Justice
Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of earth,
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
Of Sun-split clouds and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of
Wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov'ring there
I've chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager self through roofless halls of air...
“Poems for Pegasi”, The Equestrian Encyclopedia of General Knowledge
“A unicorn may offer a challenge to another unicorn. However, if a unicorn attacks without said challenge, she is in violation of the Second Law and will face the Council. A unicorn may defend herself without a challenge if a mage opponent, either armed or unarmed, attacks her without provocation.”
2nd Law, “Mage Law”, The Equestrian Encyclopedia of General Knowledge
3rd of Fourth Jon and I waved good-bye to Maggie and to Mrs. Grass, then took one of the new steam trucks to a long field outside of town. I’d parked the plane there in a rather rickety hangar wrapped around with several magical protections to keep off the curious. It was perfect flying weather, a blue sky with a few clouds and a light breeze from the South/Southwest, the way we were flying.
We parked the truck and I unlocked the hangar, then used magic to pull the plane out into the Sunshine. She was enclosed, 24ft long with a 36ft wingspan. Empty weight was 1,550lb and along with two ponies and the water, she'd carry about 2,700 pounds. With a full load, she'd do around 110 mph, empty about 150 mph although that was pushing it since the frame started to buckle a bit. The water would hold out for around 500 miles. She was wood, canvas and a touch of magic. I loved her.
I’d named her Apple Bloom which caused squeal of delight from my sister-in-law when I told her. Of the Three Pests, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle were actually pretty good pilots and Scootaloo was exceptional. At least they had their cutie marks now, I thought, as I checked the plane for any problems.
Jon stood and admired her.
“May I touch, Mr. Apple?”
“Of course, Jon, she’s not made of spun glass. Touch, probe, ask questions, whatever you like.”
Jon ran a reverent hoof over the fuselage, then looked closely at the wing.
“Oh, I see,” he said, pointing. “With this shape, air flowing over the wing will travel a greater distance faster which causes a lower pressure area beneath and lifts the wing up. That’s brilliant!”
I looked very sharply at Jon. Twilight had grasped how the plane flew only after I’d spent half an hour explaining it to her. Jon had got it just by looking.
“That’s exactly right, Jon. Have a look at the engine, why don’t you?”
Jon did and made all the right noises about it. One advantage of steam was you could reverse the propeller instantly and only needed about 100ft to land.
“Well, we’re off. Climb aboard.”
Jon did and I fired up the engine, tested the throttle and taxied to the end of the field. I took off in about 200ft since we were flying into the Wind. Jon looked like a colt with his first sugar cube. As I headed for Dodge City, I explained the joystick, how to control the flaps, rudder and stabilizers, the airspeed indicator, altimeter and water gauge. Jon asked about connecting cables and a few other questions, then I turned the plane over to him.
He flew the way he drove the truck, like he was born to it. He was a natural, sure enough.
It was a three hour train trip to Dodge City. We made it in just under an hour, quite the time savings. I missed my railponies and driving the hog, though. I took the controls and put her down outside of town on a dusty road. As always, we soon had a crowd of ponies wondering about the “new-fangled contraption”. Several pegasi showed up, too, and were even more curious. I’d done all I could to convince pegasi aeroplanes would never replace them but some were still dubious.
I was looking around for someponies to guard the plane while we went into town when along came Tin Star, the sheriff, with a couple of deputies. Tin Star was actually Granny’s great nephew, so he considered me family. I’d had a grand time with him at the reunions since he was a first-rate boxer and knew some judo as well.
We shook hooves.
“Tin Star, sir, good to see you again.”
“Howdy, Cuz. Say, this here’s quite the machine! Wanna couple o’ my boys to keep an eye on it while we’re at the jail?”
“Not that I don’t trust the good citizens of Dodge City, Sheriff, but I would appreciate it. I’ll give several rides after we finish if,” I said, raising my voice a little, “there are those ponies here daring enough.” Several who heard me looked very determined.
“Wouldn’t mind a trip myself!” said Tin Star.
“Sheriff, this is Jonathan Smithson, the stallion I cabled you about.”
“Howdy, Mr. Smithson. I sure do thank ya for coming down today. Your testimony will help us send these two rascals off to turn big rocks inta little’uns.”
Jon nodded. “Anything I can do, Sheriff.”
We trotted to the jail and the sheriff took Jon’s statement. I’d heard part of it but it made for a sad tale nonetheless. I took a moment to ask if we could remove the Magic Containment Unit along with Sorter. I hinted it wasn’t the best idea to leave both charged and Tin Star quickly agreed. I had to sign for them and agree to bring them back for the trial but I told the sheriff I’d do it gladly.
The M.A.C.E. 1 was locked in a shed next to the jail. The sheriff let us in and I let Jon go first. He quickly looked over his machine and declared it in pretty good shape. With a twist and after loosening some wingnuts, the removed a blue rectangular box along with what looked like a set of small scales with springs. Jon nodded, then closed her up again.
“Sheriff, may I see the brothers?” said Jon after he’d put the MCU and the Sorter in the sheriff’s office.
“Why, sure, son, I suppose. This way.”
Tin Star led the way to a small holding cell. There they were, the two who tried to take my family’s farm and who had stolen Jon’s future.
Jon just stood, jaw set, until the twins noticed him.
“Weeelll, look who we hava here,” said Flam.
“Oh, it’s the inventor! Thank you for the Super Speedy, inventor. She served us well all thisa time.”
“And it’s the unicorn farmer. You remember, Flam, the one married to that delectable Apple?”
I slowly turned my head to look at Tin Star. He winked. I looked back at the lowlifes and lit my horn.
Every single piece of metal in the jail started to ring with a strong, clear A flat. The stone floor started a deep hum as well. Jon took a couple of steps back from me but Tin Star just grinned and winked at Jon as well.
Voice reverberating, I said, “I find your challenge to my Sacred Honor offensive and I demand satisfaction or an apology. Now.”
Both unicorns’ mouths dropped open, then both threw themselves onto the dirty cell’s floor. They were screaming in some language I didn’t know what I assumed were apologies. Both wet themselves, too.
After a few seconds, I recalled my magic. Both unicorns looked up, their noses bleeding from the aftershock.
“If either of you ever speak of my wife again in such a way, I will not stop until you both are reduced to puddles of slimy goo. Are we clear on this?”
Both unicorns gibbered.
“ARE WE CLEAR ON THIS?” I said, casting my voice around the jail. Hah, I did it, I thought. Just like Death.
Flam fainted and Flim just scrabbled his forehooves against the floor, sobbing.
“Well and good, then. Thank you, Sheriff.”
“You bet, Cuz. Johnny!” the sheriff yelled back toward the office. A young Earth pony popped his head around the corner. “Bring the fire hose. We gotta clean up a couple of prisoners.” All three of us exchanged grins at that.
Satisfied, Jon gathered up the MCU and the Sorter and we headed back to the airfield. A few hardy souls had stayed and I gave them a turn in the plane. Jon and I took Tin Star on a longer flight and waggled our wings at his wife and three colts. The plane was quiet enough he could call to them out the window, too.
“Nothin’ like bein’ a daddy, Cuz,” said Tin Star, pulling his head back in the plane. “You’ll see soon enough.”
“So I will, Sheriff. I must say, I can’t wait.”
We landed outside of town and both of us shook hooves with Tin Star. He said he’d let us know if he needed the evidence or if we needed to testify at the trial.
“I dunno, Cuz. After your, ah, talk with them dopes, we may get a confession after all.”
“Oh, I think so, Sheriff. If I must, I’ll bring Lady Astrid with me next time.”
“Whooo-eee, we could sell tickets,” said Tin Star. “So long, Cuz, Mr. Smithson!”
We waved, shut the plane’s door and I let Jon taxi and lift her off. We had a quiet ride back to Ponyville and the hangar. I let Jon land and he did it as if he’d been doing it for years.
We hangered the plane which Jon said he’d service later, then loaded the MCU and Sorter in the carry box and headed back to the workshop.
Jon spoke for the first time since we’d left Dodge City. “Could you have killed them, Mr. Apple?”
“Oh, yes.”
“Are you really powerful, then? I mean, really powerful?”
“Yes.”
“Gosh.”
“I use my abilities to serve, Jon, you and all ponies. And there’s always a price.”
“Yes, sir,” said Jon, then smiled. “They wet themselves.”
We both started laughing and kept it up off and on until we got back to the workshop just in time for lunch.
After lunch, Jon showed me how the MCU and Sorter worked. The MCU was so simple, I was stunned I hadn’t thought of it myself. It was like a combination battery and refracting telescope, except for magic. Incredible.
“Jon, I want to use this. May the workshop license your patent?”
“Oh, I never patented this, Mr. Apple. Or the Sorter, either.”
“What?!? Why not?”
Jon looked at the ground, left hoof over his mane. “Well, I just…well, I’m not too good with…”
“Oh, never mind, Jon! Honestly!” I said, miffed. “Can you draw?”
“Yessir. I won a couple of contests in school.”
“Well, then you spend the rest of the afternoon drawing out how these work with some instructions and then we’ll fill out the patent applications together. We can’t use the MCU until we do, you know.”
Jon just nodded. I set him up in my study with a pen, pencil and paper, then wrote out a note to Maggie to please get the patent forms ready. Now, then, I thought, time to talk to the family about a cider factory.
I told Mrs. Grass I was heading to the farm, then stepped out the kitchen door. I was only about 20 yards away when I heard thundering hooves. I looked around and there was Bull Brickle running for all he was worth.
Bull slammed to a stop in front of me and would have fallen if I hadn’t held him up. He was breathing so hard he couldn’t speak.
“The foal?” I asked. I knew Spring was close but I thought she had another week or so.
Bull just nodded, still bent over.
“Wait here, Bull. I’ll get the steam truck and we’ll head for the farm.”
I raced back through the kitchen, told Mrs. Grass where I was going, then fired up the other new steam truck. Time to see how fast she’d actually go. The answer was a steady 40 mph, poor Bull gripping the door the entire time. We made the Brickle farm in 20 minutes, though.
“She’s in the side pasture, Mr. Wizard,” said a worried Bull as we both hopped out of the steam truck. “She’s in trouble.”
I just nodded, pleased the Brickles had followed the custom of birthing outside. I had a spot picked out in the orchard for AJ, too. We moved at a good clip and in a couple of minutes I saw Ma Brickle and Winter. Ma waved and I headed toward her.
I found Spring stretched out underneath a chestnut tree in the shade, a perfect birthing spot. When she saw me, she held up a hoof.
“Hey, Mr. Apple. Thank you for coming.” Spring put a brave face on it, but she was terrified.
I nodded to Ma and Winter, then took Spring’s hoof while I extended my healer senses. Breech.
“Hey, Spring, hon. Can you stand for me?”
Spring rocked and tried to get up but was just too exhausted.
“No, Mr. Apple, I’m sorry, I can’t,” Spring said, in tears.
“No matter. Spring, your foal is breech, alright? We’re going to turn him. I need you to go to sleep now, though.”
Spring dropped off at once. I slowed her heart rate, then turned to the others.
“I’m going to lift Spring to her hooves, but I can’t do that and turn the foal at the same time.”
Winter stepped forward. “I’ll do it, Mr. Wizard.”
I looked at Winter and thought how like Fall she was when Fall was 13. Winter was all legs and knees, now, and far darker than Fall with a charcoal mane and hooves, a dark chocolate brown coat and surprising blue eyes. Winter was always very quiet but I did remember Ma mentioning she often brought home sick animals and nursed them back to health. Winter also didn’t have a cutie mark yet. She was old not to have one but it wasn’t that unusual.
I nodded. “Very good, Winter. You’ll need to reach into the womb, find the foal’s nose, grab the foals front hooves and turn the foal until the nose faces the vulva. Don’t worry about breaking the placenta. Ready?”
Winter nodded and I nodded back, then looked at Bull. He signaled he was ready.
I raised Spring to her hooves and kept her steady which was harder than it sounds, even with Bull helping support Spring’s front. Winter washed her hooves in a bucket of water, soaped up a forehoof and reached into Spring. After about five minutes, I Felt the foal shift and finally both front hooves and the nose were where they should be.
“Well done, Winter! That’s got it.”
Winter stepped back and Bull and I slowly lowered Spring, my chin and stomach dripping sweat. Machines were far easier although I had no idea why.
“Spring, wake up, honey. Almost finished.”
Spring blinked awake, then had a contraction. Out of the vulva came a pair of hooves followed by a nose.
“Again!”
One last contraction and out came a beautiful palomino Earth pony colt. I cleaned his nose and he started to wail. Ma, Spring and Bull were all cheering, laughing and crying at the same time as I put the foal in Spring’s forehooves. Winter just looked thoughtful, and then smiled. I saw a flash of light and on her flanks appeared a caduceus cutie mark. She looked at them, then at me.
“Mr. Wizard, will you teach me to be a healer?” she asked, smiling that tranquil smile of hers.
And right in front of me was the pony who would change the Equestrian medical profession forever.
Thank you, Lady Magic.
Not I this time, either, Guardian.
Blessing Count
Stage Two begins with the rupture of the placental membranes. With that rupture, all of the allantois fluids start to come out, and the foal should be presented at the lips of the vulva within three to five minutes. Normally, one leg is seen first, with the other leg 10-15 centimeters behind the first leg, and then the head. The head and both front legs should show up within five minutes.
The mare usually lies on her side during this phase of labor. With each contraction, the foal advances through the vulva. This stage is rapid, with normal delivery completed 15-45 minutes after the placental rupture.
…
Breech birth is when the two hind limbs are up underneath the foal and the rear end is presented first. To correct this, you must reverse the foal. You must have the mare stand so you can repel the foal back into the uterus far enough so you can turn him around.
“Foaling”, translated from Ancient Equestrian, On Physick For Ponies
An old labourer, bent double with age and toil, was gathering sticks in a forest. At last he grew so tired and hopeless that he threw down the bundle of sticks, and cried out: "I cannot bear this life any longer. Ah, I wish Death would only come and take me!"
As he spoke, Death, a grisly skeleton, appeared and said to him: "What wouldst thou, Mortal? I heard thee call me."
"Please, sir," replied the woodcutter, "would you kindly help me to lift this faggot of sticks on to my shoulder?"
Moral: We would often be sorry if our wishes were gratified.
“Tales for Foals”, The Equestrian Encyclopedia of General Knowledge
“HAHAHAHAH! ‘…A GRISLY SKELETON…!’ AHAHAHAHAH!”
Death
I walked out to my spot by the Gorge. It was a wonderful Summer day, Sunny and hot, the Sun warm on my back. I ran through some T’ai Chi katas, then started my Blessing Count.
One: It was 1st of Seventh, Year of Celestia 1,104 and I was a new father. On Midsummer’s Day, 20th of Sixth, Apple Bloom came bursting into the workshop to tell me it was time. With Jon and Mrs. Grass calling good wishes, I raced back with Apple Bloom to find AJ lying on a blanket underneath our favorite apple tree, one of the oldest on the farm. I checked her at once and found her contractions had started.
“Not long now, Hon,” I said. “Any pain?”
“Nah. Ready to get this done, though,” said AJ, breathing the way I’d taught her.
10 minutes later I was holding the most beautiful, perfect Earth pony filly in the history of the World. She didn’t cry, just yawned and opened green eyes exactly like her mother’s. She had a raven black mane and hooves (tiny little hooves!), a light brown coat and AJ’s freckles. I passed her to Apple Bloom, a sobbing Big Mac and Granny who all had stood witness. Each helped clean her, then I put her between AJ’s front hooves. I rubbed my muzzle on AJ’s head.
“Well done, Mother,” I said, “very well done.”
“Airlie Red Apple, welcome to the World,” said AJ, then nodded off.
With my healing, AJ was up and about in a day or two and back to herself in two weeks. In time-honored tradition, she carried Airlie with her when she worked the fields. Everypony, and I do mean everypony right down to all four royals, had come to see the new baby but that was tapering off.
Two: Jon. The perfect employee, Jon had caught up the shop’s backlog in two months and even earned us several new clients when he showed his expertise as a driver, mechanic, repairman, and dinner guest. We delivered four of the racers to various nobility and Jon carried himself very well with excellent manners, a wide range of conversation and even some performances on the twelve-string guitar. With regular meals and the Grass sisters’ attention, Jon had filled out and become quite the muscular, handsome stallion. He was also smarter than Fall, Twilight and I put together. And I do mean really smart.
I still knew nothing about his past and apparently neither did Pinkie. Pinkie had become a frequent visitor to the workshop. She’d ask Jon on picnics, take him on walks, play ball, drag him to parties and generally make him socialize. Even an ordinary pony would have had a hard time getting a word in edgewise with Pinkie so Jon almost never spoke at all when they were together. Pinkie asked him about his family once and just like with me, he’d muttered something and looked away.
A couple of weeks ago I’d been lying by the gorge meditating when I heard soft hoofsteps. Pinkie came up next to me, plopped down and leaned against my right side just like AJ. She looked at me and I kissed her nose, then went back to looking out over the gorge. So did Pinkie.
“I love him,” she said, “and I mean really love him, not just the way I love everypony.”
“I know.”
“I took him to meet my family last week.”
“Mmm, I know, I gave him the time off.”
“They liked him. They’ve never liked anypony I’ve brought home before.”
“Well, there was that stallion who kept getting the hiccups. Oh, and that one with the strange fixation on jelly jars,” I pointed out.
Pinkie just giggled and shoved my shoulder, then became serious again.
“Yeah, well, Jon’s different. I want to make a life with him. Have his foals.”
I turned my head and stared. “Who are you and what have you done with Pinkamena?”
“I know, I know, Ultimate Party Pony and all,” Pinkie sighed. “I mean it, though. Can’t you talk to him, Ben? I really need to meet his family. It’s important. And Jon’s sad about it, I can tell.”
Point there, I thought, actually two points. I nodded.
“I think I know a way, Pinkie. Give me just a bit more time.”
Pinkie hopped up with her usual energy, then kissed me on the muzzle.
“Thanks, Mr. Wizard. I love you, too, ya know!” And giggling, she bounced away. Yep, same ol’ Pinkie.
Three: Winter Brickle. Winter showed up about two weeks after Spring had her foal, saddlebags on her back, and moved into Fall’s old room. The Grass sisters were more than pleased to have another Brickle filly around and started in on her just like they did with Fall. Winter enjoyed the attention but couldn’t have been more different than her older sister. Serene, quiet, loving and affectionate, Winter would sometimes come downstairs when I was reading, curl up next to me and drop off to sleep. She did the same to the Grass sisters and to Jon who treated her like a younger sibling. They got along exceptionally well and Jon helped her with her cursive while she wrote down what I translated from some of the Ancient Equestrian medical texts I’d borrowed from Canterlot. What ponies had forgotten in two thousand years was almost beyond belief.
Winter had helped me with four deliveries (two of which were pegasi including Wind Rider’s foal), six broken legs, canker sores, pink eye, pulled muscles, joint and spine adjustments and on and on. She had a healer’s touch, sure enough, but I wanted her to get experience without my help. I finally sent her by herself to ask the last old stallion doctor in town if she could work with him. He was more than happy to teach her so she started learning herb lore along with some home remedies which worked well. She wrote those down, too, and Maggie and I typed up her notes as she finished.
Four: Death. I could move to the Astral almost at will now and spent many a pleasant hour with Death. I taught him to play some card games including gin rummy, poker, hearts, crazy eights and blackjack. Once he learned the game, he beat me at poker every single time although I usually took him at hearts. We talked about mares, AJ and the other Elements, mares, the royals, Equestrian history, mares, Lady Magic and all sorts of other topics. Once he got over his awkwardness, he was an excellent companion. Occasionally he’d have to leave to retrieve a soul and I just waited until he got back. He said he’d take me if I really wanted him to but that death was usually private, so I waved it off and told him not to worry about it.
I was relaxing in my study when I felt the tickle in the back of my head that was Death asking for me to visit. He was good about waiting until I wasn’t busy, so I was more than happy to head to the Astral.
“GREETINGS, MY FRIEND. YOU ARE WELL?” said Death as I shook his hoof.
“A little tired from the baby, Death, but she’s almost ready to sleep the whole night now,” I said, sitting in my favorite chair. Death had built a whole house just for me and it was far more comfortable than an endless grey plain.
We visited for a bit and I noticed Death’s eyes were still sad but he didn’t look nearly as lonely. Good, very good, I thought.
“BEN?”
“Yes, sir?” I said as I was reaching for the cards.
“I BELIEVE I HAVE FOUND AN APPRENTICE.”
“You have? Why, that’s wonderful, Death. Who is he?”
“A SHE, ACTUALLY.”
“Oh, ho!”
“IT IS NOT LIKE THAT, GUARDIAN,” said Death, smiling. “OBSERVE.”
Death took out his scythe and in a gesture I never tired of watching, sliced open Reality. There sat a pretty Earth pony mare around 35 or so, spoon feeding another very old pony. She kept up a light conversation, wiped his mouth and then when he’d finished, tucked him in. There were no nurses in Equestria (at least, not officially) but I recognized a caretaker when I saw one.
“Name?” I asked.
“MARCIA O’REILLY. SHE TOOK THE NAME OF HER ADOPTIVE FAMILY.”
“Orphan, then. Where is she?”
“MUNCY VALLEY IN APPLELOOSA.” We watched as Marcia walked to a pleasant little cabin and made herself some lunch. She reminded me of a younger Emerald Grass with that same calm demeanor. Her cutie mark was a swatch of cloth. In the background I noticed a floor loom and a table loom. A weaver, then.
Death closed the rift.
“Excellent, Death. What does she think about becoming Death’s Apprentice?”
Death looked embarrassed. “I DO NOT KNOW. I HOPED YOU WOULD ASK HER FOR ME.”
“No, sir, I will not. This is for you to do, Death. Tell you what, I’ll go to Muncy Valley, feel her out and if she’s amenable, introduce her to you. How’s that sound?”
Death looked very relieved. “THANK YOU, GUARDIAN. YES, THAT WOULD BE A GREAT HELP.”
“Hmm, let me think about how to phrase it, then we’ll give it a shot. Don’t get upset if she refuses at first.”
Death just nodded. I shook his hoof and then found myself back in my study.
That was last week. Death’s Apprentice. How in the name of the Lord of Hel could you ask somepony if she wanted to do that? I still wasn’t quite sure. I wanted to ask Lady Magic but I hadn’t heard from her in a month or so. Last time we talked she said I was doing well enough and she’d see me “later” which could mean 40 years on her timescale. Eh, well.
Four: Rainbow Dash. This one gave me lift, sure enough. Last year right before Spring Planting, AJ walked into my study while I was reading. She usually left me alone when I was in “the stallion cave” so I knew this was something unusual. She took a seat in the leather chair I used for guests.
“Partner,” AJ, said, then stopped and looked down.
“Go ahead, Hon,” I said.
AJ looked back up, then put her left forehoof on my right forehoof. “You know Rainbow Dash?”
“Yes, of course I do, AJ.”
“Well, I’ve gotten to know her pretty good these last few months. She’s…well, she’s really lonesome. She keeps talkin’ about that preenin’ we gave her that time.”
“Oh, that’s fine! Invite her back for another one. We certainly have room for her to spend the night now.” 8 bedrooms not counting the master where AJ and I slept in our custom made Princess Celestia model bed: “Endorsed by the Princess herself!” It actually wasn’t, but I didn’t tell the salespony that.
AJ gripped my hoof a little harder. “I’d like for her to stay with us.”
“That’s what I said, Hon, just…”
“No, Partner. Stay…with…us.”
“Well, now you’ve lost me, AJ, I thought I just agreed…”
Wait.
Oh.
Oh!!
“Um…you sure, Lover?”
AJ colored slightly. “Yeah. We’ll keep it to ourselves, huh?”
“Souls of discretion, that’s us.” I looked at AJ sideways, eyebrows raised. “Well, well, aren’t you the daring pony?”
AJ stood to go. “Actually, it was Rainbow Dash that suggested it. I just sorta…well, I said I’d ask you, o’course, but I wasn’t…”
“…too adverse?” I finished for my best filly.
“Yeah, that,” said AJ as she walked out of the room with a tail swish.
Rainbow Dash had stayed with us a half dozen times since then and was coming tonight as well. I grinned with anticipation.
A good life, a very good life. All going well, fatherhood, home life, business, friends, Avatars. Yes, good. Fine. Very fine.
So why oh why, I thought, was I so restless?
The dust choked my nose and made its way into my ears even though I was wearing a helmet with goggles and a scarf over my muzzle. I put my head down and kept walking, the only sound the howling Wind. All around was desolation; dead, twisted trees, abandoned houses, skeletons of ponies and other animals. I looked down as I passed a badger skeleton with three much smaller skeletons around her. This year’s kits, I thought. The sky was a sullen red, the Sun obscured by the dust.
Soon I recognized the farm’s buildings, now half collapsed. Old House, the barn, the hay barns, all abandoned. All the trees dead, the pond full of scummy, black water which occasionally rippled from something unseen, something too horrible to contemplate.
“Benjamin!” I heard somepony call me. I looked through the dust and saw Princess Luna standing on the Homestead’s porch. The Homestead was the only building strong enough to withstand the Wind but even it had started to wear; the Tower had a broken window and the porch sagged in places.
I made my way to the Princess of the Night.
“Your Highness!” I yelled so she could hear me over the Wind. “What is this place? Where are we?”
“This is a dream, Benjamin,” she answered. I noticed she didn’t have to shout for me to hear her. Then she pointed to the front door. “Listen.”
I heard the sobbing and screaming of a pony in agony.
I looked away from the door and asked, “Who is it, your Highness?” But Luna was gone.
I walked in the front door and as it shut behind me the Wind cut off as if somepony had thrown a switch. The sobbing was much louder now and I followed it down the dark, twisted hall to my study. The study was mine but not, the bookshelves distorted and with red eyes peering out from the shadows. I looked around.
Princess Celestia.
She was the pony sobbing. She cried with no tears, staring out one of my study windows.
“Tia! Tia, what is it?” I said, walking up to her after taking off my helmet and scarf. “Tia!”
Tia stopped sobbing, then looked at me. I involuntarily stepped back from her worn, ravaged face.
“Ben?”
“That’s right, OTL. What is it? What’s the matter? Why are you crying?”
Tia looked back out the window, then put a forehoof against the glass.
“I did this, Ben. I did. I destroyed the World.”
“What? How?”
“No,” said Tia. “Noooo! NOOOOOO!” Tia’s tilted her head back and screamed. I covered my ears and cringed, it was so loud.
When I looked up, I felt a stab straight through my heart since in Tia’s place, there was Sunny.
I couldn’t breathe for a few seconds. My One True Love, back again. I hadn’t seen her since Stableside. I thought…well, I thought wrong, apparently.
I didn’t say anything, just took her in my hooves and gave her the most passionate kiss I could, everything in my life forgotten except being with her.
Sunny returned the kiss with equal passion, then gently pushed me away.
“Hey, Ben. It’s good to see you again.”
I’d regained some of myself. “Sunny, what in the name of the Lord of Hel is going on? What happened to Tia?”
“She needs you, Ben, needs you desperately. You’re the only one who can save her.”
“What did she mean when she said she’d destroyed the World?”
Sunny looked away from me and half-flexed her wings.
“Tell me, Sunny!”
“She killed the griffons,” said Sunny, looking back at me. “They won’t survive another five years.”
“Wait, the griffon ambassador just visited Canterlot. It was in the paper.”
Sunny shook her head. “They’re dying, Ben.” Sunny hesitated, then said, “She used Dark Magic on their land.”
My rear hooves buckled and I sat down hard. “Say again, Sunny?” I said, weakly.
Sunny nodded sadly. “She used Dark Magic. Just before she left the Griffon Lands forever, she Cursed it.” Sunny started crying and looked down again. “She Cursed it,” Sunny repeated through sobs.
No.
NO!
“No,” I said in a whisper. “No, not Tia. She’s not a killer, Sunny, she’s not.”
Sunny raised her tear-stained muzzle to look at me. “They killed hundreds, Ben, hundreds. The Mad King ate ponies on the battlefield! So did some of his followers. When it was over, all Celestia wanted to do was destroy the griffons. Destroy all of them. All!!”
“Which spell did she use, Sunny?” I asked through a throat tight with fear.
“Maledicta Terra.”
So, then. No counter, at least, none that I knew.
“She’s unbalanced the World, Sunny. And destroyed herself.”
Sunny looked at me, her beautiful face contorted in a rictus of agony. “She knows! She KNOWS!! SHE KNOOOWWS!!”
I started awake, covered in sweat, my heart pounding, gasping for breath. I stared at the moonlight on our carved bedroom ceiling for a moment, then looked to my right. Rainbow Dash was between AJ and me, sound asleep, left forehoof over AJ. I sat up. Airlie!
I rolled out of bed and moved quickly to the baby’s room right next to ours. There she was, sprawled out, sound asleep. I let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding and felt my ears flatten. I’d crack this World to its core to protect my family, and the Lord of Hel take the hindmost.
I walked into my study, my perfectly normal study, and looked out the window. Crops were doing well, my Earth pony senses told me. Corn could use some water but we had a rain scheduled for tomorrow. I could Feel the rich, healthy Earth, tended so lovingly by generations of Earth ponies. And still, the dream kept haunting me. I Knew what to do although it left me weak in the knees.
I heard a faint rustle and Rainbow Dash sat next to me. I turned and gave her a light kiss, then exchanged a nose rub.
“Can’t sleep?” she asked, leaning against my left side and rubbing my foreleg with her muzzle. Her head was right below my shoulder.
“Nightmare,” I answered, still staring out the window. “I’m sorry I woke you, Rainbow.”
“Nah, forget it. I was going to check on the baby anyway.”
I just nodded.
“Ben?”
“Hmm?”
“You’re going away, aren’t you?”
“How’d you know?”
Rainbow Dash gave a small laugh. “Sleeping between you two is like flying through an electrical storm. You get recharged and you also pick up this and that.” Rainbow Dash paused and rubbed my shoulder again. “When?”
“Next Third before Spring Planting. I’ll need to the time to prepare, tie up loose ends and so on.”
“Are you coming back?”
I shook my head. “I don’t know, Rainbow Dash, I don’t know.”
“Well, you just better! I’m not about to take up the slack for you!”
That made me smile. “Well, I’ll just have to do my best to get back to you and my family, then.”
“It’s…well, it’s just…I’ve never had…oh, just don’t die, alright?”
“Alright. Back to bed?”
“C’mon,” said Rainbow Dash and led the way.
After looking in on Airlie, we climbed into bed. Rainbow Dash fell asleep at once, her right forehoof across my chest and her muzzle next to my right ear. I took comfort from her deep, steady breathing and enjoyed her warmth. I lay awake a few minutes longer, planning what I had to do the next eight months. It was time to tell AJ and others about Lady Magic. And at least I know my Purpose, I thought, and part of the Price. That gave me peace of mind and I slowly drifted off to sleep.