Corsica was forced to relinquish Halcyon's unconscious body before she was allowed to leave.
"Not to throw shade at your justice system, or anything," Corsica said, watching as Luna's flight suit-wearing goons gently took her friend. "But did she really do something bad enough to warrant getting swatted like a fly?"
"Some things are more important than being gentle," Princess Luna responded. "For example, the safety of each and every pony in this city. The weather around this city is intelligent and magically hostile. We keep it at bay through use of a shield projected by this castle's core. Just this morning, the shield was briefly destroyed by an accident, and only the heroic actions of Twilight Sparkle and her friends were able to repair it in time to prevent a permanent mass exodus... or else the death of everyone here. Your friend here was initially being questioned over suspicious activity. However, she repeatedly escalated the situation rather than answer my questions, up to the point of assaulting the castle with unknown magic. Whether or not there was an innocent explanation for her actions, she needed to be stopped at all costs."
Corsica narrowed her eyes. "You mean that shock wave we saw while flying here..."
"Might I ask your relationship to this mare?" Princess Celestia cut in.
"Friends," Corsica said. "Business partners. Traveling buddies."
"This might be my fault," Twilight said. "When I met Corsica in the waiting room, after hearing what she had to say, I tried to jump into action immediately, and got the idea to whisk everyone there off to look for you, Princess." She bowed to Celestia. "I should have at least taken the time to meet the whole delegation, or at least make myself aware of who was here. She might have gotten desperate, or tried to take matters into her own hooves because she felt like she was left behind? All I was thinking of was raising the alarm."
Luna focused on her. "Taking what matters into her own hooves?"
"Yo." Corsica waved a lazy hoof. "I'm getting tired of explaining this, so it's going to be short: we're from the north. Ironridge, specifically. Things are getting bad up there, and we're here to petition our friendly southern neighbors for aid. We're not here to act suspicious, refuse to explain ourselves or damage any important weather shields, so I can't speak for whatever she was doing." Her hoof slowly found Starlight. "Also, you look kind of like the pony we're supposed to be looking for."
"I probably am," Starlight sighed, looking like she wanted to melt into a puddle. "Starlight? Starlight Glimmer? Famous little kid from the north whom ponies still seek out twenty years later to ask for advice on removing windigo infestations? That sound like the pony you're looking for?"
"Nice to meet you," Corsica said. "You look about as thrilled to be here as I am."
Starlight picked Twilight up in her telekinesis, earning an undignified squawk, and put her down between herself and Corsica. "Deal with this?"
"Hey!" Twilight protested. "I've been... ugh, Starlight!"
"It sounds as though you have enough need of our cooperation that you won't be wandering off," Luna said, taking the floor. "In that case, I would ask that you stay with Twilight Sparkle for the time being. I will wish to speak with you later about your friend, once she wakes up. But first, I have two questions. I assume you came to this room in company of everyone else here?" She nodded at Twilight, Celestia and the others.
"Yup." Corsica nodded.
Luna's eyes fixated on her. "Have you any other history with this room? Did you know aught of where it was or what it contained?"
Corsica blinked... then glanced at Aegis. "You mean that? The thing the dragons used to keep in their basement? Why don't you ask her?" She pointed a hoof at Seigetsu, who was quietly standing off to the side with her arms folded. "She told us a bunch about it. Also, we were there and helped them protect it from that centaur guy?" She narrowed her eyes at Seigetsu. "Actually, if you've been here all along, you wanna tell me what happened to Halcyon?"
Seigetsu adjusted her hat. "Your friend sought this room out the moment it appeared no one was watching. In the presence of an accomplice I hadn't seen before today, no less. And you apparently saw for yourself what happened when she was questioned about it. Understand that after that business with Yelvey, Snowport has lost its usual means of enforcing confidential contracts, meaning I now have to place an unusual amount of trust in you and your friends. My current assessment is that you've never been completely forthcoming about what it is you need Equestria's power for, felt that your mission to acquire it isn't going as smoothly as you'd like, and have started taking stock of your other options. I doubt Halcyon seriously intended to steal the Aegis, but she certainly knew we had sent it here and likely wanted to see for herself what manner of security it was protected by. What concerns me most is her alleged collaborator, who is a much greater unknown."
Corsica tensed. Had Halcyon been thinking that? Could Seigetsu be right? Sure, she left Halcyon behind and hadn't put in a single word for getting Twilight to wait for her, but that was because Halcyon kept leaving her behind, not explaining things, running off with mysterious zebras, never talking to her... so Halcyon had it coming, right?
Of course she did. But that still didn't mean she would understand if she got a dose of her own medicine.
Maybe she really had done something desperate and stupid.
"Well." Corsica composed herself and looked back at Luna. "That answer your question? I know a pretty decent amount about this thing. At least enough to know how valuable it is. And I knew it was in this city somewhere. But I've got no desire to mess with it. And all of you have something else I want more, so I've got a good reason to be on my best behavior. Sound reasonable?"
Princess Luna nodded. "All of you may go, except for Fluttershy. Twilight Sparkle, I trust this mare can rely on your hospitality for the time being?"
"Of course, Princess!" Twilight bowed.
"Except for me?" Fluttershy raised her head. "You mean because of that thing that came out of the dragon?"
Seigetsu cleared her throat. "That thing you speak of originated from Halcyon. I was there when it entered the Aegis. My impression is that she carried it down from the north much as you are carrying it right now."
"How can that be?" Fluttershy asked. "It definitely feels like it's related to my Element, or is even part of it somehow. But I'm the only one who can use the Element of Kindness. I'm not sure someone else could just do... whatever I'm doing right now with it."
"Perhaps that will be another question for Halcyon when she wakes up," Princess Celestia said. "I would like to talk with her myself, this time. Unless you can tell us anything about what that was, Corsica?"
Once again, all eyes were on Corsica.
"Not much," Corsica sighed. "She got it from some caves deep beneath Ironridge. It's some sort of spirit that used to live down there and 'regulate the laws of nature' or something. But now it's half dead because someone was misusing its power. It wanted to be brought to its champion. Which, apparently, is you." She nodded at Fluttershy.
Starlight's eyes widened. "A spirit from the caves? You don't mean a crystal palace?"
Corsica shrugged. "I never went down there. Ask the kid who's currently unconscious."
Luna's eyes narrowed. "This is a Flame of Harmony?"
"It feels like it's sleeping," Fluttershy reported. "But now that you've said all that, I'm certain you're right. This is related very closely to my Element. And I think it's hurt somehow."
Twilight glanced frantically between Starlight and Fluttershy. "Okay, so, apparently this is actually real and actually happening. What do we even do about that? Princesses?" She looked to Luna and Celestia. "Have you ever resolved something like this before?"
Celestia hesitated, then lowered her head. "...No. We have never revived an extinguished Flame of Harmony before. If such a thing can be done, it would need to be pioneered from scratch. However, you do have considerable resources at your disposal."
Twilight stared at Starlight.
"...Fine," Starlight sighed. "Let's go sit down in a more comfortable room with fewer important ponies, and I'll help brainstorm some ideas."
Twilight opened a door to a room lower down in the palace, where the crystals were brighter and there were plenty of windows to let the evening sun in. A whole suite of rooms stretched out before everyone, several individual bedchambers, bathrooms and amenities surrounding a cushy central room with three couches, a hearth, a kitchenette, a big table and even a fish tank built into the crystal. "Well, here's where we stay when we're up here," she said, nodding to Corsica. "Make yourself at home, I guess?"
Rainbow Dash immediately pressed a button on the wall next to the door. "Dunno about you girls, but I'm famished. Let's call in room service?"
"Room service?" Corsica raised an eyebrow. "That's a luxury I can get behind."
"Yeah." Rainbow pulled out a menu and passed it around. "You figure out what you want, write it down on something, leave it outside your door with payment, push the button to summon someone, and bam. Easy."
"Don't worry about the cost, though," Twilight said. "I draw a stipend for princess duties and research, so everything's covered by me."
Corsica took that as permission to flop on a couch. "Swanky. Get me whatever sounds good."
Eventually, Starlight took the spot opposite her.
"So..." Twilight slipped in next to Starlight. "That was eventful."
"You can say that again," Starlight said, folding her ears. "Listen. If you make the call that we should have anything to do with the north again, I'll... I'm not making that call myself."
Corsica raised an eyebrow. "Two decades later, and you're still that averse to getting mixed up with Ironridge politics again, huh?"
"It's not just Ironridge," Starlight said. "I saw your cutie mark. I'm guessing you know how it is."
Twilight perked up. "You did recognize that, up there. What's so special about it?"
"That's an artifice," Starlight told her. "My artifice." She turned to Corsica. "I don't know how you came by it, but I'm guessing you have some mixed feelings about what it does."
"You could say that." Corsica shrugged. "You want the truth? Halcyon came here with big, grand ideas of getting the ball rolling and helping to save Ironridge and stuff. I can't afford to care about that, beyond what I owe her as a friend when she needs me to stop her mission from going down in flames. I'm here because I heard you had this talent once before, and I wanted to find out how you were able to live with it."
Starlight laughed.
Corsica frowned. "Is that a good laugh, or a bad laugh?"
"Do you really want to know?" Starlight raised an eyebrow. "First, tell me how long you've had that and how often you use it."
Corsica hesitated. "Two and a half, going on three years now. And I use it more often than I'd like, but not enough as it sometimes feels I need to. Probably at least every other day."
Starlight shook her head. "I had it for less than a month. Before I figured out how it worked, I just suffered the consequences until my emotions got eaten by a sphinx for a quick-and-dirty reset. Then I just didn't use it at all, until I found a way to remove it."
Corsica gave her an owlish look. "Until you could get rid of it? After only a month? You had to have found a better way than that. I had it on good authority-"
"You want me to get rid of yours, too?" Starlight asked, perfectly serious. "I can take it away."
Corsica blinked.
"Starlight..." Twilight started.
"Wait, what are we talking about?" Rainbow asked, stepping back from the door after finishing the room service order. "I thought I heard someone say this is an artifice?"
She pointed at Corsica's flank. Everyone nodded.
"It turns hope into power," Starlight explained. "What form that power takes doesn't seem to be consistent. Originally, Garsheeva had it. Goddess of the Griffon Empire? She used it to manipulate cutie marks, change their powers or augment them and make them stronger. When I had it, it let me use magic without taking a toll on my body."
At Corsica's look, she blinked. "I had a defective horn as a kid. Long story. Anyway, I'm guessing it does something pretty substantial for you, along with some pretty severe mental side effects."
Slowly, Corsica nodded. "You could say that."
"Like what?" Rainbow pressed.
"I'm not looking for pity," Corsica insisted. "Just to learn how other ponies in this situation have lived with it."
"You have three options," Starlight explained. "Do what Garsheeva did, and find an external power source other than your own mind. Do what I did, and learn to live without it. Or, find your own way. I don't know which of those is worse."
Corsica raised an eyebrow. "You make it sound like the third is a distinct possibility."
"It always is," Starlight said. "That's the Artifice of Hope. To still be standing at all after almost three years with it, you must have a will made of steel. The kind of determination that can make a new path even where one doesn't exist. That's what I have, even without the artifice. When you look long enough and hard enough, finding a way isn't the problem. The problem is being satisfied with what's likely still a half-perfect outcome. Be honest with yourself, if you found me and I happened to possess a miracle solution, what were you planning on doing next?"
Corsica shrugged. "Probably taking a well-deserved nap. And then doing something about Halcyon. Maybe taking a more active role in this Flame of Harmony business."
"Then your struggles would never end," Starlight pointed out. "You'd be trading out one problem for a new one, or even several new ones. If your goal was to be at peace, you'd just be chasing your own tail in circles."
"Who said anything about being at peace?" Corsica pressed. "I don't wanna sit around, spending my life doing nothing but existing. Feels like I do enough of that already, when I overuse my talent and have no energy left for anything! I used to have so many ambitions, and I want to be free to feel them again! I want some agency in the world that doesn't just come from making wishes and hoping they'll be enough. Right now, living with this talent is like... trying to stamp out all my desires so I don't accidentally spend energy on them that I can't afford to spend. I don't want to part with this talent, even if you do still have a way to get rid of it, because that would mean sacrificing the most powerful means of achieving goals I've ever had. I just want to be able to let myself feel those goals again. To have something to strive for. I miss being able to give my all against a challenge, instead of knowing that whether I succeed or not depends only on how much I'm willing to give."
Starlight nodded. "Do you have a good life, then? Don't have to worry about where your next meal is coming from, or whether the next pony you'll meet will be a friend or foe?"
Corsica chuckled. "If I did, you really think I'd be here with an S.O.S. team from Ironridge? Whatever your experience was with politics up there, I can assure you it hasn't gotten better." She adjusted her legs beneath her. "I'm not interested in everything becoming magically perfect, though, or whatever. I just want to be able to give as good as I get. On my own merits."
"You make it sound like you'd be happy just being rid of the artifice," Starlight said. "But you realize that without it, you'd have that much less ability to actually achieve your goals."
Corsica's ears fell. "...Yeah, that's the part that gets me. I know how I feel about this now, but it'll feel different in each and every situation where I'd actually use my talent. Do you have any idea how many times I've used this to keep Halcyon alive?"
"Well, I was going to spell it out for you, but you just saved me the trouble." Starlight shook her head. "Anyway, if you do want to be rid of it, let me know. But in the meantime, don't we have a Flame of Harmony to worry about?"
"Yes, we kind of do," Twilight insisted. "And it's probably more than just a minor, trifling issue? What do we even do about that?"
Starlight sighed. "I'd need to know more about what happened to make it like this, but there are probably three different things that would need to happen. First, we'd have to revive the flame and restore its strength. Second, we'd have to get rid of whatever conditions did this to it in the first place. And, third, we take it home. The latter two involve going to Ironridge, which I think I've made my feelings on crystal clear by this point. But, I doubt I'm going to let myself off the hook for helping with the first."
"You got any ideas about how to do that, though?" Rainbow scratched the back of her head.
Starlight shrugged. "Gather as many things as we can that could potentially help all in one place, play it by ear and hope for the best?"
"I suppose we could start like that," Twilight began. "First off, we'll need the flame and Fluttershy, obviously. Getting all the Elements of Harmony together might help too, though our pendants themselves are preoccupied..."
"Pendants?" Corsica raised an eyebrow.
"Right. I suppose this would all be new to you," Twilight explained. "So the six Elements of Harmony kind of refer to a lot of different things. There's the concepts themselves. Then there are me and my friends, each of whom represents one of the concepts. Then there's a set of magical jewelry we use to focus the Elements' power, again one for each Element. And, finally, there are these Flames of Harmony, which Starlight is the expert on but apparently there's also one for each and they live in crystal palaces at the bottom of the world. With me so far?"
Corsica nodded.
"So you're thinking we get the six of us and all our jewelry together in one place," Rainbow said. "Problem: we haven't done that in a long time. See, there's this crystal tree in a ravine near our town that's pretty closely tied to the Elements, and this one time we had to give all the jewelry back to it to avert some calamity... and I kinda don't know what would happen if we tried taking the jewelry back out again."
"That tree is the tip of another crystal palace," Starlight explained. "And, speaking of, it would be a pretty good place to try doing this. I'll be helping, of course, but if we had another Flame of Harmony to lend us their power and their crucible, it would probably make for a good result."
"So you've just got another place like where Halcyon found this flame in your backyard?" Corsica asked. "That's convenient. How many of these are there, anyway? And do you know where the others are?"
"There's nine in total," Starlight explained. "Six for the Elements of Harmony, and three for what Yakyakistan calls the Societal Virtues, which aren't as well known here in Equestria. Three of them are in the north, one of which is out of the question because it's apparently broken. Two of them are far east of here. One of those is almost impossible to reach due to being deep under the ocean, the other I'm not setting hoof anywhere near for personal reasons. Two of them are far to the west of here. One is also broken and the other is in the middle of a war zone involving some dragons I think you've met. And then there are two to the south, one of which is also broken and really far away to boot, and the last being the easy one in Twilight's backyard. So we don't have a lot of better options."
Rainbow hesitantly lifted a hoof. "Hey, so I've always been meaning to ask... The Crystal Empire doesn't have one? Despite being super harmonic and made entirely of crystals?"
Starlight shook her head. "It doesn't, and I couldn't tell you why. Remember that I was, you know... busy when it first came back, and haven't really gotten the chance to properly look around? Or had reason to look around. I've been trying to have as little to do with this stuff as possible."
"You've never been to a broken one, right?" Twilight asked. "I don't suppose it's possible that the Crystal Empire is one that was broken so long ago, no one even remembers some tenth element that used to be here, is it?"
Starlight shrugged. "I guess I don't know."
"You might be onto something," Corsica pointed out. "I've seen a broken one, up in Ironridge. There was a huge earthquake, and then the crystals rose above the ground, turning into a gigantic spire so high you couldn't even make out the top. And if all the working crystal palaces are underground, then this one stands out for being a tower on the surface too."
Twilight rustled her wings in contemplation.
"Well, either way, if it's broken, it's not going to be much help to Fluttershy, right?" Rainbow suggested. "So I'm pretty sure the one in Ponyville is our best shot. I've always wanted to see what it's like down in a crystal palace, anyway!"
"I'm sure it'll have all sorts of scientific value," Twilight said. "I wonder how thoroughly explored it's been. Probably thoroughly, considering the Princesses used to have their castle built right on top of it. I can't imagine they did that without knowing what was there."
"Used to?" Corsica raised an eyebrow.
Rainbow Dash whistled. "Heh, yeah... uhh... I guess the north doesn't hear much about Equestrian history, does it? Basically, about a thousand years ago, Princess Luna went rogue and turned into a monster known as Nightmare Moon, and she and Celestia had a battle that completely destroyed their old castle. Eventually, Nightmare Moon lost and got banished to the moon for a thousand years, and Celestia built a new castle in the current capitol of Canterlot."
"This happened a thousand years ago," Corsica said. "And she got banished to the moon for a thousand years."
Twilight rubbed the back of her neck. "Well... yeah. That's actually how me and my friends became Equestria's heroes. Princess Luna kind of turned into a fairy tale over that much time, and when she returned not even four years ago, pretty much no one was ready. But, fortunately, we banished the Nightmare with the Elements of Harmony, and now she's good again."
"You say this like you weren't already famous for being an alicorn," Corsica pointed out.
Twilight blushed. "Oh, I wasn't always an alicorn. I was a normal unicorn back then. I guess you could say I got promoted?"
Corsica's eyes widened with interest. "How does that work?"
"It's a long story. Have you ever heard of Star Swirl the Bearded?" Twilight asked. "Equestria's most famous mage, patron saint of magic and one of its founding fathers? He lived about two thousand years ago, back when Equestria was being founded by refugees windigoes in the north? I'd imagine he would have at least some cultural relevance up there."
Corsica shrugged. "Couldn't tell you. I grew up in Icereach, which you've probably never heard of, but-"
Starlight sat up straighter. "Icereach?"
"Okay, you have heard of it," Corsica sighed. "Anyway, it's incredibly insular and tries to forbid a lot of knowledge about things that are religious, supernatural or historical in nature. Anything that doesn't relate to the grail of science. So, no. I haven't heard of him. Doesn't mean nobody knows him, though."
"Hold on," Starlight interrupted. "I'm sorry to change the topic, but... you didn't happen to get your artifice while you were in Icereach, did you?"
"I did." Corsica raised an eyebrow. "Why?"
"How did it happen?" Starlight pressed, looking slightly hesitant. "Did it involve, by any chance, a near-death experience?"
Corsica blinked. "I was buried in an avalanche and in a coma for weeks. It appeared while I was unconscious, and I came to right after. How'd you guess?"
Starlight looked bothered. Twilight blinked.
"You're thinking about Valey," Rainbow guessed.
"Yeah," Starlight said. "I'm guessing you have no clue what caused it to appear, then."
Corsica flicked an ear. "Nope. What's this about Valey, though? I know she's from Icereach, but she's a batpony. Batponies are born with their special talents, right? Did she get hers in an unusual way?"
Starlight nodded. "In a way that defies all the known rules of pretty much everything related to this. And getting a cutie mark while you're unconscious is both unheard of, and not all that different from what happened to her. I wonder..."
Twilight glanced at her after she trailed off. "Starlight?"
"Probably best not to speculate." Starlight shook her head. "I'm not looking for any more problems to solve than have already been deposited on my doorstep. I'll help you revive the flame, give you what advice I can, and that's it."
Corsica looked sideways at her. "I get that you had a rough time in the north, as a kid. But it's starting to feel like you've got more reasons than that not to want to go back for round two."
Starlight looked away.
"She has her reasons," Twilight apologized. "I'm still thinking about what to do, myself. Everything you told us seems pretty urgent, almost like the flame is the least of our worries. But don't worry. We'll figure something out that both protects your home and everyone involved can live with."
"A burnt-out Flame of Harmony is the least of your worries?" Starlight sagged. "Go on, then. I'm going to hear it eventually. Might as well tell me the full deal."
Corsica took a breath, hoping this would be the final time she had to explain all this. "Yakyakistan has been taken over by changelings, including their queen, Chrysalis, and is mounting an invasion of Ironridge for real, unlike when you were there. Ironridge has been taken over by a corporation run by windigoes who want Yakyakistan to invade, because they're hoping to use the war to break some seal imprisoning the majority of their kind. Your old friends have been fighting up there with everything they have to ensure those problems stay out of your hair, because apparently you just matter that much to them, but they're running out of ways they can stall and have started taking more desperate measures that so far may or may not have only succeeded because of my blessing."
She patted her special talent. "When I left, they had just taken over Ironridge from the windigoes via a coup. It involved some sacrifices that may or may not be reversible with proper help, but definitely shouldn't have been made in the first place. They need a lot of help. And I was told that you, despite no longer having this artifice, still have an ability just like I do to pull victory out of an impossible situation. I know it broke you before, and it's breaking me, but maybe if both of us were there we could do it together."
Starlight squeezed her eyes shut. "I guess that's one reason they never would have come back for me. Not the worst. Not the best, either."
"Dunno if this will help," Corsica said. "But one of them did come back for you. Does the name 'Maple' ring any bells?"
Starlight sat straight up.
"Guessing she never ran into you," Corsica said. "But the moment they got a writ to spare, she took it and went after you. Sounds like she never made it?"
Starlight mutely shook her head.
"Maple!?" Rainbow Dash banged a hoof on the couch armrest. "Come on, Starlight. If that's true, we've at least gotta find out what happened to her, right? What if she's still looking? Or what if she gave up and is living in some random town in Equestria right now? Going back to the north is one thing, but what about looking for your friends who are already here?"
"...Alright," Starlight said through gritted teeth. "Alright. The Flame of Harmony is urgent, so we go back to Ponyville and do that first. And we'll pick up my airship while we're there, because that'll make getting around much easier. And then we'll go try to track down Maple."
"How would we do that, though?" Twilight asked. "As a princess, I should be able to get access to just about any records anywhere, but following a trail this old... We might as well be starting from scratch. When did she come, anyway?"
"Don't remember." Corsica shook her head. "Probably not recently. I think it was before everything in Ironridge fell apart again."
"Do you at least know how or where she crossed?" Starlight asked. "The Aldenfold doesn't have many easy passes."
Again, Corsica shook her head. "Probably not in the east. The Griffon Empire's been a mess since everything collapsed. I'd guess she either took an airship from Ironridge, or went through Yakyakistan back when they were our allies. Where around here would an airship even go, anyway?"
Twilight rubbed her chin. "Beats me. Especially before the Crystal Empire returned. Maybe Snowport? The maps around here are surprisingly incomplete, since a place like that could be left off them..."
"Well, the dragons owe me a big one, if we need to go there again," Corsica said. "But our first trip there felt a little sketchy. And if Seigetsu has something against Halcyon... I doubt my word will be any good unless that gets smoothed over."
"That reminds me..." Twilight pulled out Halcyon's emerald mask. "I apparently have to figure out what this thing is, now." She gave Corsica a serious look. "Your friend isn't up to anything actually bad, is she? I'm not going to get bitten if I try to give her the benefit of the doubt, right?"
"Hard to vouch for her when I've gotten bitten as well," Corsica sighed. "Me and her have been at odds lately. But I've got a hunch that if you gave her that back with no questions asked, it might win her trust, maybe. A little."
"Can I see that?" Starlight asked, reaching a hoof out for the gem.
"Sure." Twilight passed it over.
Starlight frowned, holding it. "It almost reminds me of a Nightmare Module. This is data of some kind, housed within a prism of crystallized emotion."
"I should probably also mention," Corsica added. "If you break or damage that in any way, Halcyon will probably never, ever forgive you."
"That's not something you'd say about an experimental spell prototype," Twilight pointed out. "What do you know about what this is?"
"Less than I'd like," Corsica admitted. "Listen, I don't particularly like defending stuff about Halcyon that she doesn't even explain to her best friend. All I know is, take my word for it that that thing is extremely valuable and probably not dangerous. Giving it to me might be too much to ask for, but keep it safe."
Twilight looked at Corsica in concern. "You must have a pretty serious chip on your shoulder to be talking about a friend that way to ponies you've just met."
Corsica huffed, rolling over. "You can say that again."
"What happened?" Rainbow asked. "Crossing the Aldenfold is supposed to be some epic accomplishment for the awesomest of the awesome. Especially in a group. I'd have expected you to be thick as thieves."
"I think I've poured out enough of my heart in an effort to win ponies' trust for one day," Corsica said. "In case you didn't know, this special talent makes ponies dirt tired, and I've been past my limit for a while now. Let's get some food, you do something for me for a bit, and then I'll dump even more of my soul out on the floor. Sound good?"
"Actually, helping with relationship issues is kind of what I do," Twilight pointed out. "I could probably help you with this, too. Once your friend clears her name so I can talk to her too, at least. Assuming she's actually innocent."
Corsica grunted. "Yeah. Maybe."
"So, different topic," Rainbow said. "Since you sound so enthusiastic about that one, and all. How did you guys get over the mountains? Have you got an airship too, or something?"
"Sort of." Corsica shrugged. "Had to do an emergency landing in the mountains outside Sires Hollow when it ran out of fuel. If you've got a ship too, it would be nice to go check on it, maybe get some of our stuff."
"Well, if it's any sort of conventional fuel, I'm sure we could bring some to get it back up in the air," Twilight offered. "Although knowing northern airships, I'm going to hazard a guess that it's not..."
Corsica shrugged. "My best guess is it's tethered to the life force of a pony it got too far away from, but honestly, I've got no clue how it runs."
Twilight looked aghast. Rainbow looked intrigued. Starlight looked as if this was business as usual.
Before anyone could inquire further, a knock sounded at the door. "Room service for Princess Twilight?" a voice called.
"Yes!" Twilight jumped to her hooves. "That's our food! Coming!"
"Finally." Corsica rolled onto her back, relishing the thought of a real feast for once.
The door clicked as Twilight swung it open. "What the-?" She turned back around. "Rainbow? This is a ton of food. Did you really add on this much?"
"Oh yeah." Rainbow smirked, waving the food in with a wing. "You're paying for it, right? So I figured I'd totally wow that's a lot." She gaped as the banquet properly came into view. "Okay, I didn't order quite that much."
"Starlight?" Twilight glanced around as the porter saluted and walked away. "Corsica? Did either of you...?"
Corsica beheld the trolley. There were four ponies here, and yet the food looked like it had been prepared for ten.
She shrugged. So did Starlight.
Rainbow scratched her rump. "Well, I'm not complaining. Maybe the portions here are just that generous?"
"And fancy." Twilight frowned. "Some of this is way more upscale than anything I'd buy. I see my order here, but some of these extras look like they cost ten times what anyone but a Canterlot food critic would pay..."
"Yeah!" a new voice said. "Your order looked too small and too plain for the five of us, so I added those on. I hope I didn't get too little!"
There was a zebra standing in the corner of the room.
Rainbow gaped. "How long have you been here?"
Starlight frowned. "...Weren't you being held by Luna's guards up in that room earlier?"
The zebra shrugged. "They got bored, I guess. Anyway, I've been here since you were ordering the food. The name's Nanzanaya, and I'm Halcyon's ward! Since I'm officially under her hospitality, and you're her friend..." She pointed at Corsica, then at Twilight. "And you're under her hospitality, I figured I ought to come join you too. Especially when I'm still wanted by the authorities for that business upstairs. So, staying under the watchful eye of a Princess like you is just where I belong!"
Everyone stared at her. "Did you hear all of that?" Corsica accused. "Everything we were talking about?"
Nanzanaya pointed at the food. "It's not my fault if you all didn't notice me. Now, are we going to dig in? I've been traveling a long way to get here and am completely broke, and I'm ready to put your generous hospitality to use!"
Twilight's face fell as she looked across the exotic meals on the trolley. "First off, don't spy on a princess or sit in someone's room unannounced. Second, you'd better be paying me back for this. That was my research budget..."