//------------------------------// // Line 4 - The Time Is Coming... // Story: Anthology // by Timeless Lord Slayer //------------------------------// Hello, how are you? A man slowly cracks his eyes open and yawns, sitting up in bed. A mare groans as she gets out of bed. Opening a window, a man's head popped out. Opening a window, a mare's head popped out. Both sigh, before saying, "Morning!" Bright, sunny daylight lies outside. A man stands in a kitchen, yawns as he makes his breakfast. A mare sits patiently at a table, yawning. They sing, "La la la la da la~," in their hearts. A yellow woman cheers as she eats her breakfast, a man smiling and doing the same across the table from her. A mare looks over a scroll as she eats some toast. A mare sleeps soundly in her dark room, happily dreaming. "Hello, how are you?" Ten years came and went quickly for those in Canterlot. Twilight, now 18, and her adoptive brother Spike the dragon, now 10, had come far in their respective studies. Twilight had come to truly idolize Qudirk, nearly as much as her mentor, and she almost saw him as a second father. Spike shared this view, mostly due to the fact that for the moment he was living almost entirely in the castle, and thus frequently visited the man. Twilight's brother, Shining Armor, now a high ranking officer in the Royal Guard, had in fact received a bit of training from Qudirk, as well as a weapon he had gained ten years back and come to love; a seven-branched sword of light purple metal, with a blade decorated with a silver lightning bolt engraving, a simple tang with a gold covering barely resembling a hilt, and a single runic character at the base of the blade that glowed with arcane power. According to Qudirk, it held an enchantment that had made it effective against unholy beings. Shining Armor had absolutely fallen in love with it, and after going to train with the man a fair few times, he had come to see him as a fatherly figure as well. Now 31, yet still bearing no glaring changes to his body save more muscle, (something Celestia found odd, considering what he'd told her about human lifespans) Qudirk had been experimenting even more heavily than before with his abilities. He had created countless artifacts over the years, from swords, shields and armors, to necklaces, talismans, and simple yet beautiful jewels and jewelry. Some had made it to museums, which was a fact that greatly pleased him. He had placed a few new things in and around his tower, as well, such as a sword pedestal in the flowerbed of the main part of the garden - which held a baselard made of mithril - a number of strange yet alluring statues, and a strange stone pedestal by the front door with nothing but a gold covering on the top. His greatest achievement in the ten years span, however, was that he had published his first true book, written by himself with a type-writer. It was titled, quite simply, 'Tales and Legends of Afar' It was an instant hit. He gained even more fame than he had expected he would for it, and quite a pretty penny to show for it. Though, he did not entertain visitors all that much, or even go to any events. But, it was this very book of his that a familiar white alicorn was reading in her study. She hummed as she read, laughing at some bits of the page, before the sounds of a light tapping came from her balcony window. Curious, she looked over to find a raven at the balcony doors, with a piece of paper wrapped around it's leg. Celestia tilted her head for a moment in slight confusion before placing a bookmark in the book, then getting up and trotting over to the balcony, opening the door. The raven squawked at her. She blinked a few times before looking to the paper on it's leg. Growing more intrigued, she gently removed the slip of paper from it with her magic, and rolled it out before her. Hello, Celly. Come to the tower as soon as you can, I want to show you something special. Trust me, it'll make your day. -Q Celestia paused, rolling the slip back up in her magic. "Odd, what could he possibly have to show me?" she asked herself, before looking to the raven. It squawked at her once more, then hopped onto the railing of the balcony, then hopped off and flew off towards the tower. "Using a raven to call me to the tower is a bit strange, too..." She hummed, before shaking her head as her horn lit up with a golden light. With a pop of magic and a flash of light, she was at the front door to the tower, where she found Qudirk sitting on the stone bench in his garden, waiting. He stood up and smiled at her. "Great to see you, Celly." He motioned her to follow him with an arm. "Come on, follow me." Celestia stood a bit puzzled as he started to walk away and down a path she'd not seen there before, before slowly following and trotting up next to him. "What in the world is going on, Qudirk?" She asked him. He simply smiled and held a finger to his lips and winked at her. "You'll see." He said simply, continuing to walk. Celestia pouted a bit, but soon enough they arrived at a small, strangely circular lake, with morning glories ringed all around it. The moon shined down liberally on the silvery waters, and as Celestia was taking in the view, Qudirk spoke up. "I made a quick jot on one of my notebooks with the pencil earlier this night," he began. "And?" Celestia said, urging him to go on. He smirked. "I made a little change to your situation with your sister," he said. Celestia's eyes widened instantly, mouth opening a bit in shock. "Y-You...What?" she stuttered, flabbergasted. She looked to the moon above, still bearing the Mare in the Moon on it's surface. "Did you...?" He shook his head. "No, bringing her back would take way too much mana. It'd likely kill me." His smirk increased tenfold. "What I did was almost as draining, though." He raised a finger. "I made it so that once every month, your sister is able to send a short message via the waters of this lake." Celestia's jaw dropped fully. "W-What?!" she cried. "But-! How-?!" she then noticed his complexion. It was paler than normal, and he had a light sweat on his brow. "You... You did all this...? You spent so much mana on...me?" He nodded, smirk turning into a grin. "Yup!" he replied simply, popping the 'p.' "I...I can't believe..." Tears started to fill her eyes, and Qudirk smiled, walked over, and wrapped her in a hug. She reciprocated, wrapping both her wings and her hooves around him in a tight hug. "Thank you...! Thank you so much...!" She was crying into his signature dress shirt now, soaking it with her tears. He rubbed her back. "Anytime, Celly," he said softly. Eventually, she stopped crying and they released each other, the mare wiping her tears with a wing. "So... She's going to write a message tonight?" she queried. He nodded. "Should be anytime now," he responded. Celestia's gaze went to the lake, watching it's waters intently and intensely. Qudirk smiled and sat down in the grass by the edge, both of them now waiting eagerly. Slowly, the light of the moon intensified on the lake's waters, and even more slowly, some of the water rippled and started to flow upwards. The water started to form letters, and thereafter words. Three, simple words. 'I miss you.' Celestia broke down into tears once more, and Qudirk once more held her. Throughout most of the night, they stayed like that, and Celestia was the happiest she'd been in a very long time.