Oblivion walked quietly into the castle and focused on the spirit that he knew to be Shining Armor. He found him outside in the training grounds supervising the training of the recruits.
“Shining!” Oblivion called out.
The white stallion spun and smiled in greeting at the sight of the Black Unicorn. “Oblivion! How are you?”
“I am well. And yourself?”
“Doing just fine.” He replied merrily and looked out over the training ground.
Oblivion paused at the sight of a familiar Thestral. Sight Line was shining a pile of swords off to the side. Next, to him, Sasa broke out into laughter and nuzzled the Captain in praise.
“Sight Line! Get over here.”
Oblivion looked up as the Thestral groaned and trotted over to the sparring line. He picked up a sword and stood against one of the recruits. He braced as the recruit broke into a flurry of blows on the sword until a swift kick to the hocks sent the taller Sight Line rolling.
Oblivion snorted at the sight of the diminished Thestral. Sasa was now laying on her side laughing at the sight before her.
“It’s perfect!” She wailed through her laughter.
Shining looked at the clearly overjoyed cat and looked at the black stallion. “He called her a fat animal.”
“Oh. Oh, that explains so much.” Shining laughed through his teeth as Sasa pulled herself to her paws and sat down beside him. “This is week one of his new daily routines. He is to shine and polish every piece of weaponry and armor in the armory. And he is the sparring partner for the new recruits, until further notice.”
Oblivion nodded in approval. “Many think the rulers of a kingdom would have the most lethal punishments. I have found that not to be the truth. It’s the military commanders that have the punishments that will leave a lasting impression on the subject of the punishment and the ones that see it.”
Shining nodded in agreement. “Exactly. Princess Luna received your letter about him and I went to speak with her and she wanted to banish him from the Lunar Guard. I talked her out of it and asked her to leave it to me. He is on day two currently and is already regretting his choices in life.”
“I can see that. I came to ask you if I can borrow Silver.” Oblivion said.
“For?” The white pony shook his head. “Never mind. I forgot that he is part of your team and you can pull him anytime you need him.”
“Is it possible for him to pull that carriage alone?” Oblivion went on.
“Yes. We have smaller ones that are designed for a one pony team. It depends on the distance.” Shining informed him.
“Perfect. I only need him at the moment. The monster that I am going after is airborne and I need speed to drive it to the ground.”
“Ahh, that explains that. He has gotten to be one of our fastest in the Solar Guard. I assume that is due to you putting him through a training regime of your own?”
“Perhaps.”
“They have all taken to the training after you with ease and have become the ones to beat in sparring. They fight differently than how we trained them but they are very good at it so I haven’t thought to change it.” Shining said to him. “I would ask you to train the others but I get the feeling that you won’t.”
“No. I trained them out of need, not a choice.” Oblivion replied to him. “They were needed to act in my stead and I would rather they not died for their attempts.”
“Understood. I’ll send for Silver.” Shining looked to the guard at the door and they nodded and the mare took to the air. “Be a couple of minutes. He’s on-air patrol during the afternoon. He’s one of the only ones that can last all afternoon without stopping. Only Striker can keep up.”
“Does not surprise me. Striker was already the longer flying of the two of them and now Silver can match him. This time I need Silver’s speed.” Oblivion explained.
The pair fell quiet as Sight Line saw the Witcher and cringed low as he went back to the pile of swords he was still working on. The Witcher said nothing as he slunk by. A flurry of wings caught this attention and his ears flicked back as Silver Landed a few feet away from him and he saluted the two stallions.
“Captain Armor.” He said as he looked at Shining. “Captain Shadow.”
“Oh, Gods.” Oblivion cursed quietly at the rank he had been given. “Why?” He said as he looked at Shining.
“You can best Princess Luna in a fight, you beat a monster that the rest of us can only see in nightmares, and you are one of the Elements of Harmony. It was mostly Princess Luna’s idea.” Shining admitted to him.
Oblivion put his head back in exasperation but remained silent as Sasa got to her paws and went to nuzzle the Pegasus. “I need your aid in the fight with the newest monster, Silver.” He stated to the Pegasus after a moment.
“At your command.” He replied and rubbed Sasa’s fur. “When?”
“Now,” Oblivion said and turned to leave the Captain behind. “Till next time Shining.”
“Good hunting, Witcher.” He called back.
Oblivion looked down as the land fell away under them. He was quiet as Silver pulled the single chariot through the air. At his side, Sasa eagerly looked over the sides and watched as the lands fell away.
“I have to admit I do enjoy flying like this.” Sasa said to him as she sat down.
“It does have its merits.” He agreed with her.
“Though you would rather it be your own wings doing the flying.” She teased.
“True enough. I grew to depend on them when I was returned to the Northern Realms. But for now, they will remain hidden.”
“For now. Eventually, somepony is going to put two and two together and get four instead of Unicorn.” She went on.
“Possibly. When that happens we will worry about it. For now, I will allow them to remain ignorant. We have a fight with a Harpy to worry about at this moment though.”
“That’s true. Just a normal Harpy?”
“Not sure. There are several kinds. It depends on what it is for how we act against it.” He replied to her. “Normally they live in groups of between three to ten or more. So one by itself is meant to be treated as a singularity. That changes its behavior.”
“Good point. How close are we landing to the village?”
“Not close. I am hoping we can avoid the debacle of the last few hunts and avoid the town. We will let them know when it’s gone but not before unless there is no choice. They have already been told to stay away from the areas it has been seen.”
“That’s lucky.” Sasa admitted and laid down at his side. “So I have to ask. Why Silver? Vantage is stronger, even in the daylight. Striker is just as fast and has more stamina versus Silver.”
“Silver is more even-tempered. It takes effort to rile him more than a grimace. Striker has stamina but he has a temper. Vantage is Thestral, which is not a problem, but he is also a bit more feisty than Silver. Things get under his skin faster than the Solar Guard.”
“Oh. So it’s a matter of temperament.”
“I need steady for this fight. He will be directly harrying the Harpy in the air to drive it down to me. I need steady, not fire.”
Sasa nodded in understanding as she listened to him. “I see. Now it makes more sense.”
Oblivion fell quiet as the chariot began to descend and Silver looked back to them.
“We will land two miles from the village on the edge of the mountain!” He called back and Oblivion nodded.
Oblivions hooves gripped the floor of the chariot as they landed on the thick grass. Oblivion jumped from the chariot and Sasa stayed close behind him. The Pegasus unhitched himself from the chariot and joined the black unicorn as he went over the map that they had been given by the complaining ponies. The map had been sent to Canterlot and then given to Oblivion when they left. They placed the chariot off to the side and out of sight as they began to make their way to the far side of the small town. As they moved Oblivion could see that places of the fields had been abandoned and left for the time being.
“There should be ponies working in these fields.” Silver said as they passed them.
“They would be if not for the Harpy,” Oblivion informed him.
“That’s a good point.” Silver admitted. “So what is a Harpy exactly?”
“A Harpy is an aerial monster. It walks on two legs but it does have the use of its two arms as well. It has large wings that can carry its body easily. It depends on which type of Harpy we are dealing with if you are also asking about behavior. Typically they live in large family groups.”
“I’m guessing we are dealing with a single monster?”
“You’re correct,” Oblivion affirmed for him. “It attacked a full-size pony recently and that tells me that it is a solitary Harpy versus a group of them. The group would have fallen on the pony from above and killed them in place. This one tried to haul them off.”
“Yikes.” Silver cringed as he stayed at Oblivion’s hip. “So how come only I’m here?”
“I need speed, stamina and an even temper for this hunt. Your job will be to drive it down to me in the ground.” Oblivion explained further.
“Oh. But still, why me?”
“You have the evenest temper of the group. You do not get upset or anger quickly or easily. I need your steady mind for the hunt.”
“I get it.”
“Striker is your equal it’s true. But he tends to let things get under his fur more than you. Vantage and Cross are also more than capable as well.”
“Cross is quieter than me though.”
“Quiet isn’t the problem. I will be yelling instructions to you and he cannot hear me easily.”
“Oh. That makes sense. Vantage is faster and stronger than I am. He is a bit quick to temper though.” Silver thought it over. “Okay, I get it.”
“Precisely. Vantage is the normal choice given most situations but you are a close second to him with Striker at your heels. Cross is good for maneuvers but he is not suited for spur of the moment plans.”
“Okay, so what are we doing? Or what are we looking for?”
“We are looking for anything that might give a clue about where the Harpy is or has been. If I can get a scent on it I can usually track it.” Oblivion replied as he began to look around the abandoned fields.
“Understood. So feathers or things like that?”
Oblivion nodded and the Pegasus went to conduct a search of his own and Sasa left his side to hunt for any clues on the Harpy’s movements or its type. Oblivion moved quickly through the grass and wheat as his eyes narrowed and he scanned for any signs of the creature. His eyes scanned the area as he moved through the area. A low yelp caught his attention and he looked back as Silver came up from the ground rubbing the top of his head and Sasa looked at him.
“What did he do?” Oblivion asked her.
“He wasn’t looking and ran into me.” She replied.
“I see.” Oblivion said nothing more as he went back to his own tasks.
Oblivion went back to his own search and the scent of blood caught his attention. He looked around and the scent led him to the right and he found an area of torn up dirt and some blood. ‘This is where it tried to take the pony.’ He thought to himself and went about mapping the attack in his mind. The attack had been a short one but it had covered some ground and he could see where the pony had fled after the fight with the Harpy. He backtracked and was able to see exactly where it had begun and a few drops of blood guided him toward the thick forest. The drops led him slowly forward and he could tell that the Harpy was struggling to navigate the woods. A sparkle off to his left caught his eyes and he looked up to see a small bit sized crystal in the grass.
”What in the world?” His claws picked up the small crystal and he rolled it in his claws.
“Chosen?” Sasa called out to him through their connection and his eyes returned to normal at her interruption.
“Yes?”
“Where are you?” She asked him.
“On my way back to you. Stay where you are.”
“No problem.”
He started back to them on three legs as he gripped the crystal in his hoof. His steps were silent as he walked and he emerged from the forest as Sasa and Silver met him at the forest edge. They stopped with him and he gave a quiet sigh as he showed them the small crystal that he had found.
“What does this have to do with anything?” Silver asked.
“Some monsters can use limited magic. In this case, its a Harpy that feeds on dreams and uses crystals to store them for later.” Oblivion informed him.
“You’re kidding?” Silver said to him and looked to his face and back to the crystal. “You’re not kidding. What kind of Harpy does that?”
“Celaeno,” Oblivion replied as his magic gripped the crystal and he set his hoof back on the ground. “They are not easy to find. This type will use caves and mountains if they so choose to house their nests. This one is acting out of the ordinary due to being alone. I was not able to find any sign of it in the forest. We might have to try a different tracking tactic.”
“Different tactics?” Silver parroted and Oblivion nodded. “Like what?”
Oblivion was quiet as he considered his next move. His eyes widened slightly as an idea struck him. “We might need Luna.”
“Princess Luna?” Silver looked shocked at the black unicorn’s admittance. “She rules the moon.”
“That’s true she does. But she also rules the realm of dreams. She has the power to find ponies based on their dreams. My thought is that if she can isolate the dreams of the ponies in the town, then she can track them.”
“Oh that’s very clever Chosen.” Sasa praised.
“Really? That’s…That’s actually really cool.” Silver said to them a smile growing on his muzzle.
“Who do you think watches over you as you sleep? Luna keeps you safe from nightmares and other dangers that the night can bring.”
“Wow.” Silver’s eyes were wide as he considered what he had been told. “I’ll have to thank her for it. I know I had a few nightmares after the Nekker attack.”
Oblivion’s horn lit as he penned a letter to the Princess of the Night. “Hopefully she can come quickly. Otherwise, we may be camping for a day or two.” Oblivions horn flared as the letter was sent to the Alicorn.
“Do you think she will come out here to help?” Silver asked as the flames died out.
“It is up to her. It is a request for her time and it is up to her if she wishes to come to the field. Either way, it will take time to find the Harpy.”
“How do they take their dreams?”
“I am not sure how it works. All I know is that they store them in the crystals and feed on them as needed. They bind the dreams directly to the crystals. They take nightmares and good dreams from ponies and feed on them at a later date.”
“Interesting.” Sasa said to him as she sat down at his side. “So it is done by a form of magic?”
“Yes. They are also smarter than most Harpy’s and have over time developed a small form of intelligence.” Oblivion replied to her aloud.
Silver leaned against a nearby tree and waited for a reply from the Princess of the Night. They began to walk back to the chariot as Oblivions magic flared and a letter on dark blue stationery appeared. His magic gripped the scroll and it unrolled. His eyes scanned the paper and it rolled back up in his magic and a flash of azure flame and it was gone.
“She will join us this evening after raising the moon.” He said to the Pegasus.
“Wow. That’s kind of amazing. I’ve never heard of any time that Princess Celestia left Canterlot for a request like this.” Silver admitted with a shrug of his shoulders.
“Each pony is different and Luna may wish to help out more than her sister in the field. Celestia may delegate more than her younger sister.” Oblivion replied. “We can wait for her at the edge of the wood.”
Oblivions medallion shook slightly on its chain and he looked up as Luna made her way toward them. He had given her their exact location in the letter he had sent earlier. Her chariot came to the ground by theirs and the Thestral’s remained where they were as she left them. The pale blue mare joined them and appeared nervous at the sight of the bowing Silver. Sasa walked up to her and nuzzled her gently. She walked up to Oblivion and gave him a gentle hug and watched as Silver got to his hooves and regarded her.
“What doth thee need from me, Oblivion Shadow?” She asked of him.
“We are looking for a Celaeno Harpy. A variety of Harpy that feeds on dreams. My thought is for you to try to track the dreams themselves. They store them in crystals similar to this one.” He informed her and held out the crystal he had found earlier.
The pale mare took the crystal from him and turned it over in her hooves. Her eyes narrowed slightly as she stared at the piece of crystal. “We have never heard of a creature sealing dreams within the crystal. Are thou certain of this ability?” She finally asked.
“I have hunted them before and they have been well documented. They store the dreams in the crystal for later use. Many do not have an issue with them due to them removing nightmares and dreams alike. My thought is for you to use the ponies in the nearby town as a starting point and perhaps be able to track the Harpy by using the dreams against it.” He replied.
“We have never used dreams as a means of finding ponies before. There has never been a need. But if thee are certain it could be used to that effect then we will attempt it.” She said back to him. “What is thou’s plan for after we find the monster?”
“Silver will harry the Harpy from the air and drive it to the ground so that I can get to it. I could use magic to drag it from the sky but I enjoy the challenge and I am loathed to use it.” He said to her as he could see the question in her eyes.
She nodded in understanding and looked to Silver who was waiting in silence for them to finish speaking. Sasa sat at his side and remained quiet as well. The stallion was quiet as he considered how to proceed now that Luna had joined them.
“It will probably be easiest to begin our tracking in the area of the last attack. This way.” He led the small group back to where the last attack had taken place and allowed Luna to look at the scene and get herself situated.
The Alicorn was quiet as she closed her eyes and Oblivions' eyes widened slightly as the light around her changed and he could see what looked like tendrils of her magic coming to her at her command. They joined her horn and she looked to be focusing on a single pony instead of the group. She gasped and her magic faded and she looked to him, her expression uncertain.
“We are not finding any active dreams. Could this being have already taken them?” She asked him.
“I am not sure how long it takes them to harvest a dream. But instead of using the dream itself, perhaps use the pony as a means of finding the dreams.” He said to her.
She nodded and he watched as she tried again. He could see that her spirit was a mix of nervousness and fear and he could tell that she was very uncertain now that she was out in the field with him. He hoped that she would calm as time went on and she got used to the fact that she was out in the field. She released her magic once more and looked at him, her face a mix of regret and uncertainty.
”We are sorry to be unable to help.” She said to him.
Oblivion was quiet for several seconds before he spoke to her. “You’re overthinking it, Luna. Try to calm yourself and focus. You allowing your nerves to get the better of you. I have every confidence in your ability to track a dream.”
She looked to him as he spoke and nodded in reply. “Thou art right. A moment.”
He watched as she breathed deeply for several seconds and began again. Oblivion watched as the tendrils of magic came to her once more and she began to push the tendrils out farther and her head came up and a smile crossed her muzzle as her magic intensified and a single tendril lanced away from her and into the forest.
“We have found it.” She shouted and began to lope away from them.
Oblivion and the others caught up to her and joined her as she tracked forward. The Black Unicorn was silent as his eyes narrowed to detect any changes to the terrain. He would be able to warn the charging mare should anything change. At his hips, Silver and Sasa ran as close to his body as they dared and stayed with him as he and Luna leaped a fallen tree. They plunged to a halt at Oblivions command as his ears flicked. At his side Luna still onto the signal tendril of magic that she had been tracking. He heard the screech as the Harpy came after them from above. He pushed Luna to her knees and Silver dove for the ground with Sasa.
“Silver! Take to the air and fake injury. An injured pony would make for a good meal. Draw it out of the forest to where we were before.” He ordered as the orange Pegasus took to the air as commanded.
The orange Pegasus vanished into the trees as the others wheeled around and charged back out of the forest and into the moonlight. Luna stayed at his side as he scanned the skies. Sasa burst from the edge of the forest as Silver came into view, his flight erratic. The Harpy was above him and she dove for him and he dropped out of the sky a few feet to avoid her talons.
“Get above her and drive her down!” Oblivion yelled to him and the pony acted as commanded.
Luna gasped as the Silver got above the Harpy and it screeched at the fact that it had lost the high ground and dodged as he dove at it. Oblivion watched as Silver gigged in the air and struck out with his hooves at the monster's head. He managed to kick one of its wings and it lost a few feet in altitude. It spun and went after the swift-winged pony with its own talons and Oblivion growled from his place on the ground. His horn lit but a thought stopped him a moment later.
“Luna.”
The Alicorn looked to him for a moment as understanding came over her face. Her wings spread and she took to the air and joined Silver in the air above them.
“You can do this Luna!” Sasa cheered as she roared from the ground.
“Drive her down!” Oblivion called as his own magic summoned one of the blades from the band on his leg.
The blade spun in his magic as the Harpy was being driven by the two flying ponies. Lunas hoof boots crashed against the monster's shoulders from above and Silver rammed the monster's chest with his shoulder and kicked away a moment later to avoid the claws. Together they began to drive her down to the waiting Unicorn.
“Way to go Princess!” Silver praised her as he kicked the monster's wing.
Luna startled and the monster took advantage of her hesitance and charged her in the air.
“FOCUS!” Oblivion roared and the mare kicked viciously in reply to the charge. “Drive her to the ground!”
Luna turned and kicked the Harpy in the chest and it wavered in the air as Silver crashed into it once more. His shoulder collided with the Harpy’s back, his wings beat as he pulled back and bucked his hind legs into the space between the Harpy’s wings and knocked her to the ground. Luna dove down and landed violently on one of the Harpy’s wings. Oblivion heard the bones snap in the appendage as he charged into the battle. She laid her weight on the same broken wing and Silver came to rest on the other wing. The Harpy managed to knock the mare off her wing and looked to the charging stallion. Oblivions sword swung and it cut through the Harpy’s broken wing and the severed wing fell to the ground.
Sasa charged in as he backed up to read his next assault and the cat bit deep into the remaining wing and pulled at it to hamper its ability to keep standing upright. ”Chosen!”
Oblivion paused and his magic swung the blade as it carved into the monster's chest and he pulled back as the Harpy swung its claws at him and he leaped back and used his magic to throw the weapon through the Harpy’s vulnerable chest. The monster screamed as the blade cut into its body and fell to the ground between them. The black unicorn looked at the others and found Silver to be standing off to the side panting as Luna breathed slowly to calm herself.
“Well done.” Oblivion praised them all as he pulled the weapon from the monster's body and used it to sever the head completely. He nudged the head off to the side and looked back to the other ponies.
“We are sorry,” Luna said to him once she calmed.
“For what?” He replied.
“We nearly let it escape.”
“That was my fault. I didn’t mean to distract you, Princess Luna.” Silver said to her and hung his head in apology.
“Twas not you.” She assured him. “We have not been treated as another pony by anypony other than our sister and Oblivion. We were simply shocked.” She admitted.
“You did fine, Luna,” Oblivion assured her.
“Thou had to remind us to focus on our goal.” She replied.
“Perhaps but it would not be the first time I have had to yell at my team and it will not be the last. You simply lost focus for a moment, nothing more than that.” He replied to her.
“We were still nervous about going into battle once more. We were concerned about it and it got in the way of our actions. Thou’s quick acceptance of us was welcome but still a surprise.”
“You still did well for your first time out since your return,” Oblivion assured her.
“I didn’t mean to upset you if I did. I was just trying to encourage you to keep going.” Silver replied. “I guess I didn’t think about it at the time.”
The Alicorn looked at the Pegasus and a small smile tugged at her muzzle. “We thank thee for the praise. It is a welcome thing to hear since our return.”
Oblivions horn lit as he looked at the remains in between them. His magic covered the body and the azure flame began to burn through the body. He looked up as Luna smiled and he could see that her spirit was once more shining brightly within her and she seemed to have recovered well from the fight and the shock that came with it.
“When was the last fight you were in that was like that?” Silver asked her, having fallen into a casual way of speaking to her easily due to Oblivion's normal speech with her.
She chuckled. “It has been many years since we were in a fight. We must admit that it was refreshing to be out of the castle and back among our subjects. We had been nervous about going back into the world that had changed so much since our banishment.”
“You will be fine.” Silver told her as Oblivion finished burning the corpse. “You came out here today to help save your ponies. You could have stayed in the castle and sent somepony else, but instead, you came out and helped. I think you’re doing fine.”
“He is right Luna. You are doing as well as to be expected. Nopony expects you to be perfect and for you to already be able to move forward like it never happened.” Oblivion said to her. “As I told you before, your story never ended, just one chapter of it.” The mare smiled and nodded to him as he spoke to her. “Let none tell you who you are and what you stand for. You stand for your ponies and you stand for them always. Do not forget your oath and duty to them.”
“Thou speaks true. We once failed in that oath and we will not let that happen again.” She assured him.
“I don’t doubt it, Luna,” Oblivion said to her.
“She will be fine.” Sasa said to him and he gave her a slight nod in agreement.
“And now we go back to Canterlot and scare your sister once more with a head.” He said to her and the mare's eyes went wide as a smile went over her mouth.
“The look on her face! Will be perfect.” She replied and he gave her the sack that now held the head of the harpy. “Shall we?” She pranced ahead of them and Silver laughed as he fell in behind her with Oblivion and Sasa bringing up the rear.