//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 // Story: Princesses Over Queensmouth // by Ponibius //------------------------------// A light drizzle started during the flight to the Queensmouth lighthouse atop the cliff face, slowly dampening my coat and feathers. Adding the rain to the ever-present fog that cling to the town as the sunlight failed made for a pretty miserable scene. That struck me as unnatural. Most of the time the rain would remove the fog, but the fog remained as thick as ever. None of that improved my mood as I stared into the dark recesses of the cave into which we needed to enter. Within the darkness I could feel the answers we sought, calling out to me with umbral promises. “So…” I turned to Aunt Luna. “What exactly is the plan here?” Her grin had a savage edge to it. “To enter the cave and see what truth lies within.” My eyes wandered to the guards standing at the ready. “And you're bringing all our guards because...?” “Canst thou think of a reason to not bring them?” Aunt Luna glanced to the stoic mares and stallions beside us. “I think they would be most cross if we left them by the chariot.” “It might be seen as a touch aggressive,” I pointed out. Aunt Luna’s tone became more grave. “Sometimes problems must be dealt with in an aggressive manner, in which case the guards might very well be needed.” “We don't know for sure that there's anything improper happening.” I flicked the gathering water off my wings. “We managed to deal with Hylas peacefully. I’m hoping we might be able to do the same here.” I would prefer to avoid a fight if at all possible, and Aunt Tia had told me to make sure Aunt Luna didn't get overly enthusiastic when dealing with this problem. After a thousand years of imprisonment, it wasn't hard to imagine that my aunt wanted to stretch her wings (as it were) rather than take the more boring option of talking. Aunt Luna thought for a long moment. “What wouldst thou suggest, then?” “Maybe just the two of us should go down and keep the guards out of sight?” I offered. “They wouldn't be that far away if we needed them.” A predatory smile spread across her lips. “A most bold move, my niece.” “Er ... bold?” Aunt Luna being happy with the idea of leaving our guards behind made me more than a little bit uneasy. “That will just make it the two of us should it come to battle,” she said eagerly. “At least until we can be reinforced. But in battle, a minute can seem like an eternity.” I glanced back at the guards, suddenly regretting the idea of leaving them behind as I realized I’d trapped myself with my own argument. I really wished Shiny was here right now. “Well, hopefully it won't come to that.” Aunt Luna nodded and stretched out her wings. “Hopefully, but we will face what we must. Our path now lies ahead of us.” Aunt Luna left some final instructions with our guards, including what they should do if we didn't come out again—something which didn't make me feel any better—then boldly strode into the cave, her horn lighting the way. I lit my own horn with a spell and followed after her, trying to emulate her confidence in my stride. For a long time the only sound in the cave was the clocking of our hooves on stone. Our horns cast odd shadows against the rough stone that lined the passage, and I could hear the echo of water dripping somewhere further in the cave. My only comfort as we headed deeper was that at least I had Aunt Luna with me. It was certainly better than doing this alone. The idea of being trapped underground like this, with all my pegasus instincts screaming to get someplace above ground, was extremely unpleasant. I was so busy watching for what lay in the shadows that I nearly ran right into Aunt Luna when she stopped in her tracks. She held up a hoof, calling for me to be silent. I understood her intentions quickly enough when I heard her voice in my head.“There is a light up ahead, and I smell smoke. Be cautious; we do not know what we will discover there.” I nodded in agreement and we proceeded forward. The cave widened enough to form a chamber, and half a dozen ponies sat around a simple campfire at the center of the room. Instead of greeting us, bowing, or anything else, they just stood there, staring at us with dull eyes that seemed to look right through us as much as us. Aunt Luna stopped well short of the fire and I maneuvered myself around her. I smiled at the group, wondering why they were down here. “Um ... hello.” They gave each other a look I couldn't read and then bowed before us. One of the ponies, a stocky, light-brown earth pony mare, stepped forward to address us. “Princesses. Um, what brings you here?” “We heard there was a meeting,” I said, not completely truthfully. “We were hoping you would let us join in.” The mare looked back to her companions before speaking in an unsure tone. “We're sorry, but the meeting is private.” Aunt Luna frowned. “Why so?” “Um...” The villager shuffled in place. “Private reasons.” Aunt Luna narrowed her eyes at the ponies trying to stonewall us, and I readily agreed with the suspiciousness I felt from her. Why would a group of honest ponies have any reason to forbid their princesses from seeing what they were doing? “I'm afraid we must insist.” “Um, we don't want to have to tell you no, but...” She winced, as though pained by her words. “It really is private. We can't let anypony in. It’s the Mayor’s orders.” “Thou hast no choice in the matter,” Aunt Luna growled. “Do remember thy mayor rules only at the pleasure of her princesses, and I am very displeased right now.” “Please, we just want to know,” I added, trying to keep this from escalating any further. “We've heard some concerning things about these meetings. This is your chance to set the record straight.” “And 'twould reflect poorly to deny thy princesses,” Aunt Luna warned. These ponies were coming very close to committing an act of treason, and I didn't want this to come down to a fight if we could avoid it. But I had to wonder, what was so important to these ponies that they would stand up to royalty to prevent us from passing? They had to know they couldn't stop us if push came to shove. The mare standing in our way grimaced. “Sorry, but we can't.” I heard Aunt Luna’s voice in my mind. “Something strange is going on here. They stand in our way knowing the consequences for doing so.” “Agreed, this isn't normal.” “Then it seems we are at an impasse.” Aunt Luna cast a spell, and a blue-glowing sand spread from her horn. The ponies blocking our way cried out in surprise as the granules covered them, though they quickly fell silent and slumped to the ground. I stepped up to them to examine the villagers and found the them all sound asleep. “I suppose that works,” I sighed. It was better than fighting at least. “They were acting most queer.” Aunt Luna stepped next to me to examine them for herself. “Times have not changed so much that ponies would so readily deny their princess, have they?” I shook my head. “We still have every right to go where we please, especially during an investigation—and they would know that. The only reason I can think of for them to try and stop us is because they’ve got something to hide.” “Indeed, let us discover what is happening here.” Aunt Luna’s horn lit brighter as her magic probed the mare who had spoken with us. Her features darkened almost immediately. “I am detecting another presence affecting their minds. ‘Twould explain why they fell so easily to my sleep spell—if they were being made to act ‘gainst their will, their conscious minds most likely chose to sleep rather than continue to defy their princess.” That wasn’t good. Hylas had already mentioned Mayor Sea Foam inexplicably changing ponies’ minds to mirror her opinions, and now this… It probably meant some sort of mind magic, which could lead to some very unpleasant areas. “What sort of presence?” Aunt Luna scowled and turned to stare further into the cave. “Another mind. Something dark and terrible, and definitely not equine. Canst thou not feel the foul presence behind that miasma?” I did as my aunt asked and extended my senses. What I felt was … wrong. Ponies tended to create an aura of love when they reacted with things. Here, I felt here nothing. There was an utter absence of love, like some great gaping abyss that drew everything into its black depths. My chest tightened at that malicious presence, and I had to fight the instinct to put as much distance between myself and that cave as quickly as possible. “There's definitely something not right.” “Neigh,” Aunt Luna said. “'Twould seem that the nymph spoke truly after all.” “We need to find out more.” While plunging deeper into the dark, foreboding cave to face an unknown mind-controlling entity wasn’t high on my list of things I really wanted to do, I was still a princess of Equestria. I had a duty to protect ponies. “And I think we should get our guards here. This is a lot bigger than what we originally thought we were dealing with.” Aunt Luna frowned at the suggestion. “I am not so sure.” She pointed to the sleeping ponies. “Whatever has bent the will of these ponies might do the same to our guards, as they do not enjoy the innate resistance to such things we alicorns possess. I have experienced such things in the past, and those battles were not pleasant.” “That sounds terrible.” It was hard to argue that Aunt Luna seemed to have a much better grasp on how to deal with this. If she thought there was a risk of our guards being dominated by whatever was down there, then she was probably right. Fighting my own guards was one of the last things I wanted to do. “‘Twas at that,” Aunt Luna said. “I trust thou havest been taught the basics for defending thine own mind? My sister would know all ‘bout the dangers of such things.” “Of course.” I nodded. “So ... onward?” “Aye, onwards.” Aunt Luna led the way deeper into the cave. As we continued forward, the oppressive lack of love pressed in on me. The already alien environment became all the worse by the absence of the love that was my birthright. Eventually we entered a larger cavern. The path wound its way between two large pools of water. I could only guess whether they led directly to the ocean or not, but the water was pitch black—the light from my horn barely even began to plunge its depths. While the cave was much wider than it had been, the ceiling was still low enough that I had to duck my head around stalactites that obstructed the path. Water dripped steadily around us, probably a result of water seeping into the ground. I looked around warily, the constrained space making me uncomfortable. We weren't going to have much room to move if it came to a fight. “Any idea what we're up against?” I asked, preferring the sound of talking to the oppressive silence that prevailed in the cave. “Something old and powerful, unless I miss my guess.” Aunt Luna’s gaze slowly turned from one direction to another, scanning for threats. “And ... alien. Be wary; our enemy could strike in any number of ways.” At least I wasn't the only one here who didn't know exactly what we were dealing with, as cold comfort as that was. Still, if my aunt could be brave in the face of the unknown, then I could too. “I'll keep my eyes open.” Aunt Luna nodded and continued further in. We were still carefully walking along the half-submerged path when my aunt suddenly stopped. My question died in my throat when she held up a hoof. Her ears swiveled around and she examined the waters around us. Had she seen something? Heard something? I found myself nervously glancing at the water around us as my heartbeat quickened. A movement caught my eye and I turned my full attention towards it. For a moment, I wondered if I had imagined it. Then I saw a shadow move in the dark depths of the water. I jabbed a hoof towards the figure. “Over th—!” Something burst out of the water before I could finish. My brain barely had time to process a many-taloned claw reaching for my face, webbed like a frog’s hand and covered in dark green scales, almost as dark as the depths of the pools. I didn't even a chance to react before Aunt Luna bucked it in midair. My attacker went on a short-lived flight into a stalactite; it hit with a sickening thud and fell limply back into the water. I screamed and jerked away, and nearly fell into the water as I skittered along edge of the path. Flapping my wings, I managed to regain my balance on the edge and got myself back to firm footing. I didn't even want to think what might happen to me if I fell in with—with whatever had attacked me. “What was that?!” I thought I saw another shadow under the water and sent a blue energy blast at it. There was an explosion of water as the spell penetrated the surface, making it difficult to tell if I had hit anything. Were there more of those things? If so, how many? “Skum! They are servitors of the Deep Ones!” Another one of the creatures leapt out of the water at Aunt Luna, claws outstretched. With reflexes bordering on the supernatural, Luna snapped out a hoof to punch the skum in the face. Its momentum was immediately reversed as it went careening back into the water. “Careful, there are more!” I really wished I had a moment to ask for more details, but there wasn’t time for that. Instead, I cast a shield spell Shining had taught me, creating a pink bubble around us. It was a good thing I had done so, too; the water roiled as more skum came bounding out of it to collide against my shield. It was as the dozen or more skum clawed at the shield that I got my first good look of them. The first thing that stood out were the fish-like scales that covered their entire bodies, which were hunched over and required them to use their fore and hindlimbs to move around like a diamond dog. Their flat heads, with black orbs for eyes and rows of serrated teeth, looked like they belonged on a shark. They hissed and kept clawing at my shield, forcing me to pour more of my magic into the shield to keep it up. “Maintain that shield, Cadance!” Aunt Luna’s horn glowed brighter. “I have an idea.” “Can do!” I poured more of my magic into my shield, making it as strong as I could against the onslaught. More of the skum clambered atop one another to get at us, their claws and teeth scraping against the barrier. Aunt Luna’s horn crackled with electricity. Her face tightened as she finished gathering her magical energies and released the spell. There was a blinding flash as a lightning bolt shot from her horn, and I had to cover my eyes and flatten my ears against the painful brightness and thunderous crash. I felt the power from my aunt’s spell hit my own, but I held onto it even as the impact sent a spasm of pain through my horn.   A long moment passed before I uncovered my eyes and blinked away the spots in my vision. The cavern had fallen silent quiet once again, and I realized that my aunt and I were the only things still upright in the cavern. Still, I didn’t lower my shield. No sense letting my guard down quite yet. I turned to Aunt Luna, who was standing still and glaring at the waters and what inhabited their dark depths. “What did you do?” “Slain them with my lightning spell, I would hope,” she said, her voice as cold and hard as a glacier. “I decided to show them the error of attacking us in a swarm whilst wet.” “Oh.” Had it all happened that quickly? One second we had been fighting for our lives and then ... it was over. Had Aunt Luna so casually killed those things? She hadn’t even hesitated. That was ... I didn’t know how to feel about it. It was all so much to take in. Logically I knew that she had only been defending us against hostile monsters, but to see it happen was something else entirely. Aunt Luna stepped closer, a look of concern on her face. “Cadance? Art thou well?” I realized I had been standing dumbfounded for some time when my aunt had finally spoken. I hurried to reply. “Fine. Just—never seen something like this before.” My eyes fell on one of the skum that now lay face-down in the water not too far from us. It wasn't moving, and I suspected it never would again. Aunt Luna narrowed her eyes at the creature and wrapped a protective wing around me. “Aye, mine apologies for thee seeing such a frightful sight. If 'twas my decision, I would have had thee bloodied under more controlled circumstances. For while this work is unpleasant, 'tis our duty as princesses to protect our ponies from such monsters.” I nodded shakily. “I know all that. But it's one thing to know it. This...” “‘Tis a vast difference between stories and an actual battlefield,” Aunt Luna agreed. “Even ponies raised to be warriors can be shaken when they first see combat.” “I ... I guess.” All of that made logical sense, but it didn’t make me feel better. I had to wonder if Aunt Tia had gone out of her way to spare me incidents like this. It would be like her. Aunt Luna gave me a supportive squeeze of her wing. “If thou wishest, I will escort thee back to the entrance and to our guards. I can continue onwards by myself—this is far from the first time I have faced such evils alone, and I know how to care for myself.” It was a terribly tempting offer. I didn't like fighting, and I could expect to get more of that if I continued forward—not to mention the idea of being away from all of this and back outside where I could stretch my wings was extremely attractive. But then I looked to Aunt Luna standing by my side, solid and resolute. How many times had she and Aunt Tia gone through this type of thing in order to protect their subjects? I felt something stir inside of me when I thought about the ponies of Queensmouth; these monsters threatened the townsfolk, and as a princess—their princess—it was my duty to ensure their safety. While Aunt Tia hadn't rushed for me to throw myself into danger, her lessons had stressed the obligations I had to those around me. I took a deep breath and shook my head. “I ... I can handle it.” “Art thou certain?” Aunt Luna slowly removed her wing so that she could face me. “There is no shame if thou hast had thy fill of combat for one day. I will not think less of thee for withdrawing.” “Thanks, but I want to help.” Besides, if I ran away I would have to carry that fact with me for the rest of my days. Even if everything turned out alright, I'll know that I chickened out when everypony had needed me. What would I do when the next crisis rolled around? What would everypony else think in a future crisis if I ran away here? No, standing by my aunt’s side was something I needed to do. Aunt Luna nodded grimly. “Very well then. Thou art the best judge of what thou canst handle, but 'twill be good to have thee to fight by my side.” “Yeah, I guess,” I said, not sounding as certain as I would have liked. After a moment, Aunt Luna nodded. “Bravery is not the absence of fear, but courage in the face of fear. Know thy fears and conquer them, then thou wilt be brave.” I nodded. “I'll try, Aunt Luna.” “Good, then.” She turned to face forward again. “If thou art ready, let us continue forth. Stay behind me and maintain thy shield at least until we are out of this chamber. I will deal with any attacker that shows its face.” I took a moment to steel my courage and nodded. “Okay, lead the way.” Aunt Luna did just that, continuing along the path. If she was afraid as we walked through ankle-deep water, she didn't show it. She just kept walking forward while keeping a wary eye on the pools of water on either side of us. No more of the skum appeared. Either they had all been killed or else decided we were too much for them to handle. After what felt like forever, we finally exited the twin-pooled room and entered another hallway. At my aunt’s request, I dropped my shield. No sense exhausting my magic when there wasn't an immediate danger. Still, I didn't let my guard down. Not after what happened in the previous room. After a few more minutes of walking I heard something echoing from further inside the cave. It sounded like voices—raised voices. “Sounds like something's going on up ahead.” “Aye,” Aunt Luna whispered. “Let us proceed cautiously. Cease thy light spell. Do not worry ‘bout the darkness, ‘twill aid us in a moment.” I did as she asked, and impenetrable darkness fell over the pair of us. Aunt Luna’s magic stirred and I felt it fall over me. I blinked the blurriness out of them as the cavern reformed before my eyes—my aunt’s spells allowing me to see perfectly. “Come. I wish to see what transpires here.” We were completely silent as we proceeded forward, a departure from the earlier clacking of our hooves against stone. It was as though the shadows itself embraced and concealed us. I didn't know what spell she had used, but it was one I wouldn't mind learning from her once this was over. Following the sound of voices, we reached a large chamber. Aunt Luna crept over to a stone outcropping and peeked over it for a better look, and I followed suit. Stalactites and stalagmites dotted the chamber, and a pool of dark water dominated a third of the room. But what really caught my eye was who was inside the cave: Mayor Sea Foam and four other townsfolk were holding Jetsam in place near the pool. Sea Foam sneered at Jetsam as he struggled against his captors, though Jetsam was held fast by the rope tying him in place and a gag muffled whatever he was trying to say. “You just had to become a problem, didn't you? Thought it was funny telling the princesses not to kill Hylas?” She punched Jetsan in the ribs, causing him to wheeze and go limp as the others restrained him. “Well, it's past time we got you to see our way of the world.” I blinked in surprise. “What are they doing to him?” Aunt Luna glowered at the scene before us. “A fine question, and I suspect the truth will answer why we are here.” The group dragged Jetsam until they were knee-high in water. The pool rippled as something emerged from the depths. Whatever it was, I hadn’t seen anything like it before; its green body glistened with clear slime, and as more of its fish-like body surfaced, significantly larger than an orca. In addition to its fins, it possessed four long tentacles that protruded near its front—but if it possessed a mouth, I couldn’t easily see it. As it finished revealing itself, I got a good look at its three red eyes, all vertically stacked at the center of what amounted to its face and shining with malicious intelligence. A pair of the monster’s tentacles reached for Jetsam, and the villager’s eyes widened as his struggle against his captors became all the more desperate. “Oh, Celestia!” I clasped a hoof over my mouth to keep my voice from echoing from the cavern. If it hadn't been for Aunt Luna’s spell I probably would have given away our position. I turned to my aunt to speak in a harsh whisper. “What is it?! It's horrible!” Whatever that thing was, its presence made my hair stand on end. The dread I felt didn't merely come from the sense one got from some predator, but something far more profane in nature. Aunt Luna clenched her jaw. “That abomination is an aboleth, one of the greater servants of the Deep Ones.” She snorted. “All is clear now. Oft do they surface to vie for unsuspecting coastal communities. Likely, that monster’s powers clashed with those of Hylas’s, thus did it approach Sea Foam.” Her glare shifted onto the pony in question. “I suspect she serves as its agent in exchange for petty wealth and power. ‘Twould not be the first of such occurrences.” I remembered a little bit about these Deep Ones from my lessons covering the various types of monsters in the world. Not a great deal was known about the Deep Ones and their underwater empire, but nothing among what little ponies did know was pleasant. They were utterly inequine and we simply didn't have a frame of reference with one another. Aunt Luna and I might just have gotten very lucky; if the mayor and aboleth had only started their schemes, then there was a good chance we could undo the damage they had caused. “We have to stop it,” I said, giving my aunt a determined look. “With a vengeance.” Aunt Luna glared balefully at the aboleth as it slowly extended its tentacles towards Jetsam. “I will engage the aboleth—thou art to deal with the mayor and the others. Disable them as a threat, remove them from the immediate battlefield, and then join me against the beast. Watch thyself, for this is a foe at least as intelligent as any pony if not moreso. It possesses mastery over the art of illusions and the ability to dominate minds, as it has to at least some of those ponies.” I nodded, knowing we didn't have time to go into details with a plan if we were going to save Jetsam. “Understood.” Aunt Luna didn't waste a moment. With a powerful stroke of her wings, she launched herself into the air and darted for the aboleth. Not giving the monster a chance to react, a blue beam of magic shot out of her horn and struck the aboleth in the side. A layer of ice formed over the area, freezing two of its tentacles in place. A roar of outrage and pain stabbed at my mind and very being. The aboleth didn't even have any mouth that I could recognize, and the shout had been purely psychic by nature. Still, it made me flinch and flatten my ears in pain. It took a moment of concentration for me to shore up my mental defenses against the assault. There wasn't time to waste as Aunt Luna darted about the aboleth, so I charged out from behind the stone alcove and towards the ponies staring dumbstruck at the fight taking place before them. Mayor Sea Foam saw me out of the corner of her eye and spun to face me, the water splashing around her. “What the—” I drew upon my magic and made my horn glow threateningly as I stopped well short of her. “Let him go, Mayor!” The Mayor ground her teeth together. “You couldn't have done a simple thing like kill the damned nymph, could you? You just had to make everything difficult. Everything's finally been turning around for me, and then you had to show up.” “You are hurting innocent ponies!” I said, praying she would see reason. “This isn't right.” Sea Foam shot me a baleful glower. “Like I care anymore! Helpin' others hasn't ever helped me. I've been a poor pony most of my life, scrapin’ by week to week an’ breakin’ my back workin’ for others. Well, it's past time the world gave a little back instead of just takin'!” “This isn’t helping anything.” I pointed at Jetsam and the others. The ponies working with the Mayor were only standing there and blankly staring into space—at least, for the moment. “In your heart you know this needs to stop.” “When has right or wrong mattered?” She spat on the ground. “The world gave me a sour deal. Born to poor parents, got a poor job, worked hard, paid my dues, and got nothing for it. There ain't no justice to it.” I stepped a little closer to him. “And where's the justice in hurting innocents?” Sea Foam hesitated in answering, her eyes darting in the aboleth’s direction. “There isn't any, but I've come too far to stop now.” I shook my head. “I don't believe that. You can stop at any time, you just have to want to.” Sea Foam bit her lip. “What's left for me? Jail? Living a life of atonement? As if redemption was so cheap.” I came closer to the mayor, smiling as I kept talking her down. “Do you really want to spend the rest of your life as the mayor who sacrificed the ponies under her protection to work with a monster?” I could see the conflict play over her face as she looked back and forth between me and the aboleth—its roars of pain struck me as Aunt Luna struck it with a lightning bolt. Her shoulders sagged and it looked like she was going to give up. I moved to try and comfort Sea Foam, but her head snapped up and she met my eyes with a hard, hateful glare. “I'm not going back to being a loser!” She charged me, howling in fury. On reflex I shot a light stun spell at her. The bolt struck her in the chest, and she stumbled back into the shallows of the pool. I didn't want to hurt her (or any pony for that matter), but she wasn't leaving me much choice. For a moment it looked like Sea Foam was going to fall over, but earth ponies were made of sterner stuff, and she regained her balance. She gave me a another baleful glare. “No!” She charged again with a howl even more maddened and animalistic than the previous one. I charged up another, stronger stun spell, and fired it. But Sea Foam jerked herself to the side, the stun bolt missing her by less than an inch. She rammed into me with her shoulder, throwing her full weight into the attack. The blow sent me to the stone floor, the impact finally jarring me to my senses. The Mayor reared up and brought her hoof down at my head. I wrenched my head out of the way, and her hoof slammed down right next to my face. On instinct, I rolled over to my hooves before she could try that again. The mayor tried to tackle me again, but I lashed out and struck her chest. She gasped in pain as her momentum carried her right into my outreaching hoof and the unexpected strength I possessed, then stumbled back. “Stop this!” I cried out. “I don't want to hurt you, but...” Sea Foam couldn’t hope to beat me in a fight, not if I was serious about it. Injuring another pony was about the last thing I wanted to do, but I wasn’t going to let her go on hurting others either. Sea Foam didn’t seem to have any intentions of surrendering, for she waved to her fellow villagers. “Get her! Get her!” As one, the four ponies dumped Jetsam in the shallows of the pool and charged at me. That complicated things. I was reluctant to hurt Sea Foam, much less the ponies who seemed to be innocent victims in this—they weren’t responsible for their actions if they were being mind controlled. I briefly considered just flying beyond where they could get to me, but dismissed that. Aunt Luna was depending on me to get these ponies out of here, not playing keep away. As if to remind me how unsafe this place was for them, the aboleth grabbed a stalactite, cracked it off the ceiling, and tossed it at my aunt. No. I needed to confront this directly, and if they were being magically dominated, then there were ways to counter that. Drawing on my natural talent, I summoned my love magic and sent a pink wave of energy at the charging ponies. I poured more magic into the spell as I tried to remind them of what they loved—their families, their town, the ocean, whatever it was in their lives that was important to them—and reached out for that love and fed power into it. The villagers stumbled as though hit by a physical force and they slowed to a halt, their blank expressions replaced by confused looks. Sea Foam stomped a hoof, her teeth peeling back in a snarl. “What are you four waiting for? Take her! Don't stand there like a bunch of drooling idiots!” A magical backlash shot through the my spell, and I staggered as a sledgehammer of will and energy hit me. The aboleth fought my attempt to break its domination over the townponies, its mind pushing against my own like the dark depths of the ocean. I nearly lost my grip on my spell, but remembered the love I held for those that I cared about: Aunt Tia, Shining Armor, Twilight, and so many others ... including my new aunt. Aunt Luna aided me by unleashing a blast of moonlight beam of energy into the aboleth, and I felt the force of the aboleth’s mind flicker as it it let out another scream of pain. I pushed harder against its grip on the other ponies. “Remember who you are, and what you care for! You know you don’t want to do this!” The townsfolk stopped completely and clutched at their heads. One of them blinked as the magical tether between his mind and the aboleth broke. His head snapped to the Mayor, glaring at her. “W-what did you do to us?!” Sea Foam stepped back as the others were freed from the mind control and turned their attention to the mayor that had betrayed them. “I-I-I...” She turned her attention back to me, pure hatred in her eyes. “You! Stop it! Stop ruining everything!” The mayor charged me again, but she didn’t make it far before one of her fellow villagers tackled her. Two others joined in and pinned Sea Foam to the floor. Seeing the opportunity to end this quickly, I levitated Jetsam out of the water where he had barely been keeping his head above water and untied him. The Queensmouth villagers quickly put the rope to use on Sea Foam. “Thank you very much,” I said, feeling a wave of relief over finishing that. One of the villagers nodded to me, casually tying a knot around Sea Foam with the ease of a seasoned sailor. “Of course, Princess. We're sorry, but...” He shuffled uncomfortably before me. A reply died on my lips as I tucked my head to avoid a boulder soaring past us. There were a few times where being tall had its disadvantages. “Get out of here! There are guardponies right outside of the cave, they’ll keep you safe!” One look at the horrible monster that had enthralled them was all the prompt the villagers needed to grab their mayor and run for the exit. That just left the not-so-minor matter of dealing with the monster responsible for all of this. I took off into the air to join Aunt Luna in the fight. While I didn’t like the idea of fighting ponies, this thing was something else entirely. It was hurting ponies, and it was my job to stop it. While Aunt Luna kept the aboleth distracted, I darted in low and fast, hitting it with a blast of magical energy that scorched the scales along its back. I banked around for another pass, ready to double-team the monster. Then the whole world turned upside-down on me. I looked down and saw the ceiling, and all my senses screamed contrary information, demanding I right myself. With seconds to act, I followed my eyes and flipped myself over. Instead of everything righting itself as it should have, I plummeted towards the ceiling. Panic started to overwhelm me as everything told me I was about to crash. Flapping my wings to try and correct myself, I only sent myself into a wild spin as gravity seemed to reverse itself. I was about to crash into the ceiling when a blue, star-filled smoke wrapped itself around me. It slowed my descent, but it didn’t completely halt our descent before we hit the ground. I expected to feel the jarring pain of a crash, but instead I stopped just inches from the stone floor, the cloud cushioning me from the fall. We flew along the floor, which my mind found odd considering I had fallen towards the ceiling a few seconds ago. The blue smoke solidified, and I found myself riding on Aunt Luna’s back as she ran around the pool. “Beware its illusions!” she called to me. “‘Twill muddle thy senses!” So that must have been why the floor and ceiling had gotten flipped on me—the aboleth had cast some sort of illusion over me. I would have to watch out for that, but at least now I knew. Another boulder interrupted that train of thought as it came hurdling towards us. Aunt Luna zigged to change directions, and it hit the ground close enough that the impact showered us with shards of rock. Not wanting to give the aboleth a single target, I pushed off of my aunt and took to the air again, flying in the opposite direction to make it harder for the aboleth to follow both of us. It focused on Aunt Luna, which left an opening for me. I flew in close again and blasted its tail, blowing a hole through it. It jerked in pain, and Aunt Luna took that moment to strike. A flash of lightning flew from her horn and hit it dead center, making it convulse in pain. The monster must have sensed the tide turning against it, for it started to re-submerge into the water to try and escape. “Neigh, vile fiend, thou wilt not escape!” Aunt Luna cast another spell, and the water crackled as it froze solid. The aboleth struggled against the ice, but found itself held fast. “Now, Cadance! ‘Tis time to strike!” “Right!” I flew around the monster as I charged up as much magic as I could into my horn, making it ache with all the built-up magic. Aunt Luna circled opposite of me, doing the same. We fired together, beams of pink and silvery energy striking the aboleth. It convulsed under the attack, writhing in place as its flesh started to bulge. We kept up the offensive until it exploded. Green goop flew all over the cavern, globs of it impacting me, and it was all I could do to shield my face. When silence finally fell over the cave, I flittered down to the the floor. I grimaced as I tried to get the gunk off of me. It was quite possibly the foulest smell I had ever experienced, and I had once helped deal with a sludge demon that haunted the Canterlot sewers.The only good thing I could say about it was that it wasn’t some form of acid on top of everything else. Aunt Luna landed beside me, a wide smile on her face despite being similarly covered in gore. “Huzzah! Victory is ours!” “Er, right.” I tried to flick some of the goo off, but it seemed stuck to my coat. I didn’t even want to think what it would be doing to my wings. “Well struck, my niece!” She embraced me with one of those vice-like hugs of hers. “I am most proud of thee!” “Thanks,” I rasped out. While I was covered in foul-smelling goo and being hugged to death by my aunt, all things considered, this could have turned out a lot worse. After talking with Sea Foam, I sat at a pierside restaurant enjoying breakfast with Aunt Luna. After everything that we had gone through and everything that needed to be sorted out after we had defeated the aboleth, we decided it would be best to sleep in the town and head back to Canterlot the next day. Big surprise, the townponies had a bunch of questions about why their princesses were personally arresting their mayor. The talk about a monster mind-controlling their fellow villagers hadn’t exactly calmed them down either, but we managed to answer their questions and prevent a panic. The good news was that the worst was over; the monster had been defeated, Mayor Sea Foam was behind bars, and Queensmouth was safe once again. After a good night’s rest, I could enjoy a nice meal before heading out and returning to Canterlot to tell Aunt Tia everything that had happened. One of the ponies working the family restaurant placed some pancakes and fruit in front of us. Aunt Luna and I thanked the pony and started eating. “I hope thou art feeling better this morning,” Aunt Luna said between bites. I prepared my napkin and nodded. “Yes, I am. We did help free an entire village from an evil monster trying to conquer it, so I’d say that makes for a worthwhile trip.” “So it does,” Aunt Luna agreed. “'Twas good work we did here. Mayhaps a more difficult quest than I would have desired for my first outing with thee, but all was well in the end.” She gave me a satisfied smile. “And I will say, I am most proud of thee, my niece.” I returned her smile. “Thanks. It was pretty impressive watching you defeat that horrible monster.” Aunt Luna puffed out her chest as she preened at my compliment. “I would like to think my centuries of exile have not dulled my skills too much.” “Certainly not.” Aunt Luna grinned in that way that now made me nervous. “Of course, it would not hurt to hone one's skills.” I raised an eyebrow. “What did you have in mind?” “Mayhaps I could oversee some of thy training.” She poked at her fruit with a fork as she continued. “Particularly in the martial fields—thy technique requires work. Do not consider it an insult, but ‘tis clear that thou dost not have much experience with combat.” I cut a slice out of my pancakes before answering. “Yes, I suppose I'm a lover, not a fighter.” “Aye, thou hast my sister's continence in that regards.” Aunt Luna shrugged. “Whereas I am more willing to engage in direct battle.” “Right, I noticed that.” I carefully measured my words before speaking them. “It’s different, but not worse.” “I would like to think so.” She sighed and played with her fruitbowl. “Even if I do seem to offput ponies sometimes with my ways.” “It's nothing too serious, Aunt Luna.” I placed a hoof on hers. “You’ll get there, trust me.” Aunt Luna smiled back at me. “Aye, let us hope so. Time should be the cure for my current troubles.” “I think it will really help for you to interact with other ponies—you know, get to know them and how they do things these days.” My ears perked as an idea struck me. “One sec.” I got up from the table, and after talking with the owner of the restaurant, came back with two bottles of soda. I placed one in front of Aunt Luna. “Here, try this.” Aunt Luna cautiously picked up the body and examined it, turning the bottle slowly in her magic. “Pray tell, what type of beverage is this?” “It’s called soda.” I pulled off the cap to my bottle to show her how it was done. “It's carbonated water, sugar, and flavoring. It’s really popular with ponies.” “I suppose 'tis worth trying then.” After giving the bottle one last suspicious look, Aunt Luna took a hesitant sip. Her eyes widened and she looked at the bottle. “My, this is actually quite good! ‘Tis quite fizzy, but enjoyably so!” I grinned, happy that I had done a little something to help Luna acclimate to the present. “Thought you'd like it.” “Aye!” Aunt Luna tipped back the bottle and downed the rest of its contents in one go. She sighed contentedly and then smashed the bottle on the wooden planks of the pier. “Another!” I blinked at the unexpected behavior. “Aunt Luna! Don't do that!” Aunt Luna frowned. “But why not? I enjoyed the drink.” “Because smashing bottles is rude,” I told her. She rolled her eyes. “But of course it is. One century something is a compliment, and the next...” “Sorry.” Great, my attempt to make my aunt feel better had backfired. Two steps forward, one step back. Aunt Luna waved the issue off. “Neigh, 'tis no fault of thine.” She turned back to her fruit. “I would rather have my time with thee be pleasant.” I nibbled on my pancakes as I mulled some ideas over. “I think that's something we can definitely work on” “Aye.” A mischievous grin worked its way onto her lips. “And if thou art like me, no doubt thou hast endured Tia's pranks more often than not.” I chuckled, quickly figuring out where this was leading. “Once or twice, yes.” “Well then, we could repay her in kind in the not-too-distant future.” “I'd be up for that.” The idea of repaying Aunt Celestia for the times she had pranked or teased me over the years was super tempting, especially with a co-conspirator. Little surprise, most ponies wanted no part in trying to prank the most powerful pony in Equestria. Thinking about it that way, I might also have gained an ally in finally finding a special somepony for Aunt Tia. But first, other things needed to be addressed. “Although...” Aunt Luna quirked one of her eyebrows. “Is something on thy mind?” “Yes.” I stood up, carefully measuring how close Luna was to the edge of the pier. “I just can't help but think that I owe you too.” Before she could react, I quickly pushed her over. “Wha—?!” Aunt Luna squawked as she went tumbling, limbs flailing as she fell into the water with a splash. She re-emerged coughing out sea water. “Cadance!” I gave her the most innocent smile ever. “Yes?” Aunt Luna splashed around the water as she got used to the water. “Explain thyself!” I kept right on smiling. “Like I said, I owed you for Shining.” Her eyes narrowed. “Ah, is that what this is about?” “Yup.” Instead of continuing to swim, Aunt Luna turned into a cloud of blue smoke and zipped to the pier. She reformed, though still wet from her dip in the sea. “Well then, I hope thou art satisfied.” Thinking it was best to take my winnings and walk, I said, “Yeah, I am.” Aunt Luna grinned. “Good. I would hate to escalate the pranking if the scales have not been balanced. I might be forced to do something most terrible to thee.” “Yes, let’s just call it even,” I quickly agreed. I didn’t need a two-front pranking war with my aunts. “It wouldn’t be dignified for two princesses to engage in such activities.” “I would think not,” Aunt Luna said with exaggerated graveness. “So what say we instead plot 'gainst my sister for her past misdeeds?” I nodded, knowing a good opportunity when I saw one. “Deal.” She wrapped a drenching wet wing around me. “Then come. We have a long trip on which to conspire.” I tensed as her wing slapped against me, coating me in seawater, but I still managed to smile for her. “That we do.”