//------------------------------// // Time to Learn // Story: When war comes // by Drakstice //------------------------------// Evening in Ponyville was normally a time for families to enjoy dinner, children to recall their school days, and shopkeepers to conclude business for the day. For the next several evenings to come, they would instead be spent recovering from a level of devastation the town had never before seen. Many buildings were spared total devastation and indeed still served as habitable living quarters for the residents. Even then, many temporary shelters needed to be erected to help those displaced. The hospital was a strategic location, for it was a known place of healing and medicine for the ponies. The Blood Angels could also guard the valuable supplies from desperate looters and thieves. It was also where two more battle brothers were rescued from the brink of death: Brother Dermek, a tactical marine with over one hundred years of experience behind him, and Ulyss, a lively young Sanguinary Priest who took quite well to being rescued by the ponies. In exchange for shelter in the hospital, they were to act as beasts of burden, moving heavy loads of supplies and materials around to help the relief effort. They would also move heavy rubble, as Thane already demonstrated he was capable of just such an invaluable ability. Thane's makeshift team of one close combat marine, a pilot, a tactical marine and a medic was not exactly Codex-compliant, but no one was going to punish them for being one man short of a standard squad after a ferocious battle. Besides, Ulyss bargained shelter in exchange for their services. Ulyss himself rendered aid to the sick and injured. Around mid-day, the relief effort was well under control. There were no more new arrivals for medical aid and those who had been the first to arrive were returning to their homes, if it was still standing, or rendering what aid they could. Twilight had finished her administrative duties as Princess and turned her attention to the guests who had generated so much for her to ponder. "Hello, Thane," Twilight announced with an eager grin as she approached him, "do you have a moment?" She was holding a long scroll of parchment, a quill and three small bottles of ink with her magic. Something told Thane that she was asking for far more than just a moment of his time. "You wish to know a little something?" Thane asked, hoping that the 'little' part of that would be taken to heart. "I want to know a lot of little somethings," Twilight replied as she readied her quill to transcribe. "and a few big somethings as well." This is going to be my entire day, isn't it, Thane thought as his fear of a long, boring talk session started to come true. "Let's start with the most intriguing one first," Twilight began, "What did Celestia say to you this morning when she spoke to you and Delk?" Thane's curiosity was still gnawing at him from earlier and if Twilight could scratch that itch, he would take all the help he could get. "She told me," as Thane spoke these few words, Twilight leaned in closer as to not miss a single detail. She was writing furiously, already using up a good deal of her roll of parchment. "that my chapter had been here before." Twilight nodded and her eyes widened with great interest in every word he spoke. Her writing pace had not wavered despite the brevity of his sentence. "She says she convinced them to leave and that there was nothing here worth anything to us." This gave Twilight pause for thought as she let out a puzzled "Hmmm". Now it was Thane interested in Twilight's response. The story he was given was weak already, but something just didn't add up. "What did she say to you?" Thane asked, now reversing the situation. "All she told me was that she averted a great disaster the likes of which Equestria has never seen." Twilight was lost in thought as she recalled the details of her interrogation with Celestia. "She didn't want to talk about it, though. It was like I was bringing back some painful memory or something taboo." "Well, if you're so curious," Thane interrupted, "search your library for a record about that event in your history. You clearly have the knowledgebase available to you," he explained as he gestured to the library. "I already searched and I can't find anything about you," Twilight explained. She did tell Thane already that she couldn't find anything related to the Imperium when they first met. "Then what did Celestia show me that depicted my chapter on this planet?" With this sentence, Twilight's quill ceased its writing, a small ink spot appearing where the quill still touched the page. Her head slowly turned to face Thane. "Show me this book," Twilight requested, her tone supremely skeptical. If there was a tome of knowledge that she missed in her searches and never found in all the years she had the library, perhaps a book audit was in order. However, the last time she thoroughly cataloged and reorganized the library was just a month ago. There was no way she would have missed this alleged book that would stick out like a sore horn. "It was an old text," Thane explained as he walked toward the battered castle, "looked like it had seen better days." Twilight's impatience overcame her so she started pressing for information. "Where did she get the book?" she asked, hovering close to Thane's face and asking rather demandingly. Thane was already retracing his steps back to the isolated room where the ancient tale was told. "Western wing, second floor, seventh door on the left." Twilight knew exactly which room he was talking about. Without warning, she teleported away, leaving the armored warrior to make his own way up. Up two flights of stairs, past the upper foyer to the left, seven doors down the left side. Every detail Thane passed matched in his photographic memory as he retraced his steps from just this morning. Upon opening the doors to the room, he saw Twilight sifting furiously through books on the shelves lining the walls. She noticed him enter, but did not slow down or seem particularly interested in his arrival. "This is the historical reference room. Any event that happened in the last two hundred years is right here in this room." Twilight was scanning the shelves, looking for anything even remotely related to what had happened recently. Perhaps there was a very slim chance that one of these books held the story Twilight wanted to know. As she flew around the room, she gathered a scant few books that had a chance to be the one Celestia showed Thane and Delk. Even through the levitation haze surrounding them, Thane could tell that none of them were the one. "It was right here," he said as he pointed out the end of a particular shelf. A shelf that may once have held a book, but was now bare. "Hmmm, I'll have to check to see if any books from this room are in circulation," Twilight said before changing the subject, "Do any of these look like the book Celestia showed you?" She presented about twenty books before Thane, hoping he would pick out at least one. Thane already took note of the books in Twilight's possession upon entering the room. "No," was Thane's brief response. He was about to insist that it was here, but something Twilight said earlier held his tongue. "Did you say this room covers the last two hundred years of history?" "Yes, why?" asked Twilight, puzzled by the question. "Celestia said my chapter was here over two hundred years ago," Thane clarified, putting special emphasis on the 'over'. Perhaps it was a clerical error, the book's placement, but Twilight was not prone to sloppy organization. Had she overlooked this particular book? Unlikely, but no creature alive was capable of memorizing an entire library of knowledge, hence the very existence of such places. "I think we should call in the big guns for this." Now this expression, Thane had heard before. But instead of more soldiers and bigger cannons, Twilight wanted to go to a place where her collection of books, spells and knowledge absolutely paled by comparison. "If any place in Equestria has what we are looking for," she declared as he chest swelled with hope, "the Canterlot Royal Archives will tell us for sure! Why didn't I think of this before?" Twilight's glee filled the room as the revelation dawned on her. --- The streets of Canter lot were as busy as ever, merchants ran their shops, socialites socialized, and the royal splendor of the large city shone with brilliant radiance. Strange creatures were not completely out of place, as Equestria was home to a myriad of creatures, many of whom were intelligent enough to comprehend diplomacy and send envoys to the landmark city of the pony kingdom. Even though almost every creature in Equestria had been in Canterlot one way or another, never before had space marines set foot there. Twilight escorted Thane and Dermek through the streets as they made their way to the archives. "I still think you should have taken Ulyss," Dermek hissed, "at least he wants to learn more like you do." He was clearly uncomfortable around all these strange life forms in a place completely unfamiliar to him. He kept his prized custom bolter close to him, his trigger finger ready to fire at a moment's notice. By contrast, Thane felt at ease around the monumental buildings, despite them being of xenos origin. They reminded him of Holy Terra, though he had only ever seen paintings and heard tales of such a grand place. "Well, Ulyss had to take care of our fallen brothers. Besides, I trust their gene-seed with him rather than you." It was kind of a rhetorical thing to say, seeing as only Ulyss was even capable of collecting the ever-precious genetic legacy of the chapter. Dermek didn't take too kindly to being undervalued by the chapter rookie, but he dismissed Thane's attitude as simply being a novice. He would grow out of it eventually. "Here we are," Twilight announced, "The Royal Canterlot Library!" The joy in her voice nicely complemented her radiant smile. She looked upon the massive architectural masterpiece as if it were a divine machination. "Over one million books," Twilight said as if she were speaking about a fantasy of hers, "thousands of known spells, entire fields of study, too. Alchemy, philosophy, biology, history..." "Twilight," Thane interrupted, getting her attention. Twilight's swooning over the library stopped and she snapped back to reality. "Right," Twilight said, eagerly trotting up the steps. At the top, Twilight inhaled deeply and mentally prepared herself before setting hoof in the cathedral-like interior of the library. Walking through the Royal Library was an experience that many could take, but few valued it so highly as Princess Twilight. She valued knowledge, sound thinking, integrity and constant intellectual growth. Any place which condoned the acquisition of knowledge, open discussion and debate, and free access to information was akin to a sacred house of worship. Being royalty herself, the spiritual value of the place rose exponentially. So too did her sense of serenity and belonging. It was her 'happy place', her personal rapture, and nopony could ever tell her otherwise. Of course, it was not perfect for everypony. A loud screech of steel grinding against stone echoed through the cavernous lobby, catching the attention of anypony within earshot. Twilight's daydream shattered as she winced, trying to block out the destructive noise. Thane had not removed his jump pack since he arrived on Equestria. As a result, he could not fit through the door without hitting the stone pillars on either side. It took some doing, but Thane did eventually squirm through, making somewhat of a fool of himself in the process. Space marines were immune to fear and intimidation, but embarrassment could still find purchase on Thane. All eyes in the building were on him, the sting of shame starting to dawn on him. It was only now Thane thought to remove his jump pack, then replace it once he passed the door. Dermek didn't have this problem. Firstly, he didn't have the extra equipment his young battle brother did and second, he entered without issue by crouch crawling through. "Relax," Dermek whispered to Thane, "I've seen dumber from younger. Oh," he continued as he noticed the scuff marks on the jump pack's rear casing, "fix that before you give it back to Allentz." The strict techmarine would never tolerate wargear in less-than-serviceable condition in his armory. Well, Thane thought to himself, at least I'll have something to do after this trip. Indeed, scuff marks do not buff themselves out of ancient and ever holy relics of war. "Alright then, let's keep going," Twilight awkwardly said after a brief moment of silence. She still had an important job to do and even if her guests were uncouth by Rainbow Dash's standards, she would still see it through. As the trio approached the reference desk, the clerk only stared in awe at the armored figures behind Princess Twilight. As she approached the help desk, she cleared her mind and carried on as if today was just another normal day. "Hi, I need help finding some-" She stopped when she realized the clerk was still awestruck at by the Blood Angels' presence."Hello?" Twilight waved her hoof in front of his face to get his attention. Finally, the clerk noticed Twilight in front of him. "Oh, hello Princess," he managed to get out, readjusting his focus behind his thick glasses, "How can I help you today?" "I need to find a book related to these two, here," Twilight said as Thane knelt down to get a better view of the small pony inside the booth. The pony adjusted his spectacles to get a better view of Twilight's large crimson followers. After a moment of pondering, observing and analyzing, he came back with a response. "I can't say I've seen this in any tome," he began, which started to dash Twilight's hopes, "but there are some old books even I haven't opened yet." Almost immediately, the light returned to Twilight's face, hopeful that she would solve this enigma. "Come with me, Princess, I'll show you the sources I have in mind." The pony exited the small booth to reveal he was the avian variety of pony. He spread his wings and took flight toward the upper floors. Twilight followed with excited energy, eager to learn the secrets of the past. Thane and Dermek couldn't follow, as lifting several tons of ceremite and flesh would have expended a considerable amount of magical energy, even for an alicorn. "Oh, before we go," the librarian spoke up before ascending beyond the second floor, "Page," he called out, "Page, where are you?" He was addressing someone below. If they were present, surely they would respond. Sure enough, one did respond. "I'm here, I'm here," a small sky blue unicorn came up from behind a wall of books, several were levitating in her vicinity with a goldenrod glow that was her magical grasp. Telekinesis seemed to be a near universal skill here in Equestria. Once the young one was in front of the Blood Angels, she almost lost grip on her books she was so surprised to see what was before her. "Sirs," the librarian began, addressing Thane and Dermek "this is my assistant, Page Turner. Page, I'm going to help Princess Twilight with her task. Would you kindly look after our guests?" "Uh, sure thing," she replied. She was nervous at the prospect of looking after two greatly imposing figures, but if her idol, Princess Twilight, was OK with them, then so was she. "So, uh," Page began, not as confident when she was alone, "would you like me to, um, show you around the library?" Her nervous smile at the end told Thane that she was poor at interpersonal, or in this case, interpony, communication. She reminded him of Fluttershy, only a tad less shy. In response, Thane removed his helmet to speak to her more directly. "We would like that, Page," he said in response to her offer. She flinched at first, but relaxed when she saw Thane's sharp features and short blonde hair. Instead of the intimidating red eyes staring her down, she was met with a gentle smile and eyes as blue as the deep ocean. Dermek stayed silent, dumbfounded as the new blood displayed the strangest behavior between Astartes and xenos he had seen in over a century. Perhaps, thought the veteran marine, if the populace is truly benign, then Thane won't get us killed. "Great," Page replied with a perky smile, glad to see that humans could sport a likeable face. "Most of these books need to go to the history section for reshelving," she explained, referring to the books she hovering around her, "I can show you everything on the way there." In less than a minute, she seemed almost completely adjusted to the Blood Angels' presence. "I just ask that you keep quiet. This is a library after all." A chance to practice stealth in power armor, thought Thane. It had been so long since he honed that particular skill. --- Since the start of the tour, Thane had done his best to make as little sound as possible despite his hulking armored form. To him, it was a game, to see how many times he could make Page think he had run off or been left behind. So far, he only got her attention twice between the ground floor and the eighth floor. Stairs still proved to be problematic. Other than that, he snuck through entire reading halls without turning a single set of eyes his way. The ponies here were either completely entranced with their studies or inattentive to their surroundings. At least the majority of them were. One pony who glanced up from her book did a double take when she noticed Thane less than five meters away from her. She would have screamed hysterically, but her body simply froze up in fear. Thane took note of this and silenced her before she could make a scene. He put his finger to his lips, urging her silence. In response, the frightened pony quickly returned to her studies, her face completely obscured behind her book. From now on, Thane would need to take extra precautions. Maintain distance from the ponies, always be aware of where his shadow was cast, stay on the carpet, for the stone floor was loud against his metal boots. As Thane moved to rejoin Page and Dermek, something caught his attention on a distant bookshelf. It was a book. But not just any book, this one was remarkably similar to one he had seen before. The scuff marks, the very specific way the leather spine had dry rotted, even the dull silvery rings binding the tome together. What truly caught his focus was a gleaming red teardrop-shaped jewel in the center of the spine. Unless Thane was hallucinating, this was the very book that Celestia used to support her assertion that the Blood Angels had once set foot on this world. His curiosity eclipsed his desire to play ninja. Something was beckoning him forth. Not a voice, but a desire, a need to know the truth behind what he was told earlier. This small book was the one artifact that could quench his thirsty wondering mind. He was making no effort to be silent now. As long as he could reach the old volume, his itch would be scratched. He could hardly believe what was happening when he pulled the book from the shelf and gazed upon the cover. It was simultaneously unnerving and exhilarating that he would be interpreting history through the eyes of an alien race. The cover depicted a bulky red figure, bipedal in nature and facing the reader full profile. Looking into the eyes of a vengeful spirit never felt so real, yet unreal to Thane. It stood ready for conflict, it's long serrated sword and pistol were held low, but still at the ready, creating an intimidating figure, one to fear should you be unfortunate enough to meet him in person. Suppressing his uneasiness, Thane regained his focus and began to open the book. Doing so, he loosed dust from its ancient pages, some of which cracked as he leafed through them. All other sounds seemed to disappear as his ceramite clad fingers flipped the aged parchment from right to left. He could only hear the dragging of metal on paper and the tense beating of his dual hearts in his ears. The text was a jumbled mess of lines, swirls, tick marks and dots that meant nothing to the human warrior. It was the illustrations that spoke entire volumes to him. Meteors fell from the sky, disgorging menacing crimson aliens as they landed. Another set of meteors unleashed a deluge of green-skinned demons, their mouths full of sharp teeth howling in uncouth rage. The two alien armies were akin to legions of titanic embodiments of destruction. Where they fought, fire, craters, death and thorough destruction was left in their wake. About halfway through the book, Thane's spine shivered as he laid his eyes upon a familiar sight. The two armies coming together for a climactic battle to declare a victor. Both leaders had their weapons raised high and proud, determined to obliterate the enemy with righteous fury. Thane was aware of the outcome of this particular battle, yet he felt the need to see the next image for himself, to dispel the trace of doubt that inexplicably started to form in the back of his mind. Sure enough, there was Lord Dante himself, his Axe Mortalis ablaze with the trademark blue lightning of force weaponry. The biggest greenskin in the crowd was being torn asunder by a single blow from Dante's attack, the rest of its entourage now wearing faces of despair at the sight of their leader slain before them. Fractured, demoralized and panicked, the green horde ran amok as the cast iron discipline of the red army literally flattened any opposition. A strange sense of satisfaction came over Thane, as if his deepest desires had been granted. He hadn't even noticed the grin slowly growing across his face as he reveled in the glorious images before him. The golden warrior glowed with a halo of radiant light as the green menaces lay crushed and defeated beneath his army's feet. The story had reached a logical conclusion, but Thane's curiosity had not wavered. What happened next, he asked, though none would ever hear this thought. The answer was buried beneath only a few thin sheets of paper. He had but to turn it to get his answer. The image now presented portrayed the golden leader of the red soldiers conversing with a large white quadruped with voluminous, multicolored hair. Their exact words would remain a mystery to Thane as the footnotes written in the alien tongue were illegible to him. The next image showed the golden warrior entering a foreboding cave. He was accompanied by some rather ornately decorated individuals of his own ilk. The white equine seemed to lead the way as the golden one followed. There had to be more to the story. The satisfaction of the end of the story was wrenched from him as the book seemed to fly away from his hands. A yellowish glow around the book made it rise from his hands. Thane still wanted to read, but every grab he made was countered with an evasive move, as if the old text had a mind to escape its reader's grasp. It was not the book, but rather a pony who denied Thane his satisfying conclusion. "How did this get here?" Page asked no one in particular, "This is supposed to be in the archives vault." She used her magical grasp to carefully handle the book and close its fragile pages without damaging it further. She still had a hand full of regular books with her, but they were pushed to the side as she focused on the delicate archaic tome. "Where did you get this?" she asked Thane rather accusingly. "I wasn't done with that," Thane proclaimed, gaining the attention of every pony in the hall. He wasn't concerned with her question. He had but one desire and nothing would stand between him and that precious collection of pictures. "I said give it back!" he spat as the young mare refused to relinquish the tome. Some lustful force had overcome Thane and his normal behavior. His strides toward Page and the old book were pronounced and aggressive. He wanted so badly to finish the story. As he rapidly closed the distance, the want evolved into a need, a near insatiable one. This was the one thing on his mind as he extended his hand, singly intent of retrieving his property. HIS! He was just inches away from reclaiming the story of his past, the reward so tantalizingly close. Then, a flash of bright light distracting his vision, but not his resolve. The next moment, he was back in reality. He had fallen to his hands and knees, his arm was outstretched into empty air. Dozens of eyes were upon him, a variety of perplex and disapproval for interrupting their studies. What was it he was pursuing again? A... book? That didn't sound right to Thane. He was well read, but not a passionate bibliophile, like Gureros, the company Librarian. The familiar and uncomfortable feeling of shame washed over him for the second time within the hour. He was also supremely confused. What had compelled him to be so possessive of something he had only seen once before? This episode of behavior did not happen when he first came near the book. What was special about now? As Thane fought through the daze to regain control of his thoughts, someone came up behind him and seized his jump pack's carrying handle. The next thing he knew, his entire body lurched upwards, just enough so that he could stand up. Once his feet were flat on the floor, the force raising him up released its grip, allowing him to get his equilibrium and support his own weight. "Perhaps Delk should have come," Dermek remarked somewhat sarcastically, "At least he doesn't obsess over xenos literature." Those words were meant to belittle the junior warrior, but he was still focused on the last two minutes of confusing events, replaying them over and over trying to make sense of them. As the ponies returned to their business, one prominent figure approached the two Blood Angels with a disgruntled look on her face. "Do we have a problem here?" she asked in a hushed, yet demanding tone. This was the head of the library, investigating a disturbance in the otherwise whisper quiet mausoleum-sized library. Her stern face, conservative hair style and dress and the way she addressed the two imposing figures told all there was to know about this mare. She was very direct, indicating that she took her position very seriously. In fact, she did not even seem to care that the one she was speaking to was visibly armed and easily a dozen times her size and weight. "I'll have you know that this is a library," she said, not giving Thane a chance to justify his actions, "I don't care where you came from, but this is Equestria. We have standards here." In Thane's mind, there was no real intimidation from this small creature, but something kept him still, listening to her rant. She went on about how the Royal Library has held high standards for centuries, how this was her domain and nothing happens without her knowing. She was on a roll when she abruptly stopped berating the young Blood Angel and turned her attention to something behind him. Thane heard the approaching hoof steps and turned to see who it was. It was Twilight. As the princess approached the librarian, the librarian bowed deeply as was customary treatment for royalty. "Good day, Princess," the librarian said, rising back to her proper stance. Her tone shifted from abrasive to courteous, "have you found what you're looking for today?" She shifted her focus from enforcing discipline to aiding Twilight with her needs. "In fact, I did," Twilight said gleefully, but quietly, "I was looking for any information on our visitors here," she explained, glancing to Thane and Dermek. "Speaking of which," the librarian interrupted, "your 'visitors'," she said as if 'visitors' was not the word she would have used, "were quite disruptive of the ponies trying to study here." Though most of the ponies had long since dismissed the event or ignored it altogether, the steadfast bookkeeper had the integrity to enforce the rules of the library regardless of the circumstances. This must have hit a nerve for Twilight, as the former librarian would never allow disreputable behavior in her own library to pass without judgment. "Oh," Twilight exclaimed, taken aback by the librarian's report, "Well, I do apologize for their behavior. They're not very familiar with Equestria's customs." Thane was not sure why Twilight was defending him, but that was in line with what she just said. He was greatly unfamiliar with the norms of this world. "I'm afraid an apology will not excuse his behavior, Princess," the librarian replied, her conviction resurfacing, "He was especially aggressive toward another pony over a book. From what I saw, he could have seriously hurt her." The words sank into Thane as he realized the gravity of what could have happened. At the time, he had no regard for the pony's life, only the book and the information within. To disregard alien lives as long as the mission was complete was not wrong think for Astartes, but feeling sympathy toward them was not sanctioned at best and heretical at worst. "If he is prone to this behavior, I cannot allow him on the premises." The librarian's declaration was firm. In her own domain, it was also irrevocable. The thought that he would not be allowed back in the Royal Library did not particularly bother Thane, but he knew that he made a bad first impression. The locals would talk amongst themselves and make this little event known. Keeping secrets was not one of his strong points. "That's not really necessary, is it?"asked Twilight, trying to salvage Thane's reputation, "I don't think he meant to-" "We can see ourselves out," Dermek interrupted. He had no intention of staying. This library was an impressive construction reminiscent of the Sanguine Saint's inner reclusiam, but the stink of the alien was getting through his air filters. Besides, he had had enough of these shenanigans for today. "Come on, new blood," he said while making his way to the nearest exit. Thane followed, but he did so quite indignantly, like a dog caught in the act of disobeying his master, though he tried his best not to let it show. --- That evening, Thane spent his time thinking about his recent experience and his actions of late. There was so much mounting up that did not add up. What was the outcome of Dante's venture into the cave? If the Imperium had been here before, then surely Thane and the Blood Angels need not return. After all, if the pony matriarch's story was true, then the explorator legion on this planet was wasting valuable Imperial time and resources on a previously explored world. He wanted so badly to know what happened all those years ago. Twilight was preoccupied going through her findings at the archives, so asking her to search the rest of her library was useless. If only there were another way to uncover the truth. He knew he should just wait for the response from the Imperial archives, but his desire to know was slowly eroding his patience. Perhaps he should just hole himself up for the next two days and forget about this whole thing. After all, his brethren in space were working hard to get an extraction operation ready. Surely they were moving with all haste. Alas, no matter how much he tried to reassure himself that help was coming and all he had to do was wait, he couldn't stop himself from thinking of things he could do to expedite the process, or at the very least, make the wait go by faster. Without even realizing, Thane had wandered back into the reference room of the castle, the same room where he was first exposed to the cryptic event of his chapter's past. In this room, Rainbow Dash laid outstretched on one of the longer lounge chairs, her attention fixed on a small book in her hooves. Her eyes twitched back and forth as she skimmed the pages, her gentle smile saying that she was enjoying the simple act of reading her book. This was not Thane's concern, however. He wanted to know where Celestia got the tome depicting the Blood Angels. It had to be here somewhere. Unless it was taken by another, Thane would likely not get the answers he craved by day's end. As a last effort, he scanned the shelves, hoping to find it misplaced or otherwise moved from its usual place. His hopes slowly faded as he reached the last shelf in the room, the distinct text nowhere to be found. As he slipped further towards a depressed state, Rainbow reacted suddenly and quite intensely to the book in her clutches. A deep gasp of disbelief and shock, though there was no physical threat in the room. Her meager wings fluttered spastically, but with enough order to propel her just inches from the ceiling. Whatever got her so panicked must surely be dire. "Omygosh, Thane! Thane!" Rainbow said frantically, "Can you believe this? How is it even possible?" Her focus shifted between Thane and her book, as if she could not decide which needed it more. "What's wrong?" Thane asked with a trace of concern, but lacking urgency. "This," Rainbow stated, putting the open book to Thane's face, "Tell me how this is possible. I dare you to make sense of this." Rainbow was expecting a response, but there was a problem. Though Thane could instantly bring the object close to his face into crystal clear focus, there was nothing he could do about the jumbled mess of the alien inscriptions before him. "I," Thane started to say, "I can't read your language." He pushed the book away as he realized there was no reason for panic. It must be in her head, he reasoned. "Gal'mutehk is back!" she exclaimed as though this was some grand revelation, "The last time we saw him, he was crushed beneath tons of rock as the Temple of Immerey collapsed!" All these new names were losing Thane. Was this some lore from a different time or a fictional story, fabricated for some unexplained reason? Even as the questions mounted, Rainbow continued her rant. "The end of The Valley of Pharaohs even confirms his defeat." 'Defeat?', thought Thane, surely under tons of crushing rock no being could survive. That would be death for certain. Rainbow pulled another book from a nearby end table and leafed through the pages until she found what she wanted. A passage near the end of the book, which she recited for Thane. <<< The Museum of Ancient History was quite pleased to show their latest exhibit: the Headdress of Kings. Symbol of power, icon of tyranny, conduit of great and terrible sorcery, and now a lesson to those in the present. Never must absolute power be given to anypony. The ancient Saddle Arabians learned this the hard way, as did the citizens of Manehattan. With the fearsome artifact secure within the museum, Daring could rest easy knowing it would never again be donned by anypony, living or dead. >>> "You see? He's powerless without the headdress!" "Rainbow," Thane tried to interrupt, but she continued. "I mean, the Fire Ruby, the Infinity Ring and Dovynnakh's Staff were all sent to different parts of the world! How could he get them all back so quickly?" "Rainbow," Thane tried again, but with more volume this time. Still no effect. It was as if she was ignoring Thane's very presence and just spouting her thoughts to an invisible audience. "We know it's not Ironeye, he's in jail and-" she took another deep gasp as an epiphany came to her, "We haven't seen Drifter since she lost contact after the hurricane. She could be the one behind all this. But what kind of epic plot twist could make Drifter turn bad? I mean, she had a motive back when she lived in New Gekistan, but it was because of Daring that she became Drifter the drifter..." At this point Rainbow sounded like an inquisitor mad with conspiracy theories and sleepless from obsessing over them for so long. For all the sense she was making, she may as well be possessed by a demon, speaking in tongues. A loud piercing whistle reverberated throughout the room, silencing the rambling pegasus. The source of the noise was the only other being in the room: Pinkie Pie. "I believe I can help you with your story problem, Dashie," Pinkie proclaimed without a trace of doubt. "You see, it's revealed that Ironeye had an accomplice named-" Pinkie got no further as Rainbow covered her ears with her hooves, closed her eyes and started wailing nonsensically, trying to drown out Pinkie's explanation. In a multi-colored flash, she exited the room as fast as her little wings would carry her, her mad cries still audible even after she was long gone. After Rainbow was most definitely gone, Pinkie started laughing and giggling at seemingly nothing. Perhaps it was the pink one who was possessed. "What's so funny?" Thane asked, hoping that at least this question could be answered. "She thinks I spoiled the book for her," Pinkie answered fighting the urge to continue laughing, "but I didn't even read the book!" After she finished her sentence, she burst out into an more maniacal than before. "I have no idea what happens next and she thinks I do," she explained through the cackling. "I have no idea, either," Thane said with a heavy sigh. He sat down against one of the walls, sending a small tremor through the floor as his hindquarters made contact. In this moment he felt defeated and unfulfilled, almost helpless as nothing seemed to go his way. He rested with his back against the wall as one arm rested against his propped up knee. No one ever said that space marines were always optimistic. Almost immediately, Pinkie's exuberant demeanor vaporized as she noticed Thane looking depressed. There was a slight tug on Thane's left arm. Turning left, Thane noticed Pinkie had climbed up and was perched atop his shoulder guard. "What's wrong, big guy?" Pinkie asked as if she genuinely cared, "Is somepony having a rough time?" He would have shrugged the pink equine off his shoulder, but she was not worth the effort. She wasn't even coming across to Thane as a nuisance. She probably couldn't even scratch his armor's paint job if she wanted. "Well," Thane began, "I went to the Canterlot Library with Twilight to find information, but..." Thane's gaze returned to his feet in shame, "I was banned for causing a disturbance." Even just talking about the event stirred feelings of regret and shame in his heart. He was so embarrassed he tried to leave out details and downplay the event. It didn't help. "You and me both, buckeroo," Pinkie replied as she patted Thane's head, "Libraries and parties do NOT go together." Pinkie seemed to be speaking from a place of genuine sympathy, like she was seriously trying to make him feel better. "Now more than ever, I feel I don't belong here. I barely made it into the Blood Angels and even then, I'm only an assault marine by the skin of my teeth," Thane continued, his tone slowly drifting into lamenting territory. "If I could just finish the story I found there, I'd be happy." "Well, say no more, my big cherry-colored chico," Pinkie exclaimed, now perched on top of Thane's head, her cheek pressed against his temple, "You want to be happy, then that's what we're going to do!" Unfortunately, her enthusiasm did not spread to Thane. "What do you mean? I don't follow," Thane said, not quite understanding what she was going on about. "I am Pinkie Pie," Pinkie started her explanation, "I make ponies happy. If you aren't happy, I'm not doing my job." Her cheerful tone had a mix of conviction. "I may have just met you and you're not a pony, but I still want to make you happy." Her bright smile across her pink face was all the more convincing that she wanted to spread her joy. Besides, her soft fur-lined body resting against his head was a pleasurable sensation he had not felt since his young childhood on Baal. "Tell you what," Pinkie said as she shifted back onto his shoulder, "If I got you back into the library, you could finish reading your book and we'll be back by morning." She seemed so confident making this offer, but Thane still had his reasonable doubts. "And how do you plan on pulling off a feat like that?" Thane liked the idea of getting the information he wanted, but he also remembered the decree by the chief librarian there. He was not permitted back in that space and it would surely be enforced by anyone around. Besides, how was she planning on infiltrating a highly valued store of records with a hulking armored space marine in tow. It would be difficult enough for just Pinkie to get in alone. "Oh, don't worry," Pinkie replied, trying to be reassuring, "Your auntie Pinkie has her ways." She tried to solidify the reassurance by patting his cheek with her hoof. "Besides, I helped Twilight get in once." Thane was becoming more and more convinced that Pinkie was the answer to his problem. At last, he decided to take this offer laid out before him. "Alright, Pinkie," Thane finally responded after a moment of consideration. Pinkie's tail was wagging eagerly, like a dog anticipating a favorable response from its owner. Her wide blue eyes focused on his as her grin grew ever wider. "Let's do it, you and me." He chose to take Pinkie up on her offer which made her rebound all over the room with unrestrained glee. She seemed to defy the scriptures of physical universe as she literally bounced off walls and made incredible leaps that her body was seemingly not designed to do. Despite all this, however, there was something quite endearing about her. Perhaps it was her voice, her physical appearance, or maybe it was how she stirred feelings of joy simply by being around her. Pinkie ended her energetic gymnastics show by wrapping herself around Thane's wrist. Thane took this for a sign of affection, which he reciprocated by putting his free hand around Pinkie. It wasn't the same as an inspiring sermon before a battle, but Thane felt just as invigorated by conversing with this little pony. For whatever came next, he was ready. --- In the years before the peace which Equestria now enjoyed, the Canterlot Archives were a prime target for enemy spies and curious citizens alike. It was a massive collection of military intelligence, dangerous arcane arts and knowledge so esoteric that only a select few ponies in the known world would find it even remotely useful. Now the security was quite relaxed with only a few dozen guards patrolling the immense building. It was this security flaw on which Thane and Pinkie would capitalize. Peeking out from behind a statue, Pinkie scanned the roads and nearby windows for guards. All clear. She waved for Thane to emerge and advance to a nearby window on the first floor. He had stashed his jump pack and chainsword in a good hiding spot for this mission. They made him too flashy a target and they were not needed to accomplish the task at hand. Though it was not imperative, Thane still kept as quiet as he could as he approached the entry point. He moved slowly enough to avoid making too much noise, but quickly enough to not waste a second of precious time. Once in position, Thane raised Pinkie up to the window so she could release the interior latch from the outside. The window was too high for any pony to reach without scaffolding or an oversized ladder, but Thane could reach it simply by extending to his full height. Once open, the two climbed through the window. Fortune seemed to find them as only one guard was turning a corner away from them at the end of the hall when they entered. Last time Thane was here, he was practicing absolute silence, stealth in enemy territory. This was an infiltration mission and not a drill like last time. Those novice mistakes he made last time would have to disappear if he wanted to return from his mission successfully. His armor was completely sealed, giving off no emissions that even an auspex scanner could detect. The task of staying quiet, however, still rested squarely on his shoulders. "OK," Pinkie whispered, "Like we planned. Eighth floor, all sneaky weaky, you read your book, then we leave. Nopony will ever know we were here." Thane responded with a thumbs up. It was the quickest, quietest way of acknowledging what she said without risking detection. From here, Pinkie would lead the way up since she knew the layout of the library better than Thane. It was good that Thane's earlier foray here was spent practicing stealth. On the seventh floor, Thane shuffled slightly too loudly, prompting a patrolling guard to investigate. Pinkie simply hid behind a potted plant, contorting her body to have it completely conceal her form. In this tense moment, Thane's two hearts were pounding in his ears as his mind raced for a solution. As the unicorn guard clad in armor turned the corner, he noticed something out of place: a balcony door slightly ajar. This was suspicious, as this floor was supposed to have been secured hours ago. Did somepony neglect their duty? Was an intruder trying to make his way in? Whatever was happening, he had to investigate. The door was not damaged, nor did the lock look like it had been forced or tampered with, though it was unlocked. The balcony itself was clean, as no pony had set hoof on it all day. There were no hooks, ropes or ladders leading up here. In fact, the only thing he could see over the edge was the magnificent city of Canterlot illuminated by Princess Luna's soft moonlight. Straight down, only the gardens and those assigned to the night watch making their rounds. Not an unauthorized soul in sight. "Probably one of the privates being lazy," the guard assured himself. His concerns dismissed, the guard returned to his duty, locking the large glass door behind him. "Whoever was assigned to this floor is gonna get smoked for negligence," he growled as his hoofsteps became more and more distant. Once he was out of sight, Pinkie slithered out from behind her hiding plant, unlocked the door and went out to the balcony. She saw Thane bolt out from behind her hiding spot and she had a pretty good idea where he was hiding. "Thane," Pinkie whispered as loud as she dared over the edge of the rail, "He's gone, you can come up, now." No sooner than she finished speaking did Thane swing his gauntlet up and grab hold of the rail. He used all his strength to hoist his armored form up and over the rail back onto solid ground. It was a difficult maneuver, hiding under the balcony, but worth pulling off to avoid detection. "I don't think we can afford many more of those," Thane said as he climbed back over the stone guardrail. Indeed, one incident of lax security was negligible, but two in the same night would raise more than an acceptable level of suspicion. "Don't worry, we're almost there" Pinkie said as she used what looked like a rubber chicken's beak to pick the lock. Thane wasn't going to argue the logic of it, for the lock was successfully forced and she did so without so much as a squeak, click or shuffle. Her reassurance did not set Thane any more at ease after this close call. There was no guarantee that more guards would not show up to hamper their progress. Regardless, the two infiltrators pressed on. --- Now that they were on the eighth floor, Thane took the lead, retracing his steps until he came upon the same spot where he laid eyes upon the old book. To his dismay, it was not on the shelf. No surprising since Page Turner confiscated if from him. Sifting through his recent memories, Thane recalled what she said before he left. 'This is supposed to be in the archives vault.' "Pinkie," Thane whispered rather urgently as he knelt down close to Pinkie's ear, "Is there a vault in this building?" Pinkie turned to address him, but something she saw prevented her from responding. Her tail went limp as she put on a face of shock at the sight of something behind Thane. Two things telegraphed this to him. Firstly, her gaze was slightly off to the side. Secondly, an icon appeared on his retinal display alerting him to a presence behind him to his 5 o'clock. Fearing the worst, Thane slowly reached for his knife. His pistol would be too loud to use and he wanted to use a silent weapon to deal with this new adversary. "Looking for something?" asked the voice, as if Thane needed any more confirmation that they were spotted. Without a second thought, Thane went into combat mode, drawing his large dagger and whirling around to strike down the opposition. With his right hand wielding his blade underhand, he spun clockwise to deliver the blow. He felt his arm stop dead in its tracks before he saw the reason for it. A human-looking hand had grabbed hold of his wrist and locked down tight. It was a creature of strength comparable to his own, for he felt the pressure through his armor. An instant later, Thane threw a wide hook punch with his left hand, but it was met with the being's other hand, his fist now caught in its grasp. By this point, Thane was now face-to-face with the creature he was battling. It's face was pale, even in the dim lighting of the library at night. The features were simultaneously soft and feminine, yet sharp, sculpted and intimidating. It's long pointed ears were what erased all doubt in Thane's mind. This was the trademark look of the Eldar and he was locked in one-on-one combat with it. How she was strong enough to halt his inhuman strength amplified by his power armor, Thane could only guess. Perhaps it was their witchcraft that made this feat possible. Whatever the enemy had to offer, Thane was determined to outmatch this xenos scum unfortunate enough to cross his path. Thane still had enough momentum from his turn to throw a kick. His hands were occupied keeping the xenos' attention up high. She would not see an attack coming from below. Sure enough, a strong sweep under her feet threw the Eldar fighter off balance, her legs now far away from underneath her as she started her fall to the ground. Thane was able to get a glimpse of her surprised expression for only an instant, but in that instant, he was confident he had secured victory. With this move, she also lost her grip on Thane's right hand, allowing him to deliver a death blow from above. Now spinning in the opposite direction and downward, his knife had a clear stab at the Eldar's heart. Surely, this would end the battle just as quickly as it started. Unfortunately for Thane, this Eldar was far more than just a pretty face. Her next move would reverse the situation faster than Thane had secured dominance. It was almost too fast for him, but Thane caught a glimpse of his opponent moving at inhuman speeds. He realized that she had not accidentally released the hand holding his weapon. As she fell, her left hand made its way to Thane's elbow. This would give her the leverage she needed. Her upper body twisted and brought Thane's left hand with it. Since she had his elbow, that followed as well. Before he realized what was happening, he felt his left arm being pulled by the Eldar. His legs left the ground, his body now airborne. By the time he realized how the pointy-eared alien had turned the tables on him, he had already crashed through an aisle of bookshelves. He would destroy eight more before he came to rest buried beneath hundreds of books and splintered wooden shelving. Shaking off the daze, he spotted the Eldar being approaching his position. He lost his knife during his flight, so the only tactical option he had left was his pistol. He no longer cared for stealth, for the mission changed into a fight to the death the moment he was aware of the Eldar's presence. He struggled to reach his side arm through the debris and ruined volumes around him. Before he could bring his weapon to bear, some unseen force lifted him from the wreckage, restraining his arms and legs in the process. Once again, he found himself staring down his opponent. This time, he was at a decisive disadvantage. He had no weapon, his arms and legs were bound stiff, and he had no chance to fight back. Her scowling face meant to impress upon the restrained marine that he had been defeated, but Thane refused to accept that argument. If he didn’t have his helmet on, he probably could have spit acidic venom in her face as a last ditch effort to fight back, but the Eldar had fast reflexes. She could have avoided it easily enough. For all his might, the magical bonds around his limbs simply would not break. As he levitated just inches off the ground futilely fighting his captor's grasp, the Eldar finally spoke. "Was it worth all this trouble?" The voice was unfamiliar to Thane, but it did not convince him to stop struggling or even respond. "You came all this way to learn something Celestia refused to tell you," she continued. This got Thane's attention and ceased his squirming. How was Celestia known to the Eldar? There was clearly a much larger conspiracy of events at work, but the details eluded Thane. "My name is Luna," she said, gesturing to herself, "and I think I can answer your questions with this," she said, reaching into a sack behind her. What was she about to do? If she wanted to kill him, she would have done the deed before Thane even noticed her. She could even do it now, if she wanted. Thane was tense in the moment it took for her to reach behind her, but relaxed once he identified the item in her hand. It was a book. As she revealed the cover of the book, Thane realized this was the book he was reading earlier. No spell of greed compelling him to take the book this time. Whatever allure it had before was simply absent now. Now that Thane was relatively calm, Luna set him down amidst the damaged bookshelves. Thane got his footing on the uneven pile easily enough, but he had a hard time relaxing around this slender figure. Luna simply extended her arm, offering the book to Thane for him to read. Thane did not break eye contact as he snatched the book from Luna’s hand, still wary of what she may do to him should he drop his guard. Though he turned his focus to the book’s contents, he still kept  one eye on the icon representing Luna, in case she made any sudden moves. From where he left off, the text was still illegible, but the images spoke volumes in every tongue imaginable. Dante and his Honor Guard, led by Princess Celestia, descended into a cave resembling the maw of a creature of titanic proportions. The giant creature analogy pervaded to the next image, depicting a large underground cavity supported by large pillars resembling a rib cage. They were quite geometric in nature, but not all were intact. Was it a shrine of some sort? A place where alien forces bred, mustered or trained? Was it in fact a long dead alien titan? There were simply too many possibilities. At last, Thane saw for himself the perplexing ending to the story he was told, but never confirmed. Inscribed in ink was Dante and his entire entourage departing with what looked like large falcons or hawks. Quite an anticlimactic ending, as the story would have been far more satisfying ending on the defeat of the Ork horde. Unfortunately, the book’s illustrations ended and the rest was the nonsensical written language of the ponies. “What exactly is that place?” Thane asked, as he turned his gaze to meet Luna’s eyes. His tone demanded the truth. Luna had volunteered this much information so far and she seemed to have no reason to withhold it from him. What would she say next? “Even we do not know,” was her reply, “Whatever it is, it was buried long before my sister and I arrived here.” She placed one hand on her hip and leaned on one leg as she divulged her past to Thane. “That was over 1,500 of your standard years ago.” “So in all that time, you never thought to explore these structures?” Thane asked as he snapped the book shut. It was a sensible accusation. If it were the Imperium, there would be men, materials and equipment invested into unearthing it and extracting as much information out of it as possible. He still felt as if there was more being held back, though he had no proof of this beyond a gut feeling. “I have,” Luna clarified, emphasizing that she personally had explored them, “Once was enough,” she said, sounding depressed and almost haunted, “I saw things in there that none ever should.” What sort of things? How were they so indescribable? Surely if they were witnessed, there would be a record of the event. The ponies and the Imperium shared the same spoken language, so there was no shortage of words to immortalize the event. Still, she could not bring herself to speak of her experience. She appeared to drop her guard as she walked toward a nearby window. Thane knew better than to try to capitalize on such a baited opportunity. Eldar warriors had incredible reflexes and sharp senses, even by astartes standards. He had heard that Dark Eldar were even more physically adept. He had no chance of catching her off guard. She stopped in front of a large window in the room, arms crossed across her chest. Her long flowing head of hair appeared to come to life, sparkling like the night sky. “Souls,” she finally spoke, fear still dominating her tone, “I felt the presence of thousands of horrible souls. They were unlike anything I had ever seen before. An entire hive of them right beneath our feet.” The air in the room was not particularly cold, but Luna still shivered slightly as she spoke. What harrowing ordeal could she possibly have endured? Thane saw the flaw in her story immediately. “You had two hundred years to prepare. Why stand idle all this time?” He gave his argument while he dug his dagger out of the debris. If the military forces he had seen so far were any indication of their fighting capability, the ponies should have been conquered long ago. “You must understand,” Luna began her counterargument, turning to face Thane, “I was imprisoned in the moon for a thousand years. Only recently have I returned,” she said, looking back up at the moon, “I couldn’t have done anything even if I were present. Besides,” she continued, her gaze transfixed on the pale celestial body, “Celestia is not one in favor of superstition or fear. She does not want the people of this world to descend into madness. She distracts the citizens with thoughts of joy and happiness.” Her tone started to grow more melancholic. “She cannot hope to have this blissful sanctuary last forever. Lately, it has been threatened by forces that are not natural to this world.” Once again, Thane and Luna met gazes. This time, she silently accused him of being the force that threatened the very existence of Equestria. Of course, the last few years of Equestrian history were lightly seasoned with turmoil and empire shattering forces, both natural and supernatural. Not that Thane was expected to know this, of course. Luna raised a hand toward Thane, palm facing him. It was not a threatening-looking hand gesture, but it was shrouded in the same manner as the unicorns he had encountered. This time, it was a deep azure and black, mimicking her hair which resembled the night sky. As the aura around her arm grew more visible, the demolished shelves in the library started squirming with what could be mistaken for life. Worried about what might happen next, Thane got clear of the piles of debris and took cover behind a nearby stone pillar. To his bewilderment, the shattered wood and ruined books began to reconstruct. What was once a chaotic mess of torn pages and wooden splinters reformed into the order it had before. Every piece of every damaged item, no matter how small, was touched by Luna’s psychic aura. She displayed such fine control over so much and squared it all away so quickly. Even the scratches in the stone floor seemed to heal from the commotion just minutes ago. “If you’re going back to Ponyville, Blood Angel,” Luna said as she lowered her arm to her side, “would you kindly return that book to Twilight?” It took a moment for Thane to realize, but he was still holding the book Luna gave him. “It belongs to her. I know she’ll want it back.” The pieces were starting to come together in Thane’s mind, but still the bigger picture remained so mysterious to him. Perhaps he wasn’t meant to know. He was but a simple foot soldier in an impossibly large army, a crimson pebble from a mural long since destroyed over ten thousand years ago. Perhaps this saga would never be known by human minds, but still, Thane yearned. Finally, he pushed that desire to the back of his mind and got his priorities in order. He had nothing to say as he made for the exit, nor had Luna any more to say to him. Thane was still on a mission, albeit one so heavily changed by recent circumstances. He came here with Pinkie and he would leave with her company as well. She was probably not very skilled in hiding, as her distinctive tail was partially exposed from under a long table. Kneeling down, he peeked under to see her pale face staring back with unblinking eyes. However, once she recognized Thane’s helmet, she regained some of her sense and calmed down from the shock of what she witnessed. “We’re done here, Pinkie. We can go home now.” Thane certainly had a hectic few days and he looked forward to some rest before getting back into the action. “You’re done, too?” asked Pinkie somewhat exhausted and still reeling, “I’m done with libraries for a while.” Both of them could use some much needed rest once they returned to Ponyville. Armed with new knowledge, Thane had a lot to digest for the foreseeable future. But with each iota of new knowledge he gained, new questions behind them arose. The search for knowledge was starting to feel like fighting the Hydra, but that tale had an end so must his own. --- Tunneling through solid rock was no easy task, but spitting acid helps soften it up for the workers to clear away. Four tunnelers and an army of worker drones could progress up to 20 feet per hour. How much longer they would dig, no one could say for certain. After all, their aim was nowhere in particular, but simply any place where they could survive. Finally, they hit something they did not expect: a large cavity. One of the tunnelers fell to the cave floor writhing in confusion. “Get him up,” ordered Major Fang, the leader of this foray. Instantly, six drones rushed to the aide of the hulking tunneler, righting and guiding him back to the hole they created. The Major, even larger by comparison, surveyed the chamber they found by chance and pondered the next move his troops would take. The large columns were of no interest to him, but there was a strange energy radiating from somewhere beneath them. It was unlike anything he had ever felt before. This feeling he got was strange to say the least, but not harmful. It was not love, but if emotions had a taste to them, this was quite a new experience for him. However, this was not his call to make. The decision would have to be passed up the chain of command. “You,” the Major said to the closest drone, “Tell the Queen what we found here. It is a good place to nest and breed.” Many drones understood speech, but could only respond to a limited range of phrases. This one simply hissed an acknowledgement and scurried off through to complete his task. As a Major, he knew how to judge how suitable a location is for expanding the hive. Some locations were so favorable they could even serve as rally points for attacks to be staged. This place was perfect for any function the hive performed. With any luck, the Queen would give him reign over this splinter of the hive to harvest the love of the creatures that were so very near…