Only a day had passed since the family gathering had climaxed, and the castle felt almost completely empty when Magnus woke up. It was an unusual silence compared to the usual noise of children playing and running around the castle. At breakfast, he was the only one at the table due to Brilliant sleeping in. An old mare needed her rest, and Magnus did his utmost to ensure she would sleep in peace. Later on during the night, when he returned to Stargard Castle, Brilliant welcomed him back, inquired as to how his day had been, and had prepared a small meal for him and her. Still, the castle felt unnaturally quiet.
Magnus surmised it was because the entire castle had been filled with life for so many days, and he had simply grown used to it. Now that everypony had left, it felt as if the ancient halls could only whisper the echoes of past voices, laughter and life. Once upon a time the castle might have reverberated with those sounds of the living, but now it was only Brilliant living here. Luckily, the old mare wasn’t completely alone; she had plenty of family living in town and they came to visit almost every day.
Tonight, it was only Magnus and Brilliant in the castle.
They both had retired to the living room where they sat with a cup of tea and had woven a tapestry of meandering conversation. Now those threads had exhausted themselves and they both sat in silence. Brilliant had found her yarn and needles and had begun knitting to pass the time, the local newspaper levitating before her eyes.
Magnus had to admit, he was bored. He wasn’t much for small talk now that Brilliant had found herself something to do, and the silence that fell upon them felt simply awkward. Magnus felt he had to do something instead of just sitting there, sipping tea and staring into the fire. Problem was, he didn’t know what to do.
“Not feeling good, dear?” Brilliant asked, noticing his silence and the way he sat with his head resting on the back of his hand.
Magnus hummed. “A bit bored, that’s all.”
“Try reading,” Brilliant suggested. “After all, the shelves in the gallery are stocked with books.”
Magnus hummed again. Yes, the gallery. He’d looked through those shelves several times, but tonight he didn’t feel like reading. He wanted to walk, preferably outside.
He looked out through the window; fat water droplets splashed against the window panes. Going for a walk in the chilly fall rain didn’t sit well with him; not because it was raining, but because he didn’t have rain clothes. He’d be soaked in five minutes.
Still… he didn’t have to walk outside. “I think I’m gonna go explore the castle. I haven’t seen everything yet.” Magnus stood up and placed his teacup on the saucer. He hadn’t had much time to go exploring due to there always being something going on when there were so many ponies around.
“Oh, that’s a good idea. There’re so many nooks and crannies to explore, you never know when you find something. In fact,” Brilliant put away her knitting project and stood up, “I want to come with you. It’s been a while since the last time I just wandered around the castle.”
Magnus smiled. “I’ll be happy to have a guide. You know this place better than anyone.”
They wandered into the entry hall, the major intersection of the castle. Corridors led elsewhere and the stairs led up to the second, third, and fourth floor.
“You want to explore; you choose where we go,” Brilliant told him.
Humming in response, Magnus looked up the grand staircase. He had mostly stayed on the ground floor and second floor as well as staying a few days in the basement. The third and fourth floor he hadn’t seen yet, due to them simply not being in use.
“How about we work our way up? Floor by floor, until we reach the top of the castle?” He stared up at the balustrades high above that marked the different floors.
The old mare nodded. “That we can do. However, I think we should dress a bit better. The upper floors are locked off and can be a bit chilly.”
A few moments later, Magnus was dressed in his brand new jacket and Brilliant wore a thick wool shawl around her head and back. They first walked up the stairs–well, Magnus walked and Brilliant levitated herself up the stairs—and then began the climb towards the third floor.
The third floor was sealed off, locked by a large door. Brilliant easily pushed it open and stepped inside, where she conjured up a few magical orbs of light that illuminated their path. The ease in which she used every single spell still continued to amaze Magnus. As on the second floor, they stood in a wide corridor that went left and right, interspersed with doors on both sides. From what light the orbs produced, Magnus saw bare wooden walls and bits of stone where the wood panels had gone missing or had broken for some reason, and outlines of paintings that once added a bit of decor. Brass sconces also decorated the walls, but they had corroded and turned green. Even the floor was bare, only covered by worn down wood. In some places, the wood was completely worn away, revealing stone slabs underneath.
“This is the third floor. Long ago the family used this and the fourth floor as their bedrooms. Some members and their herds lived permanently here, having turned several rooms into apartments. The third and fourth floors haven’t been used in centuries,” Brilliant explained as she chose a direction and began walking. Dust hung heavy in the air, and the air itself was cold and damp.
“Do you know how many lived in this castle?” asked Magnus as he followed the elderly mare. At the first door they came to, Magnus got curious and opened it, peering inside. Through the dim light, he saw an empty room. There was absolutely nothing inside—no furniture or decorations of any kind, only a window and a narrow beam of moonlight that pierced through the heavy rain clouds outside.
“Oh, I guess something between ten and thirty ponies. Stargard Castle wasn’t the only castle our family owned. Some of them lived in other castles, and in the past, some of them lived in the old capital, Everfree City. In our heyday, we built and lived in fifteen castles all over Equestria, from Diamondstone Castle on Nickering Heights in Manehattan, to Horn Castle in the Unicorn Range. Now, Stargard Castle is the only one in the family’s possession.”
“What about the other castles? What happened to them?”
Brilliant walked on, continuing the trek towards the east end of the castle corridor. She spoke matter-of-factly, but sounded like she spoke of old memories. “When the family lost power and influence ages ago, we had to trade some of the land we owned to other wealthy families. That meant the castles as well. While some of the castles are now nothing but ruins—and some have been ravaged by time and the elements completely—the only two castles that are still standing is Horn Castle in the Unicorn Range mountains and Bluestone Castle, north of Manehattan along the coast. Horn Castle is owned by the Thunderstorm family, a family of pegasus nobles, and Bluestone Castle is owned and run by the Equestrian army and functions as a small garrison and training camp.”
“That’s sad, that history couldn’t be preserved, I mean. Is there nothing that could have been done to save the old castles?”
Brilliant shook her head. “Sadly, no. Some of the castles that were sold to other families fell to ruin as the families themselves also fell into poverty and obscurity. Luckily, Bluestone Castle is well preserved; the Equestrian army has kept a garrison there for over five hundred years.”
Reaching the end of the corridor, Brilliant pushed open the door. It creaked on rusty hinges and as soon as the door opened fully, a blast of cold air came from within. The room was huge, as big as the living room on the first floor, and its former use became immediately clear.
It was a bathroom, or rather, bathhouse. In the centre of the room stood a huge bathtub made of several white, square cut stones, set tightly together with mortar. Magnus looked inside, noting that its depth could have been maybe a meter at most, and there were steps leading up to and into the tub from all sides. The floor was covered in azure blue and flawless white tiles, and the walls and ceiling was covered in tiles of many shades of blue, from sky blue to deep, sea blue, forming patterns reminiscent of waves and a clear sky horizon.
“This was once the private bathroom of the Count and Countess of the castle and their immediate family. Guests were also allowed to use this bathroom, especially if they were of high rank and importance. I know for a fact that both Celestia and Princess Luna have used this room in the past,” Brilliant informed Magnus, falling into a role of tour guide and trivia master.
“Did they visit often?” Magnus had to ask. He didn’t know if the two sisters were the type that travelled a lot to visit, but as rulers of the kingdom, perhaps they did. Luna, he guessed, due to her connection to the bat ponies, might have been a frequent visitor in these parts.
“I don’t know, the castle records don't mention them visiting often, but I guess that they might have stopped here when traveling to and from the Crystal Empire, or when there was business with the bat ponies,” explained Brilliant.
Magnus hummed in reply. From what he remembered from maps he had seen in Canterlot, Hollow Shades was one of the last towns before the Crystal Empire, and might have been a good place to stop by for travellers.
“Let’s move on; we have much more to see.” Brilliant turned around and pulled the magical orbs of light with her, leaving the ancient bathhouse in darkness once more.
The other end of the house was pretty much the same; bedrooms and apartments. The fourth floor was just a bit different. Empty rooms, big and large, but some were filled with old and dusty furniture, damaged in some way or another, the smell of mould and mildew permeating the air. Some rooms even functioned as storerooms for ancient decorations, such as tapestry wrapped tightly together to prevent damage, and rows upon rows of paintings wrapped in burlap, and yet another room stored ancient instruments that once filled the castle with music. Clarsachs, harpsichords, brass instruments and stringed ones; the old family members seemed fond of music, or maybe it was only for special occasions. As far as Magnus could remember, ancient nobles on Earth weren’t especially—
‘And there I go again; comparing Earth and Equestria.’
Finally, they reached the attic, the unused final floor before the roof, and it was dark and empty. The air was cold and damp, and from somewhere in the darkness came the chittering sounds of bats. The room possessed a lofty ceiling, and pillars and huge arches going from wall to wall, obviously a vital part of the roof construction. The finely-shaped stones drew Magnus’ attention, and he walked away from the stairs leading up to the roof to take a closer look. Upon coming closer, he noticed that the stones were in fact fused together. What made it appear as if the arches and pillars were made of multiple stones was a small seam-like shape on the stones themselves.
“Interested in architecture, are you?” Brilliant Star asked him with an amused tone of voice, slowly following him around as the human laid a hand upon pillars and arches, staring at everything the magical light revealed to him.
“A bit.” Magnus stroked two stones seemingly fused together by some force. “I’ve been wondering now and then ever since I came here. Some of the rooms on the first and second floor are pretty big, but they have no supporting pillars. The same goes for the third and fourth floor, and since all the ceilings I’ve seen so far are mostly flat, the ceiling shouldn’t be able to support anything the way an arched ceiling should. The gallery is an example. These pillars are the first ones I’ve seen. And seeing as this castle is basically a rectangle in shape, except for the flying buttresses outside, I’m wondering how some of the rooms in this castle are even standing. All I know about ancient architecture—and it’s not much—tell me that some of the rooms below shouldn’t even exist.”
Brilliant walked forward, placing a hoof upon one of the massive arches that held the roof up. “I’m surprised you noticed. Most ponies do not see it. Let me ask you, do you know which of the pony tribes throughout history are the best builders?”
Scratching his chin, Magnus thought for a few moments. “Unicorns, I suppose. Magic can do wonders. I think that there might be some type of spell that can fuse stone together. I’d be surprised if there wasn’t.”
“You are right about the spell,” said Brilliant with a smile and a nod, “but historically speaking, the earth ponies were—and are still—the best builders, architects, and engineers amongst the tribes.”
Magnus was visibly surprised. “How? How can earth pony strength beat magic when it comes to building?”
Brilliant chuckled. “That’s a very unicorn point of view, and very old-fashioned. Even a few hundred years ago, what you just said would be frowned upon. But the fact that earth ponies do not have magic like you and I do is what made them the best builders.”
“I knew it; still being a bit racist,” Magnus muttered silently to himself, thinking back to comments he had made what felt like years ago.
Brilliant walked forward, under arches and beside pillars, touching each stone gently. Despite their old age, nary a crack was visible on the ancient stone. “While pegasi built their cities in the skies, away from us landlocked ponies, they had little use for strong fortifications, except for their sky forts near griffin territory. Unicorns in the old kingdom wished to display style, wealth, extravagance, magic, and power, which they felt reflected in their castles, forts, and houses. Earth ponies, however, relied on fertile earth and solid stone. They tilled the earth and shaped stone, dug deep foundations, mined for iron, and forged durable tools to aid them in their building. As a result, their castles and fortifications were extremely durable and well made, reflecting the earth ponies themselves.”
“Okay, but what does that have to do with this castle?” Magnus asked, wondering if Brilliant had gone off track during her explanation.
She turned around and pointed at the arch above her. “I suspect an earth pony master architect had a hoof in the construction of this castle—he or she might have been hired to build this castle. These massive arches are a classical display of ancient earth pony master craftsmanship. The arch was further strengthened by geomancy spells, geomancy being a type of magic that has to do with stone, such as shaping and even fusing two stones together to make one stone. That is how these arches and pillars were made and strengthened, a cooperative display between earth ponies and unicorns. Many years later, another fantastical display of castle construction was completed, one much greater than this castle. Canterlot Castle had all three tribes involved in its construction; an earth pony architect built it, unicorns enchanted it, and pegasi made it weatherproof,” Brilliant explained.
Magnus nodded, giving a low whistle that echoed. A fantastic piece of craftsmanship which combined the best of two tribes. Now it made sense, except for a few things.
“How about the flat ceilings downstairs? Are they also tricked out with magic too?”
“They do not support anything—the ceiling panels are only panels. The secret is behind the panels.” Brilliant grinned. “My father had some of the panels in one of the downstairs hallways changed when I was young. When the carpenters removed the ceiling panels, they discovered that the original ceiling was constructed as one continuous arch that supports the ceiling the entire width of the hallway, albeit at a lower angle than here. Have you not noticed the thickness between the ceiling on the first floor and the floor on the second floor is quite thick? The arches supporting the ceiling are all hidden behind panels painted and carved in order to look more elegant.”
“And the arches all over the castle in every room make sure that the weight pressing down from above is spread out and down! And when the weight reaches the outer walls, the buttresses spread the weight all the way down to the ground! The castle walls bear minimal weight!” Magnus finished, awestruck as he realised the ingenuity he was presented with. Stargard Castle was an engineering masterpiece! A phenomenal piece of work combining master masonry, master magic, and master architecture. And it all predated anything built by humans! The first building that he knew of that utilised arches, vaults, and flying buttresses was Notre Dame in Paris, and that cathedral was 800 years old. But here stood a castle, built in the pony equivalent of Gothic architecture, and predating anything similar built by humans by who knows how many centuries.
After hoisting his jaw back into place, he and Brilliant continued up onto the roof. Rain would have made their clothes wet in a matter of moments, but Brilliant knew how to handle a bit of water.
Her horn shimmered, and in the blink of an eye a half sphere of magic, a shield similar to the one Shining Armor could conjure, appeared over their heads, blocking rainwater from soaking them. Magnus tapped his knuckles on it, making the half-shield ring like a bell.
“I didn’t know you could do that with magic shields.”
“A beginner can’t. I, however, am far from a beginner,” Brilliant quipped with a sly grin.
“Well whatever, you gotta teach me the basics of that one. Handy spell to have.”
The roof was constructed in such a way that the centre of the roof was raised just a few degrees higher than the rest, meaning that rainwater would flow out towards the sides and into stone rain gutters and, from there, would be transported to stone gargoyles that leaned over and out away from the walls. On all sides, gargoyles depicting all manner of monsters and even sapient creatures vomited water away from the castle's walls. In the centre of the roof stood an undersized open tower, with a shingled roof above it. It was far too small to be a watchtower, as the roof of the keep was good enough.
In the distance, Magnus could make out the lights of Hollow Shades. Even farther away, lightning strikes and thunderbolts lit up the landscape and the mountains that surrounded the entire forest and region of Hollow Shades. In one way, even in darkness and rain, the forest kept its natural charm.
Magnus wanted nothing more than to pack his stuff and just vanish into the forest for a few days, just wandering, exploring, living off fishing and whatever nature could provide him with. He was far from a novice in the wilds. His grandfather had taught him various skills in order to live in the forest. In his youth, Joseph had been to many places and learned many tricks which he passed onto Magnus. Building shelter during summer and winter, where to forage for food, trapping, and many other wilderness survival skills had been passed on to Magnus, who had absorbed them eagerly.
This world, Equus, was different. Strange beasts, strange and unknown plants, some of which Magnus wasn’t sure he’d be able to recognize if they were edible or not, and not even which plants could be used for medicine, if it came to that. That was a situation he aimed to fix. Not now, not tomorrow, but in time.
Walking over to the parapet, Magnus knelt by them and looked over the walls. It would be a decent drop if he fell, but far less than in Canterlot. Below, the garden looked more like an untamed patch of ancient forest rather than a garden, except for that tiny green spot near the front door. He had heard from some of Brilliant’s family that the old mare liked to sit there in good weather and enjoy a cup of tea on warm summer nights. To be honest, he would have liked the same, except in the sun.
Brilliant inhaled deeply, looking from left to east. Nothing but forest, and in the distance, mountains. “From these walls, generations of my ancestors and your kin have kept watch,” she said proudly, exhaling and smiling. “Guardians of the county of Hollow Shades and beyond, willing defenders of Equestria in times of need, builders of castles, founders of villages and towns, explorers, merchants, diplomats, wizards and mages.”
Magnus hummed, filling his lungs with crisp evening air. “You sound nostalgic; did you grow up hearing that? Do you wish that the old fame and glory was still relevant today?”
Brilliant didn’t immediately respond, instead looking thoughtful. “I often heard my father talk of the olden days, and he heard it from his parents, and they from theirs. At one point, I guess someone wished for the old days to return; the fame, wealth, respect, and it rubbed off onto their children. My father worked toward that goal most of his adult life. He was a banker, you know, not quite wealthy but he could afford a few things. He sought connections, wealth, a way to restore some semblance of nobility to himself, his wives, me. When he was a child, this castle was in worse shape, but he spent a small fortune restoring parts of it when he got older. It is due to him that the castle is not a drafty ruin,” she said, sounding proud at her father’s work, rightfully so. “But the fame and glory, never.”
“Why not?”
Brilliant turned to Magnus. “Both are a slow-working poison,” she stated firmly. “Look at the nobles in Canterlot; they constantly play the game. Influence, wealth, fame, kissing up to each other and the Crowns, deathly afraid of losing even a little bit of influence. A wrong word, a sentence misspoken, even wearing the wrong clothes, and everything they’ve worked towards can break apart. That is a game I never want to play.”
“I… I’m afraid you lost me,” Magnus admitted, wondering what game Brilliant hinted at.
“The game,” Brilliant began with a sigh. “The constant game played by the nobles of Equestria. We Galaxy once played the game too, and we played it well for ages. The game is many things, but in essence it is what the nobles crave and fear losing; influence with the royalty and each other, bits, property, fame, glory. It can be played about anything; the finest dress or suit in Equestria, the newest carriage, the finest and most luxurious mansion, the money to spend on anything you can possibly desire. It is a game that has been played ever since Equestria was founded, but ages ago it was all about influence and power.”
“Some kind of contest then? A power struggle, only civilized?” Magnus queried, various ideas popping into his mind. This kind of game of influence was common in various European kingdoms a few centuries ago. Whoever stood closest to the throne was the winner, and also, the most dangerous one, because he or she had the ear of the ruler. A sneaky, underhanded, and charismatic person could easily influence the decisions of the ruler to their own advantage and they often did.
“Of a sort. These days, it is mostly a game of influence, wealth and showing off, but go back a few centuries and it was quite different.”
“Sounds like an expensive and difficult lifestyle.”
“Oh, it is. I consider myself lucky in that regard; I am too poor to play such a game,” Brilliant replied, laughing merrily the way only an old woman can.
***
On their way down from the roof, Magnus asked if there was more to see in the castle, and according to Brilliant there was.
The basement, parts of which had been converted into extra guest rooms, held a secret that had yet to be discovered. According to some ancient floor plans found by Brilliant’s father years ago, there were two basement levels; the one with the cells turned into bedrooms and another one below that. However, the passage to the second level basement had been sealed off sometime in the past, and not even Brilliant knew where the door had been and the floor plans gave no clues as to where it could be. Not even knocking on stones to listen for a hollow space behind them helped; the walls were simply too thick.
However, there was one place left for them to explore, a place rarely visited by anyone, and that place was at the west end of the house.
At the end of the first floor corridor stood an oak door, unassuming and somewhat shoddy in appearance. It hadn’t been painted or treated in any way. In fact, it looked way too common to be in this castle.
“Where does this lead?” asked Magnus, pushing open the door, eliciting protests from the rusty hinges. The corridor beyond was dark and cold.
Brilliant came behind him, her orbs of light floating around her. “This was once the servant quarters,” she said and took the lead. On both sides of the corridor were doors, resembling the door leading here.
Pushing open a door, Brilliant and Magnus walked inside. The room was square, had a small window, was plain and simple and the walls, ceiling, and floor was made of stone, and with no furniture.
“The servant staff lived in these rooms, two in each. They had two chairs, a table, and shared a dresser for their working clothes,” explained Brilliant. It was freezing cold and damp, and whoever lived here must have lived a hard and cold life, working from sunrise to sunset on a meagre salary.
They left the room, walking further down the corridor, passing several rooms similar to the first one. At the end of the narrow corridor, they came to a much larger room, rectangular in size with four large windows and a large hearth complete with rusty old chains and metal rods on which cooking pots could hang over the fire.
“This is where the servant staff spent their free time. Here they could cook their own food, wash their clothes, and sleep if they so wished. I once read that there was a large table here that could sit twelve or so ponies and benches for them to sit on, but it must have been thrown away, likely due to the dampness here. It must have begun to rot,” Brilliant explained, walking over to the old hearth, peering up the chimney. “This old chimney is wide open. I should have it closed—who knows what can crawl down here, not to mention the dampness.”
Looking around at the cold and uncaring stone walls and floor, Magnus sighed. Sure, he knew perfectly well what conditions the peasants and serfs lived under during the dark ages and further through the centuries. Now he knew that the same happened here in this colourful and magical world. But standing in the coldest place in the castle, knowing that little ponies lived in such a cold place gave him chills; it just didn’t feel right. They were so small compared to him, so fragile looking, almost like children.
“I don’t like this place,” he firmly stated with pursed lips. “How was the castle staff treated back in the day?”
Brilliant turned around, and by the look on her face, Magnus knew the answer. “I’m sad to say, servants weren’t particularly well treated. They weren’t mistreated, but they were certainly not seen as equals. To the ponies who worked in castles such as this, it was a way to put bread on the table. To the lords and ladies -not just here, but elsewhere too- servants and peasants were beneath them, and sometimes they treated them as if they were lesser beings. This is particularly true when it comes to unicorn nobility.”
“So, bad pay, derogatory comments, treated as mud under a hoof? That sort of thing?”
“Yes,” Brilliant admitted. “Even after the founding of Equestria. But after Celestia and Luna became princesses, they created several laws that ensured such treatment would not happen, anywhere. Those laws are still in use today, although modernized. These days, butlers, maids, and ponies working in castles, mansions, and the like, have laws that protect their rights and guilds that ensure they have jobs, are well paid, and have legal representation. Being a butler or a maid is no longer seen as a lower class job, but is in fact, quite well-paid and a respected line of work.”
Magnus nodded, pleased that things weren’t as bleak now as it once was. “That’s good to hear, but these rooms still feel wrong, so different from the rest of the castle.”
“That they do,” agreed Brilliant. “But you see, not all the ponies that worked here used these rooms. Maybe in the beginning they lived here, but much later, they lived in their own houses. Long ago, there was another castle wall surrounding this castle, and that wall went further out than the one we see today. Within the old wall, ponies built their homes and plied their trade as workers and labourers. After the bat ponies came to Equestria and founded Hollow Shades, ponies moved there as it became a more centralized place of living—in short, a proper village instead of a collection of huts and shacks surrounding a castle. Still living close to this castle, coming here to work was simply a short walk, and these rooms became sleeping quarters for those that began their work early or worked through the night.”
Magnus nodded in understanding. “I see; sleeping quarters for the night shift and the shift that started work very early, say, kitchen staff and ponies that lit up the fire in the living rooms and heated up water for washing clothes, right?”
“Just so,” Brilliant stated with a nod. “I’m afraid that this concludes our tour, unless you want to go exploring on your own. I’m sure there are more secrets in this castle. It is, after all, very old.”
While the prospect of going spelunking on his own was enticing, Magnus felt he had seen all there was to see for now. He was sure, like Brilliant said, there might be more secrets hidden somewhere, but then he’d be here for decades maybe. “I think I’ll pass.”
Now having seen the entire castle, Magnus and Brilliant left the old, cold servant quarters, and made their way back to the living room. However, they didn’t get that far.
Brilliant walked slowly, and Magnus knew well and full that the old mare had some health issues. Now and then, she would hiss through clenched teeth and stop for a moment to rub her hip, which seemed to be her major issue. The first time she had done this, Magnus had asked if they should go back, but the old mare had refused.
“Just my hip acting up, it’ll pass,” she had said.
But now Brilliant had to concede. “I need to stop and rest for a few moments.” Pushing open the doors to the gallery, she limped over to the centre of the room and sat down on the old couch, pulling a comfy wool blanket over half her body. The gallery was already warm and cozy, thanks to the wood burning stove in the centre of the room.
“You okay? Want me to get you something?” Magnus asked.
Brilliant smiled. “Oh, I think I’ll be fine; just let me rest for a little while. I wouldn’t say no to a little bit of tea, though.”
“Say no more; I’m on it,” Magnus replied eagerly. Fetching tea and cake after a grand tour of Stargard Castle was the least he could do.
He first went to the living room for the teapot, and as expected, the water within was cold. He then went to the kitchen, filled the kettle and set it to boil while he gathered up the rest. Sugar, lemon slices, Brilliant’s favourite brand of tea, two cups and saucers, and a small tray with an assortment of cookies and cake slices. When the water boiled, he poured it into the teapot and carried everything back to the gallery.
When he came in, he noticed Brilliant had moved. She no longer sat on the couch, having moved to the rear of the room, sitting on one of two large comfy chairs near the tall windows and the family tree tapestry.
Setting the tray down on the table near her, he poured water for her. “Brought some cookies too. Dunno if you wanted some, but here you have just about everything you need for tea.” Magnus sat down on the other chair.
Brilliant smiled as she took out a tea bag and plopped it into the cup. “Thank you. I may not have asked for cookies, but I certainly won’t let them go to waste.”
Man and mare then sat in silence, drinking their tea while the rain splashed onto the windows. Occasionally, flashes of lightning lit up the skies outside and the little mountain behind the house, or was it just a steep and rocky hill? Not sure of the correct terminology, Magnus at least saw the outlines of the tower on top of the mountain.
“That tower up there, what is it?”
Brilliant followed where Magnus was looking. “Oh, that. It’s an old lookout tower. From it, you can see other towers and beacons that we used long ago.”
“Beacons? You mean signal fires?”
Brilliant nodded. “Yes. Have you noticed how Hollow Shades is surrounded by mountains on almost all sides? Long ago, my ancestors built several watchtowers of stone on top of certain mountaintops surrounding the entire forest as part of a defensive system. If an enemy army approached, the guards on top of the tower could light a large bonfire whose flame was visible over long distances, and the lookouts on top of the tower up there could see the fire and warn the lord and lady of the castle. In case they were unsure which tower lit the fire, there is a series of holes in the walls up there that if you look through them, you can see each and every tower, and the direction and which tower and mountaintop you can see is carved into the stone next to the hole.”
“Smart,” Magnus said with a nod of his head. “I guess even peaceful Equestria needed watchtowers once upon a time.”
“Yes,” Brilliant said simply, lacking emotion and tone. “Equestria’s past was very much different than it is today.”
Magnus got the feeling that Brilliant wasn’t telling him everything, most likely because she knew what bloody stuff her ancestors had gotten into. But that didn’t bother Magnus at all; humans had done some horrific stuff too, and this wasn’t a competition. All civilizations have their good and bad stories, even small colourful ponies.
While sipping his tea, Magnus looked to the side and the tapestry that hung between the windows. It had been rolled up since the last time he looked at it. He had only seen part of it the day he came here, and now that he had time, he wanted to take a closer look at the family tree, a look at more recent history.
Lighting up his magic, he attempted to operate the crank from a distance with his newfound abilities. That, however, was not entirely successful. No matter how much he struggled or worked his magic to get a better grip, to wrap his magic around the crank, he couldn’t even make it budge. It was simply too much for him.
“Heavy?” Brilliant asked him with a slight smile.
“Feels like I’m trying to balance this castle on my horn.” Eventually he gave up and walked over to the crank and began to turn it.
“Don’t feel bad; all you need is time and training and you’ll get there. Nopony has ever become a master in mere weeks,” said Brilliant encouragingly.
“I know, but after how much time I spent imagining magic when I was younger, I sort of hoped that imagining counted as some sort of training,” Magnus grumbled.
Turning the crank, the cloth family tree revealed itself, and the first named pony appeared, that of Oaken Scroll. Next to him were two names, both sounding feminine as far as pony naming traditions went, and below, their four children.
The more Magnus unrolled the tree, the more names appeared. Under each name was embroidered the year of birth and death. Some lives were long and some much too short. He quickly realized that infant mortality rates had been high once upon a time, and not even magic could help the little ones. A sad truth, but the same happened on Earth as well.
As generations revealed themselves at the top and disappeared into the roll near the floor, a charred patch on an otherwise name-filled piece of silk appeared. Here Magnus stopped cranking.
Who was this unknown pony? What had he or she done? What manner of crime deserved their name to be struck from a family tree? Luna knew who this pony was, and probably Celestia too, and the former refused to say anything about it.
Judging by the dates of the names surrounding it, the pony had lived sometime roughly between 1125 to 1175 years ago, and their parents were named Luminous Wind and Aurora Ribbon. The unknown pony had had a sibling named Lightshower.
“Still curious about that one?” Brilliant asked, having noticed what drew Magnus’ attention.
“A bit. Unusual to see a family tree so complete, and then someone going to such lengths to destroy one pony’s name.” He looked over to Brilliant. “Did you ever try to find out anything about this one?”
Slowly taking a sip, the old mare nodded. “I did. All the books about family history I have didn’t mention that one at all. A few pages have even been torn out. I know that Celestia and Luna know who that pony was, maybe even knew him or her well, but Celestia is even more tight-lipped than Luna. Perhaps it is for the best to let that one go; some things are better left forgotten.”
Magnus turned back to the tapestry, and after one last look at the charred bit of silk, he shrugged and continued cranking. Name after name came and went, long lives and short ones repeating themselves.
Then Magnus noticed something odd about the names on the tapestry and how often names appeared. One would think that one stallion and one mare or several would produce a multitude of offspring, and they had, but somewhere around a thousand years ago, several names appeared alone on the embroidered silk. They took no spouses and had no children; they lived their entire lives alone!
“Brilliant, what happened...” Magnus was about to ask, but noticed that Brilliant was already watching him, neither smiling nor frowning.
“Keep going,” she said, motioning with her hoof towards the tapestry.
Magnus didn’t understand but did as she asked him, hoping for an explanation to reveal itself. Turning the crank revealed a similar fate becoming somewhat of a trend, the amount of family members reducing in numbers dramatically.
‘What happened here?’ His first guess was disease, but he doubted that a disease would work like this over such a long period of time. His second guess was infertility, but none of the ponies had partners either, which seemed like a deliberate choice on their part, obviously resulting in no foals.
Whatever happened, something caused ponies to not have children and not marry either, and there could be a hundred different causes. Was gelding a punishment in Equestria? That sounded like a plausible explanation, but such a punishment sounded very unponylike.
Then another event happened before Magnus eyes, one even stranger. On the tapestry stood thirty names side by side; brothers, sisters, cousins, second cousins—as far as Magnus could see, all belonging to roughly the same generation. Their dates of birth were stitched in a clear and easily readable font, but the Equestrian equivalent of a question mark stood in place of their date of death, and none of the ponies except one had offspring listed. That one, likely to be a mare due to the feminine-sounding name, was the only one of that generation who had a year and date of death listed. That pony had in fact married and had two children, but even though both children created offspring, only one reached old age.
This sudden disappearance of so many ponies utterly confused Magnus, and he turned back to Brilliant, intent on finding out what had happened.
“What happened here, Brilliant?” He gestured to the tapestry. “How did so many ponies suddenly vanish? Why don’t they have years of death listed? Why did so many ponies not have children?”
Brilliant remained silent and looked towards the tapestry, a tired expression on her face. She closed her eyes and sighed. “Because of the name that is burned away.”
Shaking his head in confusion, Magnus stood up, his curiosity burning. “Huh? What’d you mean?”
Brilliant sat still, hesitating for a few brief moments, before finally closing her eyes, sighing, and standing up. She walked over to the bookshelf and lit up her horn. At the top shelf, she used her magic on a book with a red cover, one among several, but she didn’t pull the book out. Instead, she pushed it in. A click sound came from the shelf somewhere, and a small split appeared between two wooden boards between two of the shelves.
Using her magic, Brilliant opened up a section of the shelf, revealing it to be a hidden door, and beyond, a dark room. As Brilliant walked in, Magnus walked closer to take a look. The room was tiny, and there were more shelves in it, filled with more books, scrolls, old chests, and other reading materials.
“I keep the most fragile books here, along with things that are best kept… hidden.” Brilliant emerged from the room with a single book, huge and black and obviously very old, judging by the cover. “Whatever that burned away name did, it was so terrible that it has plagued our family ever since. Many decided to… pay for the crime, with their own bloodlines.”
She levitated the huge book over to Magnus, blackened leather with gilded edges and a silvered clasp holding it shut. Opening it, Magnus read the first few pages. Even though the writing was old-fashioned and difficult to interpret, he was shocked to find that it contained admissions of guilt, written by several different ponies over many years, centuries even, in which the ponies stated that they would end their line as atonement for the crimes perpetrated by ‘The Burned One’, a word that recurred many times across several centuries, a reference to the named burned away.
But that wasn’t all. Several accounts written down stated that due to so many knowing that a terrible crime had occurred, nopony actually knew exactly what happened, and there was no mention in the book itself what the crime was. In the end, it didn’t matter; the name Galaxy had become infamous and synonymous with foe, enemy, terrible, traitor, and many other words of similar description. This, some accounts said, was the main reason nopony wanted anything to do with them—not even finding a spouse was possible in some cases. But many others went as far as saying that they chose to end their bloodline as punishment for the crimes of the past.
Flipping over to the final pages, Magnus found one last entry, but this one, unlike the others, was not an admission of guilt, rather it was a statement. The writer was one Baroness Corona and her statement in particular caught Magnus’ eye.
We have decided to stay, my beloved husband Piercing Gaze and myself. Yesterday we attended the family meeting in the castle and held a vote on the future of us all. We could all feel it, the tension in the air, like before a mighty spell is cast. The words that choose all our fates. But my devotion was clear before and it still is. I am the only one that wishes to remain, but all the others have chosen anonymity.
So be it.
We shall remain and we shall be the Galaxy family, the only known ones. We shall endure the scorn, the malice, the unkindness directed at us, and we shall answer with nothing but kindness and good deeds. Our own actions shall speak for us, not the unknown deeds of some phantom haunting us from centuries ago. We shall be who we once were and we shall be ourselves.
The others will depart for Manehattan in two weeks’ time. From there, they will go elsewhere, and we will not know where they go. But before those days come, we shall celebrate together, one final time, and it shall be a party to remember to the end of our days. We shall divide what little remains of the remaining funds of the family among everypony. That way they can all start new lives with new names somewhere else, unburdened by the crimes of the Burned One, whose presence has stained our good name for so long.
In my heart, I wish to scream and yell, to scream at how unfair it all is, because I do not wish to lose my brother and sisters. But in my head, I can see the logic of it all. They wish for spouses and children. They cannot have it here when their names are tainted by a house of treason and terror. For many years, I have seen my beloved siblings spat at, their names cursed by the Mare in the Moon and even The Spirit of Chaos. Now, for the first time in many years, I see hope in their eyes and I wish them a lifetime of happiness, laughter, joy, and the sound of foals at play.
As for me, I shall stay in Stargard Castle and be Baroness Galaxy and I shall endure for the sake of us all. Perhaps one day, my children or my grandchildren can one day walk free without the weight of the name of our House on their withers. I can only hope.
-Corona Flash-
Baroness of Hollow Shades and Head of House Galaxy, written on the 10th day of Spring in the 610th year of Our Princess Celestia
Closing the book, Magnus exhaled. Things were now much clearer, a mystery mostly solved, but still… god damn!
“Wow…” he whispered, turning to Brilliant. “This is… I’m speechless!”
“I reacted much more harshly when I read this book many years ago. The Burned One destroyed us all—name, reputation, everything. The crime committed was burned into the collective psyche of Equestria, none allowed anypony to forget.” Brilliant shook her head, exhaled and sounded tired, and allowed herself a brief smile as she sank down into the comfortable yet worn couch. “But time is the greatest healer. History has largely been forgotten, and that is for the best. Celestia has never spoken of what happened; neither have Luna, as far as I know. I prefer it that way. I… we have a chance to heal now, to let the past become a fading scar and eventually become forgotten forever.”
Magnus nodded, his mouth drawn into a thin line. He could hardly believe it. Not just the crime, but the punishment the family members levied upon themselves. Ending their bloodlines? Choosing not to have children? Not even taking a spouse? He was unsure if it was duty, honour, an extreme sense of justice, immense guilt, or madness that had dictated their actions.
“Brilliant, do you blame yourself for what happened so long ago?” he asked carefully. If she did, he wasn’t sure what to do. Passing guilt from parent to child was complete insanity. No one deserved that kind of emotional luggage.
Luckily, the kindly mare shook her head and smiled. “Not at all. Neither did my parents or my grandparents. Equestria has mostly forgotten that something terrible once happened that caused our downfall, just like they once forgot that Celestia had a sister, and that took even less time—only a thousand years. Best to not speak of such things; no use in tearing open an old wound.”
Magnus had to agree; leave a wound to heal instead of picking at the scab. “But what about your family?”
“They know, but never speak of it,” Brilliant answered, further saying, “All families have their dirty little secrets, believe you me. The youngest ones don't know either.” Eyeing the black, heavy book, Brilliant sighed, and in a flash of light, the book disappeared and didn’t appear on the shelf either. “Best not to let them know accidentally either. Foals say the darndest things.” She chuckled humourlessly.
“On that, I wholeheartedly agree with you.” He didn’t even ask what she did with the book. Brilliant was smart, hopefully smart enough to completely disintegrate it.
Still, some mysteries remained, and Magnus was curious. He now knew that the Burned One was the cause of House Galaxy losing everything, but he wanted to know how exactly. “About your family—”
“Our family,” Brilliant firmly but gently corrected him
“Our family,” Magnus repeated, returning her smile with one of his own. It still surprised him how quickly she added him into her own family. “The Burned One caused a lot of misfortune to our family. What I wonder is how and why he or she did that, even after they lived. Celestia and Luna told me a few things about the Galaxy family and some things I’ve found out on my own, how they were extremely wealthy, had titles and stuff, but lost it all in very little time.”
“It’s true we were wealthy once,” Brilliant agreed, “but the fact of the matter is that I have no wealth. I have a teacher’s pension, that’s it. It allows me to buy whatever I need and maintain a small amount of this castle. But as you said, yes, the Galaxy family was once the wealthiest family in Equestria.”
“Where did the wealth come from?”
“Trade, mostly, accumulated over a very long period of time, within Equestria and abroad. We once had a great fleet of trading ships that sailed up and down the Equestrian coast. In time, ships sailed elsewhere in search of profit and goods. For ages, our coffers overflowed with gold, silver, and lustrous gemstones, as well as every single exotic and expensive commodity you can imagine,” answered Brilliant, not stopping to think for a second. “But after the crimes of the Burned One came to light and became known to all, the name Galaxy became infamous. Ships that carried our name and sigil were denied entry to ports. Trade agreements we had brokered became void, which opened up the chance for other Equestrian merchants and traders. Many other noble families turned to shipping and grew wealthy on it.”
“Okay, so that explains why the wealth stopped flowing.”
“Only part of it; we had trade within Equestria too. Mines producing metals and gems, farms, raw materials, anything you can imagine. But that also stopped as the years went by. Mines producing gold, silver, and iron dried up. By this time, our influence with the other families had become close to non-existent, and they, like vultures, circled the lands we called ours. Each time our coffers ran dry, we had no option but to sell lands to other noble families in order to maintain what we had.”
“That sounds unusual to do,” Magnus mentioned. He hadn’t heard of something like this happening before, not on Earth anyway.
“For nobility, it is very unusual, but not illegal. In fact, it’s not worse than a pony who owns a large property dividing up his property in order to sell parcels. A ruling princess must, however, oversee the trade and ensure its fairness, not only to the nobles, but to the subjects living in the traded lands too. Their livelihood must be protected and ensured to continue uninterrupted,” Brilliant explained.
“What about the demotion in title?” Magnus asked.
Brilliant laughed heartily. “Demotion? I would like to hear titles being referred to as military rank at the Grand Galloping Gala. My stars, that would be a sight.” Using her magic to remove her glasses, Brilliant wiped at her eyes, chuckling as she did. “It’s true that we had a different title once, that of Counts and Countesses, but those titles were also bartered centuries ago.”
“How did that happen? I thought noble and royal titles couldn’t be sold like that, not real ones anyway.” Magnus had heard of those titles being sold on the Internet, a tiny plot of land for a hundred dollars, making you landowner and giving you a title to boot. Worthless things, really, just for shits and giggles only.
“That was also a sale, or trade, to be perfectly honest.” Brilliant set her half-moon glasses back on her muzzle. “Centuries ago, the only land we had left was Hollow Shades and this castle. As usual, bits were in demand for many things, that of trying to maintain a noble lifestyle especially. But with empty coffers and bitbags devoured by moths, my ancestors grew desperate enough to seek an audience with Princess Celestia and explained their difficulties to her. From what I know, Celestia didn’t like that their titles should be bartered like some peddler’s goods, but she made an exception for them, due to their former good standing with the crown and the ponies of Hollow Shades.”
“I’m guessing someone really wanted to be a count. I mean, you’re a baroness now.”
Brilliant nodded slowly. “One baroness wanted the title, yes. A neighbour in fact, from across the mountains in the south. Baroness Flax Seed, a relatively 'new’ noble in the farming community of Foaldale, expressed her desire to buy the title. She offered a generous sum of bits and her own title of Baroness in exchange, thus the trade was sealed with Celestia’s blessing. Sadly,” Brilliant sighed once more, sounding tired as she raised her eyes to look upon the tapestries and paintings hanging around the room, as well as the family tree tapestry, “it only slowed the inevitable. The bits were spent within a few decades, and the title means little to nothing today, and even this castle is decaying away around me. But such are things; nothing lasts. Even noble titles can wither and rust,” she finished with a sigh.
Brilliant concluded her speech and poured herself a new cup of tea and began stirring it with a silver spoon. Meanwhile, Magnus had been given much to think about. Even though he now roughly knew the entire Galaxy family history, what stuck to him was Brilliant’s concluding words. They sounded hollow and sad, almost like the few final centuries of the family itself, trying to hold onto the past. Although she didn’t say so and had even denied it, Magnus was sure that at least some small part of Brilliant wished otherwise for herself and her family. If it was the glitter and glamour, or maybe the honour and glory, he couldn’t tell.
“I have to ask,” Magnus ventured carefully, “was there no one that was willing to help throughout all these years?”
“There was, once.” Brilliant blew on her tea, sipping gently. “We once had allies. In fact, most of the nobility in Equestria would’ve come to our aid due to alliances by marriage, be it in matters of war, debt, or any other crisis. In fact, go far enough back in time and I’m sure I am related to every single noble family in Equestria, and maybe in some other pony kingdoms and city states too. None would or could confirm it these days anyway; too much time has passed and things are forgotten. But because of whatever the Burned One did, all those alliances, friendships, deals struck and signed in golden ink were destroyed and made void. Yes, even marriages were annulled, I know. None would ever again claim any alliance of friendship with us, fearing that their reputation would suffer like ours did. So no, none would help.”
‘God, what the hell happened all those years ago?’ Magnus thought. What had the Burned One done that made the Galaxy family a pariah rejected by all and everything? All they had, what they worked towards, what they had achieved was gone overnight.
A few ideas came to Magnus’ mind. An assassination attempt on Celestia or Luna might’ve caused it, seeing as the two alicorn sisters were so highly revered among ponykind. A murderer too, maybe a sadistic serial killer, maybe cannibal, a pony version of Elisabeth Bathory perhaps. But these were only ideas and theories, nothing solid. And seeing how low the Galaxy family was brought by this unknown pony’s actions, perhaps forgetting about this pony was the better idea.
“Still boggles the mind, just thinking how much your family had and lost in such a short time,” Magnus commented, going back to the family tree tapestry and unrolling more of history, getting closer to more recent years.
“Our family. And I try not to think about it; I never had such riches anyway so it doesn’t bother me,” Brilliant replied, picking up her tea cup again, sipping daintily. “Oh, looks like you’re getting close to modern times. There is my great-great-grandmother, Pirouette, the one who looked so much like your mother. Would you like to hear about her?”
Magnus looked at the name, a baroness from nearly two centuries ago, and according to the painting, yes, she had some traits of his mother, Julia. Truth be told, even though he never knew his mother, he knew plenty of her from Joseph, even some of her hobbies, likes and dislikes. And for a moment, Magnus wondered if perhaps Baroness Pirouette was the same.
“I would like that.”