//------------------------------// // Chapter 8: Riven Restored // Story: The Second Exile // by cunning_linguist //------------------------------// Noteworthy was a pony of honor and prestige. She graduated valedictorian of Westpony, circa class of 1001 of the Celestia Calendar. She earned the rank of second lieutenant within seven months of her initial commission, received glowing praise from each of her commanders, and was hoof-picked by Captain of the Guard Shining Armor to accompany him to Ponyville, a mission assigned by Princess Celestia herself. Lesser known were her foibles, and they were numerous. She was fearful of crowds, occasionally neurotic, and easily offended. Noteworthy nearly dropped out of her much lauded military schooling when one of her instructors berated her over a relatively minor infraction. Noteworthy never truly adjusted to the criticism offered by her superiors, but she did become quite adept at tuning it out. That was part of the reason why she strived as hard as she did to become an officer; fewer ponies could yell at her then. But the memories never truly left and occasionally kept her up at night. It was something Nocturne homed in on with practiced ease and exploited her simple quirks with the skill of a maestro. Noteworthy’s final thoughts were of being surrounded by each of her squad leaders and captains, as well as her closest family and friends. She stood at attention the entire time, however, and endured their verbal abuse. She felt the hours pass by, the days come and go, and soon even they gave way into weeks and months. Noteworthy’s troubled mind interpreted this lapse in time as reality, even though only a few hours had transpired in the waking world. “Malnutrition,” the doctor said, standing in the waiting room with Shining Armor, and Princesses Celestia and Luna. “I don’t understand how this could happen without anypony noticing the outward signs. She should have been emaciated…” “We know how,” Luna seethed, her former hesitation at the return of the nightmare having been completely trampled by the rage she felt knowing she hadn’t been able to prevent the death of one of her beloved ponies. A member of her military, no less. “Thank you, doctor,” Celestia said with kindness. He nodded solemnly and returned to his rounds. The group returned to Riven’s room shortly thereafter. Rainbow Dash no longer showed any outward signs of the previous night; Celestia’s magic saw to that. However, she occasionally rubbed a hoof over an imaginary scar marring her midsection. Spike was out of surgery as well. Twilight had retrieved his basket from the library and was curling around him like a protective mother cat. On the nearby windowsill sat a mason jar filled with a tar-like liquid, the doctor having claimed he extricated it from Spike’s throat. He had yet to awaken, but Twilight diligently nuzzled and licked the bandage covering his emergency tracheotomy. “We cannot wait any longer,” Riven spoke the moment the royal sisters entered. “We need a plan before nightfall or more ponies will die.” When no pony replied, she continued, her voice filled with urgency. “This is my responsibility. Let me lure him into my dreams. Luna can sense when he’s in the dreamscape, right?” “I… yes, I can.” “Then when he is, kill me and be done with it!” “No,” Celestia said once again, though this time she was less patient. “I’m still really confused about all of this,” Rainbow chimed in from her cushion next to Riven’s bed. “Noteworthy was killed and I was brain-raped by Luna’s evil clone?” The brief explanation she received had left a sour taste in her mouth. She knew she couldn’t do much about an enemy that was untouchable during the day and omnipotent at night, but she couldn’t shake how much she wanted to reciprocate the violation she felt. “To put it very simply,” Twilight whispered. Fluttershy entered shortly thereafter, balancing a bowl of warm water on her back and carrying a fresh towel in her teeth. Twilight took these with a silent nod of thanks and began to bathe her number one assistant. “There’s something we can do about it, right?” Rainbow looked predominantly at Riven. “Something else?” “We don’t have the time to plan this!” “If you’re wrong, you will have died for nothing,” Luna said, trotting over to Riven’s head and falling into an inelegant sitting position. At her full height, Riven stood nearly eye-to-eye with the two rulers of Canterlot. She estimated any other pony would barely come up to her waist. Their furniture reflected that, as Riven was effectively laying on a futon, and her elevated legs were suspended a foot off the edge. “How can you ask us to throw your life away over a baseless hypothesis?” Riven looked away from Luna’s emotionally pleading eyes, suddenly finding it very claustrophobic. “I don’t want to die,” she murmured, garnering the attention of every pony in the room. “But I don’t want any of you to die either. I want to try to make up for my mistake… for Noteworthy.” “It was not your mistake,” Celestia returned after a silent deliberation between herself, Luna, and Twilight. She had been in loose correspondence with Cream as well, exchanging hasty letters via a network normally accessible only to unicorns and certain other sentient beings heavily influenced by magic — Spike being the most notable example. They were to blame and none denied it. “It was ours, and we will correct it.” “You have a kingdom to run.” “True.” “You cannot afford to be hurt.” “… Also true.” “But I can!” “I will decree that the subject be dropped if I must, Riven.” “But something does need to be done, sister,” Luna broke the tense atmosphere with a plucky tone thus far unknown to the somber atmosphere. “I believe I can confront the nightmare in the dreamscape and keep him occupied while the Elements are retrieved.” “I will not permit anypony to risk their lives in this endeavor! I should not have to reiterate this!” “Riven cannot manipulate the dreamscape as I can, sister. I have power there.” “So does the nightmare!” “I must agree with the princess,” Shining Armor began, then quickly corrected himself by pointing a hoof at Celestia. “Her, I mean. It’s too dangerous. There must be another solution.” “Besides, the Elements wouldn’t banish the nightmare while it’s in the dreamscape.” This time it was Twilight’s turn to offer input, though she was still gently scrubbing Spike’s tough back spines. “We would need to lure it out, but why would it ever need to leave?” Luna sighed, resting her chin on Riven’s hip like a forlorn dog. “The nightmare has the knowledge of countless centuries of existence. It wouldn’t be baited into a situation where it could be harmed.” Riven wouldn’t admit it, but she was beginning to feel tired. Pain or no, she had been awake for over twenty-four hours, suffered the trauma of being yanked between dimensions, and though her stubbornness wanted her to stay awake as long as humanly possible, her injured body demanded the rest it required in order to heal. “Not until the threat has passed,” she told herself, though the sharp ears of her six guests heard her regardless. “What was that? You kinda mumbled there,” Rainbow said, fluttering over and landing with her head less than an inch away from Riven’s mouth. “I’m just thinking out loud,” she groused, again finding herself agitated by how little these ponies cared for personal space. “I’m thinking about what happened when I arrived. Nocturne was with me. He had to be physical then — in a form that could be touched.” “And it took the first opportunity presented to escape to a plane that we could not assail it from,” Celestia added. “What does this concern?” Riven’s brow furrowed. She didn’t know much about the methods the summoner’s had used to bind Nocturne the first time, but the fact that he was here now showed that he either escaped their magical clutches, or he was still bound in some fundamentally exploitable fashion. “Remember how I said my people had imprisoned him before?” “I do. You also said you did not know how it was achieved.” “No, but he was bound before you brought me here. He had some freedom but there was never any risk. Maybe… maybe that’s still the case. A Nexus is a powerful artifact; even a shard has a lot of power that doesn’t just vanish.” Rainbow scrunched her face. “You think this ‘nexus rock’ or whatever made the trip too?” “Or just its power,” Twilight gasped, the realization dawning on her. “B-But I inspected the rune. I saw nothing else in the cylinder, and Spike swept up the glass. Could the power have… transferred into one of its shards?” “Or the rune itself,” Celestia exclaimed. “It was designed to safely contain the chaotic energies that exist between dimensions. Its purpose doesn’t seem too dissimilar to this ‘Nexus shard’.” Rainbow and Riven instinctively met each other’s gaze and mutually shrugged, both thoroughly lost in the midst of all this babble. Finding that spark of kinship, they grinned and shared a hoof/hand bump. “S-So… all we have to do is go back to Twilight’s library and stamp out the rune?” Fluttershy piped up, as she hadn’t felt qualified to speak on magical matters she had no knowledge of. “Sounds simple enough.” “It isn’t, dearest Fluttershy,” Luna continued. “We still need to lure the nightmare out of the dreamscape, lest destroying the rune only frees it. As bad as it is now, can you imagine the havoc it could cause without any limitations?” Fluttershy looked down at Spike and grew sad, then up at Rainbow and grew emboldened. One of her friends was bedridden and she could do nothing but watch. The other had been hurt but was fine now. How long would that last should that creature be allowed to continued to roam? “So… what do we do?” “What I said earlier: I will enter the dreamscape and confront the nightmare.” “Luna…” Celestia’s irritation was palpable, but her little sister was not dissuaded. “Bodily. Not as my dreaming self but whole. I will weaken the nightmare and forcefully drag it back to the waking world.” Luna stood, determination etched onto her smoky countenance. “I am unsure how long it will take but you must retrieve the Elements of Harmony before I return. Twilight, I doubt you and your friends will have much time to act.” Riven, unbeknownst to any pony during the explanation of their rough-and-tumble strategy, had been talking with Rainbow Dash. She felt like she could relate to this mare, race be damned. Though more outgoing, they had similar views on honor, loyalty, and the urge to correct perceived slights. Accidentally or not, Riven couldn’t shake the thought that she was partially responsible for Nocturne’s actions. “I’m going,” she whispered. “Cut the straps,” she gestured to the nylon bands elevating her legs. To her credit, Rainbow wasn’t as keen on the idea of causing Riven more pain, no matter how much her mischievousness sang for her to go along with it. “Um… I think that’s a really dumb idea.” “I’m not staying here while you all go fight. Help me or I’ll do it myself and crawl out of this hospital!” “Three of your four limbs are in casts! You can’t crawl any better than you can walk!” “I’ll use my one good arm to grab you by the neck and saw the straps with your teeth if I have too!” Rainbow’s wings flapped defensively and the two faced off with as much moxie as they could muster. “I’d like to see you try!” She shouted. “I’m bigger than you, horse, so don’t push me!” Riven returned at the same volume. “Monkey!” “Hay-sucker!” “Witch!” “You this close because you want a kiss, gay pride?” “I’m this close so I can count your teeth before I punch them to the floor!” “LADIES!” Rainbow Dash and Riven returned to a disgruntled Twilight Sparkle with a synchronized: “What?” A flash of light and a swirling pink mist flew out of the window, at the same time that Celestia dropped a quill back into a conjured pot of ink. “I’ve just written to Cream. He should arrive shortly. In the meantime, Riven, you need not worry about being left behind. I believe we can expedite your stay at Ponyville General.” “You can?” She asked incredulously, doing her best to ignore Rainbow Dash pawing at her hair with a humorously angered expression on her face. “Twilight said you didn’t know enough about my anatomy to try.” “That was then,” Celestia’s horn illuminated and the various x-rays the doctor took when she first arrived reappeared on the wall, their echo answering her magical call. “We’ve had some time to look you over and believe that our initial estimate was wrong. There shouldn’t be any reason why we cannot heal you as I did Rainbow Dash.” Said pegasus landed on Riven’s right and struck a pose. “Damn good job, if I do say so myself!” Twilight did not look so convinced. “Princess, even if you know the basics of Riven’s physiology, magic can only self-correct so much. It will take an extraordinary effort to get her back on her hooves.” “Feet.” “Whatever.” “I know it will, my faithful student, which is why we’ll all be participating. Myself, Luna, Cream, and you. Riven’s information about ‘Nocturne’ has proven invaluable. We will surely need her.” Twilight looked unsure. She wasn’t as well-versed in medicinal magic as some; certainly not as much as Princess Celestia, who had been known to beat back the call of death for ponies who fell before their time. Just when she was about to suggest Doctor Sawbones take her place, Cream appeared in the doorway, the telltale pop of teleportation signaling that he had arrived somewhere in the lobby. “I received your letter, your majesty,” he held it up as if proof was needed. “You can explain in length this plan later. You’d like to attempt a synchronized restoration of our esteemed guest?” He entered the room and tipped up the brim of his conical hat to get a better look at the projection of Riven’s innards on the wall. “Huh. She has an appendix. I always wondered what those were for…” Though the picture of outward composure, Shining Armor was deeply troubled. One of his guards had died on his watch, and regardless of who actually pulled the proverbial trigger, he was at fault for not being more observant. His mind had been occupied by what he would tell Noteworthy’s family when they returned to Canterlot, though the threat Nocturne posed focused his thoughts. After all, if they didn’t act soon, there wouldn’t be much to return to. “How can I help, princesses?” He inquired. It wasn’t a question, because if they said nothing, he’d find some way to contribute. “You will accompany Twilight to the library, Captain,” Celestia said as her spiraling horn began to twinkle. Luna remained where she was but her horn resonated in tune with her sister’s. Cream and Twilight answered the call as well, circling Riven’s bed as the spell was prepared. “We’ll need you to shield the enclosure when Luna returns with the nightmare. I trust nopony more to keep it contained while letting my sister out.” Shining Armor nodded grimly. “In your service.” Ribbons of light arced out of each pony and rapidly cocooned Riven. Celestia had gleaned the most about human anatomy so she acted as the “conductor”, using her three constituents primarily as fuel for the demanding spell. Before the light faded completely, the ever-considerate Fluttershy nipped the displaced blanket and pulled it back over Riven’s body, hiding her nudity once again. The ritual was finished quickly. Luna and Celestia’s faces were creased with effort, but compared to Cream and Twilight, they were positively radiant. The two unicorns fell onto their haunches and required several minutes to catch their breath. But the effort had not been wasted; Riven appeared revitalized. She examined her now undamaged left hand and began to pull off the various bandages entwining her body. Rainbow now willingly lent a hoof to unbuckle the straps on her legs and Fluttershy left to retrieve a pair of scissors for her casts. She returned only a moment later but realized that with Celestia and Luna present, her manual efforts paled in comparison to their magical prowess. Somewhat disheartened, she deposited the useless implement on a nearby table. Dainty hoof falls diverted her attention toward the hospital’s main entrance, where she observed Rarity approaching with grace and poise, both in her strut and how she balanced a paper-wrapped package on her back. Behind her were three eager fillies, each trying to shout a word in edgewise but nevertheless smiling at what they were certain today would result in the acquisition of a cutie mark in astrobiology. “Ah, dearest Fluttershy, so good to see you.” “You too, Rarity.” The two shared an affectionate nuzzle. “What have you got there?” She gestured at the nondescript package, then looked down at the three impish fillies who were carrying an assortment of tools in their overloaded saddlebags, including a Geiger counter and what appeared to be a plastic ray gun. “Girls, I trust you’re not here to cause mischief.” “Of course not!” Applebloom exclaimed, practically dancing with excitement. “We’re jus’ here to ask the space monkey a couple’a questions!” “Applebloom! That’s a very rude thing to call her,” Rarity chided, earning a look of disappointment from the olive filly. “Her name is Riven and she isn’t some monster for you to cast a net over.” Her azure eyes commanded the attention of all three of the Cutie Mark Crusaders. “That goes for you two as well. I’m sure Riven won’t mind but you will be polite, respectful, and you won’t pester her. She’s hurt, after all.” “Um… actually, s-something has come up. It’s probably best if you girls stay away for a little while.” “Aw, but why?” Scootaloo whined. “We won’t be a bother, we promise!” “It’s not that,” Fluttershy corrected. “It’s important business. Canterlot business… not to mention very frightening. I’d feel better if you girls went home and tried again tomorrow.” Dejected, the three fillies sighed and prepared to leave, but a voice from inside of the room caught all of their attentions. “Miss Rarity? Is that you? Do you have my order?” “Ah! Yes!” Rarity galloped past Fluttershy and into the room. She smiled pleasantly at everypony present and deposited the box on the bed. Her magic deftly untied the twine securing it and the paper fell loose. Inside were Riven’s clothes, practically new. “I apologize that I didn’t have time to update your outfit, but I didn’t get a chance to speak with you at length, so I wasn’t sure what you liked.” Riven reached into the box and gathered up the bundle, smiling demurely at it. “This is more than fine. Thank you.” “Think nothing of it, dear. I won’t hear a word about payment either. You get that when you’re able.” Riven nodded but did nothing else. She had a feeling that the proper sign of appreciation for such a generous act was a hug or a nuzzle or some other uncomfortably close display of affection. Not yet willing to go that far, she merely grabbed one corner of her blanket and prepared to throw it aside, but was met with a room full of eager ponies, including three children peering around the doorframe, looking decidedly creepy. “Um… may I have some privacy, please?” Fluttershy turned around first. The others mimicked her with various exclamations of confusion. Rainbow Dash was notably annoyed and sighed far louder than was necessary. “Do you have a boil on your butt or something?” Riven quickly got dressed, careful to note any back glances from her new friends. When finished, she stood up and stretched loudly, a number of bones popping in protest, which elicited more than one wince. “You can turn around now.” They did so and for the first time since she arrived, a few ponies were intimidated by her height. Celestia and Luna appeared pleasantly surprised that they finally had somepony to look in the eye without stooping over. Fluttershy took a step backward and Rainbow Dash hovered adjacent to Riven’s shoulder, a silent affirmation that there was nothing Riven could do to make her back down. Rarity gulped and Twilight looked at her brother, as if expecting him to provide security. He seemed just as unnerved, however. Sweetie Belle ran out of the hospital screaming. Applebloom rolled her eyes and gave chase. Scootaloo put on a brave face because it was what Rainbow Dash was doing, though she found herself cowering in wide-eyed fear. Having unwittingly frightened children alerted Riven to the affect she was having, making her blush. “Um… I’m sorry. I should have warned you.” Celestia nodded at her sister, anxious to get started. “All right, it’s your turn, Lulu. Please, be careful.” She embraced her sibling and kissed her withers, who reciprocated the motion. “I will. Just get the Elements here as soon as possible. I may be a bit rusty at this.” With little fanfare or grandiose gesture, Luna winked out of existence, leaving behind a light dusting of coruscating glitter. “I’ll go get Applejack,” Rainbow offered, flying toward the door and landing in front of her school-aged admirer. “Rarity, find Pinkie. Scoots,” she tried to be as calm and kind as possible, but the situation had geared her up for a fight, and she struggled to squeeze in compassion. “Go on home. I’ll be over later.” “Wh-Where are you going?” She inquired, returning to her full height on uneasy hooves. “I want to help.” “Not today Squirt.” Rainbow nudged her ward back out of the door. “It’s too dangerous. Go home and wait for me. I promise I’ll tell you all about it tonight.” Scootaloo sighed but nodded, knowing that no matter how much she disliked being left behind, it was usually for her benefit. “Okay.” Rainbow knowingly leaned down far enough to accept a kiss on her cheek, and the filly left the hospital in hot pursuit of her friends. Turning back, she regained her confident grin. “So, we ready to go kick this creep back to the hole he crawled out of?” “Yes. I’m returning to Canterlot. I’ll return with the Elements of Harmony as soon as I am able. Stay strong my little ponies, and do not fret. We will protect you.” With that, Celestia approached the open window and was absorbed by the glare of the sun, using it as a conduit between this location and her destination. Shining Armor took up the rear once Twilight and Fluttershy assumed their positions in the center of their impromptu defensive column, sharing the support of Spike’s bed. Cream walked a few paces ahead, waiting for the right opportunity to inquire further about this mission. Before leaving, Shining Armor looked back at Riven and cocked an eyebrow. “Coming?” Riven nodded, though her attention was on her open hand. Not feeling the cool leather grip of her sword was completely foreign to her and she lamented how greatly her performance would be affected without it. But ever since she learned how to use her spirit to piece back together her broken blade, it had occupied a small corner of her soul that she was intimately aware of. Though she could not see her weapon, that feeling was still present, and with a familiar expression of her will, her fragmented Noxian great sword traversed the realms and winked into her awaiting grasp, the bulk of its wholeness splitting a floor tile upon arrival. “Let’s go.” The dreamscape was a mutable realm occupied by countless dreamers of every shape and size from every corner of Equis. A dreamer was either firmly planted on the ground or floated lazily through the air, but each appeared static-y and wrapped in a translucent bubble that displayed what the dreamer was experiencing. The opacity was based on the lucidity of the dream, some being so vivid and real that an outsider looking in would not be able to see the sleeper. Luna arrived in a tower of fire ejected from the moon, which hung overhead so closely it appeared that it could be touched. Beyond it were countless stars, galaxies, and planets, each far more brilliant than on even the clearest waking world evening. The ground appeared solid and made of soil, but with each step Luna took, it rippled like water. Reality itself appeared to move aside for her, which came in handy as her omnipresent gaze swept across the horizon and relocated the millions upon millions of dreamers out of harm’s way. “NIGHTMARE!” Normally, the Royal Canterlot Voice was merely disconcerting. Here, it shook the very foundations of the realm. “Show yourself, fiend!” Silence claimed her as Nocturne answered the call. The moon turned red and blood rained from the ethereal sky, though each droplet avoided Luna’s coat, leaving her immaculate no matter the weather. The rain coalesced into a twin pair of red blades, each several stories tall. They sunk into the earth at Luna’s hooves and a voice spoke to her, answering from every direction simultaneously. “Foolish… here… I am GOD.” “I am saving you the trouble! You don’t have to seek my body in the waking world now! Take me and let us reign over Equis again!” “You do not fool me… besides… I am no longer interested in you…” Luna gazed into the abyss with confusion. The sky parted and a pair of fiery white eyes stared back. “What do you mean? I am your only chance at a physical form!” “No…” Nocturne laughed, a sound made all the more horrific in stereo. “There is another… with you… I only glimpsed power. With her? True immortality…” Luna gasped. “Celestia?!” “No… this time… I come with the Twilight.”