It was just a few hours before sunup. The cold night air was gently blowing through the numerous leaves of the Everfree forest, creating a relaxing rustle that was accompanied by the small army of crickets. Both of those sounds, combined together, created a truly beautiful concert. The sky was clear of any clouds, which allowed the beautiful starry sky to be seen, and it was seen by the adventurer looking at it in deep thought. The sleep that came to him just a few hours earlier didn't last long and wasn't peaceful because of the nightmares that plagued him. He still couldn't understand what was happening in those dreams or who were the people that made themselves present, but they still caused him a lot of pain.
But amongst all his worries, there was one regarding something more pressing than worrying about imaginary scenarios. The thing being their incoming expedition to the castle that Luna mentioned yesterday. Though he wanted to trust Luna, he still wasn't fully convinced as to the safety of that idea. Even though she said that their journey would be worth it, she was talking about a place that she knew from a thousand years ago. There was no way that the place stayed exactly the same throughout all those years, or could it? He sighed and looked back at the entrance to the cave, where his two companions were sleeping. Slowly, he approached them while still thinking about the castle and getting some sleep.
With the fully visible sun in the sky, the party started their journey towards the old castle. And to everyone's surprise, the journey wasn't too eventful, but after a few hours on the way, Arrin started to have the feeling of being watched from afar. His first thought was to not give a sign that he noticed and to keep his guard up. His thoughts were cut short by Luna, who suddenly spoke.
"We're here"
"What do you mean we're here? The only thing I can see is a forest." Replied Arrin
"What I mean by that is we're just five minutes from it." Replied unbothered Luna
"Oh, and how can you be so sure about that? There's nothing except the forest." Said Arrin with a small bit of curiosity while still being on the lookout for a mysterious stalker.
"That giant tree that we were passing a few moments ago told me everything I needed to know. You see, there used to be a village here when I was young, and that tree was in the middle of it." Explained Luna with an experience full of nostalgia.
"Can't argue with that. So is there any particular reason why you wanted to come here?"
"Well, yes, there are two main reasons for that. Before I started that whole rebellion against my sister, I was collecting some interesting stuff, like maps made by my soldiers that no one had access to except for me. And the second reason is ... *sigh, The truth is that I wasn't the only one banished for my actions, I also had my subjects that were fighting for me, and they were also banished, so I hope that maybe some of them will be waiting here for my return."
"Can you tell me something more about your subjects, Luna?"
" They weren't really that different from normal ponies, the only things that differentiated them from others were their cat-like pupils and bat wings. In some cases, they could also be unicorns. Other ponies disliked them so much to the point where they could only come out at night. This created rumors that they were vampires. And so they were constantly attacked by other ponies."
"Sorry for asking."
"It's okay, you had no way of knowing, Arrin." Luna reassured him with a smile.
"Thanks..." Arrin said while returning the gesture.
"Ok, now that the two of you have finished flirting, I want to tell you that we are getting close." Said a little irritated Guarding Heart.
Now that he has started paying more attention to the surroundings, he could see that the greenery around them has become a lot thinner than it was only a few minutes before. But there was one more thing that piqued his curiosity. No more than a hundred meters from him was a canyon with a poorly looking wooden bridge hanging over it.
After a moment of walking, they approached said bridge.
"To be honest, it looks even worse from up close than it did from afar." Said Guarding Heart, evidently surprised that it was even possible.
"I... I remembered it being a little different, but looking at how it withered out, I'm afraid that we will need to find another way to get to the other side."
"Something like that tree?" Arrin said while pointing in the direction of a fallen tree that created an alternative route.
The trio moved closer to the fallen tree, it wasn't hard to see that it was old and had ended its life only a few days earlier, but the circumstances in which that happened were strange, to say the least. It looked just as if someone had ripped it out with a lot of strength and placed it to create a makeshift bridge. It seemed that Arrin was the only person who thought the mysterious stalker and the tree could be related in some way.
"We need to get to the other side, I'll go first and check if it’s safe. You two will move the moment I set foot on the other side." After saying that, he jumped onto a tree and started to make his way to the other side.
Luna and Guarding Heart looked at each other with confusion written on their expressions, but over all, they decided not to question Arrin and comply with his order. The first to pass was Luna, and not long after that, Guarding Heart. The moment that both of them were on the other side, Arrin turned around and started moving towards the now-visible castle ruins.
"Hey, why are you in such a hurry?" Asked Guarding Heart.
He didn't answer, but instead he started to look around. Only after he finished checking his surroundings did he speak in a quiet, barely hearable tone.
"Someone is following us."
It was enough to convince them to stay on guard for the rest of the way towards the castle. They spent the rest of their way in silence, not even five minutes later, they stood in front of the gates to the castle.
To Arrin's surprise, the ruins weren't as ruined as he thought they were, in fact, for their age, they looked really good. Without any more thought on that, Arrin pushed the double doors open. At first glance, the whole interior seemed to suffer more from time than the exterior did, and there were numerous proofs of that in the form of holes in the roof. The walls were decorated with many banners that once undoubtedly held a glory to them, but now they were mere shadows of the things they once were. The party made their way inside, closing the massive doors behind them.
"So where do we need to go now, Luna?" Asked Arrin while looking around the main hall.
"We need to go to my room, don't worry, I will lead the way." Luna declared and without waiting for anyone's response, she galloped to the closest staircase and to the second floor.
"Let's go, I don't want to search for her later." Guarding Heart told Arrin while she started moving towards the staircase.
Arrin sighed and slowly started to walk up the stairs. When he got to the second floor, he noticed that it was in much worse condition than the first one. Ceiling had a lot more holes than the main hall, the walls were full of cracks, and the floor was decorated by remnants of something that could have been called a carpet in the past.
A little further into the corridor were numerous doors, most of them looked the same without considering the signs of damage done by the time. Among all of the doors, there was one that distinguished itself from the others, and it did so by being open. It wasn't too hard for Arrin to guess why they were the only ones open, and when he came close enough to see the inside. His guess was confirmed. The first thing he saw were two ponies, the other thing was how well the room looked. It was as if someone had been there only a few hours ago, every nook and cranny looked perfectly clean, and there was no sign of time taking its toll. He decided to ignore that fact for now and concentrate on his companion.
"So is that your room, Luna?" He asked with a bit of curiosity.
"Yes, It is, and it hasn't changed at all since I left it." She said it with a tone full of longing.
"So what was so important in here that we risked being caught?" Asked Guarding Heart.
" I see you're not really as patient as I thought. Very well, I will show you."
She started to slowly approach the bed and start to move it to the side, only to find that there was nothing except the floor. When Arrin was about to ask if that was it, Luna started to seemingly poke at random places on the floor until a small staircase exposed itself. Without any hesitation, Luna started to descend the staircase, and soon the others followed. The staircase led to a small room full of shelves filled to the brim with numerous books and many different things. Shelves weren't the only things that could be found here, there were also a few weapons and armor sets, all of which were black with some ornaments.
"Now that's what I call a nice collection." Arrin said with a sense of admiration.
"Thank you, but wait till I show you the main reason that we came in here." Replied Luna
She approached one of the shelves and took a big piece of parchment, which she then started to unroll on the floor. It was a really old map.
"It's a map of the whole continent from a thousand years ago. It was made by my own soldiers, so it's the only copy. Now, Arrin, if you could please unroll the map that you got in the tavern."
Without any hesitation, Arrin did what he was asked, and at first, the only things that differentiated were the small details and quality, but not long after that, he noticed something interesting.
"Wait, why is there more Land near the frozen north?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.
"That's a good question, Arrin. I mean It's completely frozen, and it's almost impossible to survive there for a long time." Guarding Heart pointed her hoof at the place on the older map.
"As I said earlier, my soldiers did that map, and since thestrals are much more resistant to the cold, they scouted that area. More importantly, they revealed that there was more than a frozen wasteland, and by that, I mean that area." She pointed to an area that didn't seem to stand out from the rest of the frozen north. But that line of thought died out as fast as everyone looked closer, just to see a terrain that was supposed to be full of vegetation.
"Now that looks interesting, and from what I see, that looks like an area that surely can support life, since there's a forest." He pointed at a large area filled with trees.
"It's because it can, and since no one else in Equestria knows about that place, I ordered to create a base there, not on a main continent, though. It's near that big island over there." Luna pointed towards a small archipelago of three bigger islands and around five smaller ones.
"Why did you decide to do it on those islands? They're pretty far from solid ground." Guarding Heart asked
"I did it so that even if someone somehow managed to find the forest on the land, It would be unlikely for them to find the islands." She explained
"It's cool and all, but what's the point of telling us that? Do you intend to hide from all of that or something?" Arrin asked with a hint of disappointment at Luna's actions.
"In some way, you are indeed right, but I don't want to hide, I want to create a place for my subject to live without any fear." Luna explained
"It... sounds interesting, but how do you intend to do that? I mean, it's not that easy to get there, and it's even harder to find your subjects, we don't even know where they could be." Guarding Heart said.
"It may seem that way, but if we start to make our way there, maybe we will find them or some clues as to where we can find them." She said it desperately.
Arrin looked at her with some sadness. He looked back at the map and the islands, they were at least two weeks away from their current position. If they decide to take that journey, they will be risking being coughed up by the Equestrians. But then again, it's not like he has anything to lose, and maybe he will even regain some of his memories and some of his abilities. Because of all of that, he decided to take that risk and start that journey, but before that, he needed to prepare and possibly take a few things from that castle.
"Ahh, ok, I think that we can try out your plan, but first I want to look through the things that you have here and possibly search the rest of the castle."
"Really?" She burst out with disbelief mixed with happiness.
"Yes, now show me what more you have in that basement." He said.
He didn't wait for the response and approached one of the shelves. Most of the items there were things that had no practical use for the time being, like hairpins, tiaras, jewelry, and some old books. Most of his interest has fallen into the books, there were a lot of titles among them, but unfortunately most of them were about the politics of old times. Among all of them, Arrin managed to find only two worth any interest; both of them had something to do with magic. Without thinking anymore, he packed them into his backpack and turned to his companions.
"Hey, have you found something useful?"
"We sure did, come and see for yourself." Said Guarding Heart, without even looking back.
He slowly approached and saw what caught the interest of both of his companions. It was a full set of big black horse armor, accompanied by two smaller armors in the same color. Two smaller ones had spears on their sides, while the big one had a sword.
"Now that's truly a beautiful work." Arrin said while looking at the beautiful work of blacksmithing.
"Yes, it is, and it may even be useful for us now. I and the Guarding Heart may wear it for protection." She said this, visibly happy at her idea.
"But I have armor already." Guarding said
"You have the old one, but didn't you say that you don't want to have anything to do with them anymore?" Luna almost quoted Guarding's earlier statement.
"I did say that, but it looks much heavier than my current one. Wouldn't it slow us down?" She deducted
"It may look heavy, but in reality, it's much lighter. Anyway, just try it out and find out for yourself." Luna said
With a sigh, Guarding Heart approaches the armor stance. She takes a helmet of the armor stance, weighting it over in her hoof, and to her own surprise, Luna's words
proved to be true. The headpiece is indeed light. Encouraged by that revelation, Guarding unequips her body armor and begins to put on the new set of armor, starting with something that can be called a shoe that fits perfectly on her hoofs. Next, she picked up the tunic. Putting it on, she feels much lighter than before. She moves around after putting the last piece of armor to test if it's comfortable.
"Ahh, it would seem that you were right. It really is light." She said, still moving around.
"I knew that you'd like it. Now allow me to put on my old armor."
Luna slowly approached the bigger set of armor and looked at it with a sense of longing, as if remembering better times. Gradually, she put all parts of the armor, she took the spear that Guarding left while equipping her armor and carefully tossed it to her. After that, she took the sword and unshed it, revealing a work of art rather than an actual sword. The hilt of the sword was truly a marvel to behold, made from luxurious materials. deep burgundy leather, meticulously embossed with delicate golden filigree that depicts scenes of epic battles, mythological creatures, and grandiose landscapes. The crossguard is fashioned from polished bronze and shaped into elegant, sweeping curves.
At the heart of the hilt, nestled between the guard and the pommel, lies the centerpiece, a rare gemstone of unparalleled beauty. A mesmerizing sapphire, as deep and vibrant as the ocean at twilight, is ensconced in a golden setting that mimics the gentle embrace of waves. The sapphire seems to come alive in the presence of light, casting dazzling reflections that dance upon the surrounding surfaces. A gemstone, black as night. The blade was no less beautiful than the hilt, but this time in the color of silver, but not normal silver. It was almost as if someone stole the shine of the moonlight and put it in the blade. decorated by a full moon right next to the hilt and accompanied by many stars on the lower parts of the blade. With a sigh, she put it back in its sheath and turned to address others.
"Is there anything else that you want to do, or are we moving out?" She asked while looking at Arrin.
"I want to look around the castle, but we will need to split up to have a bigger chance of finding something." He said
"But why should we split up?" Guarding asked
"Trust me, I have a good reason for that." Arrin explained to his companions that now seemed to agree with him.
And with that, they soon exited the secret room through the same stairs and restored the room to its original look. Soon all of them exited the room, and as previously agreed, they split up. Walking through the dark corridor, he only noticed many doors, most of them broken out of their frames. Some didn't even have furniture, and without paying attention to them, he continued his way down the corridor. His attention was soon caught by a large pair of doors. Slowly approaching them, he saw that one side looked almost as if something had blown it out, but unlike the tree, it must have happened a long time ago. When he looked inside, he realized that it was a library still full of books. Without much thought, Arrin entered the room in search of some useful books. There were fifteen rows of bookshelves, each with its own category, like building, gardening, and something that caught his attention: magic. Entering the section with books about magic, he found that most of them were turning around fields of magic that didn't have any use for him or any plans that he could think of at the time. but there were a few titles about the basics of it and how to use it in building stuff and enchanting it. Putting them in his bag, he moved towards other sections, taking a few interesting ones from them too. When he was about to move towards the doors, he tripped on parts of the old doors. Rising back to his feet, he noticed something that he would have missed if he hadn't tripped.
A small section of one of the walls was missing, revealing a dark hole that seemed to lead somewhere. Intrigued by that, he slowly approached the rift in the wall, only to find that it was a little too small for him. Making a great decision, he punched the wall near the hole to make it bigger. He found a dusty, old-looking room with a few dark books that regarded Dark Magic. As two of the first books that he found without much thought, he packed them too. Happy with his findings, he left the room. Wandering through the dark corridors of a forsaken castle once again, he was looking for more doors that led to something useful. After a few more minutes of wandering through the halls, he saw the familiar silhouette - It was Luna.
He was about to ignore her and continue his journey when he noticed a shadow that followed her just out of her sight. Suddenly, he remembered that they never found the mysterious stalker from outside. Now visibly worried, he decided to follow Luna and the mysterious stalker while being extremely careful not to show his presence. Walking around ten meters behind them for no less than a few minutes, which was enough for him to take a look at the stalker. It was a pony completely covered in black clothing that concealed every detail that could help find any useful information before engaging that pony. Following the duo for a few more minutes, Arrin decided to finally take action, sneaking closer to the pony as he prepared his hands. With a quick move, he shortened the distance between them, quickly catching the pony by its neck and pining it to the wall. Disturbed by the sound, Luna quickly looked behind her, only to notice Arrin holding somepony by their throat and pinning them to the wall.
"What are you doing!?" Luna screamed
Without paying her any attention, Arrin ripped the cloth from the pony, revealing grayish-blue fur. The first thing he noticed were his orange, cat-like eyes and a pair of sharp fangs. On its back, there were wings, but not normal wings as they looked like the ones bats have. Arrin quickly realized that the features fit Luna's earlier description of her subject. With evident fear in the pony's eyes, Arrin squished it's throat a little bit more.
"Who are you, and why were you following us?!" He shouted right into the pony's face.
"I... I wanted to see the princess." Mysterious equine stuttered
"Then why didn't you approach us normally and just ask?!" He pinned him even harder against the wall.
"I wasn't sure if it was truly Princess Luna, I couldn't see her horn, only her wings. So I thought that if I followed you, I could assure myself." He finally said.
"Hmm. What are we doing with him, Luna?" He looked at her with a raised eyebrow.
"P-please release him." She said
"As you wish." With that, he released his grip on the pony and let him fall to the ground. Taking a few steps backward, he looked at Luna, who started to close the distance to the pony.
"What is your name, my subject?" She extended her hoof and helped her subject to stand up.
"My name is Crimson Vision, your highness." He said this while bowing to her. Finally realizing that it's really his princess.
"Crimson Vision, what a nice name! It's a pleasure to meet you, now could you tell me what you're doing here?" She asked somewhat hearfully.
"I was sent here to look for you." he answered with a subtle tone.
"Really, why here of all places and by whom?"
"I was sent here by Sergeant Night Rose, she sent me here because she believes that you may have come here to look for the rest of us."
"She was right. I did come here because I believed that you might be here. Can you say where she is and how many others are there?"
"There are at least two thousand of us, there were more than that, but many were caught by the guards and imprisoned. Sergeant decided that the best course of action would be to go to the north, which is much less populated."
"So the guards want to capture all of you?" Arrin asked
"Yes, from what we found out, they transformed the biggest prison in Equestria to hold only thestrals, and they also plan to expand it to hold all of us in Equestria."
"And how many of you are there in general?" Are asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Around two hundred thousand in all of Equestria." Crimson Vision said
"That's quite a lot. What kind of prison can accommodate this many prisoners?" He asked, truly surprised and still unsure of what kind of prison was so big.
"It's named Rowmarina, and it's made inside the mountain."
"What do you plan to do right now, Crimson Vision?" Luna asked
"Night Rose ordered that if I find you, I need to take you to her so you may take command." He looked at how Luna would react.
"It so happened that we were going towards the north anyway, so we may as well accept your offer." Luna said with a small smile.
"But before that, we need to find Guarding, then we can start our way to the north." Arrin said with a sigh.
Soon they started their way through the dark corridors in search of their party member. The search didn't last long, for after not even ten minutes, they found Guarding near the main hall, looking at the remnants of old paintings. She noticed everyone looking at her.
"Who is it?" She looked at the Crimson Vision.
"One of Luna's subjects and someone that came here to take us to their base near the north."
"So I see that our plans changed a bit."
"They did, but only by a little. By the way, Crimson, where will the rest of your people wait for your return?" He looked at the pony.
"They will be waiting near the village by the name of Red Forest." Crimson told.
"Really, who the hell names those villages?" Arrin shouted with a sense of anger and annoyance.
"When will we be going on our way?" Luna looked at Arrin with a questionable look.
"We can go right away, and to be honest, it would be the best option. This place isn't safe at all.” He looked around the main hall.
"Why do you think that?" Guarding asked him.
"Just a feeling. Anyway, prepare everything you want to take, and we will be moving out."
With that, the next part of their journey began.