//------------------------------// // Episode 6: Culture Shock // Story: The Equestrian Wind Mage Classic: Season 1 // by LordSiravant //------------------------------// Episode Six: Culture Shock Palace of Winds, above Ponyville… "Okay, let's go over this…one. More. Time." Vaati was currently surrounded by his ever-faithful entourage of palace monsters, most of whom were looking at him with varying degrees of confusion and lack of comprehension. Vaati could feel a migraine coming on as he attempted to explain the workings of Equestrian society and the ground rules for the third time that morning. "Listen. The ponies who live down there are not to be eaten. At all. Ever. No exceptions. Understand?" The group of monsters tentatively nodded their heads. "Good. Now, also, unless I say so, you are all to remain in the palace at all times, looking after the place. Is that understood as well?" The monsters all nodded their heads again. "Furthermore, it appears many of the animals inhabiting this world are sentient, meaning they can think like us. Those owned by any of the pony citizens are off-limits too. However, beyond the town lies an expansive forest full of vicious creatures of various sizes. All of them are fair game to hunt, but expect your prey to fight back. Manticores have lethal venom stocked in their tails and cockatrices can turn you to stone if you look into their eyes. And for the love of Din, don't aggravate the giant bears. They aren't worth it." The monsters nodded once more, almost appearing like a life-size assortment of novelty bobble heads. Vaati then looked to the congregation of Wizzrobes gathered at the far right. "As for you lot, I'm afraid you will not be 'collecting' books for me as you once did." The Wizzrobes collectively groaned. The one standing in front, who wore green robes signifying him as a Warrior Wizzrobe, crossed his arms and said, "And why is that, sir?" "As it so happens, Nigellas, the nearest library, down in the town, happens to be the home of my friend, Twilight Sparkle. For starters, I have already read every single book in her library, and therefore don't need any of you to pilfer them. The main reason, though, is because Twilight boasts an incredible amount of magical potential I have yet to fully comprehend the extent of." The Wizzrobe Nigellas cocked an unseen eyebrow at this, while the other Wizzrobes stared at Vaati with varying degrees of doubt. "She is also nearly, if not just as, obsessed with books and knowledge as you all are, and I would like to make a point of not drawing her ire." Several of the Wizzrobes resisted the urge to laugh in disbelief. Nigellas himself didn't look particularly convinced either. "I find myself doubting that a talking horse with a tattoo on her rear can be nearly as knowledgeable and book-savvy as us Wizzrobes." Vaati coughed and pointed his thumb off to the side. Nigellas and his fellows all glanced at where he was pointing and found said unicorn sitting on the floor by one of the many bookshelves, nearly two-thirds of the bookshelf's contents stacked around her as she avidly read a volume of the Hyrule Historia. She didn't seem to notice the group of Wizzrobes staring slack-jawed at her. Snapping his fingers to catch their attention again, Vaati asked, "Any more questions?" "…" "Excellent. Now Nigellas, there is one thing you can do for me." "Uh…yes, sir?" "On the outskirts of the town is an apple farm. Bring back some apple seeds and plant them in the palace garden. Don't let Applejack catch you." "It will be done, milord," Nigellas answered, saluting before teleporting away. With that out of the way, Vaati turned his attention back towards the rest of his minions. One of the Moblins was busy picking his nose. "Stop that, it's disgusting," Vaati ordered. Caught in the act, the Moblin pulled his finger out and snorted, accidentally flinging a nasty loogie into the shoulder pad of a Darknut with black armor and cape and a horned helmet. The Black Knight looked at the offending globule, then back at the sniffing Moblin. The last thing that Moblin felt before abruptly blacking out was an armored fist crashing into his face. With the Moblin unconscious, the Black Knight fished out a kerchief from his breastplate and wiped the booger off, flinging the dirtied cloth onto the offender's face. "Could you not do that in the middle of a meeting?" Vaati tiredly scolded. The Black Knight only grumbled in response before returning to his place alongside his fellow Darknuts. "So, does everyone finally understand what to do?" Vaati asked. After a few moments, all the monsters finally nodded, eliciting a sigh of relief from Vaati. "Good. Now get this place fully cleaned up. I want everything back where it was before, tapestries, suits of armor, everything. Hop to it, boys." The monsters dispersed to attend to their assignments, leaving Vaati on his own. The sorcerer walked over to where Twilight was reading. She was so engrossed in her book that she didn't notice him looming over her from behind. Looking over her shoulder, Vaati could see that she was currently in the middle of the section regarding the Hyrulean War Against Majora. Her eyes were wide with horrified fascination as she continued to take in the information. "By this time, untold millions had died in the demon raids. Scholars today still do not know the exact number of casualties suffered, but it is generally believed that, by the time the surviving races had finally organized under the leadership of Her Grace and the First Warrior, Hyrule's population was reduced to a quarter of what it once was. Nevertheless, the forces gathered would be enough to finally resist the might of Majora…" "A fascinating subject, history," Vaati spoke, startling Twilight. "An endless epic of lessons learned, mistakes repeated…and lives lost." Twilight put a hoof to her chest to calm her pounding heart. "Vaati, you startled me! That wasn't funny!" "My aim wasn't humor," Vaati replied. "I take it you were familiarizing yourself with the single most cataclysmic event in our history?" Her breathing resuming an even rhythm, Twilight sighed, choosing her words carefully. "I…uh, yeah. I remember some of the things you told me about Majora, and…what he was capable of…but, to actually read detailed accounts of what he had done…all the lives he took, the families he ruined, the curses his servants spread…it's just…it's terrifying to think about. You were right; not even Discord was this cruel. A-and the fact that Majora tried to destroy the entire world just so he could boast about it to the other gods…I feel bad that your world suffered such a terrible tragedy." Vaati looked away solemnly. "Hyrule is not a happy place, Twilight. Its history is rife with war and conflict. Sure, there are golden ages, but they never last, for ancient, evil powers will always return to cut them short and yet again usher in a time of darkness." Twilight gulped nervously. "You were one of those…powers, weren't you?" Vaati gave a humorless chuckle. "I pride myself with being far more benign compared to fiends like Ganon, though I do admit I was no more popular among the populace than he. I just kidnapped maidens to provide me company for the most part, though my first time around I really did try to take over Hyrule. Almost succeeded too. But the power got to my head and I completely lost it. It wasn't until I did some honest thinking that I was able to break out of my power craze. That's when I retired and accidentally brought myself here." Twilight looked down at the book. "It's hard to imagine, though…that such a place exists. So much war and violence and so little peace." Vaati scoffed bitterly. "Oh, it gets better as it goes on. Demons weren't the only thing they fought. There have been numerous sectarian conflicts and civil wars that further stain the lands red with the blood of the innocent. The Goron-Zora War, the Hylian War of Unification, the Hylian Conquest, the Labrynnian Invasion, the list goes on. That's not even including the Imprisoning War when Ganondorf first appeared." The sheer number of wars that could be fought in one world was mind-shattering to Twilight. "W-we've only had a few wars in the entire history of Equestria, but none of them were like this. The Pegasus-Unicorn-Earth Pony feud ended after Equestria was founded. The only true wars we had were the Griffon-Pony War and the Sombratic War, neither of which I know much about." "At least you all got over your racism. Hylians certainly haven't." Twilight's ears momentarily flattened against the side of her head as she heard this. "Call it a day, Twilight," Vaati suggested. "The more you read, the worse it gets. I don't want to bring you home a blubbering wreck. I doubt Pinkie would let me hear the end of it." Twilight managed to chuckle a bit before closing the book and telekinetically returning them all to their proper places on the shelves. Vaati decided not to wonder aloud why she didn't do that in her own library and folded his arms. "Other than that, are you enjoying yourself?" "Well, now that I think about it, I was too caught up with reading your books to really investigate the rest of this place," Twilight admitted. "I want to see the whole palace, but I'll admit…" At this, Twilight glanced at the recovering Moblin who was dazedly picking itself up off the floor and rubbing its nose, resolving to find the Black Knight and exact unholy vengeance upon the Darknut commander. "Your monsters kind of make me nervous." "I wouldn't worry about them," Vaati answered dismissively. "The Darknuts and Wizzrobes are my most intelligent monsters and understand my orders. They'll make sure to keep the Moblins in line." "What are they all going to eat, though?" Twilight inquired. "They look like carnivores, and ponies don't eat meat." "I told them they can go hunting in the Everfree Forest. I assume that manticores, parasprites, and cockatrices are fair game, right?" "Well, yeah but…" The more Twilight thought about it, though, she realized most of those monsters looked perfectly capable of bringing down manticores. Putting that uncomfortable thought aside, Twilight then said, "Also, before we head back to town, there's…uh, something I want to ask you." Vaati quirked an eyebrow. "Oh?" Twilight suddenly appeared very timid, unsure of whether or not it was a good idea to ask him her question. He was briefly reminded of Fluttershy. "Come on, Twilight," Vaati spoke slightly impatiently, "spit it out." Twilight took a deep breath. "Ok, uh…Vaati, my friends, a-and some other ponies…um, w-wanted to see the palace too. I-I was hoping you'd, uh, l-let them." Vaati frowned. "If I didn't already know that you have no concept of humor I'd think you were trying to be funny." "But…they really want to see it," Twilight pleaded, looking up at Vaati with big, watery eyes. Vaati stared silently at her for several moments. "Please stop looking at me like that." "…" "I said stop it." "…" "Twilight…" "…" "Please…I can't take it!" "…" "Alright, fine! You win! I'll let them come." Twilight clapped her hooves in joy. "Oh, this is going to be so great!" "BUT," Vaati interrupted sternly. "You must make sure that they all behave. My monsters may be loyal to me and will follow my orders, but I cannot guarantee your well-being if any of you start harassing them. They're not used to this kind of attention and aren't very adept at social interactions. Have I made myself clear?" Twilight hastily nodded. "Good," Vaati replied. "Now let's get you back down to the surface. I suspect Spike is starting to get lonely." Twilight rolled her eyes in amusement as Vaati led her outside the palace onto the magic cloud that kept the magnificent structure aloft. At the very edge of the cloud was a floating platform made of stone with various ornate markings matching those of the inner palace. Shortly after bringing the palace to Ponyville two days ago, Vaati had rigged this slab of stone with the same anti-gravitational magic used to direct floating platforms in many of Hyrule's infamous temple dungeons. The platform had been rigged to ferry passengers between the town square of Ponyville and the Palace of Winds. Many of the townsponies still had a habit of looking up at the looming structure every so often. Thus, several townsfolk watched as the platform containing the sorcerer and Twilight descended into the middle of the town, the librarian disembarking while Vaati stayed on. "I'll have everypony ready by noon tomorrow," Twilight said. "That'll give you time to prepare your minions for our arrival." Vaati nodded in agreement. "I'll remember that. Good day to you, Twilight." "Bye, Vaati!" As Vaati directed the platform back up to the palace, Twilight trotted back to the library. She opened the door and, to her surprise, found all of her friends waiting for her. "Ah, there you are, Twilight!" Rarity greeted. "Hey, girls," Twilight responded. "What're you all doing here?" "We all wanna know what Vaati said!" Rainbow Dash answered, hovering in the air as usual. "So, did he say yes?" Twilight nodded. "Oh boy oh boy oh boy!" Pinkie Pie squealed, overjoyed as she bounced up and down hyperactively. "I can't wait to see his big ol' palace and all those monsters and then I can throw them a Welcome-to-Ponyville party and-!" "However, he has some conditions," Twilight interrupted, prompting Pinkie to cut her behavior short. "First of all, he wants us to behave. The Palace of Winds is huge. It's got enough rooms to house a small army. Because of that, Vaati said we need to stick close to each other. We can't get lost, because Vaati doesn't really want to have to round any of us up if we get lost. Secondly, he wants us to leave the monsters alone." "Aww," Pinkie moaned. "The reason for this is that his monsters are all warriors. All that they've ever known is fighting, warfare, and protecting the palace from intruders. Our society is as alien to them as theirs is to us. They aren't used to this kind of attention, and it may provoke them if we aren't careful." "But Vaati said he'd keep his varmints on a leash," Applejack pointed out tersely. "Even so, he specifically said that he can't guarantee our safety if we provoke or antagonize any of his monsters. He may be their boss and he may have ordered them to be civil around us, but they'll retaliate if they feel threatened. Pinkie, that means no parties or trying to make friends with them. They won't understand what you're doing and they won't like it." Pinkie Pie pouted a little bit, but soon relented. She may have been hyperactive about making friends and all that, but she could understand if someone wasn't comfortable with the idea of friends. But it was something she knew a few weeks in Ponyville couldn't fix, so she still found a reason to smile. "Now that we know that, I want to make the rules very specific for each of you," Twilight said, indicating each of her friends. "Rainbow Dash, keep your ego under control. The monsters probably won't think very highly of you at first glance, so don't try to pick a fight with any of them." Rainbow Dash grumbled a little and crossed her front legs. "Pinkie Pie, no throwing parties, no pestering the monsters. Got it?" Pinkie nodded. "Rarity, Vaati likes his palace the way it is. No suggesting alternate decorations. And please, no commenting on the monsters' attire if you think it's unfashionable. They don't care." Rarity's expression was a mix of emotions ranging from confusion to disappointment. "Fluttershy, stick close to everypony. I really don't want you getting lost in the palace with all those monsters about, okay?" Fluttershy timidly nodded, still unsure whether she wanted to go or not. "And Applejack, don't let your pride get the better of you. A lot of these monsters are vain by nature." Applejack 'harumph'ed audibly. "So does everyone understand what to do?" The rest of the Mane Six nodded. At that moment, Spike made his presence known, having finished cleaning the library. "Hey, can I come too, Twi?" he asked hopefully. "No, Spike," Twilight answered sternly. "First of all, I need you to keep an eye on the library in case somepony comes to check out a book. Second of all, I don't quite trust Vaati's monsters enough just yet to not eat you on sight. Vaati never mentioned baby dragons to them." Spike gulped and shrank back behind Rarity, as if afraid that one of these aforementioned monsters might suddenly burst into the library and gobble him up. "Okay, Vaati said that he'll take us up there at noon tomorrow on that floating platform. Has anypony else expressed interest in going?" "I'm glad you asked," came a male voice with a distinct Braytish accent from behind. Twilight jumped in shock before turning around and seeing who it was. Three ponies had just entered the library as well: the mint-green unicorn musician Lyra Heartstrings, the cross-eyed mailmare pegasus Derpy Hooves, and the town clock-maker and eccentric inventor Doctor Time-Turner Whooves. "Oh, hello Doctor," Twilight greeted. "Nice to see you. Derpy, Lyra." "Hi, Twilight!" Derpy greeted happily, waving a hoof. "We'd all like to go too," Lyra stated with a dreamy smile. "Finally I can get close to Vaati and see a little bit of what his world is like." Twilight chuckled, remembering Lyra's fascination with humans. Up until Vaati had arrived, everypony thought her research and stories were hogwash. Well, at least everypony except Whooves of course, who kept his reasons a secret that only few knew. "Ah yes," Whooves chuckled. "You and your fascination with humans. Right then, I would also like to inform you that Mayor Mare intends to come too. I'm rather excited. Aren't you all excited?" "I haven't been this excited since we got chased by those weird bug-lizard things back on that volcanic planet!" Derpy exclaimed, eliciting looks of confusion from the Mane Six. Doctor Whooves chuckled nervously. "Ah haha, Derpy, I thought we agreed never to talk about that," he said, grinning weakly as his eyes darted around. "Oops, sorry!" Derpy responded, motioning at her mouth like she was zipping it shut. Twilight raised an eyebrow. She knew the doctor was strange, and she had heard some rumors that there was more to him than it seemed, but then she remembered what Celestia had said to Vaati when he had first come here. Traveling between worlds took more power than what both princesses together had. Then again, that raised the question of how Vaati was able to manage it in the first place. Has the Doctor been to other worlds before? Twilight thought to herself. I should ask him later. "So I take it Mr. Vaati plans to take us all up there noon tomorrow?" Whooves asked, returning to the subject at hand. Twilight nodded. "Mhm. He also doesn't want anypony to get lost in the palace or bother his monsters." Whooves raised a curious eyebrow. "Monsters, you say?" "Yeah. Vaati has these monsters that guard and help look after his palace." Whooves rubbed his chin with his hoof. "How intriguing! I'm looking forward to seeing these creatures in person!" Whooves turned around to leave. "Allons-y, girls! See you tomorrow, Twilight!" Lyra and Derpy followed the doctor out. "Great, now we got the resident mad scientist and village klutz along for the ride too," Rainbow groaned. "Everything will be fine, Rainbow," Twilight said. "However, one thing does interest me." "Uh…what?" Applejack asked. "What Derpy said about her and the Doctor being chased by monsters on another world…I can't help but wonder…have they gone to alternate worlds too? I wonder if they ever went to Vaati's?" "Derpy Hooves hasn't ever been completely, ehrm, right in the head, so to speak," Rarity said. "I wouldn't pay much attention to her bizarre stories, or Time-Turner's, for that matter." Twilight decided to dwell on that later. Right now she needed to prepare for what was sure to be an eventful day tomorrow. XXXXXX Palace of Winds… Most of the palace decorations had been returned to their proper places by now. The Moblins and Darknuts had put the suits of armor back together, and now they lined the main hall as they did once before. Poes, Wizzrobes, and Wallmasters were hard at work hanging the tapestries back up. Vaati smiled to himself as he supervised his henchmen's handiwork. Now this place was truly feeling like his home again. Since those infernal teenage dragons had had only enough time to hoard all the valuables on the ground floor, returning them to their proper places was talking a lot less time than it could have. Soon it was all done, and Vaati took a moment to bask in the blessed familiarity of his home before beckoning his monsters over. "Gentlemen, you've done a splendid job," Vaati congratulated. "Now this place feels like a home again. The reason I've called you over is because I have an announcement to make. Tomorrow, we're going to have guests. Several of the more prominent residents of Ponyville have expressed their wishes to see the palace for themselves." "Something tells me you didn't say no," Nigellas spoke flatly. Vaati shot the head Wizzrobe a look before continuing. "Listen up. I intend to make a good impression on them. That means you need to make a good impression on them as well. Don't go out of your way to make yourselves appear intimidating, don't harass them, just go about your business, and don't eat them." "They're bloody talking ponies," the Black Knight huffed. "They look like something out of a Hylian children's book. They're not worth the Darknuts' time." The other Darknuts nodded their heads and mumbled in agreement. "As long as those unicorns don't try to tell us that they think they're better than us Wizzrobes," Nigellas warned, "then whatever." "Nigellas, make sure you and your cohorts keep a lid on your egos," Vaati ordered. "Some of them have their own to match." Nigellas folded his arms and grumbled incoherently like he usually did whenever he disapproved of something. "Tasty horses better not bother us," one Moblin grunted. "Asking you a question or two will not be considered harassing," Vaati warned. "So don't get angry just because one of them said hi or something, got it?" The Moblin growled in discontent but nodded in agreement. "Alright, everyone," Vaati spoke. "Rest up. I want everything to be perfect tomorrow, so be on your best behavior or I kick you off the palace roof. And yes, it's a long way down." With that, the monsters dispersed to await tomorrow in their own ways. XXXXXX The next day, noon… The Mane Six, Doctor Whooves, Mayor Mare, Lyra, and Derpy all stood in the town square, waiting for the floating platform to reach the town to take them all up to the Palace of Winds. After a few minutes, they could all see the platform descending slowly towards them until it finally came to a rest at their hooves. "Alright, everypony," Twilight bade. "Hop on." The lift couldn't fit them all, but since Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Derpy were all pegasi, they all just flew alongside the platform, allowing enough room for the others to get on. "How fascinating!" Whooves remarked with a laugh, looking over the side as they slowly ascended further up into the sky. "I haven't seen this kind of magic before! Although I must say, Vaati could learn to invest a little in guardrails." Everypony made sure to not make any sudden movements so that they wouldn't accidentally fall off. Whooves definitely had a point; a guardrail wouldn't make this a problem. The minutes ticked away as they got closer to the awaiting palace. Looking up, the gathered ponies finally began to appreciate just how large the Palace of Winds really was. Soon its towering spires blotted out the sun, leaving them in the darkness of the palace's imposing shadow. None of them save Twilight, who had already been here twice before, could help feeling somewhat intimidated by the impressive structure as they finally reached the large magic cloud upon which the palace's foundations lay. Having reached their destination, they all disembarked, stepping onto the soft cloud. After all, it could hold up a palace; surely it could hold up Earth ponies. Indeed it did, and Doctor Whooves laughed in exhilaration. "Blimey, this is spectacular! In all my lives…uh, life, excuse me…I've never experienced walking on a cloud, of all things! Ha, Equestria is such a wonderful place!" They all looked up at the palace gate, which was closed. A strange eye-like design was painted onto the front door. Before any of them could think on that, the outer doors slowly began to creak open. Twilight rolled her eyes. Vaati and his flair for dramatics, she mused to herself. Soon the doors swung all the way open, revealing Vaati standing calmly at the threshold. "Ah, you have arrived," he greeted with his trademark smug grin. "Welcome, my esteemed guests, to the Palace of Winds!" Raising an arm, the sorcerer beckoned the ponies into his magnificent home. As they all entered, they all took in their surroundings and their jaws dropped in awe. The many tapestries, paintings, and suits of armor gave the place a royal feel, as if a king lived there rather than a sorcerer. Several expressions of 'ooh', 'ahh', and 'cool' emanated from the guests as they marveled at the foreign architecture presented before them. Vaati snapped his fingers and summoned some scrolls. "Now, these here are maps of the palace so that you don't get lost," he informed them, opening one up as an example. "Explore at your leisure. However, you will likely come across several of my servants during your exploration. Do not provoke them, do not antagonize them, do not try to hold a long conversation with them. They have business to attend to at this time, so do not bother them. Understood?" The group of ponies nodded, eliciting another smirk from Vaati. "Good. Now take one and do whatever you wish. But do not make me regret bringing you here, or you will regret coming here." The sorcerer then strode off to who-knows-where. "Alright then! We'll split into groups!" Twilight said. "Rarity, Fluttershy, you're with me. Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, you'll be together." "Yes, mother," Rainbow grumbled, disliking being ordered around. In truth, Rainbow Dash wanted to explore the palace on her own. That way, she could feel like she was on an adventure in some abandoned temple looking for a long-lost treasure. Whoa, where did that come from? Rainbow suddenly wondered to herself, catching where her thoughts had been going. "Come on, y'all," Applejack said, motioning to Pinkie and Rainbow. "I guess that means we're our own group then," Whooves mused as the Mane Six dispersed. "Right, then. Allons-y!" XXXXXX Applejack's Group, 1F, West Wing... Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie all heard a strange noise as they entered a particular room. It was another hall, with gaping holes lining the walls. The curious (and also frightening) thing was that huge metal balls were flying across the hall from hole to hole all the way to the other end of the room, where a door led to somewhere else. "Heavens to Betsy, what in tarnation is this?!" Applejack exclaimed. "It's a dungeon trap!" Pinkie explained. Rainbow and Applejack looked at her, prepared to question the source of that knowledge, and found Pinkie holding a note in her hoof. "Pinkie, where did you get that note?" Rainbow asked. Pinkie pointed to the wall right beside her. "Right here! It's from Vaati. It says, "This is one of my dungeon traps to waylay intruders. I left it on so you could get the full experience of what it is like to live in this palace. I don't recommend you flying through it, Rainbow Dash. There's nothing exciting on the other side." Rainbow glared at the trap as Pinkie giggled at the fact that Vaati knew Rainbow would have thought about doing just that. She turned around... And found herself face-to-face with a Poe. "BOO!" it screeched, waving its lantern threateningly. Rainbow and Applejack promptly screamed like fillies and held onto one another in terror. The Poe cackled madly at their reaction; these mortals were just too easy. Suddenly though, it heard someone else laughing with it. The Poe abruptly stopped and realized that the pink pony was laughing hysterically as if it had just told some sort of joke. Then she started making faces at it. Mocking it. "Haha, you looks so funny!" Pinkie said. "Where's your face? Why're you carrying a lantern?" The Poe just stared at her. I-it laughed at me... Completely shocked that one of these pastel freaks of nature had laughed at it, the Poe abruptly disappeared, its self-confidence vanishing with it. The moment it was gone, Pinkie turned back to her friends. "Don't ya remember, girls?" she asked, grinning. "Always giggle at the ghosties!" From where Vaati was observing them via invisible Eye Sentries following each group, he couldn't decide whether he should laugh at the absurdity or be offended that Pinkie was able to humiliate one of his monsters so easily. XXXXXX Dr. Whooves's group, 2F, West Wing... "I have to say, this is quite an extravagant place," Mayor Mare observed. "I do wish there was more variety in the stain-glass windows though. That same eye design gets boring after awhile." "I think it's an intriguing design," Whooves answered. "I wonder what it's supposed to signify, though. Usually stained-glass windows depict events in history or religious figures. I somewhat doubt it's either. Maybe Vaati's family emblem, perhaps?" "You know what I think is weird?" Derpy spoke up, scrunching up her face in thought. "This palace is Vaati's home, but Vaati never said he was a king. How'd he get such a fancy place to live in?" "Perhaps he inherited it from a rich relative," Whooves suggested. "What with the monsters, though, it's also possible he may have taken it by force. Rather frightening to think about, really." "Mm, I guess," Derpy replied. Meanwhile, Lyra was eagerly examining the suits of armor lining the current room they were in, her eyes aglow with excitement. It was like a dream come true for her, being able to see a part of what the humans' mysterious culture was like. As she was about to run her hoof over the shiny metal surface of a particularly large suit with a strange, vertically-crested helm, she suddenly heard it speak. "Don't touch me." Lyra yelped and jumped back, catching her companions' attention. It was then that they realized this suit of armor was bigger than the others for a reason. It was one of Vaati's monsters. "W-what are you?" Lyra nervously asked. "A-are you a...human?" There was a moment of silence, as if the creature was thinking about whether or not it would bother to answer. "No. I am a Darknut in service to Lord Vaati. I am assigned to guard this spot for reasons that are not yours to know. Now begone, your presence irks me." The Mayor huffed in annoyance at such rude behavior. "A 'Darknut', you say?" Whooves asked. "What a curious name for a creature." The Darknut shifted its position ever so slightly, calling attention to the truly massive broadsword clasped in its hands, its left arm protected by a round, broad shield. "Do you mean to mock my people, equine?" it snarled in a dangerous tone. "Uh, Doctor, I think we should go," Derpy nervously suggested. Realizing he had inadvertently offended this creature, Whooves held up a hoof in surrender. "Sorry, mate. Didn't mean to insult you or anything. We'll just be off now." The Darknut's gaze bore into their backs until they were well out of its sight. "Hoo, close call!" Whooves breathed. "Too serious, that one." "Lyra, if you feel the need to touch something out of the ordinary," the Mayor chastised, "don't." Lyra sheepishly looked away. "Sorry about..." That was when she saw the large hand crawling across the floor a short distance away from her. Though most other people would have immediately taken notice of its zombified status, the only thing on Lyra's mind was: hand! "Oh! Oh! Come here!" Lyra enthusiastically cried, galloping after the Floormaster while the others called out to her. Seeing an overeager mint-green unicorn bearing down on it, the Floormaster did the first thing that popped into its pseudo-mind: run like heck. Taking off down the corridor, the Floormaster attempted to escape its technicolor pursuer, but Lyra was persistent. "W-wait! Come back!" she cried as she ran, disappearing around the corner. "Lyra! Get back here!" Derpy yelled. "Lyra!" Whooves yelled. No response. Lyra did not emerge from beyond the corner. "Lyra?" the Mayor called out, worried. After a few moments of silence, they could hear a faint yelling that sounded almost like Lyra! Before they could rush to her aid, they saw Lyra round the corner, galloping as fast as she could. Behind her were some twenty-odd Floormasters in hot pursuit. Whooves's eyes were as wide as dinner plates. "Oh, bollocks." "Ruuuuuun!" Derpy screamed. Screaming in terror, the four ponies made a run for it, with the horde of zombie hands chasing relentlessly after them. "This is like Planet Char all over again!" Derpy cried. "I thought we agreed not to mention that!" Whooves yelled back. XXXXXX Twilight's group, 3F, East Wing... Twilight and her group seemed to have entered a new room. Its opulence was a minor degree below the rest for some reason. The room was round, and seemingly jutted out from the main body of the palace; they had likely entered one of the larger towers. There were no furniture or decorations of any kind. The windows were normal, not stained-glass, allowing an observer an unobstructed view of the surface world. The floor was carpeted purple, with a golden trimming resembling a more detailed version of Vaati's eye symbol in the very center of the room. "This is where it happened," came Vaati's unexpected voice. The ponies jumped in surprise before calming down and regarding the sorcerer as he entered the room. "Hey, Vaati," Twilight greeted before blinking in realization. "Wait, where what happened?" Vaati smiled wanly. "This is where I was when I got sent to Equestria. This is the very room I battled the Hero of Legend for the last time. And this...is what sent me here." The mage held up an arrow for them to see. It was relatively smaller than the average arrow, being meant for a shortbow. The arrowhead was cracked. "Darling, that's just an ordinary arrow," Rarity pointed out. Vaati shook his head. "It is now, but not when the Hero was using it. When this arrow was used against me, it was empowered by pure light magic, which has since left it. Funny the way the universe works sometimes, isn't it?" It was at this moment that Nigellas the Wizzrobe felt the need to teleport into the room. "Ah, sire. We have a problem." Twilight winced as Vaati's teeth clenched. "I was afraid of this," he mumbled before addressing Nigellas. "What happened?" "The group of four ponies are being chased around by all the Floormasters in the west wing of the floor below us," Nigellas answered. "And the blue member of the other group has gotten belligerent with one of the Moblins." Vaati groaned and rubbed his forehead in irritation. "Guuhh, this is just what I need. I told everyone to behave!" Before Twilight could offer her help, Vaati teleported away, leaving the three of them alone with Nigellas. For several minutes, heavy silence reigned. "How many books do you read a week, pony?" the Wizzrobe abruptly asked. "Uh...between twenty to thirty," Twilight answered cautiously. "Why?" "...Tell me what you know about the application of magic in determining how to properly boost the maturing process of large plants." XXXXXX Applejack's group... Vaati appeared to a most peculiar scene. Applejack was holding Rainbow Dash by the tail as the pegasus vehemently attempted to get her hooves close enough to the Moblin's face to cave it in while Pinkie tried, of course, to make friends with it. The hulking creature regarded them all with disdain. "Weakling little chicken horse," the Moblin spat. "You're no match for me!" "Who're you callin' chicken?!" Rainbow shot back. "Come over here 'n say that to my face, you ugly mule!" The Moblin grinned. "I'd love to. You look tasty." "What is going on here?!" Vaati demanded, having heard enough. The Moblin stood up perfectly straight at its master's presence. Seeing the mage, Rainbow quit trying to pile-drive the Moblin, allowing Applejack to release her hold on her friend's tail. "We were just headin' down this corridor, mindin' our own business, and then we see this guy," she said, pointing a hoof towards the Moblin. "Ah don't quite blame her 'cuz this varmint's ugly as a warthog's rump, but when Rainbow saw him she couldn't keep her big mouth shut. It kinda got worse from there." The Moblin growled in offense but stayed where it was. Vaati looked down at the still-steaming pegasus. "Rainbow Dash, I told you to keep your ego in check, didn't I?" "Yeah, but-!" "But nothing! Keep it under control, and you!" Vaati pointed at the Moblin, who flinched. "Don't even think about eating ponies again, you hear?!" The Moblin quickly nodded its head before Vaati returned his attention to the ponies. "At six o'clock I'm sending you all home. Be back at the entrance of the palace by that time." Vaati then teleported over to the near vicinity of the Floormaster stampede, just around the corner of where they were due to appear. Shortly Whooves, Derpy, Mayor Mare, and Lyra rounded the corner and ran past the sorcerer. "Stampede!" Derpy cried. Vaati rolled his eyes as the Floormasters appeared as well. The whole group stopped in their tracks when they saw Vaati in their path. "This chase is over," the sorcerer commanded. "Back to your hiding spots! Go on, now! Off with you!" The Floormasters immediately scattered and followed their orders, disappearing back the way they came. Realizing the monsters were no longer chasing them, the four ponies stopped running and approached the sorcerer. "Thanks for that!" Whooves said. "What a mess that was!" "Who started it?" Vaati gruffly asked. Lyra hesitantly came forward, hanging her head in shame. "I-I did, sir…I saw those hands, and…I just couldn't help myself! Everything about humans has always been fascinating to me." "You would do well to curb your enthusiasm, then," Vaati replied. "I specifically said not to antagonize the monsters." "Yes, we do have somewhat of a bad habit of doing just that," Whooves sheepishly mumbled. "Yes well, make it not a habit," Vaati sourly replied. "Also, be back at the entrance by six o'clock. I trust you can do that without messing up?" "Of course!" Derpy cheerfully assured, somehow not really convincing the sorcerer. Vaati just turned on his heel and strode off. XXXXXX Twilight's Group, former Boss Room, 3F… Rarity and Fluttershy looked on as Twilight engaged in a lengthy discussion with the Wizzrobe Nigellas about magical theory and the property differences between their two worlds. Informative though it might have been, Rarity didn't really want to listen to them talk non-stop about things she honestly didn't care much about. "Ah, Twilight?" Rarity asked. "Shouldn't we be getting a move on?" "Go on ahead, girls," Twilight answered. "I think I'm gonna be here a while. So anyways, when we want to cast magic, we just focus our essence through our horns and…" Rarity stopped paying attention to their conversation and motioned for Fluttershy to follow her. The two ponies traipsed through the many halls and rooms, occasionally passing by a Moblin. Rarity had to exert all of her willpower not to comment on the grisly appearance of the pig monsters. On the other hand, though, the palace was perfect in her eyes. Vaati certainly did have a knack for fashion and style, though the mage would never admit it out loud. She really couldn't see any ways she could improve it. Fluttershy kept very close to her, especially when the Moblins appeared. Those beasts were terrifying. And then Rarity saw it. Slowly approaching them from the other end of the hall was a tall, heavily-armored figure. Its armor was charcoal black, and trimmed with gold patterns and runes in a foreign language Rarity couldn't begin to even guess the meaning of. A black cloak flowed from its back down to its knees, the bottom trimmed with a similar gold pattern. Its helmet was roughly cylindrical, with two horns curving over the top. What could be seen of the face revealed a somewhat dog-like creature, though it had a rather short snout. In one hand was a tremendous broadsword that broadened at the end to resemble almost an axe head; in the other was a round, broad shield. Both sword and shield matched the color scheme and designs on the creature's armor. The creature seemed to pay them no mind as it came closer. Examining the Darknut's finely-crafted armor, Rarity could not stop herself. "Excuse me, sir," she called, trotting up to the Black Knight. Fluttershy hid behind Rarity as the Black Knight stopped and regarded them both with scrutinizing eyes. "What?" it gruffly replied in a dark, rough voice. "My name is Rarity, good sir knight, and I must say your armor is absolutely gorgeous!" The Black Knight had admittedly not expected that response. "Gorgeous?" "Why, absolutely! It looks positively magnificent! The color! The trimmings! Whoever crafted it has a skilled hoof…or hand, in your case." Flattery. That was something Darknuts were not accustomed to. Fear gripped the other races at the mere mention of Darknuts, and the other monster tribes didn't really have a true concept of beauty. Faced with such praise, the Black Knight could not help but preen. "We Darknuts pride ourselves on our metalworking skills," he replied. "It is as honorable a profession as a warrior's. No other race can boast of finer." "I would have to agree," Rarity said. "It's positively radiant! It's obvious you take good care of it!" "Indeed, for a Darknut's armor is his soul. Irreplaceable. It is what protects us in battle. Weak armor is useless, so we must look after it with all our hearts." "I can admire such dedication. Oh, forgive me, how rude! I never caught your name, sir knight." "I am called the Black Knight," the Darknut introduced. "I am the leader of the cadre of Darknuts that aids in the defense of this palace. But…my true name is Maulgrim." Rarity curtsied. "A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Sir Maulgrim. And this here is my friend, Fluttershy." Fluttershy managed to squeak out a barely-audible, "H-h-hello." Rarity smiled. "You'll have to forgive her. She's rather shy around new people. But please, tell us more about your esteemed people, Sir Maulgrim. Such fine armor certainly boasts of a rich culture." Overwhelmed by such generosity, Maulgrim spoke of his people for the first time to outsiders. XXXXXX When six o'clock finally struck, and Celestia began to lower the sun so Luna could usher in the night, Vaati stood by the entrance to the palace, awaiting his guests. Dr. Whooves's group arrived first, talking amongst themselves as Lyra held up their map. A few minutes later, Applejack's group came next, with Rainbow Dash actually walking for once, shaking profusely as if she had seen a ghost. Vaati smirked in amusement; Rainbow had wandered off from Applejack's group and nearly had a heart attack when she encountered a Stalfos. The undead creature had only laughed as Rainbow promptly ran for her life. Vaati chose not to comment as they waited for Twilight's group. A few moments went by, and then Vaati saw Twilight approaching, only she wasn't with the rest of the Mane Six. She was currently holding an intellectual conversation with Nigellas as they walked to the rendezvous point. Vaati raised an eyebrow. It seemed Nigellas had taken a shine to Twilight after all. Shortly afterward Rarity and Fluttershy arrived last, who, to Vaati's immense surprise, were conversing with the Black Knight, of all people. Clearing his throat to get their attention, Vaati said, "Alright then. I trust you all had an…interesting experience?" "You bet!" Pinkie chirped. The others nodded in agreement. Vaati looked over at Rarity and Maulgrim. "So it seems some friendships were forged after all, eh?" he asked with a knowing smirk. "Then it seems this event wasn't a waste. Anyhow, it's time to go, ladies and gentleponies." "Actually, it's fillies and gentlecolts, darling," Rarity politely corrected. "Horses! Whatever," Vaati retorted. Rarity looked up at her newest friend. "Well, I'm afraid we'll have to go our separate ways for now," she said. Maulgrim looked somewhat sheepish. "You…will return though?" Rarity smiled. "Of course I will, darling. You have so much more to tell me, after all. Good day, Sir Maulgrim." Maulgrim bowed his head. "Good day…Lady Rarity." "I'll try to come back as soon as I can," Twilight said to Nigellas. "There's so much to discuss still!" "I truly look forward to it," Nigellas answered, tipping his wizard's hat. "Until then…good day." "Bye, Nigellas!" Twilight waved as the group of ponies exited the palace to return home. Vaati, Nigellas, and Maulgrim watched them board the lift and descend out of view, back towards the town. "Friendship isn't something you expect in life, is it?" Vaati asked, his minions nodding in agreement. XXXXXX Dear Princess Celestia, I would like to inform you that the meeting between my monsters and the Ponyvillians has gone smoothly. To my surprise, though, I found that unexpected friendship have started to form. It's rather interesting, seeing my minions learn these lessons for themselves, but I find that I am happy for them. Friendship is a truly unpredictable thing. Just like magic. Sincerely, Vaati After Vaati had finished his letter, he summoned one of his Eye Sentries and handed it the folded letter. "Take this to Princess Celestia in Canterlot," he ordered. The creature squeaked as it grasped the letter by its barely-visible talons and took off out the open window. Vaati watched the sentry fly towards the distant spires of Canterlot, and smiled in contentment.