The Everfree forest, a thick forest that even the bravest of explorers shied away from, with carnivorous monsters and poisonous plants: it was the very definition of dangerous. The six companions stood at its edge, the path into the forest just before them. Deep within the veil created by the dense canopy, sounds of the beasts within creating a symphony of nature, the occasional manticore roar in the distance. They had all heard the rumors about this place: about how the weather controlled itself and the wildlife beyond feral.
Even Valor, with the cutie mark of courage, was hesitant to enter. Lissfokulaan walked closer to the edge and inhaled. “RAAN MIR TAH!” Suddenly all the animal calls within the forest stopped, but it was not the same silence as the mountain, this was more natural. The blue dragon turned to look at the others. “They will not harm us, at least for now. I suggest we make haste before the effect of the Thu’um wears off.”
“What did that do?” Valor asked as they started into the forest.
“That particular one calms the beasts of the wild, for a time. Once their calls start to pick up again, I will need to perform the Thu’um once more.”
“That’s handy.” Ci’oa commented shakily. Even though the animals would not harm them, the forest still gave him the creeps. Changelings evolved in the desert, forests weren’t something they were familiar with. Occasionally he would jump at a sound he thought he heard.
“What other things can your shouts do dude?” Hang Ten asked from the back of the group.
Lissfokulaan chuckled. “I can use them to aid me in many ways; be it offensive, defensive, or to support my allies.”
“Is the thoom limited to dragons? Or can anypony use them?” Guiding Light asked, failing to pronounce the draconic word.
“It would take many, many years of study and near constant meditation for a non-dragon to use them effectively.” Lissfokulaan stated matter-of-factly. “It would also help if you could pronounce the words.” He added as a joke.
Guiding Light’s face reddened, clearly embarrassed. The group continued down the lonely dirt path in silence, with the exception of Lissfokulaan shouting every now and then to keep the dangerous wild animals at bay. The calm of the forest was natural and almost inviting, if it weren’t for Ci’oa’s paranoia, the scenery would have been quite peaceful. Eventually they came to a very old foot bridge, the loosely hanging boards gently blowing in the wind. Immediately after the bridge stood, the main gate (or what was left of it) to the castle ruins.
“I don’t think this is safe to cross anymore comrades.” Iron Curtain said after testing the rotting bridge with a hoof.
Without warning, Lissfokulaan picked up Guiding Light and Iron Curtain, and flew across with ease. After he put them down, he went back for Hang Ten; the buffalo was much heavier than the two ponies, and therefore, a much harder trip given the dragon was only an adolescent. “You could have warned us!!” Guiding Light exclaimed.
Before Lissfokulaan could reply, Ci’oa called back from the other side. “Are you going to carry us too?”
“Yeah.” Valor agreed. “I don’t think we can make that.”
“You two have wings, use them.” The dragon called back.
Ci’oa and Valor mumbled something to themselves, unfurled their wings, and took flight.
Once they landed on the other side, they avoided eye contact with the rest of the group. “You two are so lazy…” Guiding Light said slightly annoyed. After she turned around to keep the pace going, Valor smirked and opened his mouth to speak. “Don’t say it.” Guiding Light commanded before the green pegasus could say one of his trademark witty comments.
The main room was massive and years of neglect were taking its toll. The ceiling to the main room had fallen in many years ago, every stained glass pane was shattered, and vines grew on the decorative pillars that stood at even intervals along the walls. It was a window into the past; the bits that survived showed what the culture of Ancient Equestria was like. Large stone debris littered the floor, most likely pieces of the ceiling that long since collapsed. At the center of the large room stood the statue that once held the ceremonial spheres that represented the Elements of Harmony, the spheres were destroyed by Nightmare Moon during her return a few years ago. The group slowly walked up to the statue, looking around in awe of the scenery and respect for an era long past. Vines grew in the plates that held the spheres, their absence allowing plants to grow where they once rested. Valor slowly flew up to each plate and carefully removed the vines out of respect.
Once they were clear of vines, Valor spoke very quietly. “Alright, let’s split up into groups of two and look for something that might lead us to The Chamber of Equilibrium. Celestia said she had knowledge of it hidden from her so the stairs are going to be hard to find.”
“Keep an eye out for a triad,” Guiding Light added “it’s the Equestrian symbol of balance. It’s bound to lead us to the chamber.”
Everyone nodded and wordlessly paired up to start their search. Valor and Guiding Light went back outside to check what was left of the gardens, Iron Curtain and Hang Ten went up a staircase to the right to explore the upper floors, and Ci’oa and Lissfokulaan went down a hallway to the left to search the lower levels.
***
“This place is huge.” Ci’oa said in awe as he and the dragon left the kitchen ruins. “I wonder why Celestia abandoned it.”
“Grief.” Lissfokulaan said sadly. “After her foster father died and her sister went mad a week later, she couldn’t handle the constant reminders around her.”
Ci’oa stopped dead in his tracks, speechless.
“My father told me about how traumatized Celestia was, crying herself to sleep for weeks after banishing her sister so soon after her father’s death. That was when the Royal Guard decided that it was time to relocate the capital, if Celestia stayed here any longer, depression would have taken its toll.” A single tear rolled down his scaly cheek. “Even now she still combats it; my father and I say a prayer for her each night to aid Celestia in her mental struggle. With Majora’s return, her battle against herself will be that much harder.”
Ci’oa didn’t know what to think. What Lissfokulaan said left an emotion inside the changeling he had rarely felt; sadness. Celestia had done an amazing job at hiding her inner struggle, changelings could sense emotions easily, Ci’oa didn’t feel even the smallest amount of depression within the Sun Princess. “I had no idea…”
“Let us not dwell on the past, it only brings sadness here. Tell me; how does changeling magic work?” said Lissfokulaan trying to change the subject to a much more pleasant one.
Welcoming the new topic, Ci’oa’s face brightened at the chance to enlighten someone about the magic of his race. “It’s actually very similar to unicorn magic, only it favors illusion based spells over anything else and tends to be quite theatric.”
“Interesting. Do changelings have the same endurance as unicorns?”
“Kind of.” Ci’oa replied honestly. “You see, our magical strength is determined by the amount of positive emotions around us, even more so when it’s directed at us. The more positive emotions for us to *ahem* ‘feed on,’ the stronger our magic is.”
Lissfokulaan nodded. “What about your shape shifting ability?”
“That is not reliant on our magic in the slightest.” The changeling chuckled. “It is an evolutionary trait, developed to aid us in recharging our magic.”
The two continued to discuss magic as they walked around the lower levels of the ruins, happy to have something to distract them from the strong negative connection attached to the castle’s history.
***
The original plants that inhabited the royal garden of the castle had long since died, leaving the wild plants of the forest to take their place. Valor and Guiding Light followed the worn path that had once been decorated with lovely flowers, but was now home to wild ones. They did not speak. The trail, while dead, still had a story to tell; one of pain, one of loneliness. Dead branches of ancient hedges hugged the old path, what a sight this place must have been all those years ago. The path wended around the edge of the castle, with a few rotted sitting areas here and there. Seeing the garden’s sad tale brought a tear to Guiding Light’s eyes, she understood the story quite clearly. Valor placed his wing over Guiding, giving silent comfort. He understood the garden as well, and truly felt Celestia’s pain in the dead grove.
Once they reached the back of the castle, the two ponies walked into a large opening. It was a large circular memorial site, at its center stood a large granite pillar holding a golden triad; the resting place of Golden Tranquility. The monument stood tall over the slowly disappearing cobblestone floor around it, proudly displaying the symbol of balance. The triad’s golden shine had dulled over the years, moss and grime covered its surface. Guiding Light sat down at the base of the monument and cried; the dragon that had once been Celestia’s father, sat forgotten for over a thousand years. Valor flew up and rubbed some the muck off the lower right pyramid, the gold underneath shined brightly in the orange light of the setting sun.
“We should find the others. Do you want some time alone Guiding?” Valor said after she had cried for about a minute.
“No,” she sniffed, shakily standing back up “I’ll be fine.”
Valor gave her a supporting hug once she was back on her hooves. “Just tell me if you need some time alone, I’ll understand.”
Guiding Light smiled and hugged Valor tightly. “I think some time together would be much more helpful, this place is far too depressing to sit alone to think.”
The green pegasus chuckled. “I couldn’t agree more.”
When he loosened his grip, Guiding Light hugged him tighter. “Don’t let go, not yet.” The tone of her voice indicated another session of sobbing; Valor continued the embrace without hesitation. Once his grip had been safely re-established, Guiding continued her sympathetic sobbing into Valor’s shoulder.
After about five minutes, she picked her head up off her green pillow and sniffed away a few remaining tears. Valor smiled warmly at her when she made eye contact. “Feeling better now?” he asked warmly.
Instead of a verbal reply, Guiding Light gave Valor a kiss. “Now I am.”
***
Hang Ten and Iron Curtain had searched about every tower that was still standing for clues to the chamber’s whereabouts. “Nothing in this room either dude.” The buffalo said disappointedly. “You think the entrance is in one of the towers that fell?”
“Net, they would not leave clues to such an important chamber in a place that could fall at any moment.” Iron said none too pleased with their luck.
Hang Ten snorted, “Then why are we up here checking towers dude? Shouldn’t we be in the keep?”
“You never know comrade, its best to make sure you have covered all possibilities.”
“Whatever bro lets head to the keep, this place gives me the creeps.”
Iron nodded and they silently made their way to the main room they had come into to make sure they hadn’t missed anything. If it wasn’t for the depressing atmosphere, Hang Ten would have been in a much more laid back mood.
As they walked down a hallway, something flashed in the corner of Iron’s eye out a window. He looked to see what it was, and there it was: the monument to Golden Tranquility. Part of the one of the pyramids had been cleaned off, reflecting the setting sun into the window. “Hey, I think I found it!” Iron Curtain exclaimed. “It’s outside in the gardens.”
“Great, let’s get going!”