//------------------------------//
// Resolution 
// Story: Turns 
// by Equimorto 
//------------------------------//

Silver bit his lower lip to stop a chuckle. "A giant cupcake? Really?" 

Sassy nodded. "It was a really tasty one too." She paused for a moment. "I may have eaten some of what was left on the ground." 

The other raised an eyebrow.  

"Only a little!" She turned another corner. "How do your legs not hurt when you've got just two of them?"  

"Told you. Sturdy stuff." Silver counted his fingers again. The torch in his hand was still bright, and gave no signs of fading. Sassy had originally assumed it to be a simple wooden torch, but it was actually more akin to a lantern, with an ignition mechanism built in. It burned rope and some sort of oil, both of which the metallic handle was filled with.  

The mare slumped against a wall. "You're a nice pony, Silver. No. Not a pony." She brought a hoof to her head. "I never function too well after a sleepless night. One time I got orders mixed up at the Boutique and Princess Celestia almost ended up in a duck costume."  

"Hah! Now that would have been something worth putting on a window." Silver looked behind a corner. "Speaking of which. There may or may not be a commemorative incision about the time King Bronzeye accidentally gave a speech to the wall after he refused to admit his other eye had a problem that day, if you search deep enough inside the castle. Just don't tell dad I told you that."

"Oh dear." Despite her attempt at showing worry, Sassy couldn't help but giggle at the idea. "Was he alright?"  

"Yeah, it wasn't anything serious after a doctor looked at it. But he was a stubborn one. Refused to open the gates once because he thought the guards outside had blown the horn wrong."  

The mare sighed with a smile, leaning against the wall. After a moment, she said, "Where's Fluttershy gone to?"  

Silver stood straighter. "You're right, it has been a while since we last saw her. Please tell me we don't have to go looking for her a third time."  

As if on cue, the bat-pegasus reappeared from behind a corner.  

"There you are!" Sassy said. "Still not sure of how we'll fix you though."  

Fluttershy didn't seem to care about that. Instead, she waved her tail from side to side, and turned towards the direction she'd come from. She took a step forward, then looked back at the others.  

"I think she wants us to follow her," said Sassy.  

"Do you think..." Silver shook his head. "Well, nothing better to do either way."  

The two followed the bat-pony down twists and turns and corridors. Sometimes she went a little too far ahead, but then stopped to wait for them. They'd found she didn't need a torch to navigate the darkness around them.  

Finally, after one last turn and a flight of downward stairs, a long and narrow corridor appeared before them. And from the end of it came the unmistakable sound of water rhythmically crashing against stone, and the salty breeze that blew above the sea.

Sassy and Silver exchanged a look, then ran forward down the hallway. There at the end of it was a gate, a lever at its side, and the minotaur pulled down on it with his free hand. The slate of metal slid down, and they saw the sky for the first time in hours. The two stepped onto the balcony in front of them, while Fluttershy immediately took flight. A whisper of wonder escaped the unicorn's lips as she walked up to the edge of it.  

Sassy stared wide-eyed at the ocean before her, as the Sun dawned bright over the waves. The Labyrinth's exit was behind her, carved straight into the side of the promontory. Just as the prince had described it to her. Beside it was the elevator that would take them back to the city, but for the moment she was content with simply sitting with her hooves resting on the railroad, enjoying the view. The grey-green of the early morning gave way to burning orange, almost like a forest catching fire. Yeah, she could make a dress idea out of that.

"Well. Congratulations, Sassy." Silver placed a hand over her shoulder. "I guess that makes you an honorary potential Council member." He gave a laugh. "Mind kicking me out? I wouldn't mind getting some free time. It's hard to see the world when you're bound to a city."  

Sassy joined in his laughter, her eyelids heavy after her sleepless night. "Well, you'll get a chance to see it. A second diplomatic trip will be in order after this one, I'm sure you'll make a great ambassador when you come to Equestria."

"I'm not sure father will let me."

The unicorn turned towards him. "I will force you to come with us and start a war if that's what it takes for you to get to see Canterlot." She gave another hollowed but meaningful fragment of laugh. "Good luck getting through magic shields with your cannons!"

Silver replied with an equally tired, equally joyful sound. "I hope your shields are wide, Sassy. Because Canterlot sits on a mountain, and it wouldn't be the first one we tore down."

The two looked at each other in the eyes, and a moment later burst into roaring laughter anew.

Not too distant from them, Fluttershy landed back onto the balcony, folding her leathery wings. Then the first ray of sunlight hit her, and her body began to glow. The two had to shield their weary eyes, and when they could open them again they saw a particularly tired yellow pegasus standing there, clearly confused.

"How did I-" Fluttershy loudly yawned "-get here?"

Silver and Sassy exchanged a look. "Well, guess that takes care of that," the former said, while Fluttershy curled up and fell asleep immediately. They couldn't help but laugh again after that.  

A few moments went by in silence, punctuated only by the unicorn's sighs as she watched the ocean.  

Then shaking his head, the minotaur walked mostly straight to the elevator, and turned to address Sassy. "So, would-be councillor. Are you coming back in town or what?"





The click of a lock being opened echoed in the empty library, and Twilight stepped out. "Girls, you wouldn't believe the kind of books they have in here! There's three entire volumes about different shapes of gears and... Girls?"  

The Minotaur King stepped out behind her. "Must have gone to bed." Then he glanced at the window on the far end of the room. "Or breakfast, at this point."

Twilight had wandered a little further. "Hey, what's this?" She curved down, and picked up a metallic object from the ground, decorated with gems. "Weird," she said, turning it in her hooves. "It almost feels like..."