserves from casting the Sound Sphere spell was so infinitesimal that it was negligible, whereas in the past it was a noticeable decrease. I closed my eyes and did that soul searching technique which first helped me make that connection with the font of magic within me. Before I had likened it to that of a lake, peaceful and serene with waters as smooth as glass. When I made contact with it this time though, an ocean seemingly without fathom stretched out before my third eye, stealing my breath away. It was as strikingly beautiful as it was bountiful. Inexorable waves of magical power crashed against my senses, stirred on by buffeting winds that swirled and spun like miniature twisters, and beneath that frothing sea…

A faded warmth like the gloaming sun touched my sixth sense and drew me out of my before I could delve further into the magical wellspring within me.

“Zenith…? Do my eyes deceive me?” Came the whispered, awestruck voice of the Sun Princess, as if she couldn’t believe what was right in front of her. I wasn’t aware of when or how she got here, mayhaps she teleported, or flew up here like I did.

“Your eyes are reliable, Princess” I assured her as I regarded her presence, “At least the one that isn’t curtained by that majestic hair of yours”

The statuesque Princess of the Day looked as stunning as ever, wearing a chiton like outfit with immaculately white fabric falling down her body in snowy cascades. She sported golden cuffs wrapped around each wrist that would have shone magnificently if the sun had still been out. The tiara atop her head was the third variation she had in her inventory of royal apparel, with diamonds and gemstones that matched the color of her irises encrusted into the ornate metalwork as it danced in serpentine lines between her animate hairline. Her feet were clad in supple leather boots in place of the usual calf length sandals. Overall she was the same comely woman that was given the mantle of Sun raiser, with the only difference being that aged gleam in her eyes (The visible one anyhow). She was older than last I saw her, wiser, and cautious because of it.

My nigh petulant brand of humor had her relieved, as evidenced her sigh, “Only you could jest at a time like this. And I’ll have you know that my hair does not impede me in any way” She clarified, “Where have you been? When Twilight came to me about your absence I sought you myself, but all of my locating spells failed me” She sounded aghast just reflecting on it.

I didn’t see the big deal, “So? You make it seem as if your magic failing you meant something grave”

She glared all but balefully at me, “It does… The only people I know who cannot be found with scrying spells are either ones shielded by unspeakable evil or are dead. Which one were you?” She demanded, very much serious. The dual voices of Cyndi Lauper and Rob Hyman dancing in the air mitigated its austere edge though.

“Neither” I answered carefully, knowing that Celestia placed emphasis on security before heartfelt reunion, which I respected. Still, it chafed a bit to held under her scrutiny, “Is that any way to greet your enigmatically shrouded savior? The one who handled the Hydra hell-bent on turning you and Luna into lunch? The one who ensured that Starswirl was there to bear witness to you and your sister’s ascendance?”

She stared at me blankly before my keywords prompted an old but unforgettable memory to her mind. When it clicked with her, those lovely eyes grew wide and she took a few startled steps back, “You are the one who inadvertently set us on our path? You’re the Starwalker?” She spoke as if she somehow intrinsically knew this, but was still astonished. It was a fancy way of putting it; since the name was a pinch above arbitrary when I said it to her before taking the portal home. Home… the more I refer to this world by that term, the more I feel comfortable with believing it.

I gave her a long, solemn look. My turn to be serious, “I have much to tell you, Celestia. About where I’ve been, what I’ve seen, and what I’ve done”

Celestia handled her shock with good grace, and composed herself in a wink, “We will have to make it brief. It appears as if a certain friend of yours is preparing a welcome back party for you in the Citadel’s Great Feast Hall” A small smile curled on her lips, “That should have been my first clue that my worry was misplaced”

“And my… actions… in the stadium yesterday?” I fished for info on that which had been tickling my curiosities since my return.

She waved a dismissive hand, “I’ve dealt with the Press, both foreign and domestically comprised. You are classified as an Agent of the Crown, and therefore off limits to further inquiries. Most of the reporters were within dangerous proximity of the Ice cloud, so the majority were content with that” She scowled just a fraction, “I won’t begrudge you for your valiance in the field, though the timing was ill, as it is wont to be”

“I felt it prudent to let you know…” I paused, gathering my courage, “I’m no longer as averse to standing beside you and Luna as rulers of the state as I was before. I’ve… changed, shall we say”

She nodded, “That’s encouraging to hear, Zenith. Though your earlier reservations had me rethink how your position could best serve the prophecy. As a fully fledged Prince of Arcania, you would be tied down with ropes of black ink more often than not. And some disputes cannot be settled with quil-… pen and ink” She corrected herself, getting with the times, “By remaining as an Agent, you would be free to act”

I could see where she was going with this, “Like Daring Do?”

“Just so” She agreed, “Though you would in addition to that be invested with political authority, to speak with Our collective voice in matters of politics. However, I ask that you consult with me first before making any assertions that might put Arcania in an adverse spot” There was an slight undertone of humor somewhere in there, but it was mainly sober.

She glanced up as the night sky and spoke softly, “The balance of power in the world is shifting Zenith… ever so subtly. Faint ripples of disaster here and there that herald the downpour of greater catastrophes yet to come. We must avert as many of them as possible, and stanch the wounds they do create… or we will all drown in blood”

I groaned and stretched as I stood to my feet, “It’s too early in the evening for such grimness… Celeste” I called her by her first name.

“There hasn’t been a person to utter that name to me in over a millennium, Zenith. You, Luna, and I are the only living people who know of our origins” She exhaled tiredly, “Speaking of which, it would not do to keep the others waiting” She approached me and the focal gem on her forehead began to glow like a pint sized sun, “I trust you remember the mind delving spell?”

“Clear the storm in my head, yes?” We had done this on enough occasions that the act of emptying my head of thoughts was routine by now.

She reached out and clasped my hands in hers, and a sudden fear overtook me, “I must warn you, Princess. Some of the memories you are about to see are not pretty”

Her visage remained unchanged, “Zenith” She leveled with me, “I have come to accept that a lot of questionable things must be done in the name of the greater good. It rarely justifies them in your heart of hearts, but I’d rather live with a tarnished conscience than live with the weight of ten thousand preventable deaths on my soul simply because I hesitated to do what the situation called for” She tightened her grip on my hands, as if to reassure me, “You are a virtuous person, Zenith. I’ve seen it in your heart and in much of your actions. You were chosen to keep safe the innocent, and those who dwell in the stars weigh their choices with unmatched foresight”

I was honored, “Your faith in me is inspiring, truly”

She gazed intently at me, “Starswirl once shared the story of a prophecy with you, and faith was what saw it through to realization. I have much to share with you as well”

I did not understand, “What do yo-”

She silenced me by unexpectedly pressing her lips to mine as her focal gem erupted in an explosion of multihued light, and the world around me became an unintelligible blur as the colors and shapes shifted and writhed. I was swimming in them, my mind as incoherent as a guttering flame as I was left adrift in the oddly nostalgic tide. Sights, sounds, smells, tactile sensations, and even tastes; all of these assaulted my brain with a rabid frenzy and it was all I could do not to be overwhelmed by the information overload. After ten minutes or ten hours of withstanding the mental barrage, the stream of information gradually slowed and I could glean lucid facts from it. The first of which was that of a woman with auburn hair and a loving smile that could melt the hoarfrost on your clothes and brighten your heart. The next scene was standing over a cradle of a newborn, squalling babe before peering inside. The crying child ceased its bawling and looked up, seeing something pleasing before giggling and clapping her little hands together. I realized that I was viewing Celeste’s childhood before she became a roving heroine alongside her sister. 

I noted with interest that while there were plenty of scenes with the woman whom I assumed was her mother (including one where she and her mom were sharing a slice of cake, the flavor of which was delectable even in passing), there was never a man in the house. If this bothered the youthful Celeste, none of her memories showed it. The scenes fast forwarded a few years and illustrated the development of the two sisters. Celeste was your typical girly girl, playing with dolls and hosting tea parties with delegates that were represented by dolls (she started this diplomacy thing young), while her tomboyish sister swung a wooden sword in the yard and dueled with shadows (Though one memory had Celeste practicing with a hunting bow and nailing targets at a hundred yards). Her sister and she had a strong relationship, though they had few things in common when it came to hobbies. Their village was tiny, housing no more than a hundred people, all of whom Celeste knew as if they were extended family. 

The years flew by almost as quickly as the memories of those years themselves. The teenaged Celeste and Selene grew into distinguished members of the community, making many friends and following in the footsteps of their respected mother. Their lives would have been comparatively normal had the status quo continued, but Fate had other ideas in mind for them however, and their village was contested on some territorial farming claim by another, larger village (Fertile farmable land was scarce where they resided). Celeste and Selene were sent to treat with them as their now deceased mother had done in the past. The trivial parts of the memories blurred from there and I found myself (or Celeste found herself) being held captive inside some kind of room along with her sister, who was struggling furiously against her bonds. Harsh, menacing voices could be heard beyond the thin wooden walls as men debated what to do with their captives. This memory was so fresh that I could taste the salty tears running down her cheeks as she fumbled hopelessly with the tightly woven ropes that kept her hands lashed together.

Where she failed with meager attempts, her sister had succeeded in tenacity, knocking over the chair and squirming over to a table that held the horrific tools of the interrogation trade. The voices outside rose in volume as men shouted at each other, acutely embroiled in a heated argument. This allowed Selene to repeatedly bump into the table until a serrated tool fell over the edge, which Selene awkwardly used to fray the ropes tying her hands until she could break free of her own strength. She tore off the rag keeping her mouth gagged (she had been unrepentantly vocal about their dishonorable captivity and ensuing uncivil treatment, while Celeste was quiet as a church mouse and therefore didn’t suffer the indignity of gagging) and spat angrily onto the floor, mutedly cursing the men who imprisoned them after they were came to appeal to them in good faith. She scavenged what improvised weapons she could find and freed her sister, thrusting what must have been an icepick into her hands (Celeste was too appalled to even glance at the object, so I had to judge what it was based on the weight in her palm). Selene appropriated a fire stoker with sharpened spikes as a primary armament to defend herself and waited in ambush by the door.

The yelling had died down by now as the defending party was outvoted and outyelled. Heavy footsteps plodded in their direction and Celeste’s heart stopped in her chest. The door slammed open and three burly men with alcohol on their breath and malevolent intent in their eyes entered the room, advancing on a backpedaling Celeste. Selene waited until the last man was through before hopping onto his back and slashing a flaying knife across his throat, issuing forth a red spray like a fine summer wine. Celeste’s stomach lurched and she emptied the contents of her breakfast onto the floor, consequently dropping her only means of protection. The two men cursed and drew their weapons, though Selene was on them again before they could do much with them. The flaying knife she lodged into one man’s groin and immediately crossed sword with stoker versus the other man as the injured thug moaned on the floorboards and cradled his ravaged goodies, the pain proving too much for him to endure as he went under with an unmanly whimper. 

Skilled as she was, fire stokers were an inadequate match against iron forged swords, and Selene was slowly losing ground to her aggressor as her makeshift weapon chipped and disintegrated during the furious exchange. She was inevitably backed into the wall as her opponent hammered away at her, eventually knocking the remnants of the poker from her grasp and nicking the flesh of her cheek. He chortled darkly as the tip of his sword hovered menacingly over her sibling’s breast, sadistically prolonging the apprehension of her doom on the point of his weapon. When Selene twitched to persist in resisting, the man slapped her with the flat of the blade and seized her by the throat and squeezed, suffocating her with his hairy paw. Somewhere in her gut, Celeste understood that she could either do what needed to be done in order to save her only sister, or watch her die at this unwashed brute’s hands. She chose the former. Snatching at the dropped icepick, she rushed forward to plant it down to the hilt in the man’s leather jerkin covered back, causing him to drop his sword and roar in pain as he reached behind himself to yank it out, glaring pure hatred at Celeste as he vengefully stumbled towards her with a blundering gait. 

He opened his mouth to growl his malicious intentions when the discarded sword punctually emerged from his mouth, its point dripping red with blood as his eyes rolled back into his head. Half formed words transformed into gurgles as the last man standing was neutralized. Celeste would remember this moment forever, as the light in the man’s eyes extinguished like a blown out candle and he thudded unceremoniously onto the paneling in a heap. Did this man have a wife and child that relied on him to put bread on the table? Why did he and so many living here harbor such reckless enmity to her and her sister? She didn’t have long to reflect on this though, as the stark form of her sister laid hold of her by the arm and they made their escape before others could notice the bodies of their dead kinsmen. Celeste’s thoughts were all over the place as she and her sister inconspicuously made for the stables where their captured steeds were housed, mounted them, and galloped hard for home.

The scene they came upon during their homecoming was the opposite of what they would have hoped for. Half the village was on fire and armed aggressors from the same village they had just escaped from were slaughtering the other half. The men defending the village fought bravely against such gloomy odds, taking two men with them for every one of theirs that fell. But numbers proved to be their undoing, and by the time that Celeste and Selene stood on a high hill overlooking all of this, it was too late for them to intervene. Every person from their old life that they had ever known was gone, slain by jealous neighbors who wanted land that they could have easily shared instead of spilling blood for it. Deep down, something in Celeste twisted and churned, and her once fragile heart hardened until it was the equal of tempered steel. She vowed that never again would she permit atrocities like this from ever taking the lives of the innocent while she could do something about it, and her sister vowed similarly (Though with more venom in her tone).

The memories blurred together again as Celeste and Selene ventured south into the main body of the Dreamy Vale, starting small and doing services for villages and towns (Fetch and grab stuff, delivering messages, escorting shipments of grain. They were real mundane jobs for starter heroes, expedited as soon as the men working with them got over the fact that they were female). This way they accumulated wealth while also learning the state of affairs between those towns and villages. A year or two passed and Celeste and Selene had garnered themselves a repertoire of being reliable members of society, as they had been previously recognized in their humble village. 

Town Reeves often and frequently relied on them for diplomatically important roles as they made alliances and enemies out of the other towns in an overarching game of political machinations. It was a ponderous game with steep consequences, where the winners would enjoy expanded territory and harvests, and the losers would enjoy starvation and death. Celeste adapted to this game like she was born to it, making careful acquaintances and useful contacts that would enable her to manipulate her own piece on the board. Her sister had no patience for the finer nuances of the game, but was Celeste’s number two, serving as her bodyguard and confidant as they set about to change the world, one town at a time. 

Most satisfying was when Celeste had managed to maneuver a strategically superior town against the village that had decimated their own (which was not challenging to pull off, as the larger towns were always paranoid of the villages that grabbed for too much power too quickly and were more than happy to police them into subservience), though Celeste had the decency to request them to absorb them into their holdings instead of annihilating them outright. However, the orchestrators of the assault on the village of their birth were to be hanged from the nearest trees like morbid tapestries till their faces turned as black as their hearts and the crows feasted on their eyes like they had feasted themselves on their fields. Securing both justice (vengeance?) and closure for the extended family that they had lost, the two heroines further cultivated their reputation as traveling altruists with the rare talent of holding their own in a fight and negotiating peaceful solutions to the problems plaguing the settlements of the Dreamy Vale.

I knew the rest of the tale from there, and the replay sped up as if in response to that sentiment. Celeste and Selene found themselves faced with a new and duplicitous enemy in the form of the Acolytes, who would fund insurrections in any towns that they could not pit against each other. They were the sisters’ most difficult adversaries to date, and put both of their mettles to the test. Celeste would do all she could to keep relations solid between settlements while Selene would slice and dice anyone who tried any funny business with a blade. Celeste’s skill with a bow was a huge part of the reason why they had prevailed in the Bloodgrove with such lopsided odds stacked contrary to their favor. Standing still, her accuracy with the bow was nigh pinpoint. And on the move she could hit vital spots dependably like a pink haired Legolas. One of her memories had her piercing the thighs of three belligerent men with a blazing time of two seconds.

She had an interesting style to her bow-play, nocking arrows on the right side and speed shooting them by fisting the arrows in her knuckles for a fast draw. Her sister’s talent for swordplay was likewise impressive, and she could slay a man twice her size in half the time it took her to peel a potato, having learned where the unarmored joints and tendons were for maximum crippling effect. I would have uttered a pensive hum if I could. The Princesses were formidable warriors in their own right many months before they ascended. That I could win two out of five sparring matches (one out of three ended with a pratfall on my part and Blue Moon leveled at my neck. We had become something of an attraction for the off duty Guards in the training yard) with the Lunar Monarch was a testament to my own ability with a blade.

The penultimate series of first hand memories were of Celeste and Selene making their way down the Rugdale road after having resolved a dispute in the selfsame town. Grimworts were making incursions from their hollows to raid northern towns, claiming that they were provoked by the humans into subsistence motivated violence (Especially after their connection to the main nest had been cut off by yours truly, which they used for trade chunks of wild game for barrels of cave fish). So Celeste and Selene were to either negotiate some kind of peace, or burn them out with assistance from Rugdale’s poorly armed militia. Celeste recommended negotiation, as was her preferred stance, while Selene favored extermination with extreme prejudice, having no patience for sniveling wretches like the cave dwellers. 

The memory terminated before I could see which was the chosen course of action, and the next memory was so well preserved that I felt the displaced air of a crossbolt quarrel sail by my ear and partially embed itself into the trunk of an ironbark tree. The subsequent shots took their horses in the chest and legs, disabling them and forcing Celeste and Selene from their saddles as the fight was upon them. Men whose faces were obscured by woolen cloaks of grey screeched a shrill battle cry as they rushed out from the brushwork to attack the two of them. Selene unsheathed her sword with instinctive reaction and Celeste rapidly nocked an arrow and sank it into the neck of one of the crossbowmen, who posed more of a crucial threat than close combatants in her book. The afflicted thug choked on his own blood as it burbled out of the wound with each weakening pulse of his heart. Celeste had learned to go away inside when it came to sordid matters like these.

Celeste barked a command to her younger sister and both of them retreated, melting into the thickness of the tree line. They knew that they were badly outnumbered and could not win this fight standing toe to toe with the enemy. Celeste’s expert usage of her Spritewood bow was nothing short of masterful as she danced between trees and over fallen logs, sparing measuring glances behind her before risking time to stop and loose an arrow into the vital zone of an Acolyte. Selene was lagging in the number of men she felled while they were sprinting like the wind, but would do as I did for Starswirl and keep their attention on her so that her sister could do the heavy lifting with minimal interference. The bushes and trees thinned out as they came into a glade, stony ruins poked over the grassy horizon and Celeste’s first instinct was to lose their pursuers in the maze of collapsed columns and decrepit walls. Failing that, they could bed down and use the solid stone structures as cover from the remaining crossbowmen.

The coordination the two sisters shared wasn’t quite to the level where they could anticipate each other perfectly, but Selene understood the expression on Celeste’s face and shadowed her footsteps, narrowly evading another crossbolt that would have pegged her in the shoulder had she not sidestepped. Celeste glanced behind to do a mental check on the enemy’s numbers; four and ten, each of them winded from the harrowing chase. Celeste guided a hand into her thigh quiver, nocked her bow, hopped into the air with a half spin, and loosed a duo of fletched arrows, lowering that count by two. To her side, Selene had duped one of their nimbler interceptors into nipping at her heels before she used a boulder overgrown with moss to backflip behind him and shove a sword past his leathern armor and into his heart, stilling it forevermore. With their immediate foes vanquished, Celeste and Selene were given a transient break to catch their breath as they ensconced themselves into the weathered shelter of the aged ruins.

The lull was short lived, as their confrontation with the Acolytes had drawn something far more menacing to their position. A stentorian roar crackled across the sky and sent every bird within a mile’s radius scattering. A distant tremor could be felt in the earth before the thumping grew increasingly more forceful. Trees were uprooted with a groaning creak as they were torn asunder. Even after all that she and her sister had prevailed against up to that point, Celeste’s blood chilled at the prospect of tussling with an adult Hydra. The scales that lined its body, which could deflect everything short of hefty stones lobbed by siege weaponry, augmented its already intimidating size. To Celeste’s regret, they lacked for that heavy hitting equipment at the provisional time. The only good news was that this latest menace had nabbed the Acolyte’s attention and prevented them from scouring the ruins for their hiding spot in a partly collapsed recess. Whoever was leading them gave anxious commands to send word back to their leader while the rest of them would do what they could to hold it off. Vile as they were, the bravery of the Acolytes could not be put in doubt, for they foolishly charged the one enemy they could not hope to defeat with fanatical fervor.

Celeste winced when those shouts of courage swiftly graduated into screams of agony, as men were taken into the many jaws of the Hydra and their bones were crushed between its teeth like a mastiff with a juicy bone to gnaw on. Selene did not mirror her disgust, wearing a viciously vindictive grin on her face as one man howled for his mother, his shout cut off halfway as a pulpy crunch signaled his demise (And very likely his dismemberment too). Showing that she retained a heart even for her enemies, Celeste nocked an arrow and darted out of the ruins where she could locate a decent vantage point, ignoring the perturbed calls of her sister. She clambered up a pillar using grooves in the eroded stone as handhold as she lifted the combined weight of her equipment, armor, and gear. When she got to the top, she beheld the creature she would be fighting versus, paling at its immensity. This was without hesitation the largest foe that Celeste had loosed an arrow at, the projectile bouncing harmlessly off the scales of the third head’s eyebrow. The damned beast didn’t even seem to notice the pathetic attempt, too occupied was it with chewing its bloody food.

Wordlessly mourning the cruel deaths of the Acolytes, Celeste jumped down from the pillar before the Hydra could gain awareness of her presence. The woman’s heart leapt into her throat when she saw her only sister running along a raised walkway with sword in hand, believing that she could succeed where she had failed. The coin that her sibling had spent on getting a rare, traveling Stellar Mage to enchant her blade with enhanced sharpness obviously paid off, as she caught one of the more ignorant Hydra’s necks outstretched and just asking to be lopped off. With a savage roar, Selene struck true and cleaved through scale, flesh, and muscle. The Hydra gave a surprised shriek and glowered concentrated hate at the one who would dare harm it. The injury that she had gifted it with began to broil and bubble as two newborn heads burst forth from the wound, barely waiting a second to dry before they lunged at her precious sister. 

She leaped out of the way with just a hair’s breadth of space to spare, the shock of the blow sending her soaring into a pillar and rendering her insensate. Celeste stifled a wail of dismay as her sister had narrowly avoided the ignoble fate of being turned into paste. She hurried to her side and kneeled, examining her for broken bones or other signs of damage. Celeste looked up at the monster looming over them with three of the heads presenting a predatory baring of their teeth. Knowing that there was little she could do and unable to abandon her only family left in this life, Celeste shut her eyes and waited for the end. Only that end never came, as a high pitched whistle in the wind surged in proximity as an undistinguishable blur whizzed through the air and through the necks of the three heads who had turned to appraise this newcomer. Whatever or whoever it was, they wielded great power, for they sliced into the combined consistence of the three necks as if they offered the same resistance as a bowl of Pease Porridge.

Celeste murmured a muted thanks to their savior as they drew the Hydra’s ire off of them, and urged her sister to awake and make their egress from the blasted ruins. Selene’s eyes drowsily fluttered open, and there was an imperceptible film glassing them over. ‘These ruins are sacred, and hold many secrets, though only one is meant for us’ She whispered, shakily getting to her feet and trudging over to a faded mural that Celeste had not had the time to take into account before. It depicted two figures of women who looked remarkably alike to themselves performing acts that they had accomplished and some that they had never done. But how could that be? These ruins had to be centuries old at the least! This intrigued Celeste, to be sure, but she could not understand what it had to do with them. She was about to bring this up with her sister when she felt the woman tap her on the shoulder and aim her finger at an unobstructed space between two columns that appeared as if they had been carved yesterday.

Her sister was not making any sense, and when Celeste tried to wring comprehensible answers out of her, the only replies she received were ‘We must go. They call to us’. Without responding to any more of her inquiries, Selene wandered into the space and disappeared like a cloud of mist boiled off by the sun. Worry for her possibly concussed, dematerialized sister had overridden her innate sense of self preservation as Celeste followed her into the unknown, materializing on the other end in an unfamiliar place with her sister leisurely strolling down a path with undulating strings of light highlighting its edges. Celeste’s fingers twitched above her quiver and her grip on her bow was white knuckled as she scanned for danger. Seeing nothing perilous at the moment, she rejoined her silent sister, who refused to speak no matter how severely Celeste prodded for some explanation as to what had possessed her to act this way. 

Celeste gave up and shifted towards gleaning that information using her own senses, wildly expecting to find it in the trees that were clearly not of the Bloodgrove, of the earthy scent in the air that was not of home, and in the eerie stillness in the atmosphere that alarmed Celeste about as much as it soothed her frayed, battle weary nerves. Celeste had no stomach for being the braver one of the duo, preferring to maintain a distance from her targets and strive for ways to exploit them from afar. Selene was her opposing counterpart in this preference, automatically willing to get in close and personal with her problems, and she often cleaved them in twain if they proved particularly bothersome. 

But her sister was only half with her in that forest, and Celeste was at her wit’s end trying to hold herself together. She needed her other half, she was not afraid to admit that. Her sister complimented her as the Night complimented the Day, as their mother had told her once… those sorely missed, invaluable memories that could have been lifetimes ago. What would their mother think of them now if she were still living? Would she be proud of them and what they were aspiring to be? Or appalled at the things that they had to do to appeal to their moral sensibilities? Celeste could not bear to dwell on that vein of thought for a second longer, and devoted herself to monitoring for threats to their mutual health. For a bemusing change, nothing was amiss that could jeopardize them. Nothing was hunting them here so far as Celeste could discern, and they had surely given their pursuers the slip when they plunged through that portal. 

Having convinced herself that it was unnecessary to be so high strung in that forest, Celeste allowed herself a rare moment of peace, and was greatly relieved as the calm atmosphere of the woods seeped into her and rejuvenated her spirit. The rays of sunlight that poked through the canopy kissed her cheek with the tenderness of their mother, and her chest throbbed when she conceived how short lived their childhood was and how quickly she and her sister had to grow up, especially in the preceding years. Maturation took to tragedy like crops took to soil watered with Earthblood from the Springwell hamlet. Celeste was an ardent fan of that big, bright ball in the sky, though her sister was more of the nocturnal persuasion, as could be expected of her. The path opened out into a clearing with an earthen bridge spanning a gap that was so black that it seemed bottomless. Celeste was not one to let heights frighten her into inaction though, and unswervingly crossed the divide alongside the blood of her blood, who had yet to break her trance like state of mind. 

To pass the time, Celeste idly wondered about the figure who had intervened on their behalf, or she presumed it was on their behalf, given how most of the Hydra was focusing solely on them. Selene would doubtless take umbrage if the motivations of the figure were to save the ‘damsels in distress’ archetype that she despised so much, though having a gallant suitor to be her champion was ever a secret yen of Celeste’s. A harmless one that she had never confided in anyone, not even with her sister. Their collective pledge to act as peacekeepers meant that they seldom had time to even entertain the idea of romantic relationships, let alone seek them. Even if they did, their culture did not cast proactive women like Celeste and Selene as favorable life partners for the typical man. A typical man of the Dreamy Vale was essentially defined as a workhorse, plowing the fields (the raunchy euphemism using those words included), sowing seeds (innuendo also included), standing sentry on the walls, and acting as armed escorts for merchant convoys delivering the choicest reaping’s of the harvest. Women on the other hand were valued as affectionate caretakers, tidy cleaners, and culinary artists; with their place in the manse raising children alongside their good-sisters, should they take the same groom to wed (An increasingly popular practice. With all the men lost in bloody squabbles, the traditional two person union was becoming rare).

This musing about her abnormal lifestyle distracted Celeste more than she would have liked, but for some reason she could not help herself. She prayed for that noble person’s continued well being, and furtively appealed that they met her innermost wishes as a bonus should they encounter each other in the flesh. Perhaps he would be tall and valorous, with a smoldering gaze that would mesmerize her and melt the stress from her body as he cradled her in his arms and whispered sweet everythings in her ear, yet would share her ideals about making the world a better place for people to live in. Celeste felt the heat rise to her cheeks as a blush formed unbidden on her face. ‘A girl can always dream’ she sighed to herself in a mental voice that sounded exactly like her. If I still had a mouth to reflect my opinions on this grand recollection of her early life, I imagined that it would be twisting in wry amusement right about now. I had never experienced this side of the Princess before, and the revelation that she was a regular Juliet on the inside was both delightfully charming and humbling. It affirmed my belief that beneath that stately exterior, the Princess was still a woman who wanted to be loved for who she was.

With the bridge crossing put behind them, Celeste forbearingly let her sister take the lead as they wound their way up the spiral pathway of a massive stone spire with the oddest two tone coloration that Celeste had ever seen. Upon closer inspection she could make out symbols and sigils in the rock that were too flawless to be engraved or chiseled in by the hands of men. She couldn’t make heads nor tails of it, but trusted in her wits and whatever mysterious power was guiding her sister, and therefore herself in this unprecedented and most certainly unanticipated quest. Celeste did not care much for surprises, having been always duly informed of the situation before she immersed herself in it. The last time she had went into a trial blind; she was made to watch her home burn to the ground. She resolved to never act spontaneously unless spontaneity itself was part of a larger scheme of her own conception.

It may have been Celeste’s rampant imagination, but she could have swore that she heard someone shouting some kind of declaration at the bottom of the spire, which meant that they were no longer alone. Selene picked up on this too, and raised her pace before they could be hampered. The summit of the spire presented itself forthwith after a few minutes of augmented ambulation, and the sight that awaited them was so incredible that Celeste’s breath froze in her lungs. A majestic, lush landscape spanned the expanse before them, exhibiting a flattish concentration of Flora that just did not occur in the notably mountainous terrain of the Dreamy Vale. The view was only half of the majesty though, for an archway with the most elaborate workmanship stood over them like a solemn giant, waiting to impart its wisdom on a listener worthy enough to hear it, like in her beloved mother’s bedtime stories to Celeste before her sister was born. 

Before either of them could investigate the arch further, the sculpted and intricate lines woven into the Heavensgate lit up and a sphere of blinding light coalesced in its center, forcing Celeste to hold up a hand to shield her eyes. A combination of voices complementing each other and keyed in impeccable Harmony called out to her in her head ‘Come. Do not be afraid, Celeste. We have much to discuss with you’. Selene must have been similarly addressed, for she was functioning of her own accord again and instinctively looked to her elder sister for instruction on how they should proceed. Celeste’s mind randomly turned to disheartening lack of Mana Marks present on their hands, which was something that many people had unkindly pointed out time and time again (After the first fifty occasions of being laughed at, the two had worn gloves). What made them so special that an ordinary return trip from their usual business could switch into the most confounding day of her life?

Even with the benevolent voices’ reassurance, Celeste intuitively feared the uncharted frontier glaring right at her, and her feet felt like leaden bricks tied to her ankles. It was then that one of their mother’s axioms came to mind ‘The baby bird does not know it can fly, even if its parents do, and it will never know unless it takes a leap from the nest. All it needs is faith, the rest is inborn’. It felt comfortingly apposite to this, and Celeste took heart in that. Turning to her sister, she smiled nice and wide, and took her first steps towards her Destiny, which was far beyond anything she could envision for herself. Unexplainably, the memory panned out, as if it was in movie mode. Shadowing Celeste was her sister; the latter’s shade casting itself in a vaguely sinister (and gut wrenchingly familiar) shape for just the fraction of a second. It was taller than its owner, exuded impure ambition, and had practically skeletal wings jutting from its shoulders… unequivocally like the Night Terror.

I would scowl if I could, ‘How could I have seen that? Celeste didn’t look back in the memory’ The literal foreshadowing here was so intense that it boggled the mind.

The memory was curtailed from there, rudely denying my curiosity to her meeting with the Constellar Congress. Apparently I was not privy to the conversation between the Princesses and the Constellar Congress, which would mean that the same would happen to Celestia in my own head. The forbidden memory caused havoc with the overall flow, and they appeared as swiftly as they vanished like a fine mist (One thing was certain though. They no longer lacked for Mana Marks). The dominating emotions and sensations attached to them were likewise accelerated. The first was amazement and a yearning for the mystery savior that the wizard refused to disclose even a sliver of specific information about (Starswirl honored his promises, even when questioned by the pivotal Heroines that would realize his dreams of a united people), then a chill that bit so harshly that I could feel myself shiver even in its phantasmal wake. The sensation after that was annoyance at having her world turned upside down (I think this was meant literally) and a firm resolve to employ the bejeweled Elements that the Watchers in the Stars guided them to in order to put an end to the finicky chaos that was besetting the freshly colonized land.

A short period of peace imbued me with equanimity as she and her sister toiled towards ensuring a prosperous future for the newborn nation of Arcania, balancing political relations between the three clans (No easy feat, given how badly the Skyborn and Stellar Magi abused the Agrarians. It was noble of the Princesses to distance themselves from their Agrarian roots, judging disagreements between the clans with an impartial stance). That fleeting period of peace abruptly shattered when I felt myself consumed with a mixture of heartbreak and sorrow as Celeste’s own flesh and blood betrayed her, declaring that the Night would rule forevermore… and that the Sunraiser was obsolete, coupled with a potent blast of magic that rocked Celestia off her heels and sent her careening into a wall with a sudden stop. Even her bodily hurts paled in comparison to the sheer pain racking her heart. She was forced to make an impossible choice… either forcefully oppose the only family she had left with the very real possibility of slaying her, or condone her domination over the heavens and the unjust treatment of her people. With how much of an upgrade Luna got giving into the Darkness, I did not envy her selection.

Celestia vowed that she would do everything she could to stop atrocities being committed with innocent people caught in the crossfire, even if the one committing those atrocities was her own sister. The Princess was no fool. She knew that an eternal night would devastate not only her fledgling country, but also the whole planet. The lack of sunlight would cause the cessation of the growth of the lion’s share of the crops that kept people and cattle fed. The functioning of Ecosystems would be disrupted as nocturnal creatures over competed with the diurnal ones, who were not adapted to living in such conditions. The overview of what could happen could be summed up as complete disaster. 

Celestia unsteadily rose to her feet as she let her magic suffuse her being, her body radiating light like the Sun as she prepared to make war with her unruly sibling. She had donned an imposing facemask that disguised her expressions, but Celestia knew her well enough to see that she was fully devoted to snuffing out her lurid lights out. The Princess internally cursed herself for being so blind to the turmoil raging inside of her coregent of the firmament. Her sister had been acting strangely in the past, brooding on the moonlit balcony as she watched their subjects sleep with a deep-set scowl on her face, and no matter what Celestia tried to do to restore her spirits, all of her attempts fell flat. She had oft taken to secluding herself in her tower and reading forgotten texts and tomes whose content should not have been taken lightly, what if some eldritch power leapt out of the pages and possessed her into taking up arms against her sister? 

No, it would not do to meditate on this now. Celestia was facing the next great threat to the serenity of the sovereign nation that was Arcania. The castle servants would have doubtlessly witnessed their ‘disagreement’ and would be raising the alarm outside the castle. The people residing immediately under their protection would flee for safety, so there should be a minimum of collateral damage. The… thing that was once her sister saw her rising to the challenge and boomed laughter, as if she was mocking her resistance. It was a dark, terrible laugh that had no place emitting from her sister’s mouth, and it both tore at Celestia’s heart and reinforced her resolve to neutralize her. She tried to reach her sister by calling out her name and pleading for her to cease her destructive actions, but the being standing across from her scoffed, proclaiming that Luna was no more… and that the Night Terror would last as eternally as the night itself. 

The newly christened Night Terror used her magic to tear out a sizable chunk of the castle interior wall and hurled it at her. Celestia dodged and rolled to the side, narrowly avoiding the stony projectile as it crashed to the floor. The Night Terror followed that up with a storm of magic projectiles that were imparted with disturbing accuracy and brawn (stray bolts caused unbelievable damage to their castle, blowing holes in the ceiling and weakening support columns everywhere they struck), though Celestia was capable enough to deflect them aside with her own magic and tossing bolts back at her. This trade of magical fire went on for what felt like hours, though in reality it had only been ten minutes. Seeing that she was not going to defeat her this way, the Night Terror challenged her to settle this dispute of theirs with Mage-blades, and unsheathed hers from the scabbard that was constantly affixed to her hip. Celestia regrettably did so with hers and they rocketed forward at the other with grim determination. The Princess of the Sun was no slouch with a sword, though in her heart she would always be a bow-woman. Regardless, the being that was once her sister retained her sibling’s skill with a blade and slowly pushed her back. The scenery of their clash gradually shifted from the throne room to the tapestry strung (many of which were woven by their grateful subjects as tokens of their sincere gratitude) hallways of their castle.

By then the guards had heard the commotion and were rushing inside the hallway where they were dueling. Celestia screamed at them to withdraw, but the Night Terror would have none of that, fracturing her blade (which had taken on a shadowy aura, like it mirrored its user’s corrupted state) and delivering those fragments into the bulk of their combined mass at high speed. Celestia’s anguished heart had renewed reason to cry out in pain as the shocked guardsmen gaped at the bloody holes in their abdomens before sinking to their knees and dying, killed by one of the very Princesses they had sworn to defend. Fragmenting her own blade to intercept her sister’s attack, Celestia roared in righteous fury as she tackled her enemy to the floor and planted a fist into the facemask covering the Night Terror’s features, causing hairline fractures to appear on its surface. Before she could land another hit, the Night Terror threw some kind of magic cloud in her face that seared at her eyes and blinded her momentarily, giving her the opening she needed to shove her off. With Celestia preoccupied clawing at her eyes to disperse the spell, the Night Terror seized her in a telekinetic field and lobbed her down the hall, sending her smashing through the oaken doors and tumbling down the stairs of the castle courtyard.

The Princess lay dazed on the floor, her vision swimming and hazy, though she was coherent enough to recognize the multicolored gemstones resting in place on the stone pedestal that had served she and her sister so many times in the past. Though the blow had rendered her without breath in her lungs, Celestia was gladdened by the Night Terror’s carelessness, for she now had the means of defeating her outright and possibly without the need to fatally subdue her. Celestia recovered quickly and stood upright, scrambling for the pedestal and placing a hand on it. Sensing her presence, the Virtuous Elements that registered with her started to glow: Generosity, Kindness, and the six pointed gemstone that represented Magic itself. The other gemstones remained inert, as they had belonged to her sister. ‘I beseech you, lend me your aid, or all will be lost’ Celestia had begged aloud… hoping against hope that they would hear her prayers and respond. A moment heavily laden with oncoming despair passed before the remainder of the Elements: Laughter, Honesty, and Loyalty (‘Loyalties change’) lit up and began to thrum with power.

The Princess let out a relieved sob as they floated off the pedestal and encompassed her. The gemstones were not sentient beings themselves, yet they had a bizarre understanding that they could communicate with their bearers. They informed Celestia that their usage on one that had proven worthy of bearing them in this situation would cause an acute dissonance that would leave them petrified and inert for many years. Along with this, the Princesses’ tenure as their bearers would meet its permanent dissolution. Celestia was aghast by this news, but tentatively accepted the terms. The monster parading about in her sister’s flesh had to be stopped, no matter the cost to themselves. She asked what would befall her sibling, but on that the Elements were eerily silent.

She had no time to deduce what this silence meant, as the Night Terror had finished slaughtering the guards that had dared to defy her and walked with an imperious gait that reeked of murderous intent. Ghostly black wings were sprouting from her back and were more ghastly to behold than beautiful. When she saw her sister surrounded by the same Elements that had turned the unstable, unpredictable, and ostensibly limitless being who called himself Discord to stone, she was unafraid. She arrogantly gathering up her magical might and launching a beam of pure energy that would disintegrate lesser beings instantly. The Elements reacted appropriately, shielding her from the attack and even Harmonizing and adding its energy to its rapidly growing own. The Night Terror cursed and redoubled her efforts, though all for naught, as the Elements were implacable in their function. Their charge was nearing their threshold as a ribbon of colorful magical energy circled around Celestia and suffused into her being, healing minor wounds that she had sustained in the fight and empowering her with purpose. Desperate, the Night Terror flung every shard of Blue Moon at her sister, with the goal of negating the Elements and killing her sister in one fell swoop. The Elements anticipated this, and overwhelmed the Night Terror’s influence on the shards with their own, wrenching it from her control and removing her taint from them simultaneously.

With the Elements at full capacity, Celestia closed her eyes and levitated off the floor, her yellow sapphire like Focal Gem ablaze with Arcane energies. When she reopened her eyes, she saw the world around them in an entirely different light, saw every strand of magic permeating the Earth, coursing in and out of the life forms outside the castle grounds, and accumulating in the leylines crisscrossing the planet. She saw the ugliness in her sister’s soul, all of the sentiments of rejection, the bleakness, and the utter desolation that saturated her mind until a rogue spark of anger ignited it into something hateful. Try as she might, Celestia could not bring herself to grieve over her purblind attitude to the struggle simmering within her sister, the sight beyond sight that the Elements bestowed her with told her that Luna transformed into the Night Terror of her own free will. With a heavy heart, Celestia channeled the nigh immeasurable power of the Elements into a spell to restrain the Night Terror. Tendrils of rainbow colored light rippled outwards from the screen of magic the Elements discharged, shooting towards the Night Terror with such a speed that the latter is hardly able to flinch away when they grip her by the arms and legs and suspend her in place. She wrestled and thrashed angrily with the ethereal bonds chaining her limbs, but to no avail. The creature that was once Luna had been served up to Celestia for judgment, and the Elements awaited her sentencing.

With the Night Terror held securely and immobilized where she was, Celestia had the luxury of contemplating her decision. She mentally relayed a question to the Elements regarding whether her sister could be saved or not. One day perhaps, she can be cleansed. Though not by your hands… but twelve others, they replied in a comprehensible voice without sound. Celestia took this bitter pill rather well, all things considered. Sometime during the fight with the Night Terror, Celestia knew that this could only end unhappily. ‘So be it’ She stated in the most solemn, duty bound tone she could muster. ‘Night Terror. You are charged with treason and conspiracy to usurp the throne and mantle of stewardship over the firmament. For your crimes in opposition to the Crown and the people of Arcania… nay, the world, the penalty is banishment from the Earth’ She pronounced judgment upon the wretched monster in her sister’s skin. The Night Terror did not offer an intelligible reply as she glared up at her behind that cracked facemask. Instead she shook and shrieked with animalistic madness as the Elements sent a surge of multihued magic spiraling towards her, spiriting her away to the only location where she could live out her banishment from the Earth, the same moon that she refused to lower.

‘Oh, my dear Luna…’ She said as she stared sadly up at the sky, the Elements of Harmonious Virtues sapping themselves of coloration and petrifying before landing with muted thuds on the stonework after having expended their power for the last time under the Princesses ownership. Clarity returning to her as the magic of the Elements vacated her body, ‘What have I done?’ The quietude was broken by her woeful wail, characterized by unspeakable loss. Without Luna by her side… she was alone in the world, the weight of her chipped tiara digging into her skull with an enormity that was never there before.


⁂


I snapped back to reality with a seamless transition. One moment I was immersed in the memory flow, the next I was cemented in a vigorous lip lock with the Princess, who was likewise anchored in the now. Despite the impropriety of our admittedly compromising position, she did not pull back from our embrace, and neither did I. My hands rose of their own accord and held her close, with one pressed on the small of her back while the other hugged the nape of her neck. Celestia’s full lips tasted sweet and savory, like the various teas that she habitually swilled. It was convenient that the Solar Princess was quite tall for a woman (we were virtually eye to eye on those seldom occasions where she wore heeled shoes), as it meant that I did not have to crane my neck as much we osculated like the world could come crumbling down around us at any time. No words needed to be spoken of this… tender coupling. After seeing things from each other’s personal perspective, our thoughts, feelings, etcetera; I knew of the Princess in an intimate manner nearly identical to the way that Lyra, and by extension Twilight, knew me.

Our mutual affection wound down after a few minutes, as we had to separate in order to draw breath. Still, our eyes were focused on each other in a way they never had been before.

“If only you knew how long I’ve waited to do that” She mused aloud, her eyes half lidded as she leaned on me.

“About a millennium, if your memories were any indication” I remarked with an imperceptible grin.

“You still stink of Hydra” She joked, giggling delightfully, “You are the only person I’ve ever known with the boldness to deliberately brave the stomach of that multi headed beast and live”

I smiled awkwardly, “Yes well… let’s just say that’s the last time I’ll subject myself to that brand of unpleasantness” I changed the subject, “So not to come off as forward or anything… but how does this redefine our relationship?”

“It doesn’t” She answered simply, “I’ve pined for you since first we met, and I know you’ve noticed… even if the truth of the matter eluded even myself for a time. I did not wish to reveal this earlier as I feared that it might somehow interrupt your development as the Hero described in the Prophecy of Dissonance, though if your involvement in my own ascendance was central, then I can infer that the opposite being true would not be unreasonable”

“So business as usual, but with a few more kisses on the side from now on” I summed it up in my concise, blasé attitude.

She nodded slowly, “Just so… although, it will require more than a few kisses to keep your Princess satisfied” She gave me an equivocal smirk that was open to more than one interpretation.

‘What have I got myself into?’ My love life is going to be a complicated affair. That much is guaranteed.

I bowed my head, though maintained eye contact with her, “I’m honored that you harbor these touching sentiments towards me, Celestia. Though may I brazenly ask why you would have me?”

Her eyebrow twitched upwards, “Is my affection that confounding, Zenith?” She returned my question with her own.

“Frankly, it slightly is, Princess” My forehead furrowed and I peered at the Archroom’s fractal ceiling, the light from the Crystal Heart pulsing through the support columns and into the channeling apex, “I mean… you saw events from my own perspective. You saw me at my worst… seriously, what kind of man must I be if I can shutdown my emotions like that and kill whoever I deem an adversary? Or torture someone into revealing the location and weaknesses of their shady organization’s fortress… and then kill them?”

“That’s correct. I experienced everything. Every thought, every emotion that you claim you suppressed, I saw it all” She affirmed in a neutral tone, before pushing a thumb on my chin so that I would meet her firm gaze, “But I also saw you at your best, Zenith. I saw that altruistic side of you when you stepped in for Starswirl and his injured companion at risk to your own health, when you risked it again in those caves… facing down an Ursa Major to ensure that Tough Cookie received the medicine for her treatment” Even she sounded impressed with that feat, “Convincing the Agrarians in Mirrimare to shy away from lethal force, comforting Sweet Pea in the aftermath of her village’s slaughter and seeing her to safety, even doing small services for the people of the Vale as currency to trade in for leads in your search for us. You are more upright than you give yourself credit for, and not as foul as you think”

“That’s all plucky and nice, but does that really excuse the terrible things I’ve done in the name of good?” I posed, unsure of the man that I was turning out to be so far.

She shook her head vigorously, “Who am I to judge you, Zenith? For all my trying years as a vaunted Princess of Arcania, I’ve made my fair share of questionable calls myself, some of which proved to be mistakes in the short and long terms. But I’ve never let them detract from overall meaning to be more of a light to the world than a glaringly sanctimonious figure of hypocrisy” She leaned up to kiss me, a more reassuring gesture than romantic, “Besides… our subjects would doubt my prudent sense if I chose a scoundrel for a consort” She jested with mellow humor.

‘Remind me never to show this woman the first Star Wars trilogy. And a Consort of the Princess? I never envisioned that I’d have that word applied to me. I’ll assume that our subjects refers to the three Princesses’ Celestia had me named me as an Agent of the Crown after all. Less Red Tape that way.

“Well you know me” I demurred, “I do my best to be humble, even if I fail to be modest from time to time. Wouldn’t want to become like the old Blueblood, now would I?”

“No, you should not” She agreed, “So the man who tried to sap us of our power… he is vanquished?”

“Double Cross?” I said with an undertone of caution, “You know he’s the second fallen apprentice of Starswirl’s to try and kill me right? He earned himself a similar fate too, as you no doubt saw for yourself via my memories”

“If you’re concerned about the malediction you punished him with… that was before there were official laws banning the use of blood magicks” Celestia waived off with a shrewd expression, “And it wasn’t exclusively blood magic either. You incanted verses suffused with a power alien to this Earth. What language was it”

My face darkened and my chest tightened, “I invoked the Black Speech of Mordor. A language that I will not utter here. I was only half aware that I was using it, the other half was too consumed with a need to see that man get his just deserts” I grunted negatively, and went into explicative detail, “He was not the true threat, Celestia… not by a country mile. Merely its pawn. One that I’ve made effectively immortal. Crippled and corpselike, but immortal none the less” That is, unless he bothered to repent for the blood on his hands, which isn’t bloody likely.

“If you say that he was a puppet, then who was the master?” She naturally inquired, wanting my opinion despite our joint memories.

“The fell entity that I’m to foil” I replied, “Do you recall the Shards of Sheol? The objects that you sent another of your Agents to retrieve?” I did not wait for her to respond, “Those deathly Shards are the proverbial containment units for the Great Dissonance… and those Shards are waking up all over the world. I don’t know how much time we have to isolate them, and we won’t be the only people seeking them, but it is imperative that we find them all and secure them before those with less than honorable motives do” I held up a finger, “There’s not much cause to worry though, as finding the Shards is the only part that’s problematic. Sheets of moss will be sufficient to keep the Shards’ negative effects from killing anyone”

Celestia processed this with the stern face of ruler, “I will write to the Sultan of Marabia at once. He will be relieved to know there is a cure for what his specialists are calling The Phantom Plague. Albeit, his country has a noticeable lack of moss” She added with faint humor.

“I was told that life is what counteracts the ill effects of the Shards. Sheets of moss seem to be only the most convenient solution. Inform him of that, if you would” I suggested.

“And how shall I explain how I know of this?” She quizzed me, subtly preparing me for the world of political nuances.

I shrugged, “Write that our varied experiments with our own Shard showed these auspicious results, and that as neighborly allies to the Marabian people, we felt obliged to enlighten them with this knowledge” 

She titled her neck, “A lie?”

“Not an outright lie. A timely one” I carefully retorted, “You’ve commanded Daring to get her hands on the one somewhere between Gryphondria and Cervidia, correct? I know Daring Do well enough to know that she’ll stop at nothing till she succeeds in her job. So it’s a question of when, not if” Besides… if the Sultan suspected us of lying, would he really go so far as to demand we show him ours? After what the one he had did to his people?

She curled her fingers as she mulled on it, “Not as transparent as I would have initially surmised, though I will politely refrain from mentioning our own search for the Shards… which is more crucial that it appears. I will factor this into your future assignments when and where I feel it necessary. Fear not. I will not stymie the Star-brought purpose of the Starwalker. I vow it on my honor and life” She promised me.

“You don’t need to promise me that, my precious Princess. I trust in your judgment, Celestia” I ran my hands down the porcelain skin of her arms before settling on her elbows, as I touched my forehead to hers, “Just as I trust in you”

Without warning, Celestia began humming the intro stanza to ‘You are my Sunshine’ and caressed my cheek, showering me with her displays of endearment. Telegraphing that she was awake when I sang that to her, over a dozen lifetimes ago for her. That she’d remembered it so faithfully was strangely flattering.

I gawked at her, “You heard that?” I wasn’t the biggest fan of singing, only seldom doing so and for damn extenuating reasons.

She swayed side to side in a knowing fashion, “I may not have been as incapacitated as you initially assumed. You have a lovely singing voice, Zenith. I would trade a hundred of the finest cherry chiffon cakes produced by Sweet Tooth’s confectionary to hear it on a regular basis”

I had no words for that, which was a rare occurrence for someone like me. If I tried to muster a response, I was afraid I might stammer and look a fool, which would have been a poor impression indeed.

She had the good grace not to make me squirm for her amusement, “Enough of this drab talk. Death wakes, but Life waits for no one. Come” She held out her hand to me, “There’s a welcoming party that you’re expected at. And I suspect that you will want to comfort two of the Element Bearers in particular. Afterwards I have a task for you that we must discuss privily”

“I live to serve, your Highness” I did my best gentlemanly bow with a servile hand on my chest, only to receive a flick of her finger on my cranium. With the Princess being a Trifect like myself, it stung.

“You can start by ceasing that falsely obsequious behavior of yours” She chided me, “Now take my hand” She ordered in a no nonsense voice.

I acquiesced like a proper Agent of the Crown, rubbing at the afflicted spot to wipe away the stinging pain. Celestia’s Focal Gem flashed like a sunburst for a second and my vision was filled with whiteness, my equilibrium scrambled like an egg as I moved everywhere and nowhere simultaneously. When the dazzling effect of someone else’s teleport wore off, my stomach settled back into my gut and I effected a brief shake of my head to clear the sensation of imbalance. I really despised being teleported.

The Princess stifled a titter as she witnessed my discomfort, “Still unused to those instant travel spells, Zenith?”

“No. It’s just disorienting when someone else hitches me along on theirs” I groused. At least she gave me warning before she did it, unlike a certain sister of hers.

The Princess had the foresight not to flash us directly into the Great Hall and scare the wits out of anybody not expecting us. The Guards armored in glittering crystalline armor were at least trained to retain their stoic composure when Mages were about, though their eyes did scan us to appraise for a threat level. Once they deemed us as friendlies, their rigid posture relaxed the smallest degree and they bowed their heads to the Princess, who put them at ease with a lazy hand signal. The Guards pushed the door behind them with an armored fist not clutched onto their spears and we walked inside.

Within the first five seconds it was overtly apparent to me that Pinkie had free reign to plan my ‘Welcome back from your profound journey of truth and self discovery!’ party, as evidenced by the arched banners hanging from above by anchoring points suction cupped to the ceiling. 

‘How in the world could she know what I’ve been doing? I doubt Lyra blabbed to her about it. The only possible explanation is…’ No, it’s better if I don’t look too deep into that.

Decorative garlands of snowflakes and fragrant flowers lent the air a pleasing aroma of winter and the ensuing springtime. The trestle tables were for the most part devoid of decoration, but at the end of those tables was a lineup of delectable looking foods and desserts, some of which I had partaken of while traveling in the Dreamy Vale. Roasted Goose with peppercorn gravy slathered over the succulent flesh (imported I bet), honey cakes implanted with honeycombs to enhance the theme, meat and onion skewers, and a rack of lamb baked in a crust of garlic and herbs, garnished with sprigs of mint and encompassed by creamy mashed potatoes. Liquid refreshments included fluted drinking glasses of Crystal Berry Cider. The tasty buffet before me made my stomach growl like a vehement Manticore, eliciting a giggle from the Princess. The entire assemblage of the Elements, Princess Luna, Princess Cadence (who was sitting at the foot of the table, as befit her status as the regent of this Kingdom), and her consort were apparently chatting the evening away waiting for us. Spike was nowhere to be seen (poor guy wasn’t invited, I suppose). The noise of the doors swinging wide drew their attention, though the Pink One was the first to react, jumping up from her seat and zipping down the aisle with such swiftness that her hyper energetic form practically had blur lines.

“Zenith! Hey!” She greeted me like I hadn’t been gone a second in her eyes, “So… whataya think?” She elbowed me and wiggled her eyebrows in ways that shouldn’t have been humanly possible, “Not too shabby huh?”

“Well… you forwent the aspect of surprise this time, so I can definitely approve” Mister Tummy grumbled again, “It seems my stomach certainly does anyway” I japed, “So how’d you know when to plan this little social function? No wait! Lemme guess… Pinkie Sense?” I deadpanned.

She nodded excitedly, “Yup! Pinkie Sense. C’mon!” She wrapped her arm around my elbow and tugged at me to follow, “Even I can’t eat all of this banquet food myself. The Citadel staff was so nice to put this together at my request. I should bake them a few batches of my special ‘Thank you for being so nice’ cupcakes!”

“You should” I agreed, before offering my arm to Celestia like a right Gentleman, “If you would be so kind to accompany me formally, Your Grace?”

She laughed, “Isn’t it a bit too soon for us to declare our newfound stance towards each other for all to see? Have you no fear of what others may think?”

I grinned roguishly at her, “Do I come off as a man that fears such trivial things?” I shot back.

She held a hand to her lips and giggled, “My suitor is very brave indeed. Very well” She linked with me, “Escort your Princess to the table”

Pinkie was either oblivious to the romantic banter between us or turned a blind eye to it, “Standing here won’t make the food any warmer, Zenny” She chided me harmlessly, “Fluttershy and Rarity were being such sad sacks earlier too! They’ll feel better knowing that you’ve been off exploring, adventuring, and fulfilling ancient prophecy!” She chirped, exhibiting disturbing foreknowledge of my activities.

“I’m going to ignore that last part” I muttered, before we joined the others who were watching my semi intimate contact with Celestia with barely hidden intrigue.

Fluttershy and Rarity were looking at me (Well… Fluttershy was glancing at me with wet eyes, while Rarity was lowering at me sullenly, like I owed her an explanation), Applejack seemed indifferent to my return while Rainbow wore an angry scowl, like my absence was a personal insult to her. Twilight was whispering to Cadence, who was sipping daintily at her wine glass, while Shining Armor did his best to pretend I wasn’t there, or gallivanting about with a Princess on his arm. Luna had no expression of note, though her eyes stayed hooked on her sister’s for a perceptible moment. 

‘Still bitter about that three way matchup, Shiny? Such jealously is unbecoming in a Prince’ I mentally quipped, taking a seat next to Pinkie and the Sun Princess.

Cadence took a spoon and tapped it on her wine glass to make an announcement, “Our guest of honor and contest champion has finally arrived. Now before we all launch into some grand inquiry regarding some of his… err latest actions, I humbly request that we temporarily set our concerns aside and enjoy a meal together like civilized folk” She gracefully entreated of her guests.

Shining wasn’t ready to drop the issue, “Seriously, hon? He’s the reason why our Household Guard burst in us while we were…” His wife leveled a fierce glare at him that warned him against completing that sentence, eliciting him to cough and clear his throat, “That sound crystal and bizarre song had his name written all over it!”

“We cannot prove anything, my love. The magical energy was prearranged to dissipate upon contact, so the signature could not be tracked” She reminded him with gritted teeth, “Even if he was our mystery prankster, we are indebted to the man who prevented a catastrophe from occurring at this city’s first hosted event in a millennium!” She smiled a white, mildly menacing smile at him, “So it can be overlooked”

‘God, I hope my marriage isn’t like that’ Even though he did not have the friendliest disposition towards me, I could sympathize with him.

Defeated and not desiring further hen pecking, Shining sank sulking into his seat and pounded back his own wine glass. Without further ado, Cadence clapped her hands and attendants bearing elegant plate ware set their cargo in front of each, along with our silverware. I observed a few of the Elements close their eyes for half a minute before serving themselves some food. I shut mine and said a quick prayer of thanks for my meal before helping myself to some roasted goose like my inner fat-ass demanded. Our dinner wasn’t as dignified an affair as Cadence would have preferred, with Pinkie relating some anecdotes between noisy bites of her food and laughing messily at her own jokes. Whereas she was happy and loud, the others were solemn and silent, their searching eyes speaking more than their mouths ever could as they took sparing bites of their food. I missed each of them more than I cared to admit while I was off in another world and time, but this cold welcome nigh had me yearning for the dangers of Precania. Those I could deal with just fine… this accusatory stillness required a different breed of stratagem that did not come inherently to me.

Once our meals were concluded, any pretenses of approaching me in an orderly fashion were defenestrated out the window. Fluttershy and Rarity pulled me to the side and bombarded me with a mixture of kisses and interest in my disappearance. Apparently Fluttershy and Rarity were there when news of the Princess’s inability to scry for me was disclosed to Twilight, and either she explained the morbid implications of that to them, or they deduced it for themselves. They were placated by a succinct summary of what happened to me the night I disappeared and hugged me like a pair of constrictors, pleading that I never put the fear in them like that again. It wasn’t a pledge I could realistically keep, but I made it anyways. Twilight had spoken her peace to me this afternoon, and was content to resume her discourse with her sister in law and her brother. Rainbow avoided me, made some excuse about sleep, and left for her room. Applejack apologized on her behalf, welcomed me back with an amiable hug, and jogged after her. Pinkie must have been hungry, because she was polishing off that plate of honey cakes like it was her last meal. 

Luna’s request was the memorable one though, “Zenith?” She addressed me in a rare tone of thankfulness, “We were most flattered by your musical performance in the opening event of the games, particularly by the closing song. We must know… were the lyrics dedicated in our honor?”

“They were, Princess,” I confirmed, “though I am not the man who wrote them. Why do you ask?”

“We were wondering if it would not be too much to supplicate you to perform for us a second time?” Her eyes cast downward almost shyly, “We must confess that we always had a weakness for the Bardic Arts, and yours is the closest approximation of it that we know of”

I contemplated something appropriate to play for the Princess of the Moon, “I’ve a musical piece in mind, though it’s without lyrics and I will need a piano for it” I stipulated.

Cadence had been eavesdropping, and vocalized enthusiastically, “There’s a piano right there” She pointed at the upright version of the instrument with wine glass still in hand, “I’ve had it recently installed, though I’ve yet to find a musician eager to stay here long enough to play it regularly, and my subjects are unfamiliar with keyed instruments. Though heaven knows they try, bless their hearts”

“Huh…” I replied dumbly, “I’ve never noticed that before” To be fair, it was secluded in a recess right next to the stairs leading to the kitchens.

I ambled over to the black paneled instrument and slid out the flat conductor’s chair before sitting, pushing up the wood covering the keys and making sure it was in tune. It had been a while, relative to the time I had been experiencing, since I had played any instrument at all, so I had a moment to myself ensure that my fingers were limber and ready for the task. When I was confident in my abilities to entertain my audience, I pressed down on the keys as the beginning notes to Claude Debussy’s Clair De Lune rang out in the air of the Crystal Citadel for the first time in its history. My feet worked the pedals of the piano as functioned best for the acoustics of the Great Hall. All talking was hushed by the music, which had a pensive, slightly bittersweet feeling to it that would engender tears in the more sensitive of listeners. As it was, this song condensed my own relationship with the decision I had made declaring this world to be my home, and these people with me my new family. My fingers danced along the keyboard and my body swayed as the song picked up, and I could all but see myself soaring amongst the night sky, resolute in my renewed purpose to defend this world and all that was good in it.

Eventually, the song wound down as the ending notes drifted in the Great Hall with a small echo. I doubt I did that one the same justice that my great aunt on my father’s side of the family could have done, but the applause and the occasional fit of sniffles I received from every woman present assured me that it was sufficient for them. I got to my feet and bowed stiffly, noticing Celestia curl a finger at me that notified me that it was time for us to ‘discuss privily’. Luna had a pleased glint in her eyes, though her lips betrayed absolutely nothing. I resisted a smile when Cadence was sobbing happily in the arms of her husband, who murmured comfortingly to her as he stroked at her sorbet hair.

I trailed the Princess to another of those mini balconies, where she stood erect and proud.

“You had matters you wished to confer with me, Celestia?” I cut right to the point.

“Yes, Zenith” She twisted her neck a few degrees back to me, “Excellent rendition by the way. That was a very moving piece. Even Luna was touched by its sheer sense of subtle emotion” She complimented me.

“Debussy was inspired when he wrote it. And I was likewise inspired to memorize the entire song” With the aid of muscle memory based magic, of course, “But we’re getting off topic here”

“So keen are you to dive into your duties, is it?” She nodded, “I shall not keep you in suspense then. It has come to my attention recently that a representative of mine will be needed to settle a delicate dispute happening to the South of the Capital, near the frontier town of Appleloosa”

“What kind of delicate dispute?” I fished for more info.

“That kind that could threaten to send that region into mortal conflict” She vocalized gravely, “The Native tribes living in that area are accusing the locals of abducting their people, though they have no evidence beyond claims that masked gangs on horseback wielding what they refer to as ‘Thunder-Horrors’ have been attacking their weakest settlements and making off with their women and children, whilst killing any man who tries to oppose them. Further compounding the issue, the Head Chieftain of the Buffalo Brave’s daughter has vanished without a trace. He is most distraught about this, and has been sending a combination of requests and threats for us to help her turn up again”

“Bandits?” I guessed, “But crime is virtually non existent here”

“These kidnappings are a recent development, and the presence of guardsmen in the Southwest is lacking in comparison to other localities. The region is rife with malcontent, Zenith. The denizens of the Buffalo Braves are being aggressively stolen out from under their noses and they are searching for someone to blame, the logical one being their Arcanian neighbors with whom they’ve had grievances with in the past. The Appleloosians are the most convenient option in their eyes. Some organized band of outlaws is killing these Natives and seizing their women and children for an unknown reason. The Braves have never included themselves as citizens of the Kingdom, but they are under the crown’s protection never the less” She glanced away to the moon hanging in the stars, “There is more. I know where the Chieftain’s daughter is”

“You do?” I was momentarily caught off guard, “Then why not reunite them and put that problem to bed?”

She scoffed, “Your choice of words is ironic. Young Strongheart has sought refuge in Dodge Junction because of a bed she does not want to be compelled into”

“May I know who watches over her?” Somebody had to have discreetly brought this to the Princess.

“A Miss Cherry Jubilee, owner of the Cherry Ranch where Strongheart and her… romantic partner are laying low” Her scowl spoke volumes about her opinion about who this partner was, “She also happens to be one of my contacts monitoring the overall health of her sector”

“Sector?” That’s some shady terminology no matter where it’s used.

“Miss Jubilee is one of many unassuming servants to the Crown with considerable influence over the areas where they preside” She explained, “Miss Jubilee’s Ranch supplies the majority of Arcania with fresh fruit. I believe Sweet Tooth’s confectionary orders their cherries from her exclusively”

“And she felt it prudent to tell you that she was harboring two runaway lovers?” And after her guests presumably trusted her with secrecy, claiming that their love was just? That’s cold. Dutiful, but chilly as hell.

“It is not her job to sympathize, but to be my eyes and ears on the goings on in the Kingdom” Celestia retorted, “That’s not to say that I won’t sympathize with Strongheart’s decision. She claimed that the suitor that her father had in mind for her was little better than a thickheaded beast. But that thickheaded beast is also the one championing an attack on the settlers of Appleloosa as retribution for their losses, though Strongheart knows this not to be true. She was among those willing to compromise with the settlers when their apple orchards encroached upon the buffalo grazing grounds. Strongheart could convince her potential husband to stand down, on account of their sealed marriage. The daughter of the Chieftain commands considerable respect being of his blood alone”

I hummed pensively, “So how do I factor into this minefield of an issue?”

She anticipated this one, and responded fast, “You will be my appointed representative to deliver Strongheart back to her father to secure this marriage, with the ultimate goal of relieving the building tension between the natives and the settlers. Secondly you are to investigate the matter of the Natives’ kidnapping and bring whoever is responsible to justice by any means necessary. You will depart the morn after next, when the lovers will feel most secure in their… escapade of a demonstration”

“I’ll need to speak with Discord on the morrow then” I told her, “I’ve a favor to call in with him that should aid me in this endeavor” And help me accomplish another unspoken fancy of mine in the process.

She stared at me analytically, “Tread carefully around that one, Zenith. Reformed he may be… but Discord has a fondness for warping one’s own words against them”

“So you’ll summon him?” I said hopefully, that empty spot by my hip almost palpable.

She waved a hand dismissively, “You will see that he has a method for summoning himself when he feels it fitting to his own twisted idea of entertainment”

Boy, I knew that all too well.

I scratched my head, “Who is this mystery beau of Strongheart’s anyway? The one who eloped with her to Dodge Junction?”

She gave me a curious, sidelong look, “Why… none other than Applejack’s cousin. Braeburn Apple”