//------------------------------// // 32 - The Edge of the Morn // Story: Age of Kings // by A bag of plums //------------------------------// Emerald Edge awoke in her quarters in the morning, stretching and yawning. Tumbling out of bed, she stumbled over to the bathing room, where she washed her face from a bowl of water. Once she had finished that and tying up her hair, she walked over to the washroom’s only window, which gave her a nice view of a tall tree that stood outside. There was a hollow in the tree, and a large owl sitting in it. The bird stared back at Emerald before reaching out a wing and pulling a slab of bark over the hole like a door. There was even a small slamming sound. “Huh.” It had been three days since she had moved from her home to her new personal quarters in Canterlot Castle, courtesy of King Dawn Saber, seeing as she was a Knight of the Round Table now. It was smaller than her whole house, but at least she did not have to walk as far to get to the castle, since she was already in the castle. And it wasn’t bad, having a bathing room in her own quarters. That way, she didn’t have to worry about sharing a tub with anypony or anyone. She had also decided to keep her house, just in case Posey were to come by and visit and needed a place to stay. She didn’t know if the archer would be allowed to stay with her in her quarters, so it was a good alternative. The window also gave her a good view of the Mages’ Tower. As she watched, a man in a robe stepped out and began to sweep the front steps with a broom. It was getting close to autumn and fiery leaves were starting to fall from the trees. Emerald admired the falling leaves for a while, until she heard the morning bells start ringing. “Well, time for breakfast.” Emerald simply had a plate of garden lettuce that morning, not feeling all that hungry. The rest of her morning had gone on without incident, with the former pegasus visiting Foxtrot in the stables to spend time with him. She had even brought a carrot for him today, feeding it to him while she told him all about her exploits back in the Crystal Empire. She had only begun telling him of a time she had to fight off against a pack of timberwolves when young Spectrum Song ran into the stables, a smile on her face. “Why good morning, Spectrum.” Emerald turned to greet her. “What brings you all the way here today?” “Nothing about me, Em,” Spectrum replied, bouncing on the spot. “But I just wanted to let you know, Sir Morn and the others are back from their trip.” “Sir Morn’s back?” Emerald didn’t need to be told twice. Giving Foxtrot one more pat, she whizzed out of the stables and off towards the town gates, dodging around other townsfolk, with Spectrum chasing after her. “Hey! Em, wait! Where are you going?” Emerald didn’t answer, instead sprinting for the gates as fast as her feet would carry her. She leapt over a cart full of melons, slipped between two horses, and jumped over a chicken. In less than ten minutes, she had found her way to the front gates, only to see… “Where are they?” The sound of someone wheezing for breath made itself known behind Emerald. “Em… erald…” Spectrum panted, putting her hands on her knees. “Tried… to tell you… not here.” “What?” Emerald said, confused. “They… went to report… to… King Dawn Saber… about their quest…” Spectrum staggered over to a nearby wall and collapsed against it. “Back at the castle.” “Back… at the castle?” Emerald repeated, then realized how foolish she had been. Of course they would’ve gone straight to the castle. There wasn’t much point for them to wait around at Canterlot’s gates. “Horseapples…” “You go on ahead, Em…” Spectrum waved a hand. “I just need to… catch my breath.” Nodding, Emerald ran on back to the castle, excited to see Morn Dread. It had been more than a week since he had left Canterlot with Sir Prancelot and Sir Agramane. It got her thinking as to what would have made them take so long. Hopefully it was nothing serious. Taking it slower this time, Emerald jogged back to the castle, stopping to buy a small loaf of bread to make up for the somewhat frugal breakfast she had eaten, needing it now. As she passed by the tall tree that stood outside her window, she heard a small ‘ding’, like a tiny bell being rung. Stopping mid-chew, she looked on with puzzlement as a slab of bark at the bottom of the tree slid open and the same owl she saw from her room waddled out. It tilted its head up to look at the former pegasus, then turned a hundred and eighty degrees and walked back into the tree, closing the bark behind it. “Huh.” Although she was tempted to stay and inspect the tree, Emerald’s desire to see Sir Morn outweighed her curiosity, and she continued on her way to the castle. She spotted Sir Morn, Sir Agramane, and Sir Prancelot’s horses in the stables, and she quickened her pace. “Now, where could they be?” The obvious answer was the Round Table room or the throne room, so Emerald first decided to check the throne room. When she saw that the queen was the one attending to the regular needs, she decided to go over to the Round Table room. As she got closer, the sounds of men talking could be heard. “... we looked into the kidnappings and brought all the townsfolk back to Canterbury. The mayor wants Canterlot to send more guards to protect the town, in case the druids come back.” That was Sir Prancelot’s voice. “So many towns under attack… those dastardly monsters…” King Dawn Saber could be heard sighing. “We will send as many as we can spare to Canterbury, but I am afraid we may be too spread out at this time. We must quell the source of this Fir Laimhe Liath before they kill more innocent people…” “We could hold their leader, Duchan, hostage.” Emerald heard Sir Agramane suggest. “I am sure they would not let their leader die just like that. We have the power to make them submit, right here in our dungeons.” “Tis too risky, Agramane,” Sir Morn said. “He could end up escaping instead or perhaps they would even allow us to kill him? We cannot know for sure.” At this point, Emerald straightened herself and knocked on the door before pushing it open. She really wanted to see Sir Morn, after all, and the conversation intrigued her enough to make her want to join in. “Oh. Lady Emerald,” King Dawn Saber said, turning to see who was coming in. “What can I do for you?” “I just overheard you talking about the druids,” Emerald said, giving the king a small bow. “I thought I might inform the other knights here that the one called Nimhe, one of Duchan’s inner circle, is still running loose.” “Yes, I recall you and Sir Boercival telling me something of that nature…” The king put a hand to his beard and stroked it thoughtfully. The king shook his head like a dog coming out of water. “I’m sorry, my loyal knights. I’m feeling a slight bit fatigued from some, eh, work that I stayed up late for last night. The queen is very demanding…” “I understand completely, sire,” Prancelot said supportingly. “Running a kingdom is no small feat.” “Yes, you are quite right, Sir Prancelot…” Dawn Saber rubbed his eyes. “There is much to plan. I think I shall have a word with the queen about the druid problem. You may go, my loyal knights.” “Yes, your Majesty,” they all said at once and left through the door. Prancelot and Agramane went on ahead and as soon as Emerald was sure she was alone with Morn, she stopped him and threw her arms around him, so glad that he was back. “I have missed you, Sir Morn,” she said. “It has been some time. Are you well?” “What? Oh, yes. I’m fine. Never better.” The blue haired knight squeezed her back, then gave her shoulders a pat. “You were gone for quite some time, Sir Morn. Did you have trouble with the druids?” Sir Morn laughed a deep and hearty laugh. “Of course not. Those cowardly vermin will bother Canterbury no more, especially after the king sends in more guards. In truth, we were delayed by a combination of bad weather and celebrations.” “Oh, I see- Wait, what?” Emerald stopped and squinted at her fellow knight. “We ran into a thunderstorm and had to seek shelter for a day,” Sir Morn explained. “Our horses had trouble with the muddy roads afterwards.” “But what about the celebrations you mentioned?” “Oh, that?” Morn Dread’s face flushed slightly. “After dealing with the druids, the townsfolk insisted on throwing a celebration feast for us. It seemed a bit rude to say no, so we stayed for a day and a half. To be honest, I would have liked to stay longer. Their beer was surprisingly good.” “So you had quite a decent time, sir knight.” Emerald playfully nudged him in the side, but seeing as he had armor on, it didn’t do anything. “I wish I could have gone with you.” “Maybe next time,” Sir Morn said confidently. “It has been a long ride from Canterbury to here, and I must change into something less… travel worn. I shall see you at lunch, Lady Emerald.” Emerald had never seen the knight without his armor on and began wondering what he looked like without it. As Sir Morn went off to his own quarters, Emerald decided that, since she had nothing to do for the rest of the morning, she would go and wander the town a bit. Setting off down the hill that Canterlot Castle was built on, Emerald started her little walk, not paying attention to where she was headed, simply wandering where things looked interesting. She passed by a few small businesses that were just opening up for the day, nodding her hello to the various villagers that she passed. Out of no particular choice, Emerald found herself at Canterlot Fabrics. The door was slightly ajar, with the ‘closed’ sign hanging in the window. Curious, Emerald pushed open the door and peered inside. It was still dark inside the shop,with none of the curtains having been pulled up yet. There was the familiar smell of textiles and fabrics, but no sign of Jewel Pin. Stepping inside fully, Emerald picked up the sounds of girlish squealing coming from the back rooms. “Hello?” Emerald called out. “Jewel Pin?” The squealing stopped, and there was the sound of someone clearing their throat before Jewel Pin squirted out of the storage closet she had been hiding in, with a wide grin on her face. “Oh, Emerald! What a pleasant surprise! Would you like to join me for morning tea? I just put the kettle on.” “That would be great, Jewel Pin. I just noticed your door was open, I just thought there might be trouble.” “Oh, there’s no trouble at all! I must have forgotten to close the door completely after getting the morning mail. Look, Emerald!” Jewel Pin waved a page of parchment in front of the knight’s face. “It’s an order from High Rise! He wants me to make him a suit! A suit!” “That’s… great?” Emerald gave her a nervous grin. “Oh, this could be my big break! If High Rise likes the suit, he might recommend me to his friends!” Jewel Pin looked positively giddy with glee. “And it doesn’t hurt that he’ll be coming in for a fitting soon… oh, I must simply clean up my shop for that!” The seamstress stopped, panting for breath. “But first, how about that tea?” “That sounds lovely, Jewel Pin,” Emerald smiled. After having a nice strong cup of tea, Emerald spent the rest of the morning helping her friend tidy up the inside of her shop. She didn’t have anything else to do today but to wait for Sir Morn to clean himself up. She thought time was slowing down as she anticipated spending time with him, but having Jewel Pin around helped speed time up. “Back from Canterbury, you say?” Jewel Pin folded a piece of cloth and put it in her rack. “What a ways off. I am sure the knights must be exhausted.” “Oh, I am sure they’re fine, Jewel Pin,” Emerald chuckled. “They are Knights of the Round Table, after all. They looked like they would still be able to defeat a dozen bandits on their own.” “I suppose. I also understand you have your own seamstresses up in the castle,” Jewel Pin said longingly. “They must know all kinds of tricks to making fabulous clothes.” “Your clothes are pretty fabulous already,” Emerald said with a grin. “I’m sure that once High Rise gets his suit done, he will recommend you to all his friends.” “Oh, I hope so…” They continued with their work until Emerald heard the bells ring for midday. “Oh, uh, Jewel Pin, I have to go. I’m probably wanted up at the castle.” The seamstress nodded. “You’ve been a great help to me today, Emerald. Thank you. I’ll see you later then?” “Sure! Goodbye!” With the bells signaling it was time for lunch, Emerald was anxious to get back to spend her long awaited time with her beloved human, heading back through the castle gate and past the courtyard, where a group of knights had just finished their training with the straw dummies. Emerald waved at Sir Ganeighn, who had likely been the one training them as she passed. Once inside the castle, Emerald waited by the dining hall’s entrance for Sir Morn, watching as many groups of knights and guards entered to have their midday meal. Sir Prancelot and Sir Agramane came in about ten minutes later, both of them now dressed in regular tunics and pants, a rare sight for Knights of the Round Table indeed, though they kept their sword belts on, with weapons attached. If they were already here, Sir Morn wouldn’t be long now. Emerald went over to her seat and sat down as a servant placed her usual dish of greens in front of her. The smell of cooked meat was thick in the air, and Emerald tried not to think too hard about the poor animals that had been slaughtered to feed these humans. Picking up a nearby ceramic pot, Emerald drizzled a generous amount of dressing onto her salad plate. Spearing a slice of cucumber on her fork, Emerald chewed thoughtfully as the rest of the knights dug into their meals. Still no sign of Sir Morn. Emerald was just reaching for her goblet when she realized it was out of reach. She was loathe to get up out of her chair just for her drink, but then she rolled her eyes and pushed her chair back. “Allow me, my lady,” a familiar voice came, and a black-sleeved arm picked up her goblet and deposited it in front of Emerald. “Sir Morn!” Emerald said happily, turning to her left. The male knight was dressed in a black tunic with brown leggings, his hair freshly washed and smelling of soap. So that is what he looks like without armor, Emerald thought to herself. Morn Dread gestured to one of the servants, who quickly brought around a full plate and a tankard of ale. “Ahh…” Sir Morn sighed, licking his lips as he surveyed his meal. “Tis nice to not have to eat off dried rations.” He picked up a chicken leg and took a big bite. “Oh yes, that’s the stuff.” Emerald flinched at the sight, but she didn’t want to disrupt his supposedly delicious meal. “Are you refreshed, Sir Morn?” she decided to ask, smiling at him with a leaf of lettuce sticking from her mouth. “Aye, that I am, Lady Emerald.” Sir Morn took another bite out of his chicken. That poor chicken. “Tis nice to finally have a bath after a long journey. You are faring well, I hope?” Emerald nodded. “Never better. How went your quest?” “Oh, we had a run in with some druids and their mercenaries. The one that we captured claimed to be working for that Fir Laimhe Liath. They had taken some of the villagers for who knows what. But we managed to rescue them in the end.” Sir Morn took a sip of ale before returning to his food. “I heard rumors that you also had to deal with some druids on your own quest. They are becoming quite the problem.” “They must be up to something.” Emerald chewed on another leaf. “I encountered some in old ruins near Talamhstead. They were trying to harvest magic from these vines deep in the ruins.” “Hmm.” Sir Morn rubbed his chin. “We simply had to rescue hostages. They had occupied the town with their barbarian mercenaries but we scared them off. King Dawn Saber has promised to send them guards and possibly some knights.” Emerald didn’t like what the druids were doing and she didn’t know what they would possibly want with so many human hostages. She knew they enjoyed sacrificing them, for what kind of magic, the spymaster didn’t want to find out. “I wish we knew what they were after,” Emerald said, picking up a chunk of cheese and using her hidden blade to slice off a piece. “It would be easier to combat them.” “These druids are proving difficult to question.” Sir Morn shrugged, taking a bite of bread. “Itsh like dey- sorry.” He swallowed the bread and started again. “It’s like they actually believe what they are doing is the right thing. Difficult to sway dedication like that.” “They are a bunch of delusional fanatics,” Emerald said savagely through a mouthful of cheese. “I forgot to ask, what does the king intend to do with Duchan, their leader?” “Hmm? Oh. That I do not know. We’re trying to rack up a list of his crimes before sentencing him. But once we do…” Sir Morn cracked his knuckles. “He’s going to be in for either a long stay in the dungeons, or an appointment with the king’s headsman.” “The king’s headsman?” Emerald tilted her head to the side. “What is a headsman? Why would he need to see him?” “He’s… ah, well, the headsman gives close shaves to condemned criminals. Very close shaves if you know what I mean. With an axe.” “Shaves…” Emerald rubbed her chin. “He cuts off their coats and… beards? I didn’t think you humans had so much hair on your bodies. Mine doesn’t have much. Just my head and-” “No, you misunderstand, my lady.” Morn waved both his hands around. “He chops off the heads of criminals.” “Chops off…?” Emerald looked down at her lunch and covered her mouth. She suddenly didn’t feel as hungry. “Whatever for? Isn’t imprisonment good enough?” “Sometimes it is, sometimes it isn’t. The headsman is reserved for the really bad criminals. Right now we can convict Duchan for kidnapping, use of malign magic on humans, murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and general unpleasantness. Perhaps we will unearth more later.” And he took a swig of ale. “Maybe we can attend his trial.” “I wouldn’t want to see another druid for as long as I live…” Emerald sighed. “They have caused death for enough innocent humans. I wish they would just stop.” “Don’t we all, Lady Emerald. I wish there would be order.” Darkness seemed to sweep over Morn’s eyes, but then he shook it out of his face and inhaled, a grin forming on his lips. “Mm… You have a delightful smell, my lady. Just the way I like it.” “It’s probably the vegetables,” Emerald said, popping a slice of tomato into her mouth. “You jest.” Sir Morn watched her eat. “Tis your usual smell. When you are near me, I smell it, and it makes me feel re-energized.” Emerald discreetly sniffed the air around her. It didn’t smell much different from everywhere else. Just the smell of food and drink, and the odor of old stone. “As always, your sense of smell surpasses even mine,” Emerald chuckled, tossing another cucumber slice into her mouth. Morn joined her in laughter before picking up a potato and breaking it in half. “You have been well, I hope? No serious injuries?” “Just the odd bruise or so, Sir Morn, nothing to worry.” “You have visited my mother, I hope?” He peeled off a portion of his potato and ate it. “Of course, Sir Morn,” Emerald chuckled, looking over to him. “She’s really one of the best healers in Canterlot. You must be proud to have such a mother.” “Oh, I am. I am so proud of my mother.” Sir Morn smiled and looked at the door. “Her magic has saved countless lives before. Including yours. And I am glad she has done so.” The knight reached over and held Emerald’s hand. The former pegasus had never held his hand skin to skin before. It felt nice and warm. “My lady, I relish every moment I spend with you. It is as though you light a fire inside me that keeps me going.” Emerald found her cheeks brightening at that comment. “Why th-thank you, Sir Morn. I too, enjoy my time with you, even if it is brief.” “Well, no one said the life of a knight would be easy,” Sir Morn said. “With so many problems plaguing the kingdom, tis a wonder we get any rest at all. Though…” the knight rubbed his chin. “I don’t have any obligations for the next hour or so. What about you?” “Oh, me?” Emerald thought about her schedule. “I have nothing planned either.” “Superb. Then might I invite you to come walk through the royal gardens with me? They are located on the south side of the castle grounds.” “Right now?” “Of course. I am done with my meal, and so are you.” He gestured to their empty plates. “The gardens are beautiful this time of year… though their splendor pales in comparison to yours.” “You flatterer, you,” Emerald giggled. “I’d love to walk in the gardens with you. You’ll have to lead though, I’ve never been there.” “Certainly, my lady,” Morn Dread stood up and helped Emerald out of her own chair. “Right this way.” Emerald Edge only saw hedges and hedges of trees as she entered out into the royal gardens from Canterlot castle. Two rows went down ahead of her from the entrance, splitting into three paths at the end, almost like some kind of labyrinth, making her wonder where each one lead and if one lead to something wondrous at the end. “Beautiful…” she breathed, walking over to run her fingers along the leaves of the first hedge. “Aye, tis truly a wondrous sight.” Sir Morn held one of the leaves between two of his fingers. “The castle gardeners are paid well to maintain this place.” Songbirds fluttered from tree to tree, warbling melodiously as they flew. Some of them stopped at a birdbath that was placed under a stone arch which was riddled with flowering ivy. Emerald paused to smell one of the blossoms. It smelled sharp and sweet. “The mages sometimes come here to gather plants for alchemy, but by and large they stick to their own garden on the west side of the castle,” Sir Morn explained. “The gardens here were planted by the king as a gift for his queen. She occasionally comes out here too, but it seems as though we are alone today.” They kept walking, taking in the aromas of the honeysuckle and tulips and roses. Emerald could see that there were dozens of different flowers, and thought about how fortunate Queen Sunlight was that the king would plant such a garden just for her. If she hadn’t just eaten lunch, Emerald would have taken a bite out of the hundreds of mouth watering flowers that surrounded them. But for now, she would have to settle for smelling them. Besides, there was no guarantee that she in her human form would even find the flowers to be palatable. “I like to come here in between quests,” Sir Morn said as they strolled along. “I find it quite relaxing. A knight must have a balance between battle-duty and the finer aspects of life, don’t you agree?” “I suppose.” Emerald had never really thought about it that way. Back in Equestria, she had usually stayed inside the crystal castle, lurking in the shadows and making sure the princess was safe. While on missions away from the Crystal Empire, she hadn’t particularly stopped to smell the roses, figuratively speaking. Hearing Sir Morn speak about it as if he were not on a quest brought a small smile to the former pegasus’ face, only for it to slide off once she remember that she did  have a quest. She had to find Star Swirl’s artifacts. “I need to work hard, Sir Morn. I have to win that shield.” Emerald looked confidently up at the sky. “My princess needs me and so does the rest of the empire. They are counting on me to succeed in my quest.” “And I have no doubt you will succeed one day, Lady Emerald.” Morn took one of her hands in his as they walked down the hedges. “You are strong. And skilled. Intelligent. Beautiful, and most of all, determined. Determination will get you far.” Emerald blushed and bent down to smell a flower to hide her embarrassment. Her? Strong, skilled, intelligent, and beautiful? No stallion had ever said such things to her. Mostly because in her line of work there was very little socializing, but still. Once the redness in her cheeks had diffused a bit, she stood back up and bounced on the balls of her feet. “You know, when I first came to this world, I never thought I would become so involved.” “You thought it would simply be a recovery quest, didn’t you? To get the artifacts and return?” Morn walked closely beside her, still holding her hand. “That was the idea…” Emerald kicked at a small rock, sending it flying into some bushes. “Truth be told, none of us knew what was on the other side of the portal. I just thought it would be like a storage closet or something.” She sighed and looked up. “Clearly I was wrong.” “Well,” Sir Morn said, clapping her on the back. “Sometimes it’s not the end of the quest that matters as much as the journey. You learn, grow, and adapt to things when you’re on a quest. And at the end of it, you can look back and say, ‘Amazing! Look how much I’ve changed!’. Surely you wouldn’t get that out of a mere storage closet.” “You sure know how to word it nicely, Sir Morn,” Emerald chuckled, holding the knight’s arm with her other hand. “Thank you, for providing me with your assistance since the day I got to Canterlot.” “I would have done the same for anyone, though, your beautiful countenance made it all the more worthwhile for me,” Sir Morn said casually. He then raised Emerald’s hand to his lips and planted a gentle kiss on the back of Emerald’s palm. “Oh, Sir Morn…” Emerald blushed. They stayed there until the sun began to set, talking about things big and small, and mostly just enjoying one another’s company. As the time came for them to part ways, Emerald gave Morn Dread a hug before trotting off back into the castle, feeling like a very happy pony.