//------------------------------// // Chapter 15: Well Enough Alone // Story: Halo: Ponies and Clouded Pasts // by Blazer //------------------------------// Initially, all Twilight could see, hear and feel was nothing, nor could she see her own body. It was as if someone had splashed black paint onto the very surface of her eyes. However, she could still feel the trembling of her legs, reminding her that she was still connected to her body. And that she was conscious. She continued to spin blindly, trying to spot any possible light sources in the unending dark. Was she dead? Didn’t most ponies who had come back from the dead tell of ‘seeing a light’? Twilight bit her lip unconsciously. If she wasn’t dead, then what was she? She shook her head. No, the better question was where was she? Suddenly, she could hear a distant rumbling. Rather, she felt it. However, she couldn’t even discern the source, as everything around her remained pitch-black. She twisted her body to the left and right, disorienting her groggy mind. A slight tugging sensation could be felt on her tail. She turned quickly, wincing a little when the one responsible would not let go, pulling her strands taut. She tried to yell, but no words could be heard. She could feel her vocal chords beating at the wall of her throat, but no sound would come out. The rumbling noise grew closer, and the tugging sensation on her tail became more urgent. Now, an eerie red light could be seen in the distance. Initially, Twilight dismissed it as an illusion. However, it soon became apparent that it wasn’t one, especially when it flashed briefly when the rumble intensified. Now thoroughly panicked, Twilight cried out again, although she couldn’t hear her own voice. Instead, someone else’s voice was heard. “Do you want to be caught by him?! Come with me, dammit!” Caught…? Him? Who’s ‘him’? The rumbling grew closer, and the red light became brighter. “That’s it! You don’t have a say in this anymore!” the voice growled. Twilight’s limbs jerked forward as she started flying backwards. Panicking, Twilight wriggled furiously, struggling to pull her tail free. Unfortunately, it was no use. The red light was close enough for Twilight to see her forelegs now, and the rumbling had escalated into a deafening roar. She arched her neck in an attempt to see her kidnapper, but her tail and flank were still lost in the dark. However, there was another light in the distance, this one an icy blue. Her rear legs suddenly burned, as if they had burst into flame. After a few moments, she realized that it was the cold that was causing it. Her short, quick breaths were now visible, fading away into the piercing red glare, which was threatening to overtake the two, and the roar was ringing painfully in her ears, as if her eardrums were going to rip themselves from her ear canals. Again, Twilight tried to face whoever—or whatever—was dragging her towards the blue sphere at a maddening pace. She briefly wondered if Rainbow Dash could fly this quickly backwards, as she was doing now. The biting cold was practically unbearable; despite her rear legs and posterior being almost completely numb, she could feel the steady, burning pain of her frozen limbs, as if they were smoldering logs in a dying campfire. She struggled feebly as the cold sapped her strength. Obviously, to no avail. She bit her lip, her tears freezing fast to her cheeks. Is this the end…? Am I going to die? “NO! You’re not going to die!” Twilight’s head jerked up as she collided with the blue sphere. She cried out soundlessly as her body was submerged in subzero temperatures, painfully numbing everything all at once. She shut her eyes, her wild mane flapping in the bitterly cold winds the last thing she saw. And then everything was very still. -- “Why do I have to tell him?!” “Because you ‘looked into his mem’ries’, or whatever! That’s why!” “Girls… please…” “Well, you seem so eager to do it! And he lived on your farm, too! So why don’t you do it?!” “What about that day you took him to the spa? Ah thought you talked with him that entire day!” “Girls… He’s just inside…” “Well, you made him breakfast!” “What does that hafta do with—” “GIRLS!” Both ponies looked to the yellow Pegasus, who shied away from their sudden attention. “…Um… Please don’t get too loud… He’s just inside.” The three mares peered a few feet down the hall at a door marked “527”, quickly turning their attention back inwards. “…So, what’re we gonna do? Miss ‘Prissypants’ here don’t wanna do the talkin’.” “Speaking of, look who’s talking.” “Ladies!” A male voice exclaimed. The two equines faced a tired-looking colt wearing a long white jacket, which read, “Dr. Greenbone”. He eyed them both with a withering glare. “I simply loathe to break into your… disruptive conversation.” Both Rarity and Applejack suddenly became very interested in their hooves. “Is this about that fellow in room 527?” They all nodded. He sighed. “Well, if that’s the case, then why don’t I break the ice for you? I need to give him his diagnosis, anyways.” Again, they nodded in unison. “Well, then. This way.” The doctor blazed a path towards the door, rapping twice on it before entering. The girls followed quickly, filing in behind the doctor. The soldier had been left on two hospital beds pressed together, the footrests lowered so that he could rest his legs on the other bed comfortably, although it was a tight fit. He was sitting upright at the moment, looking rather peculiar amidst the clean, white bedsheets still wearing his battle-scarred olive armor. A square of the “under-armor” had been cut away at his stomach, revealing a neat line of stitches in the middle of his abdomen. His helmet sat on an end table next to him, facing the window on the far side of the room. Upon noticing his helmet, their eyes were immediately drawn to the soldier’s haggard face. John’s eyes didn’t even move, nor display any reaction to their entrance. Rather, they had dulled the last time they had seen them. They were set on the toes of his boots, a crestfallen expression adorning his facial features. In his left hand, a peculiar metal object lay in his palm, its inner ring glowing with a soft, almost imperceptible blue light. In his right hand lay one of the broken fragments of Twilight’s Element, the golden tiara glinting gently in the afternoon sun streaming through the window. “Hello, John! My name is Dr. Greenbone. I was the one who operated on you when you arrived here, although you were unconscious, so this is the first time we’ve officially met!” the doctor announced cheerily; it was practically the opposite of the annoyed, exhausted-looking colt that the three had seen outside earlier. The human remained eerily silent. “Anyways, I’m sure you’re wondering just what we did to keep you alive, so I’ll just bring you up to speed.” The doctor removed a clipboard from within his jacket, glancing over it. “Initially, we were practically stumped as to what we were supposed to do, but with a little deductive reasoning, we were able to see that there was a ruptured artery or something causing all of the internal bleeding. Although the placement of the organs was unfamiliar to me, it didn’t take much reasoning to figure out just what had happened, judging by the location of the wound. “You were ‘shot’ in your abdominal aorta, which caused a rapid loss of blood from your circulatory system. This was what drove you into unconsciousness. It may also have caused severe numbness and loss of feeling in your extremities. So, of course, we had to find the artery and repair the damage. It was a rather delicate operation, but with a little help of some unicorn magic, as well as with the help of... a most unusual mare... We were able to patch you up.” John’s right hand shifted, and the tiara fragment slid across its inclined surface. Other than that, he was still. Now a bit flustered, the doctor continued, “I don’t know what kept you alive on your way here; most ponies would bleed out in minutes. And according to your friends here,” he nodded to the three mares standing behind him, “It had taken them at least ten minutes to drag you all the way over here. You’re very lucky to be alive.” Silence reigned again. “Well, then, if you need anything, just press the blue button on the side of your bed, and a nurse will be here to attend to your needs. You’ll be served your regular three meals a day, along with a couple of pain medications. Just take them with a glass of water, and you should be fine. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I believe these ladies would like to have a word with you.” The doctor paused at the door, gave a polite nod, and departed. Another pregnant pause dominated the small living space. It had been at least several minutes until Rarity broke the silence with a soft cough. “Ahem… Er… John? How are you feeling?” To her surprise, his hands balled into fists, and his eyes suddenly hardened, “Why were you in the basement with Twilight?” Rarity bit her lip nervously, “Um… Well, you see—!” “I already know she was using a ‘memory acquisition spell’,” he growled, “and you were there with her. So is there something you’d like to tell me?” Rarity’s eyes flicked downward. “…I’m sorry, John,” “Don’t call me that.” Her eyes widened momentarily, centering on the soldier momentarily before dropping to the floor again. “I-I’m sorry, Mr. Chief. I tried to tell Twilight otherwise, but she wouldn’t have any of it. She was… always a bit too curious for her own good.” The human scoffed. “Unbelievable. I respected her wish, and she just completely ignores mine.” Applejack raised her brow. “What was this wish, John?” “I said don’t call me that!” he snapped. The orange farmpony practically wilted, falling to silence. “All I wanted her to do was to respect my privacy. To not sift through my memories,” the soldier’s voice softened almost imperceptibly. “I didn’t want her to end up traumatized like I am.” John’s hands clenched into fists, the rubber pads on his gloves squeaking quietly in protest. “But that doesn’t matter now… She’s gone, along with Cortana.” “Yeah. We kinda noticed,” Applejack sighed. A long pause followed before Rarity finally plucked up the willpower to speak again. “I’m sure Princess Celestia is going to do—!” “Nothing. She’s done nothing,” John stated simply. “She doesn’t even know her precious student is missing.” All of the mares were quite surprised; none of them had known that the human had this level of knowledge. Her apprenticeship with the princess wasn’t something that she’d just tell to anypony. “And to think she went on and on about how much Twilight meant to her,” the soldier mused. “She means more to me than you shall ever know, John,” a familiar voice whispered. Everypony but John gasped in surprise as a tall, white Alicorn strode through the doorway, a hint of anger burning in her lavender eyes. The three mares bowed instinctively. “Princess Celestia!” they cried in unison. “I did sense a disturbance in the magical ley-lines, but I did not know what it was,” the Princess continued, practically ignoring the three equines. “I am not all-knowing, nor am I capable of discerning and classifying every single magical disturbance that occurs! By the time I even had a clue of what was going on, it was already too late.” The soldier slowly turned, his eyes narrowed. “This had better not be another one of your secrets. Another one of your problems that you decided to bury.” “As a matter of fact, John, it is.” John shakily rose from his bed, swinging his legs over the side. He slowly stood, pocketing the trinkets in his palms in one of the empty pouches that were strapped on his waist. His eyes were bright with fury, his hands shaking from rage. “Don’t. Call me that.,” he said slowly, his voice trembling. “Now is not the time for arguing, as much as I’d like to,” the Princess stated with obvious difficulty. “For now, we need to focus our efforts on—” “Stop brushing me off!” John’s fist disappeared into the wall, sending chunks of drywall skittering across the tiled floor. Fluttershy squealed in fright, fleeing the room. The soldier strode up to the Princess, jabbing a finger accusingly. “I'm tired of playing your game, Princess. From the start, I was tired of it. I had never sworn any sort of loyalty oath to you, as the first and last oath I ever swore was to the United Nations Space Core. The only reason I decided to follow your rules was because of Twilight. She earned my trust by expressing her concern for me. She assured me that you were one of the wisest beings she knew; that you worked hard to keep everyone safe. “Of course, we all saw how well you took care of her. And now you expect me to obey you, after you failed to protect your prized pupil. You expect me to play along, be nice and be quiet? Well, let me tell you this, you half-rate goddess,” he leaned in close, nearly butting foreheads with her, “you don’t have any authority over me. You never did. All you had was my trust and respect, both of which have disappeared along with your overeager student.” He remained staring defiantly at the Princess’s face for another few seconds before turning to face the window. He plucked the helmet off of the end table, setting it on his head. He turned to face the goddess, his angry expression now hidden by an emotionless faceplate. “Now move, before one of us does something we’ll both regret.” The Princess remained unmoved by John’s tirade. “Where do you think you’re going?” “To the crash site. I’m going to get Cortana back, and then I’ll repair a dropship and leave this godforsaken planet,” he growled. “After the Archmage wiped the floor with you? Do you really think that’s the best idea?” The human was caught off-guard. “…Archmage?” A victorious grin tugged at the corner of the Princess’s mouth. “Yes, Archmage. He is certainly not somepony to be trifled with, especially now that he has not one, but two minds at his disposal.” The soldier crossed his arms. “And yet you simply decide to dawdle while an extremely dangerous magical entity is on the loose?” “He’s not an entity; he was once a pony.” John clenched and unclenched his hands. “As you said before, Princess, now is not the time to argue; say what you’re going to say, or clear out.” The Princess acknowledged this by moving on to her explanation; “The Archmage was… my original student. As you know, I’ve lived thousands of years. When I…” she trailed off, gazing at John expectantly. He narrowed his eyes, but he slowly nodded his head, “It was after all that. When my sister and I were left to help lead the ponies towards rebuilding their society, he was the first unicorn to approach us. I can’t really remember his face that well, as he was among many other close friends in the royal court… But he was definitely the most eager to learn, and to use his knowledge to bring convenience and comfort to the lives of our species. “It wasn’t long until he asked if I could provide lessons to help him further his abilities, and I simply couldn’t refuse. He had been invaluable in helping us bond with the ponies, and it was the least I could do to repay him. I soon made him the first Royal Archmage of Canterlot. I even granted him the gift of immortality, after he had proven himself quite worthy of the gift through earning his position. It was… unbelievably foolish of me. I was young and without cares; we had just vanquished the only being that had ever threatened our existence. It didn’t seem like a terrible idea at the time, but it wouldn’t be long before I would come to regret that decision. “When his wife fell ill of an incurable plague that was ravaging our kingdom, he came to me for help. He asked me of how to heal her, to grant her immortality like I had done to him a few years before. When I told him that I could not share such a secret, he grew angry with me. After a heated exchange of insults and faults, he just… stopped showing up to our regular lesson sessions. He practically disappeared for two weeks. I respected his privacy and decided not to intrude by sending a guard to his home. I believed that he just needed some time to cool off; I could not give him the secret. Even so, granting his wife immortality would do nothing for her. It could give her the capacity to live forever, but only if she recovered from the illness that ailed her. And… I lacked the courage to tell him that it was hopeless, regardless of whether or not she received longevity. When she passed… he decided to make one last appearance in our royal court.” The Princess fell silent, her gaze growing serious and hardened. She took a slow breath before continuing, “He was furious at my decision to have held back, that I had the chance to help his wife, and I had just left her to die. When I retorted that immortality could not save her, and that it only prevented the body from aging, he doubted my words, claiming that I was only trying to brush off the guilt, burying it under honeyed lies. He would not listen to me, and every attempt to help him see my reasoning was blocked. It wasn’t long before we were back at where we were two weeks ago, unable to reconcile with the other. It was here where I made my second mistake. “In my anger, I exclaimed that the plague was incurable, and that there was nothing that anypony, not even I, could do. He retaliated by swearing an oath that he would find a way, even if he had to surpass me. And to do that… He would break the most important rule of magic. You see, to create something from nothing is forbidden in our world. For example, you cannot use magic to create material items, such as gold or weapons. But his goal was much more ambitious. He wished to create life from nothing. He would bring back his wife, and return to overthrow the kingdom that we both had struggled to pull back on its feet. “This was enough to set my sister towards stopping him, but I had already taught the Archmage almost everything I knew of offensive magic, which nearly led to the demise of Luna. I was left no choice but to use celestial magic to shear his consciousness clean of his body, storing it in a sound crystal.” “Wait… You just tore his soul out of him and threw it in a container?” John asked, suddenly unnerved. “Well… Yes.” “How?” “It is forbidden for me to speak of it.” “It just doesn’t seem possible.” “It’s classified. I believe you know what that means.” For several seconds, the Princess and John stared into each other's blank expressions. Rarity nearly jumped out of her skin when the soldier started to laugh. “You’re right. I do,” John admitted after his laugh had tapered off. The Princess raised an eyebrow expectantly before the soldier only nodded. Her small smile quickly faded as she returned to her explanation. “As I was saying, we stored his consciousness in a sound crystal, and were forced to bury him in the Mild West desert. Once we had successfully bound the crystal to a binding totem—” “Er.. Totem?” Applejack inquired. “A magical artifact. Its common use was for trapping and storing magical energy for more taxing unicorn spells; like a magical crutch, if you will,” Rarity explained. “If you buried it in the desert to the west of here, you believe that the shipwreck landed directly on the buried totem?” John asked, ignoring them completely. “Correct. Although, I do not blame you,” the Princess continued. “Besides… This was something I had to deal with eventually.” The Spartan shook his head. “It doesn’t matter; Cortana did mention a shipwreck before she was silenced. That’s got to be where this guy has settled down.” After a long pause, John ventured another question. “Actually… I’ve been meaning to ask you this. Is there any sort of… mineral that’s relatively unbreakable? Other than diamond? And that glows?” The Princess’s eyebrow rose, “I am not familiar with what you speak of. I haven’t really encountered any other glowing minerals other than magical crystals.” “That might be it then…” “What? What did you see?” “The Archmage appeared in the shape of a… close friend of mine. When he attacked me, I found that he was virtually invincible; a solid punch to the jaw didn’t even faze him. And when it took Twilight, the same mineral had accumulated on her horn in large crystals,” the soldier explained quickly, “At least, that was what I had seen.” “I cannot explain this… I don’t believe I’ve ever seen or heard of anything like this,” The Princess admitted, shaking her head, "I can say, however, that I taught him how to animate and manipulate inanimate, inorganic objects. It's like telekinesis, but extremely complicated. It's very possible that he has used this ability to create a replica of your friend. If he has control over her mind, or at least latched on to her consciousness with his own, it would not be hard for him to create a replica out of crystal. As for this mineral... I have no idea of what it could be," The Princess's jaw set. “However, I realize that the Archmage has taken Twilight for no apparent reason, other than to hurt me.” “Perhaps…,” Fluttershy whispered. She squeaked in dismay when all eyes in the room were riveted on her. She lowered her head, hiding behind her pink mane. “I-I’m sorry… I’ll… I’ll just leave now…” “Consarnit, Fluttershy! Just say it! We’re not mad atcha!” Applejack exclaimed hurriedly. Unfortunately, this only made it worse for the cream-yellow Pegasus, who darted for the door. “Fluttershy,” John began, startling everypony, “we’re going to need every clue we can get. Your opinion matters. Just tell us. We’re all ears.” The Pegasus nervously peered out from under her mane before setting her jaw, “O-okay. Well, I was thinking… Maybe he could have figured out a way using magic to save his wife… And that it involves taking Cortana and Twilight.” “So you mean that this mage fella could be usin’ them as some sorta magical ingredient to bring back his dead marefriend?!” Applejack asked, not noticing her voice’s overbearing volume. “This also means we’ll have less time, counting on the fact that he’s not using them as hostages, but rather as a piece of his ‘project’,” the Princess sighed. “Then we need to get to the crash site!” Applejack cried. “Oh, I’m sorry, darling! We should have listened to you in the first place!” Rarity apologized. “You can make it up to him later; we can’t waste any more time!” Applejack exclaimed. “We can take my carriage there; it’s waiting outside the hospital.” The Princess nodded towards the open doorway. “Meet us there; we’ll be right behind you three.” “Right! C’mon, everypony! We’ve gotta grab Pinkie and Rainbow before we can head off!” The three mares made a swift exit, leaving the Spartan and the Alicorn alone. John moved as if to push past the Princess, but she stopped him with an outstretched wing. “Wait. I must ask you something first,” “Spit it out. You heard what she said,” the soldier began. “John, how could you have just brushed everything off so easily?” “What?” “You were just... so quick to change your demeanor. You were going to bite my head off a few seconds ago.” The Princess shifted uncomfortably. “What changed?” “Our interests happen to coincide. That’s it.” “So… you've forgiven Twilight and Rarity? John paused before answering simply, “I’m trying to.” With this, he gently moved her wing out of his path, ducking out of the low doorway and making his way towards the stairs in an awkward crouch, struggling to keep his head from smashing into the ceiling. Eventually, the Sun Goddess left the hallway, not noticing a familiar pair of golden eyes peering into the room. There was a flash of cyan, and the twin golden orbs vanished.