Celestia stood in her chambers. Night had long since come and she still up and awake. It had becoming an unfortunate, yet common occurrence with her. She sighed heavily as she finally lifted the crown off her head. A glance out her window told her it was nearing the middle of the night. She needed to sleep. If for nothing else, then for the image she put up for her subjects. They needed to believe everything was alright, even if was not.
Morning came. Celestia was not rested, not as much as could have been. She yawned as she sat up. A frown persisted on her face as she went through her morning routine. With only a few hours of sleep she moved slowly to shower, dry, and get her mane sorted in time. She rushed getting her regalia to her hooves and get to the balcony. She hoped her subjects wouldn't notice the sun rising a moment or so later than normal. At least it was still rising. As she place a hoof to her chamber doors, she took a second to breathe. One deep breath, and a smile for her subjects.
Another lifeless day on the throne. Celestia sat next to an empty throne. She couldn't help but steal fleeting glances at it throughout the day, even as she was entertaining the nobles and their whining. She got through like any other and the evening came. She actually excused herself early Only a few matters remained and she could push them off until the next day. A certain pony had come in, and that demanded her attention more. He slipped in unnoticed, moving directly for her chambers. She followed as fast as the societal etiquette would allow her to.
“You are late,” She said to him as soon as she closed her chamber doors.
“Apologies, Princess. Deepest apologies,” He returned. “I feared I was compromised, and that delayed my presence here for a time.”
“Were you,” Celestia asked seriously.
“Comprised,” He asked as a question.
“Of course compromised,” Celestia snapped back. “Were you compromised? Do I have to find another pony for this assignment? Or are you competent enough to do the job?”
The pony found himself rather stunned. Years he had known Celestia, maybe not personally, but perhaps a bit more than most others. Being a member of her personal guard lets you see the Princess in ways the public doesn't. And yet, never in all of his years had he see her angry. He hadn't even see her so much as annoyed, or irritated. He wasn't ashamed to say he was not fond of this side of her. He kept his head down to avoid the unfamiliar, unsettling look in her eyes.
“Princess,” He started. “Forgive me rudeness, but my report was not yet finished.”
“Then by all means, finish it,” She commanded, coldly.
“I was not compromised. I know how to cover my tracks,” He told her. “But there was something about the situation that struck me as odd.”
“Odd? Explain.”
“I investigated after the incident. Two ponies, both Unicorn judging by the traces of magical energy left behind. If I am correct, then they teleported in, Princess. And I truly believe the reason behind my not being compromised was not in fact due to my own skill, but luck. I happened to be wearing an amulet that resists enchantments and charms. Still, I felt them pull at my mind.”
“And what about that strikes you as odd,” Celestia asked.
“Teleportation and charms,” He said. “If I may be so bold, but that sounds like them, does it not?”
He risked a glance upwards with his words. The anger about her had gone, faded away. In fact, he believed he saw something, something he hadn't seen in a long time. Deep in her eyes, which had been nothing but dark pits of despair and sorrow for so long, he believed he saw hope. A small, tiny flicker of hope that he wished he could ignite. By the way she smiled, it seemed she had the same wish.
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Star sat be herself. The cool breeze of the night blew over her coat. She breathed deeply in the fresh night air. She loved it. She loved the way the night felt. She always made a point to try and enjoy the nighttime. She raised her up toward the moon and let the breeze blow through her mane. She wondered if Unicorns ever felt like this. Some of them must with they way they fly. She loved the breeze, but her real nighttime love were the stars. Charmer often teased her about living up too much to her name. Unfortunately, this nigh had far too many clouds to see the stars. Not that it mattered really, as a pony come up behind her.
“Admiring the clouds, are we?”
Star knew that voice. She would always know that voice. It was the same voice that broke through to her. It was the same sultry voice that lured her, enthralled her. The same beautiful mare came up and sat next to her.
“Just remembering that night on the train, actually,” Star replied.
“A most wonderful night.”
“Life changing,” Star absentmindedly added.
Star followed the mare out into the next train cabin. She could still feel it pulling at her. That same attraction, that same allure. And yet, somehow she now felt more aware of it. She felt like she could actually resist it now. Was Charmer feeling it too? She already seemed to resist it.
“Why did I feel so drawn to you,” Star asked in a hushed whisper of a tone. She didn't think anypony could hear her.
“It's a natural allure, my dear,” The mare said, grinning at Star's surprise that she heard her. “But I do confess to feeding into a bit every now and then.”
“If it's such a natural allure, then why bother feeding it at all,” Charmer asked.
“I get what I want either way, so why not play into my strength,” She said. “After all, I'm going to teach you how to do the same.”
“Is that what your cutie mark means,” Star asked, gesturing at her flank. A strangely beautiful mark adorned her coat. A single rose, with pedals instead of red. Red droplets fell from the pedals like dew. “It's beautiful, Miss. . .”
“Oh, I haven't yet given you my name, have I,” She said laughed. “What an oversight. My name is Ebony,” She said with a smile and a hiss. “Ebony Mirror. And what do I call you?”
“She is Shadow,” Charmer said. “I'm Charmer.”
“Shadow and Charmer,” Ebony repeated. “How lovely, and fitting.”
“Ebony,” Star, now called Shadow apparently, tested the name. “What did you mean when you said you'd teach us the same?”
“You will know in due time, my dears,” Ebony replied. “For now, let's leave this dreadful train.”
Star hadn't even realized they'd walked down most of the train by now. They all stepped outside into the brisk night air. A strong wind blew across them. The mares mane seemed untouched as Star's and Charmer's flew about their heads. She grinned as a Star didn't feel the wind anymore. At first she thought it was a barrier of some kind, but then she felt something different. It reminded her of a time Charmer tried to describe what teleporting felt like.
It was a sort of pull, but not a physical one. More like a tugging deep in your gut, like your being dragged by something. It wasn't forceful, but still nauseating at times. Next thing you know you're standing someplace else and your lunch is still catching up. And while all this is happening, you have this persistent tingling running through your coat. It was hard for her to understand at the time, but now she knew how she felt. The wind had stopped, but not because of a barrier. Ebony was teleporting them. All of them. Five ponies, at once. She was so strong.
Star could only watch as the world around her melted away only to be replaced. What was an open field under the night sky with stars and wind had now become and rocky canyon with scraggly tree husks casting eerie shadows down on them. The high canyon walls blocked most of the wind, but at least the stars were still there. Kind of. Star had never seen any of these stars before. She had no idea where they were. And yet she was calm, and maybe a bit excited.
“From now on this is your home,” Ebony said.
“And that was the beginning of our time here,” Shadow said.
“I remember,” Ebony said. “Four long years, and you've come such a long way, my dear.”
“You always say that,” Shadow blushed.
“It's always the truth, my dear,” Ebony smiled back. “However, I didn't come to you to reminisce. I have need of you and Charmer. It's rather urgent.”
“I'll get her right away, Ebony,” Shadow said.
“Good. Meet me in my quarters one you have her,” Ebony said rather seriously.
“Your quarters,” Star questioned.
“This is a complicated and delicate manner, Shadow,” Ebony told her. Her tone also said that she was going to say no more on the subject. Shadow just nodded and left to get Charmer.
Charmer was found in the Great Hall, or at least that's what she called. The name started to catch on a year or so ago. She finally got some of the others to call it that. It went from there. The Hall served as a multipurpose room of sorts. It was lined with tables and the kitchen was attached, so it was a dining hall. It was a meeting room as well, seeing how it was the largest room of the building. And on certain, rare occasions it also served as a dance floor. That's only happened once since they've been here. Charmer was laughing it up with a couple other ponies and a griffin when Shadow showed up. She fit in here more than she would ever admit.
“Charmer,” Shadow called out for her.
“Hey, friend,” Charmer replied. “Did you need something?”
“Ebony wants us. Now. She has an urgent job,”
The laughing and revelry died down quickly after that. The others around Charmer all looked at her, wide eyed. All of them knew of Ebony, of course. That meant they knew when she needed ponies for an urgent job that it was important, and only the most trusted were sent on them.
“Ebony needs us for an urgent job,” Charmer repeated.
“Yes.”
“Well then,” Charmer said as she stood and stretched her legs. “Let's not keep her waiting.”
“You two must be mighty important ta be sent on urgent jobs,” One of the others said. It was the griffin that spoke. He was a little older for a griffin, but still in good shape, and somewhat good spirits. Many of the those that stayed here looked up to him as kind of like a weird uncle that was always telling stories. Charmer liked him, but Shadow never quite saw him as anything other than a griffin that wouldn't shut up.
“Of course,” Charmer said with that sly, thin smile of hers. “It's only natural that Ebony trusts the two ponies she personally recruited.”
A silence fell of them all. The griffin stared at Charmer for a moment. The other two ponies present stopped in the middle of what they were doing. One pony was eating a bowl of oatmeal and stopped mid bite. The other just stopped. She was a young Earth pony, new here. From what Charmer knew she was extremely fit and could run for days without stopping. Her eyes were so wide right now they were almost unnatural.
“Oh my,” She squealed. “I had not idea you were her.”
“'Ey! Who are they then,” The griffin asked the earth pony, but she was too awestruck to answer.
“Allow me,” Charmer said. “My name is Charmer, and my friend here is Shadow.”
“Oh,” The griffin said as her suddenly realized he knew them. Well, he knew of them. Everyone here knew of them. “Ebony's favorite spell slinging pets.”
“I am no ones pet,” Shadow glared at him. “Come on, Charmer. Ebony needs us.”