"Hey! Let go of me this instance!" he complained as Celestia held him in her magic grasp, "I demand the right of a proper fall to my death!" To the side, the paladin gave off a deep breath of relief... and startled herself, why had his jump for the windows shocked her so much?
"Why do you value your own life so little?" Celestia asked with a motherly voice.
"I would rather die than spend another thousand years alone!" he snarled at her and once more tried to struggle in her grasp.
"Another thousand years?" Celestia asked with surprise, "What do you mean by that?"
He blinked at her, realizing what he had just said. For a moment he simply started at her, but then, "Nope... gotta jump out that window!" he started to make swimming motions in her hold, "I'm not going back to that dungeon!"
"We have yet to decide on that matter..." Celestia said, "Now please hold still while my sister and I try to assess your case."
For a moment he did not understand what they intended, but the second he felt the slight tug on his mind he understood. They were trying to see into his mind... This would not do. Not while he still carried his title. He closed his eyes and concentrated. He wouldn't be able to keep them out by force, but maybe he would be able to distract them enough so they would lose their focus.
Unknown to the paladin, a battle of minds was about to take place.
---
"This is... certainly unexpected." Luna looked around herself puzzled. Upon entering the necromancer's mind, she and her sister had found themselves in a seemingly endless, empty and white space. "Do you think this is a defensive mechanism?"
"It would seem so, let us be careful. I do not wish to run into any unexpected tr..." her words were cut off as she turned around and walked face-first into a wooden door.
"Where did this come from?" Luna asked as Celestia rubbed her nose, "It certainly wasn't here a moment... Look!" she called out with excitement, "There's a little sign on it."
Celestia did a double check on the door. Just like her sister had said, there was a little sign attached to the door. Blank at first, letters suddenly started to appear on the sign, "Thought I wasn't there before? Suddenly door!" the words hovered there for a moment before disappearing again. New letters started to appear, "I'm a door."
Luna raised an eyebrow, "Is he mocking us? Does he really think such a little barrier could hold us out?" she started to pull on the door with her magic. To her surprise, the door didn't budge. Luna let an irritated snort escape her nose before trying to open it again, "Why... can't I open it? Nothing should possess that kind of willpower!"
Celestia observed her for a moment, "Wait for a moment, Luna." she stepped up to the door and inspected it carefully, "Amazing..." she whispered.
"What?"
"You have been fighting yourself..." Celestia replied with the tiniest of smiles, "The door is powered by your own magic... So this is the art of leeching."
On the sign, new words appeared, "No it's not. Try to open it again, it'll totally work!"
"He mocks us!" Luna's magic flared up in anger, but Celestia calmed her.
"Stay calm... Concentrate... cut him off from your magic first. Then we shall try again."
"Oh boy... Can't we talk about this?"
"I am afraid we need to see this for ourselves to be sure." Celestia replied, "Sister, are you ready?"
Luna gave the door a sinister look, "I am."
Both of them charged up their magic and pulled on the door. For a moment it hesitated, but then it gave way, opening to reveal... nothing. There was nothing behind it, it led nowhere. To all observers, it was nothing more than an open door standing in endless white plain. New letters started to appear on the door, "Wrong door... try again."
Luna was about to slam the door shut in frustration when her sister stopped her, "Look closer... do not let yourself be fooled so easily. Look up there, at the top of the door frame."
Luna squinted her eyes, making out dozens of tiny rings fixed to the top board of the frame. Beneath them, little folds ran through the white. "What are..." she stopped as she recognized what she was looking at, "Those are curtains! It's nothing more than a simple trick!"
"Very good, now let us see what a mind such as his looks like." Celestia said with a smile as she grabbed the curtain and pulled it aside with an quick motion. Behind the curtains, an old stallion sat in a bathtub. The moment he saw them he gave off a surprised shriek, "Enough with the illusions..." Celestia muttered with a stern voice as she stepped through the door, closely followed by her blushing sister.
When they had stepped through the door, the two alicorns found themselves in a dark void. All around them pictures and small windows with moving images swirled past. Memories, thoughts... everything a mind could hold was present. Celestia grabbed one of the windows and pulled it close, looking into the memory it held. "Let us see now, who we are dealing with..."
The two alicorns watched as the memory came to life. There was the castle, they could see everything from his point of view. How he walked down one of the hallways.. how he had approached the doors leading to the room... how the necromancer came running around a corner and straight towards him and... The two sisters took a startled step back.
"What in the world?" Celestia asked with surprise, "How could he see himself? That's not possible..." her face deadpanned, "Luna..." she said with a quiet voice.
"Yes, sister?"
"Do you realize where we are?"
"Even though I cannot explain myself how this could have happened... it seems we are in the mind of one of our guards..."
---
The paladin watched in surprise as both the princesses and the necromancer opened their eyes again. While the two alicorns seemed slightly angered, he wore the biggest grin she had ever seen. "Alright!" he put his hands behind his head, "First round goes to me. What do you say? Two out of three?" he looked at Luna, "You're pretty easily fooled for someone who is said to be so wise..."
"You still mock us?" Luna said with anger in her voice.
"When it comes to sheer force you are pretty powerful, I'll give you that. But that's about it. You do realize, that I can send you around a grand tour of all the castle guards' minds?"
Celestia took a step towards him and looked him in the eyes, "Why are you keeping us out of your mind? We only wish to see if you are a threat to this world or not. If anything, your acts only make it seem more likely that you are guilty of the crimes the paladin's order accuses you of."
He gave her a contemplating look, "We humans really don't like it when others mess with our heads. So... no. Not going to happen. My magic will stay my magic. Now please, do me a favor and just chuck me out that window."
Celestia narrowed her eyes, "We are not killing you!" she thought for a moment, "What if you lead us?"
He raised an eyebrow, "What?"
"We will let you lead us through your memories. That way, your magical knowledge will remain safe, and we can see for ourselves if you are a threat or not."
He gave a laugh, "And what, dear princess would I have to show you?"
"Everything concerning Calindria, her order and their hunt for you. Also, the events leading to your appearance here as well as everything from that point on." he seemed about to protest, "Or... we can stay here and continue to play these games until we find a way around your defenses. And I believe we have more time than you do."
"You would be surprised..." He seemed to contemplate her words before letting out a sigh, "Very well, but nothing else."
The three of them closed their eyes again and concentrated once more. This time, the two alicorns found themselves in another place. All around them, a seemingly endless amount of images whirled around like a whirlwind. The mind of the guard was nothing compared to the sheer volume of memories and knowledge in this place. "Let us see..." they could hear his voice, "Where do I begin..."
---
When the three of them opened their eyes again the paladin was more than eager to find out what they had learned. "So?" she asked with suspense, "What did you find out?"
Celestia put the necromancer down with a small smile, "For one, he is innocent of your accusations." the paladin's mouth fell open, "And there is something very interesting concerning you..." the necromancer gave her a worried look. She turned to the paladin, "Did you know that he saved your life?"
"What?!" the paladin asked with a baffled face before turning to the necromancer.
"I don't know what they're talking about... you're probably just seeing things..." he tried to act uninterested.
"When the portal spell you disrupted grabbed a hold of the both of you, he used a main part of his magic to ensure your safety. Without his help, you would have been lost." she turned to necromancer, "That was very kind of you."
He gave them a disapproving look, he had hoped that this detail would pass their attention. He saw the paladin's unbelieving face, "Don't look at me like that... I didn't do anything."
"You saved my life?" the paladin watched him with wonder, "Why did you..."
"You know what?" he crossed his arms, "I just made up my mind..." he turned to the window, "I'm gonna jump anyway."