Adventures of Ise

by Ise no Kami

Soul of Crystal

The streets of the Crystal Empire, bustling centers of joy and merriment, grew quiet as their recent visitor wandered through the town. A Diamond Dog, an anomaly not only in this land of crystal equines, but among his own kind, made his way through the city to a destination he couldn’t discern. His stride was slow and uncertain...and bipedal; he found the half bi-, half quadruped stance of other dogs unnatural for a reason he couldn’t describe. Likewise, his clothes were unique to him among his race, a regal black jacket he mustered the will to have the local tailor make.

He was an anomaly, and the true nature of the silence reflected that: the Crystal ponies around him didn’t feel threatened, he hadn’t done anything to harm them, yet they always felt uneasy in his presence. Not that he could blame them: his mind was a broken mess, void of memories, only the nagging feeling that he was missing more than just his past. He himself felt uneasy in his own skin, what with the constant haze looming over his psyche. It was that haze that led to his aimless wandering, seeking a path forward that he wasn’t even sure existed.

The only clue he had to who he was, unfortunately, didn’t really help the unease he seemed to spread in these poor ponies. Attached to a belt around his waist was the sheath to a brilliant sword, a beautiful blue gem embedded in the hilt. Of course no one would want to approach him while he openly carried a weapon through the city, even if he had no intention of using it. Still, he couldn’t leave it be or toss it aside: some fragment of his mind told him the blade was vitally important, either as a piece of who he was...or to forge a new path to the future.

His wandering soon brought him to the outer edge of the local park. A place of peace and tranquility...yet this one section elicited nothing but dread from the populace. Even in his hazy state, he couldn’t help but notice the house across the street, once a brilliant work of crystal like the others around it, now impaled on towering black spires. That had been happening a lot lately, and the ponies’ speculation didn’t seem to make sense; in the same breath that they mentioned this “Sombra” character, they would say that he was already gone. Not that the dog really bothered processing gossip; he had enough on his plate as it was. Seeking tranquility, he absentmindedly took a seat on one of the park benches.

“You new around here too?”

The dog nearly jumped out of his seat, startled by the green cat on the bench he had failed to notice. The cat gave him an odd, but concerned look. “You okay there? You seem kinda out of it.”

“Y-yes,” the dog replied, regaining what composure he had. “I’m sorry, I just…” He trailed off, unsure how to respond…

“Not used to talking, are you?” the cat asked, fiddling with his purple jacket. “Can’t say I blame you; they may be all about friendship, but these ponies aren’t exactly as friendly with other species as they’d like to be. I’ll bet walking around town like a zombie wasn’t making you any more approachable, either.”

Well, you’re not exactly wrong there, the dog thought to himself. However, he couldn’t seem to verbally respond outside of stutters. The cat gave off this exuberant energy that had been completely foreign to him for quite some time, and he seemed completely unable to process it.

“Oh, sorry, haven’t introduced myself yet,” the cat realized, moving the conversation right along as he held his paw out. “The name’s Ise. What’s yours?”

“Ee...say…?” The dog wondered, before his hazy mind slowly processed the introduction. In turn, he gently reached forth and took the cat’s paw in his. “My...my name is...Alex.”

“Alex, huh? Weird name for a Diamond Dog, but I think it suits you,” Ise noted. “Well, I can’t leave you here; why don’t you come grab lunch with me?”

“H-huh? But-“

“Hey, it’s fine, I’m paying. Now, there’s gotta be a good food joint around here somewhere…”

---

“Ah, that hit the spot,” Ise sighed as he finished his half of pizza.

Alex sat silently with his food, taking his time rather than wolfing it down, ironic for a “Diamond Dog” with more similarity to a wolf. Though he enjoyed the meal, he simply stared into space, beyond the silver hair that hung just off to the sides of his eyes, too lost in thought and awkward to start a conversation with this strange creature who treated him like a close friend.

“You look like you have something to say,” Ise noted, breaking the silence as he took a sip of his milk. “You can speak up, I won’t bite.”

“...why are you being so nice to me?” Alex asked.

“Honestly, because you look like you need it,” Ise replied. “You just look...lost. And I’ll bet a good part of that is how lonely you’ve been.” He downed his milk, leaving the empty glass on the table as he leaned back. “You need a friend, and I’m happy to fill the role.”

“That’s nice, I guess,” Alex replied somewhat gratefully, “but that still doesn’t explain why you of all creatures are reaching out like this.”

Ise gave a playful smirk. “That’s just who I am.”

“Who you are…” Alex trailed off, lost in thought. “I don’t even know who I am, I haven’t for quite some time. My...my mind is blank…”

“Join the club.”

“What?” Alex shot back, surprised.

“You heard me,” Ise answered, that smirk still on his face. “I’ve got a pretty big blank space in my memories too.”

For a short moment that seemed infinite to the wolf, he sat dumbfounded at this revelation...or rather, at the smug smile on his new acquaintance’s face. For all this time, he had struggled with his lost past, among other things...and right across from him sat a creature in the same situation, who seemed proud of his lost memory. “Don’t...don’t you wonder who you were?” he finally mustered out.

“Eh, not really,” Ise casually replied, shocking Alex once more. “I mean, sure, I occasionally wonder who I was before the amnesia, but I’ve built a pretty good life for myself without my memories. I’ve rebuilt from scratch. And the way I see it, who I was doesn’t really matter when I’m quite happy with who I am.”

Rebuilding...starting from scratch to build a new “self”...somehow these thoughts had never occurred to Alex. “That’s just me, though,” Ise continued, noting his new comrade trying to process. “If you feel what you lost is important to you, by all means seek it out. Even then, though, clearly what you’re doing now isn’t working.” Right around then, the check arrived. Ise put a pawful of bits on the table, and got up to leave...but not before one look back at the wolf.

“Seems like it’s high time you stopped looking for who you are, and decide that for yourself.”

The cat left the restaurant, leaving his canine companion to contemplate their discussion on identity. As Alex dwelled on his words, he felt, for the very first time, the haze in his mind beginning to lift.

---

It had only been a couple days prior that Ise had come to the Crystal Empire on a job. A very special job, as his clients this time were none other than the royal family themselves. The job was a bit tricky, but that just made the cat more interested: shadow magic was seeping into the Crystal Empire, covering the city in black crystal a little bit at a time. The attacks were distant and small enough for Princess Cadence to undo the darkness with the Crystal Heart, but that was starting to drain on her day after day, and there were still repairs to be made afterward.

“Okay, so why call me?” Ise inquired almost immediately. “I mean, it’s a good call, but I’d heard you guys were, uh, well-versed in this kind of stuff. And I gotta say, the guards up here look far more capable than their friends down south. I’m glad you called me, but why do you NEED me?”

“Yes, we do have very able guards,” Prince Shining Armor acknowledged, “but we’ve learned the hard way that shadow magic is much harder to fight than you’d think. I have no doubt that our soldiers could track down the criminal; bringing them to justice is a different story.” The Prince looked to the side with this last statement, clearly frustrated that the best his Empire could provide, an effort far better than other pony military, was still proven inadequate in this situation.

“Say no more,” Ise replied, a wide grin involuntarily spreading across his face at the mere thought of throwing down with power like that.

“You’re free to join the search for the perpetrator,” Shining explained. “Your presence doesn’t invalidate the guards; you’re here to help them, not replace them.”

“I’d be worried if I was,” Ise pointed out. “You still gotta keep your ponies safe from everything else too.”

“Daddy? Is something wrong?” Ise turned to see Flurry Heart enter the room, wiping the sleep from her eyes with her wing.

“No, sweetie,” Shining comforted her, embracing his child, “everything’s going to be alright.”

Ise took in this warm embrace, realizing the peace this father wanted for his child now rested on his shoulders. “Alright, you have my word. I’ll see this through.”

---

Alex found himself wandering again, this time out into the snowy fields beyond the city. Ise’s words continued to echo in his mind, making him question the shell of a life he had been living for the past few years. Finally, he came to a stop, letting his thoughts sink in.

“Make my own ‘self’, huh?” he contemplated. “As if it were really that easy.”

Just then, he remembered the sword attached to his waist. For all the importance he’d felt it had, all this time he had never drawn it. Now might be the time, he thought. He still had no intention of harming anyone, but as he pulled the blade from its sheath for the first time, let the silver blade and the jewel on its hilt gleam in the pale light of day, he knew this was the first step toward his future.

As he held the sword aloft, his thumb shifted, lightly touching the jewel...and suddenly the sword burst with magical energy, the blade singing with frigid cold, the gem shining with power. Alex shied away from his own blade, almost dropping it. As the shock wore off, however, he examined this odd magic within his weapon. He quickly noticed that, though he was no longer touching the jewel after his bout of surprise, the blade’s chilling air still poured forth. And yet, when he began to wonder how to stop this reaction, the magic suddenly died. It didn’t take long for Alex to realize what this meant: the gem was a catalyst, but the magic was inside him.

“Nice light show.” Alex whipped around, surprised to see Ise behind him, clapping at this discovery.

“I...I don’t understand,” the wolf responded. “That was magic. I have magic. How can someone who isn’t a pony have magic?”

“Don’t quite have an answer for you, sadly,” Ise replied. “That said, you’re not the only one.” He held up a paw, letting electricity crackle from his claws.

This gesture both reassured and confused Alex. “Why us, then?” he wondered. “Why are we so different from our own kind?”

“Hmm, couldn’t tell you,” Ise responded. “Then again, maybe ‘our kind’ isn’t our species.” He took a few steps forward, placing a friendly paw on Alex’s shoulder. “Maybe ‘our kind’ is each other. We’re unique, and we should celebrate that.”

“I’m not sure I have much to celebrate,” Alex lamented, “though that’s not to say I have nothing. Not anymore.” He looked down at his blade, contemplating his power. “The path ahead isn’t quite clear yet...but I finally feel there’s something I can reach.”

The wolf began to sheath his sword, ready to return to society. “Hold up a second,” Ise called out. “Mind if I look at that for a second?” Confused, Alex handed the sword over. The cat examined the hilt thoroughly, his fingers finding a button where the grip met its center. With a press of the button, the metal around the embedded jewel retracted, leaving the gem free to be removed from its setting.

“Interesting…” Ise noted, taking the gem from the hilt. Keeping it, he gave the blade back to its owner. “Hey, mind if I hold on to this beauty for a bit? I’ll have it back by tomorrow, promise.”

Alex was confused by this request, but looking into his friend’s eyes, he felt he could trust him. “Alright then,” he acquiesced, taking the empty blade and sheathing it. “Guess I’ll...see you tomorrow, then?”

Ise gave a friendly smirk. “Plan on it.”

---

Swift Sapphire grumbled under his breath as he watched the sun set from the door of the post office. His coworkers passed him by, going on their way home with smiles that irritated him more, turning back and waving at the stooge they forced to work overtime sorting the mail late into the night. He shouldn’t have even been stuck with the job; he was a delivery pony, not a mail sorter.

“Hey, Ruby,” Swift called out to the last coworker to leave. “Remind me again why I’m the one stuck with this?”

“Oh, I dunno,” the rose-colored pegasus replied in a playfully malicious manner. “Why don’t you ask the last three ponies you tried to deliver pastries to?” Swift had no response but more grumbling; pastry packages didn’t really agree with him...as his coworkers would constantly remind him by sticking the returned boxes full of splattered treats in his locker. Ruby chuckled. “See you tomorrow, Swifty.”

Reluctantly, he headed back into the now quiet building, resigning himself to a long night of boring sorting. The hours passed slowly, the lights in the back room becoming a beacon among the eerie darkness of midnight. Amidst that darkness, Swift could barely discern a shadow passing by, just out of the corner of his right eye, not obscured by his midnight blue mane like his left. He gave only a second’s consideration to this, before assuming his mind was playing tricks on him, and returning to his work.

And then all hell broke loose.

Swift jolted upward as he noticed the room darken. The lights hadn’t dimmed; rather, the very crystal the building was made of was dulling. Then the dark spikes began to burst forth from the floor. Quite quick on his hooves, Swift tried to rush outside...but even he wasn’t fast enough. Before he could leave the room, let alone the building, the spikes blocked his path. Before he could even consider his next escape route, giant dark crystals burst forth from the ground, pinning him to the wall by his neck. He tried his hardest to break himself free, but with the spire pressing on his windpipe, he lost his strength fast. The last thing he saw was the darkness fully overtaking the post office, before his whole world turned black.

---

“Alright, everypony, get back,” one of the Empire’s majestic purple guards ordered to a curious and frightened public. “Nothing to see here.”

The desecrated post office was cordoned off, not that anypony would have that fun a time getting into a structure mostly filled with dark crystal at this point. Even so, many ponies gathered around, whispering in fear as morbid curiosity forced their hooves toward the disaster site. Most notably, the mail ponies who worked there gathered, regretting how their actions the night before had put one of their own in harm’s way.

“If I’d known this would happen, I never would’ve made him stay,” Ruby lamented.

“Don’t blame yourself, Miss,” the guard responded. “None of you could have known. Thankfully, we were able to break him free; he’s likely still unconscious, but we were able to save him. For now, go about your day...uh, as well as you can, without a place of business.”

Grateful for the news, the mail ponies left the scene. The rest of the crowd started to clear out soon after, leaving only the guards in charge of the scene. The first guard was soon approached by one of his identical comrades. “Geez, this stuff is getting worse and worse by the day,” the second guard complained.

“Yeah. I mean, the attacks haven’t been this bad before,” the first guard responded, turning toward the dark wreck behind him. “For Celestia’s sake, somepony almost died this time.”

“I noticed the last few attacks haven’t even been cleaned up yet,” the second noted. “Princess Cadence must be having a really bad time of it. Think we’re gonna be okay?”

“...can’t say for sure,” the first lamented. “If Sombra has returned, I doubt we’ll be able to take him down, as much as I hate to admit it.”

“Good thing he’s not back then, eh?” The two guards swiveled around to see the feline mercenary had casually walked up to them while they were both lost in thought.

“Well, if it isn’t the outside help,” the second guard scoffed. “And how exactly HAVE you been helping, huh? By laying back and enjoying yourself while we’re under attack?”

“Oh please, you wound me,” Ise snarked. “Look, I may not have seen Sombra...ever, but I’ve done my research since I got here. And frankly, these smaller strikes just aren’t his style. From what I’ve heard, he’d just storm in and take the place over on day 1, rather than waste time on smaller attacks.” He walked past the guards, putting a paw to the dark crystal. “No, this is something else.”

He has a point, the guards begrudgingly thought. After all, he was spot on about Sombra’s style; that was pretty much how things went the last time he attacked. Even so…

“You never even considered someone else could even do this, could you?” Ise called them out. “It’s written all over your faces.”

“Alright then,” the first guard began, just about done with being talked down to by this outsider, “who do you think IS behind all this.”

Ise simply responded with his trademark smirk. “You just leave that to me.” He turned to leave, only to stop himself as he passed the guards again. “Uh, could either of you tell me where I can find a good jeweler?”

---

Once again, Alex wandered into the frozen wastes beyond the city limits. This time, however, he wasn’t doing so out of his usual aimless meandering: Ise had specifically called him out here. As he trudged through the heavy snow, he kept his eyes on the green cat right in front of him, the jacket hanging so loose that even from behind, he could tell the feline had left it open.

“Aren’t you cold?” he asked.

“Of course, it’s cold as Tartarus up here,” Ise replied honestly. “Then again, if I let the cold get to me, I wouldn’t be good at my job, would I?”

“Job…” Alex noted, realizing he hadn’t even considered what his new comrade did for a living. “What exactly IS your job?”

“I’m a mercenary,” Ise responded. “Funny word for saying I do odd jobs. Protect a town here, nab a priceless relic there, so long as I get paid and I have fun with it, I’ll take it.” Finally, the cat came to a stop, quickly whipping around to throw a bag back at the wolf. “Oh hey, this is for you.”

Alex barely managed to catch the bag, surprised as he was by having it sprung on him in the first place. Opening it, he saw it was full of gems like the one he had loaned to Ise the day before, all different kinds cut the same exact way. He reached inside and pulled one out, a flawless ruby.

“Thought I’d help you test out your powers,” Ise explained. “I guessed your power doesn’t react the same to every jewel. Why don’t you try that out now?”

Though Alex obliged, he didn’t bother drawing his sword. Holding the ruby in his palm, he focused hard on the gem, attempting to get a reaction from it with solely his own power. It worked almost immediately, the jewel bursting into flame in his paw.

“Yes, figured it would work like this,” Ise cheered. “Or, I hoped, at least; those jewels weren’t exactly cheap. In any case, that sword of yours seems to let you swap the jewels out, so if you don’t want to go around freezing stuff, you can swap in something else. Oh, and the old one’s in there too; it was only on loan, after all.”

After dropping the ruby back into the bag, he reached further in. Sure enough, he pulled out the same turquoise gem he’d always had. Pulling out his sword just enough to mess with the hilt mechanism, he put the gem back in its place, and hung the sack opposite his sheath on his belt. He opened his mouth to thank his comrade, but something stopped him, a sudden curiosity in this cat’s life.

“I’m assuming you’re here on a job,” Alex states instead. “What could bring you to a place like this?”

“Right, the job,” Ise chuckled. “Don’t worry, this one’s on the up and up. I’m just helping the guards with their recent...problem.” The look on Alex’s face told him no further explanation was needed.

“Ah, I see,” Alex replied wistfully. “So, when the dark crystals are dealt with...you’re going to leave?”

“‘Fraid so,” Ise answered honestly, feeling Alex’s sadness stab him through the heart. “I’ve got a home all the way on the other side of the planet, and my jobs take me all over the world. I can’t really afford to stick around.” Suddenly, he had an idea. “You know what, I should probably give the royals a report anyway; maybe I can pull a string or two and get you in to meet them.”

“Wait, what?” Alex wondered, absolutely dumbfounded by the prospect.

“Hey, you want local friends, I’m gonna help you make some,” Ise explained with a smile on his face. “Well, in this one way that I can; I don’t exactly know anyone else up here either.”

Alex was paralyzed, unable to process the offer he was given. Slowly, though, the shock made way for delight. “Yes, I...I think I’d like that,” he finally replied.

“Great!” Ise cheered. “Now then, I’d better go work out the details. See you tonight.”

---

As the sun began its descent, just beginning to give the sky an orange hue, Alex stood frozen at the gates of the crystal palace. Every nerve in his body was tingling, screaming at him to turn away from this fateful meeting. The voice in the back of his mind hammered doubt into him, making him wonder if the royals would accept him, if they even agreed to Ise’s proposal to begin with. However, slowly he pushed his doubts aside, remembering that he had nothing to lose here. Carefully, he put a paw on the front door, finally setting foot inside the palace.

He was immediately greeted by two guards, their stoic expressions tinged with hostility. For a moment, Alex believed his worst fear had come true, that he had been rejected outright. He turned to leave, to return to wandering the city streets…

“You’re Alex, are you not?” one of the guards addressed him. “The Prince and Princess have been expecting you. Please proceed to the dining hall.” Despite this open invitation, the guard’s voice still had a hostile tone; Alex realized the guards probably weren’t too happy with their leaders’ decision to allow a stranger into the palace. Not that he’d helped his case in the days leading up to this event; he had sort of unnerved everypony in the city.

The wolf made his way up a spiral staircase to the palace proper, following a red carpet down a hall made of brilliant blue crystal. Soon enough, he found a door wide open, leading into the dining hall. The table, like most objects in this city, was made of crystal, in this case having a deep rose color. The same was true of the crystal chairs, padded with deep violet cushions to ensure comfort. The food on the table was rather modest for a feast, but fitting for one attended by only a handful of creatures: each occupied seat, plus one meant for Alex, had a steaming plate of spaghetti in front of it, waiting to be devoured. Alex found this rather normal dinner rather odd for royalty, but before he could think about it more, Ise noticed him and waved him over.

Making his way over and taking his seat, Alex took in his first glance at the royal family. As he suspected, unlike the guards at the entrance, these ponies didn’t seem hostile to him at all; on the contrary, he could just feel most of them were already ready to welcome him. Across the table, Cadence met his gaze with a warm smile, the first he’d seen on any resident of the Empire, at least directed at him. Shining Armor had a similarly friendly expression, a surprise for an outsider like Alex to see from the leader of the Empire’s military might. Sitting next to the wolf was their child, Flurry Heart, looking up at him with starry-eyed curiosity. Staring down into her eyes, Alex couldn’t help but feel his heart melt.

“You must be Alex,” Shining greeted the wolf. “Nice to finally meet you.”

“Th...thank you,” Alex stammered in response. “I must admit...I’m surprised you agreed to meet me.”

“Yeah, I was surprised too, at least with how quickly they accepted,” Ise cut in, leaning back in his chair. “Turns our pony royalty is more chill than you’d think.”

“Ise made it clear that you needed help,” Cadence replied. “We couldn’t turn you away in good conscience.”

“So long as you’re here, we’ll do our best to help you find your way,” Shining pitched in.

“...thank you,” Alex slowly replied, taking a tentative bite of his dinner. After that single bite, however, he stopped, his fork hovering above his meal.

“Is something wrong?” Cadence wondered.

“It’s nothing, just…” Alex began. “I’m not used to kindness. For as long as I can remember, no one has paid me any mind. I was an outcast, someone to be shunned, simply because I had no sense of who I was. Until now.”

“You must have been so sad,” Flurry responded, looking down in sympathy. Yet again Alex felt his heart melt; sympathy was yet another emotion he had not felt from others in years.

“Well, you don’t have to feel that way anymore,” Shining reassured him. “No matter where your life takes you from here on, you will always be welcome in the Crystal Empire. I can assure you of that.”

“I...I can’t thank you enough,” Alex stated once more. From there, dinner started properly, the group all discussing their lives, and granting the wolf the kindness and peace he sorely needed to start rebuilding his broken psyche.

---

“Yay! I win!”

“Ah well,” Alex sighed with a smile on his face, simply happy to enjoy the board game he was playing with the young Flurry Heart, regardless of outcome. “Another round?”

“Okay! You wanna go first this time?”

“Alright,” Alex accepted. However, as he went to roll the dice once more to make his move, he noticed something. The board and pieces, like most things in this Empire, was made of crystal, the dice in particular made of diamond. A grin spread across his face as an idea crossed his mind.

“How about we start this round off strong?” Channeling his power into the diamond dice, he threw them high into the air. The magic burst forth from the gems, filling the room with dazzling light. Flurry stared up into the light, awestruck. The light faded as the dice fell to the ground, but only slightly, reducing the light show from a blinding flash to a series of colored beams that made the room sparkle. Flurry giggled with glee, amazed at the sight. Seeing the bundle of joy impressed by his trick warmed Alex’s heart to no end.

“Oh!” Flurry gasped, finally looking away from the lights and back to the game. “You got double sixes!”

“...so I have,” Alex noted, himself only just returning to the game. He moved his piece the great leap forward his roll had allowed him, starting off another round as they played their game through the night. Shining Armor watched them as they played, happy to see the joy his precious daughter felt while playing with this wolf. He could tell at a glance that Alex shared that feeling as well.

Finally, it was time for Flurry to go to sleep. “See you tomorrow,” she mumbled to her new friend as she drifted off.

“Looks like Flurry’s taken a shine to you,” Shining told the wolf as he left the room. “And I bet you’ve warmed up to her as well.”

“...yes,” Alex simply replied. “You have a wonderful daughter. I commend you.”

“I just have one question,” Shining began. “If anything were to happen to Flurry, would you protect her?”

Almost instinctively, Alex’s paw rushed to his blade at the mere thought of the precious child he’d befriended getting attacked. “I would make sure no harm came to her.”

“Glad to hear that,” Shining answered. “I was thinking, how would you like to join the Crystal Guard?”

“M-me? But I’m a-“

“Please, your species doesn’t matter,” Shining reassured him. “All that matters is that you have the strength and will to protect the Empire, and I can clearly see you do. So what do you say?”

“I...I would be honored,” Alex replied, kneeling before his new boss.

“Thank you,” Shining told him, turning his gaze to his sleeping daughter. “I think she’ll be happy you’re sticking around, too.”

Shining returned to his duties, leaving an overjoyed Alex to roam the halls, and familiarize himself with the layout of the palace. Soon enough, he came across a balcony, where he found his first friend. Ise was leaning on the railing, a dark and dusty book in his paw, an uncharacteristically somber expression on his face. As soon as he looked up and noticed the wolf, however, his usual smirk instantly returned.

“So, how did things go?” he wondered.

“I’ve been offered a position in the guard,” Alex replied, joining him at the railing. “I can’t thank you enough, you know. I never would have had this opportunity without your help.”

“Nah, I didn’t do much,” Ise shot back. “What, you really think royalty would listen to a nobody like me? Nah, you only have them to thank for being so kind and willing to give you a chance.”

“You were right, you know,” Alex mentioned. “I needed this. Before I met you, I had no sense of self, no purpose, no point to my existence. Now, I feel whole, for the first time I can remember.”

“Hey, congrats!” Ise exclaimed, placing his free paw on the wolf’s shoulder. “Things are finally as they should be.”

Turning to his friend, Alex finally took notice of his book. “Hey, what’s that you’re reading?”

“Oh, just doing some research,” Ise nonchalantly replied, closing the book. “I’m still on the clock, after all. Gotta figure out this dark crystal crap soon if I wanna get paid.”

“Ah, right.”

“I think I’ve got a lead now, so I think I’m just gonna go check that out,” Ise mentioned, starting to walk away. “I hope your new life goes well, Alex.”

As Ise left the balcony, Alex turned his attention to the stars above, a warm smile on his face. For the first time he could remember, the haze over his mind was gone. His lost memories were still lost, but in their place was a new path forward, a new life for him to lead. The wolf was on top of the world…

...and then he blacked out.

---

“So, what did you think of our guest?” Cadence asked her husband.

“I think he’ll fit in just fine around here,” Shining replied.

“Oh, so he’s sticking around, then? Good, I think Flurry will like him.”

“Oh, I think those two are already on pretty good terms,” Shining mentioned, a smile on his face. However, it was only then that he noticed his wife seemed troubled by something. “Is something on your mind?”

“It’s nothing,” Cadence replied dismissively, only to quickly change her mind. “It’s just...that cat, Ise. Earlier, I saw him reading Sombra’s diary.” The mere mention of the book perplexed Shining: it had been left down a dark staircase and beyond an enchanted door, both requiring dark magic to access, and yet this cat had somehow managed to swipe it.

“I had heard he was good at stealing stuff, but I never thought he was THAT good,” Shining pondered. “Did he mention why he took it?”

“He said it was for ‘research’ into our little dark crystal problem,” Cadence noted. “He seemed particularly interested in the pages regarding the Mother Crystal.”

The Mother Crystal. Mother of Sombra, and a whole race of shadow ponies like him, the Umbrum. The sworn enemy of the Crystal Empire, and master of dark magic. “I suppose that would be a good place to start looking,” Shining considered. “The attacker is clearly using dark magic, so looking into the source makes sense…”

Suddenly, sounds of chaos and panic echoed down the halls to their bedchambers. The two rulers quickly rushed down the hall to assess the danger...and what they found wasn’t pretty: dozens of their guards trapped in dark crystal, knocked senseless. Some guards clearly weren’t even able to draw their weapons before getting taken out of the picture. As the rulers made their way through the devastation, fear rose in their chests as they realized the path of destruction was leading them straight to Flurry’s room. Sure enough, when they reached it, they found nothing but foreboding spires of dark crystal waiting to greet them; their child was nowhere to be seen.

---

What...what’s happening to me?

As Alex ran through the moonlit snow, his consciousness took time to process just what was going on. The first thing he realized was that he had no control over his body, it was moving on its own. The next thing he noticed was that he was carrying something. He did what he could to turn his eyes down toward the object, his peripheral vision partially obscured by a green glow and purple mist; he realized with slight horror that these odd phenomena were coming from his eyes themselves. However, he was even more horrified by what he was carrying: an unconscious Flurry Heart, dark crystals growing from her horn.

This...this is wrong! Why am I doing this!?

Suddenly, his body came to a stop. Stuck within its prison, Alex could do nothing but watch as the force that had taken him over put Flurry down, then used his power to summon a cage of dark crystal around her. His body then drew his sword, the jewel within it blood red-definitely not the color it was before-and advanced. The wind was harsh, a blizzard pelting the snowfield, but soon Alex could make out a silhouette, the reason his body had stopped. The shadow walked forward, revealing itself to be Ise. Alex’s dread and pain welled up at the sight of his other friend, unwilling to assault him like his possessed body was preparing to do...but then he saw the stoic, hardened expression on Ise’s face, as if the cat...expected this.

“You know, I was really hoping I was wrong,” Ise started flatly, “but I guess we’re doing this.”

He flipped open a couple of pouches on his jacket, pulling out a couple of knives. Before the possessed wolf could react, the cat lunged forward at blinding speed. Alex’s body countered by raising a dark crystal spike directly in his path, letting it sink in for the trapped consciousness within that this force that had taken over had full access to his power. Rather than ram headfirst into the spire, however, Ise shifted himself to land feet first on its surface, and bounce right off. The wolf continued spawning dark spires, attempting to impale the cat, but he only gave Ise more places to bounce around him. Before Alex knew it, Ise blindsided him and kicked him right in the face, sending the wolf flying. He hit his head on one of his own spikes, and with the blow, the possessive force seemed to leave his body. His eyes stopped glowing and emitting purple mist, and his sword’s jewel reverted to its natural turquoise color.

“Well, that was easier than I expected,” Ise gloated. “Then again, that wasn’t quite ‘you’, was it? I think I get it now: you weren’t in control, I’m guessing. Don’t worry, I think we can sort this out.”

As Ise talked, Alex thought about what had happened to him, and the attacks on the Empire...and things started to click. And as they clicked, he looked up at his “friend”...and started seeing red. Ise held out a hand to help him up...and instead the wolf slashed at him.

“Woah there!” Ise shouted in surprise. “Are you not all back yet?”

“You!” Alex screamed in rage. “You know the whole time, didn’t you?” He started slashing away at the cat, charging his blade with frost, as he continued his tirade. “That whatever that...thing that took me over was using my body the whole time, using me to attack the Empire. Why didn’t you tell me!? Why didn’t you let anyone know!?”

“Because I hoped to Luna that I was wrong!” Ise shot back, blocking Alex’s blade with one of his own, and bringing his face up to the wolf’s in the blade clash. “Yeah, I connected the dots I had, that a wolf showed up in the Empire right as the dark crystal crap started happening.” The two broke their blades free of the clash, only to cross them again. “But I was like you once. I used to be exactly like you were on the day we met!” The two broke free again, jumping back, before rushing forward once more to slash at each other. “You didn’t need to be stopped; you needed a friend! And that’s exactly what I tried to be!”

In his passion, Ise’s lightning powers activated, a swing of his blade sending electricity down his arm and out through his claw in a bolt that just barely missed the wolf. In response, Alex jumped back and used his own power, swinging his blade upward to channel the ice from his jewel into a wave of glacial spikes. As with the crystals, Ise simply jumped away, using the wall to bounce around his opponent. He descended on the wolf once more, just like before, but Alex spun around, using the bounce tactic to his advantage to slash at the cat when he would be unable to dodge. Ise only barely avoided the attack, blocking it with a dagger before bouncing away.

“If you wanted to be my friend, you should’ve told me I was a threat!” Alex scolded Ise.

“And isolate you even more from everyone around you?” Ise speculated. “Let you go on spinning what wheels you had instead of getting you on your feet? That’s not what friends do!”

Alex screamed in rage, his power surging through his blade, making the blizzard around them share his fury and grow harsher and harsher. He rushed forward, his blade glowing white with frost, and Ise ran forth to meet him with his own electrified knives. They clashed once more, magic surging from their weapons, bursting forth in a wave of energy that blasted the two apart once more. Alex’s nerves tingled with electricity, numb and stiff, but he slowly managed to get back on his feet. His opponent, half frozen over by the blast, and less sturdy to begin with, was having a bit more trouble recovering. Alex took his chance, walking forward with determination, giving Ise just enough time to get on his feet before sending a burst of cold from his sword that froze him solid anyway. With only his head free of the block of ice his body was now encased in, Ise could do nothing but watch as the angry wolf approached him, blade in hand. A raged snarl across his face, Alex raised his arm for the final strike, the car closing his eyes in resignation…

Instead, he heard a shattering sound, opening his eyes to see Alex had intentionally missed his head when bringing the blade down. The sword had smashed through the ice by his left shoulder, and soon the rest of the ice broke away as well, Alex using his power to will it away. Not that it mattered that much; the fight had left Ise to tired to move, his freed body flopping into the snow, quickly getting lost in the white powder as the blizzard covered him.

Alex turned his attention away from one friend, and to another. He trudged his way through the snow to the crystal cage where he had left Flurry Heart while possessed. Putting his paw to the crystal, he poured his power into it, causing the crystal to fall away like the ice. He did the same with her horn, freeing it from the dark inhibitor. It was at this moment that Flurry finally opened her eyes, utterly confused as to how she ended up in the snowy wastes.

“It’s okay now, everything’s going to be alright,” Alex comforted her. “Fly on home now. I’ll take care of things here.” Putting the child down, he stood up, looking with grim determination through the white blizzard, in the direction his possessed body had been traveling. Somewhere, at the end of this road, was the cause of all this madness. And so he made his way through the darkness, disappearing into the blizzard. Flurry, still confused, could tell nonetheless that her new friend had taken on some sort of grim burden…

“Gah, dammit!” The young princess had her wits scared out of her when, only a few yards away, a green cat burst forth from the snow. Ise struggled once more to get to his feet, still far from full strength. With no one else to ask about the situation, Flurry flew over to the cat.

“Hey there,” Ise greeted her, beating her to the punch, before taking a look around. “Where’d Alex go?” Flurry simply pointed out into the wastes; it didn’t take long for the cat to understand what was happening.

“That idiot,” he grumbled, fully getting on his feet, and starting to trudge in that direction. “Alright, I’ll handle this. You head back home.”

“Why? What are you going to do?”

“I’m gonna make sure someone has his back. That’s what friends do.” And with that, he too disappeared into the darkness.

---

The dark, frozen expanse extended as far as Alex could see for miles around him. He’d been traveling for what felt like hours, his determination starting to waver as he started to question if there was anything waiting at the end of his journey. Still, after everything he had learned about what was happening to him, he couldn’t leave things alone. He had to end it, tonight.

Finally, a shadow emerged from the blizzard. As the wolf approached, he found not a creature, but a dark red crystal sticking out of the snow. A normal creature would see this as nothing more than a chunk of rock; Alex, however, recognized the blood red color from the corrupted form of his gem, and could sense the dark power emanating from every facet of the thing. He could tell immediately, this was what he was after.

Well, this is a surprise, a sinister voice echoed in his mind. I wasn’t expecting you to arrive after that cat broke my hold on you. A shame you didn’t bring the child like you were meant to. I guess you’ll have to do in her place.

“You seem to have the wrong idea,” Alex noted, drawing his sword. “I don’t plan on being controlled any longer.”

Oh, you poor sweet child, the Crystal’s voice chastised him. Who said you had a choice in the matter?

Alex suddenly spasmed as dark power took over his body once more, his eyes once more glowing green. This time he was ready for it, his consciousness steeled to wrest control of his body from the dark force, but the best he could manage was an impasse, his body dead still as he fought for control.

Oh? Finally starting to fight back, I see, the Crystal noted. This is why I was hoping to claim a new host. Your unique power made you susceptible to my influence, but only so much; there were limits to what I could do with you.

“That’s why you wanted Flurry,” Alex realized, using what control he had to speak. “You needed full control, someone you could pull the strings of in the light of day.”

Exactly. I have plenty of my own servants, but a creature of the light is less susceptible to its power, the Crystal explained. I’d been hoping those little distractions would weaken that abhorrent Cadence to the point where I could have you attack the palace directly for the girl; I hadn’t expected that cat to get you invited in, but I’m pleased that he fast-tracked my plans. Almost makes me want to spare his life for ruining them. Almost.

“Yeah, I’d like to see you try.” A green blur fell from the sky, knife in paw ready to shatter the Mother Crystal. However, a dark spike shot forth from the ground, knocking the dagger from his paw before he could land the blow. He jumped back, landing next to the immobile Alex.

“I-Ise!? ...why?” Alex wondered.

“Hey, I can’t let you do all the heavy lifting, now can I?” Ise told his friend, a cocky smirk across his face. He turned his attention back to the Crystal, jumping just in time to avoid getting impaled on a spike. High in the air, he shot off a bolt of lightning, only for a wall of dark rock to raise and absorb the blow. Changing plans, the cat landed and started bouncing around his stationary opponent, dodging dark spires and using them as new points to jump from as he looked for his opening to finish the job.

He never got that chance. A lucky spike caught him in the shoulder, stabbing through and slamming him into another spire. “Crap,” he whimpered, before losing consciousness.

Congratulations, the Crystal commended him sarcastically. You walked right into the lion’s den. Alex, still immobile, could do nothing but watch as yet another spire of dark crystal, more slowly and deliberately than the rest, grew to land the killing blow on the mercenary.

A burst of golden light suddenly shot forth from the sky, smashing the crystal that had Ise pinned and dropping before he could get impaled. Looking into the sky, Alex’s heart sank, this last minute save actually being the worst case scenario. Having listened to neither creature, Flurry Heart had followed them to the very being who wanted her for its own sinister plans.

My my, you all feel like making things so much more convenient, the Crystal gloated. Very well. Come, young princess. Surrender yourself to my dark embrace.

Flurry shot forth another magic blast, this one aimed directly at the Mother Crystal. This, however, was blocked like Ise’s lightning before it, the crystal wall dropping after the guard so the blood red gem could release a blast of dark energy. The blast hit its mark, and Flurry fell to the ground. Her horn was once again covered with dark rock that sealed her magic, but this time, the crystals were growing. Before long, the blockage had changed from a bunch of rocks on her horn to a black coating along its full expanse, continuing to grow along her forehead. Likewise, similar crystal growths formed and spread across other parts of her body. Between weakness from her injuries and the loss of movement from the crystallization, Flurry could only watch in horror as her body transformed.

The terror in your eyes is just priceless, the Crystal laughed. You have two choices, young princess: live the rest of your life as a chunk of rock, or submit your mind to my will. Either way, from this day forth, you are mine.

As Flurry watched in horror, though, Alex watched in anger, his blood boiling as he could seemingly do nothing to save this poor soul. That anger fueled his drive to regain control, his consciousness starting to win the war against the dark power within him. As the corruption faded from his eyes, he used the ground he was gaining to slowly, deliberately make his way to his enemy.

The Mother Crystal quickly took note of this, choosing to eliminate her old pawn before it could turn on her. Dark spires burst forth to impale the wolf, but they were blocked by walls of ice, summoned by his power. Panicking, the Crystal raised a wall around itself; this ultimately did nothing, as Alex swapped his sword’s turquoise for a garnet, granting him the power to rend the earth raised to bar his path like it was butter. The Mother Crystal could do nothing as the wolf walked right up to her.

“I’m not your pawn, monster; I am me!” Alex shouted, pulling back his sword arm. “And I will not let you hurt others any longer!”

He thrust his blade forward, deep into the dark crystal. From the strike, the Mother Crystal cracked, more and more, before finally shattering. And with its destruction, the dark crystals it had formed shattered with it, its influence forever gone.

---

“So you’re leaving?”

“After everything that’s happened, I feel I have to,” Alex apologized to the royal family.

“Flurry Heart will be sad to see you leave,” Cadence mentioned. Even after hearing everything that had happened, everything he had done, albeit unwittingly, she was still willing to accept him.

“What you did under that Crystal’s influence doesn’t matter,” Shining reassured him. “What matters is how you acted when you had control. And from what I’ve heard, you would make an excellent knight.”

“That offer still stands, you know,” Cadence mentioned. “You’re still welcome to stay.”

“And I’d very much like to take you up on that offer,” Alex replied, “when I feel I have earned it.”

With that, the wolf took his leave. He was a bit disappointed that Flurry herself couldn’t be there to see him off, as she was still recovering from the night’s incident. Then again, she likely would’ve made it harder for him to leave, and he felt he needed to. With the help of his new friends, he’d finally gotten some semblance of identity, but he felt it wasn’t quite enough. To keep growing, he needed to decide for himself who he was...and he couldn’t do that in the Empire.

“Turning them down? Can’t say I saw this coming.”

Alex looked over his right shoulder, as Ise emerged from the shadowy corner of the main hall. “There’s certainly a place for me here,” Alex explained, “but I have to decide for myself if it’s the right one.”

“Off to see the world, then?” Ise noted. “You could hang with me for a bit, help me with a job here and there. I go all over the place for my work; it’d be a good excuse to see what this world has to offer you.”

“Thank you, but this is a journey I have to experience for myself,” Alex politely declined. He took a few more steps toward the exit, then stopped.

“Something wrong?”

“Though the haze on my mind is gone, my memory hasn’t returned,” Alex mentioned. “That is, all but one word. A word that, by itself, holds no meaning…”

“Delta.”

“Delta? Odd,” Ise noted. “But, uh, why are you telling me this?”

“You were the first one to even bother with me,” Alex replied. “I may not agree with...how you handled things, but you are still my friend. And shouldn’t friends be open with each other?” The wolf gave his own attempt at a cocky smirk, a bit unnatural on his face. “See you around,” he concluded, finally taking his leave.

“Delta…” Ise pondered. “Why does that ring a bell?”