//------------------------------// // III - Umbral Discussions // Story: The Eternal Problem // by GMBlackjack //------------------------------// Luster Dawn stood at the gates of the Crystal Empire; two massive amethyst pillars placed at the very edge of the Crystal Heart’s influence. The barrier that kept the frozen wastes out intersected the gates perfectly—bisecting the world. The ground up to the very center of the boundary was green and grassy while the other side had a foot of snow piled up against the barrier. Twilight smiled warmly, placing a hoof on Luster Dawn’s back. “Don’t worry. It’s cold, but you have your coat and Spike, you’ll be fine. It’s not that far to Yakyakistan these days.” “I… I know.” “Why do we have the airship dock outside the barrier?” Flurry asked. “That has to be dangerous.” “Someone hasn’t been paying attention in their defense classes,” Twilight tutted. Flurry shrugged with her wings. “Yeah, guilty as charged. So…?” Luster cleared her throat. “Transmitting from the warm interior to the cold exterior is chaotic and prone to cause airship malfunctions, particularly in magical components.” “Very good, Luster,” Twilight smirked. “I really wish I was going with you… but a Princess’ duties always call.” “Unless you’re me,” Flurry pointed out. Luster furrowed her brow. “Technically speaking, you haven’t been officially coronated ye—” “Shussssssh only you care about legalistic technicalities.” “Oh, so I don’t have to remove the magic lock?” Twilight asked, smirking. “I’m free to ignore that little legal agreement?” “Auntie…” Twilight giggled. With a flash of her magic, the ring around Flurry’s horn fell to the ground below. “There you go.” “YES!” Flurry declared, jumping into the air and using her horn to play what she called a ‘funky beat’ to the group. “Let’s get this trip rolling!” “Now now, keep your magic under control. Spike will be watching you and he will give me a report on how you use your powers.” “Challenge accepted: abuse powers as much as possible without Spike knowing.” Spike facepalmed. “Twilight…” Twilight raised an eyebrow. “You said you could handle her.” Spike grumbled a bit before nodding in agreement. “Good! Shouldn’t be a problem.” “I’m going to die out there in the snow,” Luster said. “These two are going to be shouting at each other and then an ice raven is going to eat me and they won’t even notice.” “Oh, we’re not that bad,” Flurry said, pulling Luster into an awkward hug. “We’ll notice after we’re done arguing and then we’ll feel really guilty.” “Gee, thanks, makes me feel so much better.” Flurry winked. “Anyway, what are we waiting for? That airship isn’t going to fly itself!” Luster ran to hug Twilight. “See you when I get back?” “I have no intention of going anywhere. Though…” Twilight’s expression darkened. “There’s been an… unusual development. I don’t want you to worry, but I also can’t tell you. I’m sorry.” “It’s okay. At least you’re telling me you’re not telling me!” “Come on!” Flurry shouted from the other side of the barrier, hovering above the snow. “Let’s mooooove! We’re—” she started playing some ‘groovy’ tunes. “—off to see the world!” “I swear you’re going to become the Princess of Music,” Spike muttered. “Aww, thanks!” “Princess of Bad Music.” Flurry clocked him on the head with a hoof. “Hey!” “Not magic, can’t cry to Auntie for that.” She winked. Luster sighed. “I think I should go keep them from killing each other.” “I’m trusting all of you to watch each other,” Twilight said. “And Luster?” “Yeah?” “Listen to Spike.” “...I think Flurry needs to hear that more than I do…” “She won’t listen, but you will. Please, Spike’s my number one assistant. No matter what you may think, he does know what he’s doing.” “...Okay.” Luster hugged her mentor one last time before jumping across the barrier. Twilight waved until they left her sight—which wasn’t long, given the constant blizzard out there. With a sigh, her hoof and smile dropped. Standing still for a moment to absorb what had just happened, she let her mind wander. No, nothing’s going to happen to them. Spike’s with them. Stop being such a nanny. There’s another mare who needs your help right now. Twilight surrounded herself in magic and teleported across the Crystal Empire, right into the palace hospital. There were a lot of ponies in the room—Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, Rarity, Starlight, and Zecora, all huddled around a weak orange mare. Scootaloo had seen better days. Aside from the old scars, she sported singe marks, a few locations of minor frostbite, and half of her mane was a different length from the rest as if it had been cut right off. “H-hey Twilight…” Scootaloo smirked. “You’ve gotten big.” “So have you,” Twilight said with a smile. “...We looked for you.” “Yeah, I was pretty stupid, getting lost like that. Tried to follow the pegasi…” she coughed. “None of them would carry me up.” “None of them!?” Rainbow shouted. “I am gonna find every single one who lived in Ponyville and give them a—” “Rainbow, not the time,” Applejack said, tapping the mare’s side gently. “R-right.” Scootaloo closed her eyes. “With the snow and the windigos and the chaos, I somehow got really, really lost. Snow everywhere… the only reason I survived was I found an old cave with some abandoned filly guide camping gear. Really lucky... but the world outside was so different, I had no idea where anything was.” She sighed. “I could survive the snow, make a shelter, but I didn’t know which way was north. Couldn’t see the sun.” “So what did you do?” Twilight asked. “I… wandered. A lot.” Scootaloo frowned. “No idea where I was going. I think I spent years in the Everfree Forest moving around aimlessly. Going in circles and circles and circles... Until I found the Treehouse.” “You… you found the Treehouse!?” Rarity gasped. “But… we tried…” Scootaloo frowned. “I always thought it was weird nobody found me while I stayed there.” “We lost the Treehouse in the freezing of the forest,” Twilight said, closing her eyes. “The Everfree became a magic maze where directions didn’t matter and ice spirits sought our death. I am very surprised you…” “Hey, Scootaloo’s got fire!” Rainbow smiled proudly. “She’ll get through anything.” Scootaloo coughed but managed to roll her eyes. “Yeah, sure, anything. ...I stayed there for a long, long time, waiting for something to change. Waiting for somepony to arrive. And when somepony did… I…” She winced. “I don’t know who she was, surrounded in so many coats and magic things, and she never told me her name. She just… showed up one day and started yelling at the Treehouse.” “What did she say?” Twilight asked. “I… I don’t remember,” Scootaloo said, looking away. “Something about the Elements. Which are gone.” Twilight nodded. “Yes. They are.” “I don’t think the Treehouse listened to her, since she started talking to me next. She quickly decided I didn’t know anything, but… apparently she thought I would be useful.” Scootaloo looked down at her bedsheets, a tear dropping down. “She put a chain around my neck and… dragged me around for… I… I don’t even know.” “I… I’m so sorry…” Sweetie said, hoof to her mouth. “It was… hard,” Scootaloo admitted. “She fed me and she made sure I wasn't uncomfortable, but she rarely said anything to me and… I had to do things for her. Usually, touch magic artifacts or…” She shivered. “Stare at a windigo while she disassembled it bit by bit…” There was silence in the room. “Is she responsible? For your heartbeat most terrible?” Zecora asked. Scootaloo nodded. “She… put this thing in me. Never told me why. Something about the windigos. I… I ran away after that. We’d traveled enough that I’d figured out where everything was, and where you were, so I ran here.” She stared into the distance. “I don’t remember anything from the last few days of my journey.” Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom put their hooves around Scootaloo. Apple Bloom smiled. “...You’re safe now. You don’t have to go anywhere. You’re with us.” “Yeah… yeah…” Scootaloo let out a relieved sigh. “It’s finally over…” “It is. Don’t worry about anything else.” Twilight traced her forehead with a careful hoof. “...I’ll leave you to catch up. Rarity, Starlight, with me if you don’t mind?” She left the hospital room, her two closest unicorn friends in tow. “This is… distressing,” Rarity observed, tossing her gray-streaked mane back. “A mystery mare and the Treehouse, not to mention that thing in place of Scootaloo’s heart.” Starlight shuddered. “She’s been infused with something akin to windigo magic.” “We need to investigate this, clearly,” Rarity added. “Although I’m not certain how. The mystery mare could be anywhere, and all our efforts to pierce the Everfree have been pointless, even back when Gallus’ group was together.” “I’m aware…” Twilight frowned. “Starlight?” “I have the feeling I’m not going to like this…” “It’s time for you to return to the Canterlot Archives.” Starlight winced. “I was right…” “We can no longer afford to ignore the tools at our disposal. Gather a team. I will have to discuss this with the other Princesses, so do not leave without final confirmation, but I want you ready.” “Of course! I’ll find someone to replace me a—” “I’ll teach your class while you’re gone,” Twilight offered. “...You sure?” Twilight smirked. “Yes. I will. And I will be punctual.” Starlight flushed. “Just keep to the schedule better when you get back, hmm?” “S-sure…” ~~~ Tirek looked at the crystal. “Other worlds?” “YES, TIREK, SUCH A—” Chrysalis hissed. “I am not taking any advice from an Umbrum Crystal!” She pointed an accusatory hoof at the ruby construct. “I saw what you did when you ran free in the old Crystal Empire, endless destructive nonsense. You would seek to use us to free yourselves, adding your darkness to the windigos’ cold! I will have nothing to do with you and your dark realm!” “Ah, yes, the origin of Sombra…” Tirek smirked, tapping the crystal. “Absolutely brilliant sleeper agent, by the way. Did his job perfectly. Rather intelligent, too.” “DO NOT PATRONIZE US.” “Why not?” Chrysalis laughed. “You can’t come out of that crystal on your own or you would have done so eons ago. You can stay stuck in your little shadow of reality.” “It might be better in there than out here, anyway,” Tirek pointed out. “Darkness or endless biting cold? Which is worse?” “Oooh, coin flip.” “WE HAVE MUCH WE CAN OFFER YOU.” “What, POWER?” Chrysalis laughed, holding up Grogar’s bell. “If we wanted raw power we would absorb the myriad of magical essences we have stored in this thing. Please.” “YOU WISH TO END THE WINDIGOS. WE KNOW OF A POWER THAT CAN DO THAT.” “So do we, she’s stuck on the moon,” Tirek muttered. “We’re not stupid.” “...WE DO NOT KNOW WHAT YOU ARE REFERRING TO. WE REFER TO THE GREATEST BASTION OF DARKNESS, THE PRIDE OF OUR KIND, THE ESSENCE OF DARKNESS.” “The Pony of Shadows is stuck in another timeless universe,” Chrysalis muttered. “Can’t really get to it.” “YOU COULD IF YOU HAD A CONNECTION TO IT.” “Stygian is dead of old age,” Tirek pointed out. “No other host still lives.” “STYGIAN’S LINE IS NOT BARREN. THERE IS AT LEAST ONE WHO REMAINS THAT CARRIES HIS LEGACY. IF YOU FIND HIM, YOU CAN USE HIM TO RELEASE THE DARKNESS!” “Which would be better than releasing you why?” Chrysalis asked. “THE DARKNESS THAT MAKES UP THE PONY OF SHADOWS HAS NO WILL OF ITS OWN. IT IS MERELY A SOURCE OF UNTOLD POWER THAT TAPS INTO THE HOST TO FULFILL THEIR DESIRES. PONIES AND THEIR DESIRES FOR HARMONY AND FRIENDSHIP ALWAYS SEE IT AS CORRUPTING… BUT YOUR HEARTS SHOW SOMETHING ELSE. SOMETHING THAT CAN BE ONE WITH THE DARKNESS.” Chrysalis rolled her eyes. “And it’d just be another power-up.” She rung the bell again. “Ding ding, we’ve got plenty of those.” “IT IS THE MAGIC OF THE SHADOW THAT CAN DEFEAT THE WINDIGOS. IT CAN INFECT ANYTHING. EVEN THAT WHICH ALREADY IS DARK OR COLD. AND THE DARKNESS WILL SERVE THE HIGHEST CONCENTRATION THEREOF. NOT ONLY COULD YOU DEFEAT THE WINDIGOS, YOU COULD ALSO BEND THEM TO YOUR WILL. SHAPE THE WORLD AS YOU SEE FIT.” “What do you get out of this?” Tirek asked. “WE WILL TELL YOU OF THE LAST CONNECTION OF STYGIAN’S LINE IF YOU DESTROY THE CRYSTAL HEART.” “Not happening,” Tirek said. “Twilight and her friends are still together, and we saw what happened to Sombra without the Elements. We wait for them to grow old before trying anything.” “And that’d just let you out.” Chrysalis tapped the crystal mockingly. “Sorry, but we just don’t want an army of dark nightmares trouncing around our world! Terribly inconvenient.” “THEN YOU WILL NEVER KNOW OF THE LAST LINEAGE.” “Oh, I don’t know about that.” Tirek grinned, looking to Chrysalis. Chrysalis held up Grogar’s bell and shot a very particular sort of magic into Tirek, causing him to grow in size over ten times. He placed his hand in the crystal and grinned, pressing it between his thumb and index finger. “It will be little trouble to absorb all of your energy, Umbrum. Perhaps sever your connection from this world entirely…” “Maybe we should go in and thrash their entire realm!” Chrysalis cackled. “I hear Discord’s magic is excellent for tearing holes in unstable realities…” “YOU WOULD NOT DARE CROSS THE UMBRUM SO!” “What are you gonna do? Attack?” Chrysalis laughed. “You’re stuck in that little crystal! We’d have to come in… And you don’t want us to come in.” “Simply tell us what we want to know, and we won’t destroy everything you hold dear,” Tirek chuckled. “...IT WILL BE ENOUGH FOR YOU TO FREE THE SHADOW. THE LAST OF THE LINEAGE IS NAMED SHADOW LOCK, AND HE CURRENTLY RESIDES WITHIN THE CRYSTAL EMPIRE.” “Annoying, but helpful enough.” Chrysalis chuckled. “Good Umbrum, we’ll be sure to get your little friend out of his limbo. Don’t you worry a hair on your pretty little heads! Which don’t have hair.” She cackled. “Is there anything else you’d like to say?” Tirek asked. “WE HAVE SAID OUR PART AS MUCH AS YOU WILL LISTEN. WE ARE DONE HERE.” “Good.” Tirek lifted a hoof and crushed the crystal beneath it. “Now shut up.” Chrysalis clucked her tongue. “Your line could have been better. Perhaps…. ‘Then begone!’ or ‘speak no more!’ ‘Shut up’ is just so… bland.” Tirek grumbled as he returned the extra magic to the bell. “They likely have other ways to communicate with our world.” “And they haven’t been able to do anything with them for thousands of years.” Tirek waved a hand dismissively. “True…” “Anyway, Crystal Empire.” “Yes. It’s time to visit some old friends…” ~~~ A large, pink airship pushed through the cold, cold blizzard. It twisted through the winds, further and further north. Unbeknownst to them, they passed overhead a changeling and a centaur, both completely oblivious to each other. The airship itself arrived at the Yakyakistan port without issue, latching to a tall metal tower with a massive chain, anchoring it in the frigid rush. Instead of releasing a docking ramp of some sort, Flurry teleported them onto the platform without any issue. The princess, the student, and the dragon were all wearing full-body coats with goggles over their eyes. They were bundled so tightly it was impossible to see their wings, though the horns of the ponies were visible. Their scarves fluttered in the breeze as they looked down upon the Yak settlement. From up here, it was impossible to pick out any actual yaks, but they could make out the buildings. Primitive though they seemed, they were somehow able to withstand the brutal cold and endless snow of the Frozen North, even under the assault of Windigos. It was as if the yaks were immune to the evil spirits’ magic, somehow. Although the Windigos left Yakyakistan alone, for the most part, the ice monsters didn’t. They could see the carcass of a massive one on a nearby mountain, never melting, a constant reminder that they had fought for their survival and won by the legendary Yak Smash. That’s how the legend went, anyway. Luster was pretty sure no single yak was big enough to actually damage a creature of that size. She suspected magic was involved, though nobody was talking. “Right, we’re not here for long,” Spike said. “Just making a few visits before we move on.” “Wasn’t somebody supposed to be waiting for us?” Luster asked. “YONA IS WAITING!” a large female yak shouted, running to them across the platform. “YAK HAPPY TO SEE SPIKE AND PRINCESS!” “...I swear you’re louder every time I see you,” Flurry said, shaking her head. “What’s up?” “Clouds.” “...Yes.” “Yona have so much to show you, Yaks have been doing new things!” “Yaks? New things?” Spike let out a gasp of mock surprise. “What will they think of next?” “Come and see!”