Chapter 2: A Child in the Crystal Empire
Princess Celestia must have something important to ask Cadence and I to come to Canterlot. It's a shame that we had to interrupt a honeymoon, but I suppose that's the problem with being a prince. Royal duty comes first and foremost, just as family does. After all, she's my aunt-in-law. Whatever this kid is, it must be pretty weird if it needs a seasoned caretaker for it. Let's hope that it's not as weird as I think it is...
As I make my way for the chamber, I notice a conspicuous amount of fruit crates being loaded into the boxcar behind me. I suppose it might be on Celestia's orders. Can't exactly fault her logic; She wants to make sure that the baby has food, after all. Although, the amount in question is kind of suspect. I'm sure there's plenty of food back in the Crystal Kingdom, so why load more? I guess the baby may not be able to eat food meant for Crystal Ponies, so it might be good to at least have a backup in case.
Naturally, the guards salute me, calling me by Captain, rather than Prince. It must be something they're doing out of respect, but I don't quite mind. It's hard to forget being a soldier, especially being a captain. I guess it must be harder for ponies to forget somepony like me. I salute back and go on my way.
Princesses – or rather, Aunts Celestia and Luna – greet me as I smile and bow towards them during my entrance to the throne room. In the middle of the two thrones, there's a cradle, where a pair of strange appendages are reaching out, some noises not unlike those of a foal ringing out.
“Ah, Shining Armor! I was wondering when you might come,” Celestia chuckles, flicking her horn upward to shut the doors behind me. “I apologize if this seems to be short-notice.”
I shake my head and smile formally.
“It's nothing, Princess. I know it must be of great importance if you've asked my wife and I for assistance.”
“You can call me Aunt, you know,” Celestia chuckles curtly.
“I know, Celestia. It's a force of habit,” I reply, approaching them closer to exchange hugs. “So what exactly is so off about this baby that you needed our help, anyway?”
Her smile shortens as he directs one of her hooves to the cradle. I drift my sight to where she's pointing, and what I see is quite strange.
From what it looks like, it's some kind of strange, ape-like thing, only smaller. It doesn't have a lot of hair, except for a little brown tuft on the top of his head. His eyes gleam like emeralds as it extends a hand to reach for my horn. I don't know why he's adamant on taking a hold of it, but – Whoa! Well, for such a little tyke, he's certainly got a tight grip. I'm not sure if a baby this young is supposed to be this strong, but that's the grip of a champion right there. Maybe if he gets a little older, I might teach him how to use a sword.
“I don't know exactly how he ended up here, Shining Armor. All that I know is he was left outside the royal gates last afternoon without even a note as to who it originally belonged to. I can't look after both him and my kingdom, and while I'm certain I could hold my nursemaids to a vow of secrecy on this matter, I feel that they may not be entirely qualified to deal with an infant this foreign as Cadence should be.”
So she really does think Cadence may be best for this kind of task. But, it does raise the obvious question.
“But what about Cadence? She and I have our own kingdom to run, after all. Are you one of your nursemaids isn't able to care for him?”
“I know the Nursemaids may be better suited to care of him here, but Canterlot is only a few leagues away from Ponyville and other adjacent towns. If one of them let the secret of this creature's existence out, it could spread like wildfire, and believe me when I say that we don't want the tabloids to discover somepony is harboring a very strange child on order of the Princess of the Sun.”
I would comment further on that, but she's got a good point. This... person, as far as I understand it, is all but alien to this world. If there does exist another, we haven't heard of it for perhaps the same reason we haven't told anypony else. If somepony managed to discover this, then there could be an uproar. Then again, most Equestrians are fairly open-minded folk, the incidents with the Zebra and Buffalo tribes aside. Either way, I suppose it would be in the child's best interest that we keep him safe.
“So while Cadence and I keep watch over him, what are you aiming to do?” I ask.
“In the interim, I aim to perform research about this creature. If not I, then perhaps Twilight may be able to learn this creature's origins, and perhaps we may find out if there are any more of his kind out in the world, and perhaps see if we can see him to his proper home. Until we are able to ascertain this much, he is to remain in your care. Am I making myself clear?”
I nod, smiling calmly.
“I understand, Princess. I will protect this life with my own until he is ready to stake his claim in the world, as many a pony has. Cadence and I shall pass on the lessons we have learned, and show him the wonders of the Crystal Kingdom.” I say, bowing my head.
“Are you sure he should go out into the world, Shining? Nopony in Equestria, as far as my knowledge goes, has ever seen a creature like this. Would it be safe to expose them to it?” she asks, a look of worry over her muzzle.
“I believe it may perhaps be better for him to slowly reveal himself than for us to make a public revelation of his existence. This way, they can slowly learn of him and become more accepting as time grows on. If he is the last of his kind, a good first impression is paramount to his survival.”
Celestia lowers her head in thought, then nods to me.
“I understand, nephew. Do what you must to prepare him. I have dubbed him Lance Petal, and I bequeath him to you in the hope that you can keep him safe and ready to face the trials of the world. Until Twilight and I are able to find any information on his ilk, he is your responsibility.”
I once again bow, as I take the cradle up in my magic.
“Understood. I won't fail you.”
With that, my aunt dismisses me, and I make my way back for the train, the cradle floating as I look to the baby with a smile.
“Lance Petal... I can only bet you'll grow up to be just like me...”
**
Hey again, guys. It's me, Lance! It's been a while. I think Auntie Cadence told me it's been about Five Years. She says that's a long time. It didn't feel all that long to me. I can't remember a thing from that far back. I just remember a big white pony and a smaller blue one. I think that must have been Cele...Cellu....Celly... Celestia! That's a hard name to say. Brr! I forgot to mention, it's really cold here. And I'm naked. I dunno why, but Uncle Shiny wanted me to do this. He says he's naked too, but why's he wearing a scarf? Maybe I should ask him.
“Uncle Shiny?”
“Yes, Lance?”
“Why do I have to stand naked outside again?”
“Well, usually, most ponies here don't wear clothes. You're probably the only one in the world who does on a normal basis. Well, that, and the upper class kinds of ponies up in Canterlot. Plus, you need to be able to get used to the cold weather. See, ponies have fur to keep them warm most of the time, so clothes aren't always needed. You don't have much but skin. So, it's better to help you adjust without wearing clothes for a little bit they don't become a crutch for you.”
“If you say so...”
A few Crystal Ponies pass by and giggle at me while I put my hands over my wee wee. I don't know why I am, but I just don't feel right showing it. At least the sun's out. All I can hear around me is the wind blowing, and the ringing of bells. Then, I hear a bang as a door opens up from behind me.
“Shiny! Lance! Time for breakfast!” Auntie Cadence yells from behind as she wraps a towel around me, bringing me to her.
“I swear, Shining Armor. It's almost like you're trying to make him into a jaybird. I know ponies don't usually wear clothes, but Lance isn't a pony.”
“Then what am I?” I ask.
“You're special. So special, we can only call you by your name.”
She always says that whenever I ask that. I keep asking her what I am, and she never says anything else. It keeps making me think...
What am I?
Cadence made pancakes with butter and syrup today. She always makes some of the best breakfast. Is as she always says: she puts her love into every last bite! As I eat, I start wiping the snow off my feet. They're so cold right now. I'm scared they're gonna freeze!
“Why don't you go upstairs and get dressed, sweetheart? It must have been cold out there.” she asks.
“Okay!”
I dash up the stairs to my bedroom like a jaybird and close the door behind me.
This room isn't as warm as it is downstairs, but it sure is pretty. Everything's all crystal-y and stuff. I've got a big, soft bed with blue sheets, a nice big window, a big window, a desk, a big box full of toys, and all sorts of things! The dresser's made from some stuff called quartz. It's tiny, light green, and it's got some weird things scratched into it. I go inside it to get some underwear and pants. They're both nice and white. Hoof-made, too. After those are on, I run to my closet to get a nice, red shirt. Uncle calls it a polo. Whatever that means.
Once I'm all dressed up, I go back down where Uncle Shiny is waiting for me.
“Well, that was fast,” he says with a smile. “Are you sure you're not forgetting something?”
He points his hoof at his teeth.
After a moment, I go back upstairs to the bathroom and go to brush my teeth. After all, I have to look pres... presser.... presentable! It takes me a little bit, but at least now, my teeth are nice and shiny.
Now that I've done all that, I head back down and give my uncle my best smile.
“Attaboy! That's what I like to see!”
Uncle smiles back at me as I start to walk outside with him.
“Remember, once you get out today, we're headed to the stadium to practice.”
“Practice? What kind of practice?”
“You'll find out once I come to pick you up.”
I don't really get Uncle Shiny, sometimes. He's so strange, a lot of the time. I know he's a good guy, and I think I've learned a lot of good things from him, but the way he teaches me stuff is so weird, sometimes. Who else would try and make someone more used to the cold by making them stand naked in the snow?
Maybe it'll all make sense when I'm older.
The empire's lovely this morning. Everything's made from crystals here. The houses, the lights, even the big heart we're passing by. I hear it's there to keep meanies like King Sombra from coming back. I don't know who he is, but I've heard a lot of nasty things about him. Whenever I ask anypony, they get a little scared.
The school's pretty small. It's a nice, blue thing made out of something called Sapphire. At least, that's what my teacher told me. Her name's Quartz Core. At least I think it's a her. It's kinda hard to tell. I sit in the middle, with everypony else around me. Even with everypony around me, I still feel kind of lonely.
Is it because I’m so special?
The teacher comes in before I can try and say hello to anypony.
“All right, dears! Today’s going to be a short class, but we’ll be talking about a very special mineral.”
Ms. Quartz takes out a bunch of shiny rocks, most of them some kind of green.
“This, class, is a mineral called jade. It’s a rather famous gem, both for being beautiful and for being very useful. In lands far east from Equestria, this gem wasn’t just used for jewelry, but it was used to make armor and weapons to help in battle. It’s one of the hardest gems known to ponies, and one of the easiest to work with, so it can be used for almost anything!”
The teacher begins to pass out different pieces of jade for us to look at.
“Most jade is usually green, but it can also be violet, white, and even blue!”
The ponies pass around the jade to each other, but they’re all passing it around me.
Why would they not want me to see it?
“Hey, can I see it when you get done, please?” I ask, hopeful.
Even though I ask nicely, the ponies around me still seem unsure about it. They give me weird looks, and then look back at each other. And just like that, my question just gets ignored.
I just don’t get it. They’re fine passing it to other ponies, but not to me. But why are they? Do they think I’m weird? Am I weird? I ask again, but I get the same answer; Weird looks and nothing else. After about the third or fourth time, I feel ready to give up and lay my head down.
But, just as I start to do that, a hoof holds me up.
“What’s wrong, Lance?”
Oh, it’s Sparkling Spring. She’s been my friend for a long time. She’s as clear and as sparkling as the fountain near the castle, and just as pretty, too. She’s blue like the sky, with deep, purple eyes that look like the prettiest gems I’ve ever seen. She’s like a diamond, inside and out. Even her horn shimmers like a jewel.
“Nopony will let me see the jade, Spring. I feel kind of left out…”
For a moment, she doesn’t say anything, but then I see her smile as she ducks under her desk to get something out of her saddlebag. I try and bend over to see what it is, but I can’t see anything. I try again, but now she’s hidden something behind her back, her horn shining with a light hum.
“Close your eyes.” she says, beaming a smile to me.
I don’t really know where she’s going with this, but I listen to her, anyway. I feel a tugging on my hand as something’s dropped into it. It feels small, but when my fingers start to feel around it, it’s also kind of soft. When I start to try and figure out what it is, Spring giggles.
”You can open your eyes now.”
I open my eyes, and in my hand is a necklace with a small jade crystal inside it. It looked like it was hoof-made, and as I held it up to the light, it shined a cool light that made my heart feel lighter.
“My mother gave it to me when I was just a foal,” She chirps, holding my hoof for a moment. “I want you to have it.”
“Me? But why give it to me?”
She giggles again, smiling as she looks me right in the eyes.
“Because nopony should ever have to feel left out. Not even you, Lance.”
My smile begins to grow even bigger as I put the necklace on, hearing it jingle as it slips onto my neck.
“Thank you, Spring. I’ll take it wherever I go.”
The rest of class seems to blur on by. All I can think about is this necklace.
Nopony should have to feel left out. Not even you.
Did she really mean that? Even though I was probably the weirdest… thing there, she wanted to make sure I got to have a piece of jade, since nopony else wanted to share with me. I wasn’t even a pony, but she still treated me nicely.
Before I know it, I hear the bell ring, and it isn’t until then I start to catch up with the rest of the world. I start to pick up my things and walk out to the front door, but suddenly, I get a big hug from Spring before I see the outside.
Before I can even talk again, she runs off, and all I can hear is her shouting, “You’re welcome!”
I can’t find anything to say or do in response but to watch her run home. I just stand as stiff as a tree until Uncle Shiny gets my attention again.
Today will be a day that stays with me forever.
***
“Come on, Lance! You can’t just swing wildly!”
I hear my uncle calling to me, but his voice is lost in the wind. My eyes are covered by a black blindfold. I find myself turning about, my ears twitching as I try and hear hoof beats. I have a staff in my hands made from bamboo.
“Remind me again why I’m doing this blindfolded?”
I hear a chuckle to my left.
“There may be times where you find it too dark for you to see. During those times, you’ll have to rely on your other senses to tell you where it your opponent might be. Your sense of hearing is perhaps one of the most useful of them, second only to your sense of smell.”
I nod, and keep listening, my feet spacing apart as another gust of wind masks my uncle’s beats again. Even though I’ve come to grow quite a lot in these last five years, Uncle Shiny still has a way to outmatch me when it comes to fighting close up. I keep on my toes, my feet dancing about as I keep my staff at the ready.
Then, in a moment, I hear the distinct sound of a hoof scraping against dirt. It’s right behind me! My body seems to jerk as my staff swings from my arm, my legs fanning out as a distinct thud sounds in the air. All goes silent, save for the settling of dust and the spring breeze.
My staff had only connected with ground.
I can’t celebrate too soon; another scraping noise comes from my left as I pull back on my pole, spinning it in my hands as I thrust it near the source. My only is the rush of wind as it swings about.
For a moment, I concede, my staff staying still in my hands as I focus on purely the sound itself. Time seems to slow as I feel the sound circling me like a hurricane. The winds stop howling, and all that I hear is just that one sound. In this instant, I feel at peace, my staff trembling in my hands as I begin to let it spin again, before eventually bringing myself into motion, fanning its length outward as I hear a new sound. Not a thud, nor a bang, but something of a poof. I also hear a groan of pain as I lift away my headband.
“Good shot, kid,” my uncle tells me, wincing as I see a red flushing on his barrel. “You got a nice, clean hit on me. Although you could have held back just a little. We’re only training, after all.”
“I’m sorry, uncle. I guess I just got caught in the moment.”
Uncle places a hoof upon my shoulder and smiles.
“Don’t worry about it, Lance – the important thing is that you were able to focus. You focused on the sounds around you, and used it to guide your strikes. That focus is what will get you through the academy. You’ll need to be able to hone your mind and your body to be as sharp as your weapon if you want to really excel.”
There he goes again, preaching about the academy. I won’t deny, while it’s fun to be able to hang out with him like this, I feel like he’s pushing me to do this. I know he’s the Captain of the
Canterlot Royal Guard, but I’m just a kid. Am I really old enough to fight?
“You won’t be going into official training just yet, though. You’re not old enough.”
I stare at him with a blank face. “So what has all this training and exercise been for?”
Suddenly, Shining Armor beams a smile to me.
“Why, it’s to get you in shape for the Colt Scouts, of course! A good knight doesn’t just know how to fight. He also knows how to work with other knights, how to survive in the wilderness, and a how to be a just and noble man. The Scouts teach all this, and more.”
Part of me wants to be excited, but another isn’t sure what to think. Nervous? Yeah, that seems like a good feeling right now. I’ve never gotten to see a lot of the world outside the Crystal Empire, so maybe this would be a good time for me. Then again, Sombra might still be out there. I know most ponies say he’s gone for good, but I can’t take my chances. Besides, there are all kinds of bad things out there, like Ursa Minors and timber wolves! Am I really going to be able to deal with one if they come up?
What am I saying? I’ve been taught by the Captain of the Guard how to fight! If push comes to shove, I can rely on my wits!
I’m not sure if that’ll be a good thing.