//------------------------------//
// 16 - Trinitarian 
// Story: Horse Of The Rising Sun 
// by TCC56 
//------------------------------//

It was good to have spring back. The perpetual near-autumn of the valley around the House of the Rising Sun had felt wrong the whole time they had been there - not to mention that Tempest had spent most of her life in the warm southern seas, making the chill feel even more off. But now that she was away from both, the slightly damp warmth of a more moderate late spring was refreshingly comforting. 

Comforting, too, was the castle gardens of Canterlot. Despite this only being her second time in them, memories of the first three weeks earlier had already solidified them as a safe place. The company helped, as well. 

Tempest bowed her head respectfully. "My Princess. Prioress." 

Princess Celestia smiled softly. "Be at ease, Commander. We were just coming looking for you. Will you walk with us?"

"To beyond the ends of Equestria." Tempest fell in on Celestia's left, just as Reliquary Heart was on her right. 

Celestia rolled her eyes. "And do we have to have another talk about being informal, Miss Berrytwist?"

On the far side of the Solar Princess, Tempest could hear a playful giggle. She bit her lip. "No, m'am. Message received. ...Again." 

"Good." Celestia nudged the Prioress with her wing. "And please don't be too amused. Tempest has done a great many things given her difficult path through life. While I may give her a little bit of a hard time, she has long since earned respect." 

"Oh! Respect and more," Reliquary confirmed with a nod. "I think much the same about her - enough of my ponies owe her their lives that I'd never really do something to hurt her."

They walked leisurely through the statue garden, passing by the empty plinth that once had held Discord. A little claw-drawn sign hung on it declaring OUT TO LUNCH: BACK IN ∞. The remainder of the plinths still held their occupants - works of fine art from across centuries, sculpted by the greatest artists in Equestria. Celestia barely noticed them as they walked past, long inured to the beauty.

"No, I suspect you would not." Celestia turned her head towards Tempest. "This past week has been rather full of that news, in fact. As the task of dealing with the fallout from Cozy Glow to has been left to Twilight and her friends, I've been taking personal interest in the adventure Starswirl and yourself had. It's been very enlightening."

Tempest swallowed, unsure of how to read that. "Enlightening?"

The Solar Princess nodded. "Mmhmm. The story of the House itself is fascinating - and I've already contacted Miss Yearling about it - but what I asked most about was your own role. Those I saw all spoke highly of your actions during the crisis, as well as your demeanor before. Some..." A little more of a smile cracked across her lips. "Minor issues with temper aside, you did Equestria proud."

Tempest bowed her head again. "You once again flatter and spoil me."

A click of the tongue, and Celestia gave Tempest a light shove with her wing. "I give you your due, Tempest. Your refusal to accept your heroism is almost as bad as that of the Elements. And the Pillars, now that I think of it, were quite bad about it for some time." She shook her head. "But to my point: I have spent the last few days learning quite a lot about this most unexpected situation. It really is fascinating what happened to your ancestors, Prioress." 

The mare demurely looked away. "Please, your Highness. Reliquary is fine. And prioress is perhaps not so accurate anymore."

From the other side of the massive alicorn, Tempest raised her eyebrows and her voice. "You've handed over the reins?"

Reliquary nodded. "The time is right. Script's been ready for a while, and when better to have a fresh start? With Bit at his side and Scribble at his back, the House should be just fine."

"And it will be," added the Princess. "I've already tasked an emergency weather team to the area to start work on the region's snow. It's going to take time to melt it all without causing a flood, but the manager in charge of the team is confident that the valley should be clear by mid-summer and we can begin construction of a railway branch through the area."

They turned, following the path of statues towards the start of the hedge maze. "Until then I've dispatched a contingent from the Royal Engineers to help with rebuilding the damaged parts of the town, as well as a group of earth pony agriculturalists to bolster the food supply." Celestia paused briefly, considering her words. "I still expect to send several supply convoys to help them over the coming months, but in time things will calm again." 

Reliquary nodded, face bright despite the hardships that the Princess' words implied. "And the valley will be well cared for in the future, I'm sure. Even with everything else that's happened, I've already had a few business ponies approach Script or I to ask about the situation. An entirely new town full of ponies has gotten attention."

"It has." The Princess turned them again, directing their journey towards a familiar seeming dead-end along the garden path. "The mountains themselves have garnered interest as well - the slopes of Balius and Xanthos have been nearly untouched by hoof or claw. And we are fortunate enough to already have newly hired a representative familiar with the area to coordinate the mining surveys." Celestia's eyes glittered with mischief. "Your Abyssinian friend was hilarious, by the way. The snow disappearing confused him enough, then when I arrived at his doorstep..." Un-Princessy giggles broke out from the alicorn. "He thought I was there to arrest him! Instead I made him unexpectedly rich."

Tempest's eyes rolled at the Princess' filly-like cheer. As they approached the hidden arch at the end of the path, she lit her horn and reached out. Sparks flew as she grit her teeth, electric blue magic grabbing hold of the ivy. Both sizzled - but the ivy lifted slightly. The others both waited patiently until Tempest finally gave up with a gasp of exhaustion and released her telekinetic grip. 

Then Reliquary easily lifted the ivy aside while Celestia extinguished the small fires that the sparks had started - both without words or judgement. 

Inside the hidden nook was a bit different than the last time - Starswirl was once more present, but this time his easel and paints were gone. Instead he was putting the last touches on a quiet lunch of cucumber sandwiches and tea. At the trio's appearance, the old sage gave a respectful bow. "Princess. Prioress. Commander."

General pleasantries took a moment - the most notable being Reliquary giving Starswirl a little peck on the cheek, much to his embarrassment and Celestia's amusement - before they all sat down to lunch. Princess Celestia was quick to resume the prior conversation, however, waiting only for Starswirl to fill her cup. "So as I was saying: by autumn, the valley and its inhabitants should be fully recovered and brought into Equestria as a whole. Between the untapped resources and a fresh population of hearty ponies, I suspect that there will be quite a boom." 

"To say nothing of the scholars who will be traveling there," Starswirl noted. "I've taken the liberty of giving some notes on the situation to one of Canterlot University's historians. She was packing before I was halfway through telling her the story." He chuckled before taking another bite of his sandwich. "Once word filters out, that old library will be clogged with knowledge-seekers."

Laughing merrily, Reliquary shook her head. "Which will drive poor Script mad because not a one of them will reshelve their books properly."

They all got a smile out of that - and Tempest eased into one of the questions on her mind. "So Reliquary. If you're letting Script take leadership of the House, what are you going to do?"

For a moment there was a hesitation - a glance between her and Starswirl. He gave a nod to her, small enough to not jostle his bells. Reliquary Heart relaxed a little and gave her response. "At least for a little while, I'm going to stay here in Canterlot as the House's representative at court. Script needs to focus on rebuilding, so my being here can help coordinate the aid and the scholars and the miners. Once that's taken care of, however?" She reached out, putting her hoof on Starswirl's. "I've been given quite the offer to get a taste of being an adventurer. Starswirl wants to do a bit more research to prepare, but he has a place in mind for us to go." 

In spite of the urge to make a face at the idea of Starswirl The Really Ancient dating, Tempest still managed a smile. "I'm happy for you both. Really. And I hope that whatever adventure you're going to go on that you find the experience you're looking for, Reliquary."

Across the table, Princess Celestia pursed her lips and held back smug laughter. 

Starswirl leaned forward - he didn't bother to try and not be smug. "Actually, Commander, I think you may be interested in joining us."

Tempest didn't hold back from making a face this time, sticking out her tongue in (mostly) mock disgust. "Eugh. Okay, look. I'm happy for you two but I am very not interested. After everything that's happened I'll admit you're a pretty decent traveling companion, Starswirl, but there are so many ways that you're not my type the Princess doesn't have enough time to hear me say it all." 

Celestia joined them in not holding back, breaking out into loud, outrageous laughter. 

Both Starswirl and Reliquary Heart blushed, though for different reasons - his was far more irate than hers. But even with an edge of frustration in his voice, Starswirl tried to continue. "That's not even slightly what I meant, Miss Shadow, and you know it." 

Lighting his horn, he lifted a book up to the table - an ages-old book, bound in simple brown and with the title Studies In Non-Unicorn Magic embossed on the cover. "This was one of the books we found in the House's library. It was done by an old colleague of mine, Golden Rays. He was one of the unicorns who worked beside myself to raise and lower the sun - and he was one of those who paid the price. Like you, Miss Shadow, he lost his magic almost entirely due to an injury that lost him much of his horn. And in turn, he dedicated his life in a search to find a way to repair the damage." Tapping his hoof on the book, Starswirl pulled attention to it. "His search took him beyond Equestria's borders. And while he never found the final answer, he did provide some key clues for our own search."

Now Tempest was leaning forward, locked on the sorcerer with rapt attention and eager ears. 

"Once we returned to Canterlot, I was able to access a thousand years' extra knowledge and fill in many of the gaps that Golden Rays had in his research." Starswirl flipped open the book, leafing through it. "He felt that the solution lay with other races and tribes that used magic through horns and horn-like body parts. From the kirin to changelings to the semi-mythical gift-giving reindeer, Equestria has gained quite a lot of knowledge in that area." A few more pages - and then Starswirl closed the book again. "And between his work and this age's greater knowledge, I believe I've found something that should be very, very interesting to you."

Tempest shifted further forward, coming to the edge of her seat. 

A playful smirk danced across Starswirl's lips and his eyes glittered with smug satisfaction. "For example, Miss Shadow. Did you know that every year, the deer shed and regrow their antlers?"






Horse Of The Rising Sun

Stay Tuned Until Next Time

Starswirl the Bearded, Reliquary Heart and Tempest Shadow Will Return In:

A Bridge Over Troubled Waters*