Shadows of the Sun

by theamberfox


Chapter 6

Shadows of the Sun
By theamberfox

Chapter 6

“Are you ready to go, Twilight?” Catherine asked, poking her head through the door and glancing around.

She wasn’t wearing the helmet she had the day before and her now visible, short orange mane accented her light blue eyes. It was combed back across her head, a common military style that I recognized from the soldiers at home.

“Almost, just give me a minute.” I replied, stuffing everything on the desk into my bag. “I want to make sure that I have everything I need.”

“You really don’t need anything.” she shrugged, her eyes following me as I dashed around the room. “The mills are just outside the city walls.”

‘The mills’, as they liked to call them, were a series of windmills and the largest grain processing facility in the country. Nearly every grain farmer in the area took his crop to the mills to have it processed. It was something the government of Prance had done to help the local farmers. By centralizing the refining process, efficiency was increased, cost was decreased and everyone was happier because of it. At least that’s what I learned from the books in the library.

“I still can’t believe you learned how to read our language in a single night.” she continued with a rather shocked look on her face. “I’ve never met anyone that could do something like that.”

“I spent my entire life reading books, Catherine.” I said, stopping to smile and wink at her, “Although sometimes I wish I had left the house more often, it’s a skill that really comes in handy.”

“Well I completely understand why they only needed to send you.”

“They?” I asked, giving her a strange look. “Celestia was the only one who had anything to do with this adventure.”

“Oh, right. I guess I just forgot… Ready to go?” she asked, quickly changing the subject.

“Yeah, let’s go.” I answered, starting for the door across the room. “How far is it?”

“Not far. It takes about twenty minutes.” she replied, propping the door open with her hoof while I walked through.

I had to squint to avoid blinding myself as I stepped out of the library and into the tower’s foyer. The brightly lit room was a sharp contrast to the dim lighting in the library. With all the amenities in such a close vicinity and Daniel coming in to check on me and ask what I wanted for meals, I had comfortably spent the last twenty hours in that room. In a way, Pierre was right, it was so similar to my home in Ponyville that, if it weren’t for the dire situation I was in, I would have nearly forgotten that I had ever left.

“Miss Sparkle! It is a pleasure to see you finally leave the library after all this time.” Daniel exclaimed, positively beaming at me. “I suspect you have much to accomplish today?”

“Uh… yes.” I smiled back. “I’m going to the mills.”

“But of course! It is a wonderful place to explore…” he said, pausing for a moment before continuing in a lower tone. “…and to learn.

“But I won’t keep you a moment longer, Miss Sparkle. I will leave you to our fair Catherine’s protection. Enjoy your visit and I shall see you when you return.”

“You really are too much, Daniel.” Catherine said, smiling and chuckling quietly to herself.

“I am a gentlecolt.” he replied sternly, “It is my duty to be respectful and courteous whenever possible.”

“Right. Well as much as I’d like to stick around and receive complements from you, we really need to get going. I’ll see you around.”

He nodded slowly, “Of course.”

“Bye Daniel.” I smiled as I followed Catherine to the massive doors leading out of the black tower.

Daniel was an interesting pony. He was right, he was a true gentlecolt, but that was exactly the problem I had with him. He acted like a member of the nobility, a scientist and a scholar and unlike any soldier I’d ever met. I would have placed his interesting nature on the conditioning of the strange society I now resided in, but the other guards we’re all so very like the ones at home. I wanted to know why he was different, but I just didn’t have the time.

Once again, I stepped out into an even brighter area, the tower’s garden, and again I had to squint to avoid blinding myself in the intense light. The sky above was a brilliant blue, with hardly a single cloud. A pleasant breeze rolled through the courtyard and moved the flowers like waves on water. It was a beautiful day to be outside and, if only for a moment, I let my concerns slide away from the unfortunate condition at home.

Prance really was a gorgeous country and whatever they were doing to keep the drought at bay was working extraordinarily well. The inhabitants were blissfully moving about the city, wandering in and out of the many shops that lined its streets. ‘The Pointed Needle’, ‘Marie’s Café’, ‘Jacque’s Fine Furniture’, all my work had made every sign perfectly legible. Although I still lacked the knowledge to understand their spoken language, my new awareness would help considerably.

Making our way out of the busy streets and towards the same gate I had entered through only a day before, I took note of the two guards standing to either side. The pony that replaced Catherine at the gate waited quietly, his eyes following us as we approached. The black stallion stood on the opposite side with a dirty glare plastered on his face.

How unfortunate. I thought, remembering his rudeness. Perhaps he will be nicer if he knows who I am.

“Catherine,” he growled, “I see you’re playing tour guide today.”

“I’d rather do this than sit at the gate like a bumbling moron.” she mocked.

The stallion just fumed as we both walked past. I only laughed a little at her comment, trying not to increase his annoyance with us.

Although I had seen it before, I never really had the time to enjoy the countryside outside the city. It was not unlike that at home, with sparse trees and houses decorating the rolling hills at irregular intervals. The cobble path painted along the ground led off into two separate directions. One way led back towards the south and Equestria, the other went farther north, towards our destination.

Looking out across the horizon as we continued, I could faintly see the outlines of the mills. From this distance, they appeared as several, equally spaced towers with six sails that moved slowly in the breeze. We had windmills at home, it wasn’t exactly new technology, but it was extremely rare for more than one windmill to exist in the same neighbourhood. At most, I had only ever seen three small windmills placed next to each other on a single farm. These windmills, however, were comprised of a dozen gigantic towers that lay only a short distance from each other.

“So is there anything in particular that you want to see when we get there?” Catherine asked, slowly trotting down the path beside me. “It’s not exactly the most exciting place to spend an afternoon, but I understand that you need to see it.”

“I want to see how many ponies are coming to the mills, how much grain they bring with them, how long it takes to process their grain…” I said, listing my objectives and drifting off, “You know… Stuff like that. Almost anything could be useful, that’s why I’m so eager to go.”

“I can have one of the workers guide you through the process.” she said, turning to face me. “It really doesn’t take all that long.”

“That’s alright.” I shrugged, “I learned enough about it from my books.”

It was a simple process. The wheat was cleaned to remove dirt, pieces of straw and other parts of the plant that shouldn’t end up in the flour. After it was cleaned, the wheat was put through a set of rollers powered by the windmills to grind up the kernels and then sifted into a fine powder and bagged. A large cart of wheat bushels only produces about two thirds of its weight in flour, which is kind of disappointing when you really think about it. It was part of the reason for the awful food shortages at home.

“Good. I’m relieved that you don’t want to hear about it.” Catherine chuckled, “It’s reeaaaally boring.”

We both laughed for a while as we walked down the cobbled road. The gentle breeze blew across my face and threw my hair back.

“I thought it was kind of interesting, actually.” I finally remarked. “But I don’t need to hear about it again. We just don’t have the time.”

“There isn’t enough time in the world to hear about wheat processing more than once, Twilight.” she laughed.

I couldn’t help but smile at her reaction. She was a soldier alright, the kind of pony that always wanted to be in the heat of the action. She wasn’t old, but she wasn’t young either, so why was she guarding the front gate of the city? She seemed competent enough that she would have been promoted to a more important and exciting role by now.

When I was younger, I had asked one of Celestia’s guards what it was like watching the doors to her throne room all day. The guard had smiled and reluctantly admitted that he had been scolded for falling asleep on one occasion. Except for the occasional disputes with angry nobles, it seemed like his job was fairly dull. He showed up for work in the morning, watched the doors, ate lunch, and again watched the doors until he went home at night and was replaced. If Celestia left the throne room, another set of guards would accompany her while he just stayed and watched the gate. He seemed rather annoyed that it was necessary to watch an empty room, but when he asked about it, his commanding officer said that it gave the citizens a clear picture of the authority they held. After telling me this, he just said, “You don’t argue with the commanding officer.”

Perhaps Catherine was just too nice or maybe she even enjoyed the job. As we approached the mills, I made a note to myself to ask her about it later.

Another set of guards stood at the entrance to the large warehouse-like building that connected the windmills. Beside them, a unicorn levitated a quill and a large tome in the air as he questioned a pair of farmers, each with a large cart of wheat. He looked at each individual farmer and asked a question, moving the quill to the tome and marking one of the pages as they answered.

“I’m beginning to wonder, Catherine, why are there so few pegasi and unicorns in Prance?” I asked, turning to the yellow pony beside me as we waited for the unicorn to finish his inquiry. “I think he must be the first unicorn I’ve seen here.”

“So few?” Catherine smirked. “Your country is spoiled by its extreme diversity. From what I know, it is a very rare occasion to see unicorns or pegasi in any country. Equestria is the only exception.

“Many believe that the diversity roots from the Equestrian royal family. They believe that the unicorns and pegasi were lured in by the power that the alicorns held or that the alicorns actually gave them their power to begin with. Depending on your interpretation, some regard the pegasi and unicorns as gifted and powerful ponies. Others believe them to be mutants and abominations warped by the royal family’s influence.”

Mutants and abominations..? I thought, looking down. Is that what other ponies think of us?

“I don’t believe that you’re some kind of abomination, Twilight. You have a gift and you should be proud of it and, as much as I wish I could, I can’t change what the ignorant public believes.” Catherine continued, flashing a quick smile. “Even if they aren’t mutants, they are still social outcasts in our society and, excluding you, I have only ever met four unicorns and three pegasi and all of them have important positions in the government. Pierre recognizes their talent and tries to protect them from unjust harm and, whether they are part of the government or not, they are kept under close watch.

“From what I understand, they don’t really have a choice anyway. They have to work for Pierre and the government…”

At that moment, the unicorn made some final notes and motioned for the farmers to move along. They returned to their wagons and pulled their crop through the gate and into the building.

“Nathan,” Catherine said, gesturing towards the unicorn and smiling, “oversees all of the grain production in the entire country.”

“That I do, Catherine.” he responded in a commanding tone. “And this, I presume, is the Equestrian I received word of?”

“I’m Twilight Sparkle.” I said, smiling and approaching the unicorn. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, but I’m surprised that you speak Equestrian. Nearly every pony I’ve met seems to speak my tongue, which I can’t help but find a little unusual.”

“All the important government officials are required to speak a multitude of languages.” he said, “Since Catherine is in charge of guarding the gate to the city, she must also meet that requirement.”

“As you may already know, we’re going to be looking around the mills.” Catherine interrupted.

“Of course.” he replied, quickly nodding his head. “Take as much time as you want.”

Looked towards the unicorn I asked, “Actually, Nathan, I was wondering if I could have a look at your logbook before I go in.”

“Go right ahead.” he said, levitating the logbook towards me. “If you have any questions, feel free to ask.”

I opened the book to the most recent page and began flipping through it backwards, going one by one through the entries.

Processing Registration ID: 10038495
Taxation Level: 10%
Wheat Processed: 212 lbs
Flour Produced: 13 bags (10 lb)

Processing Registration ID: 10016201
Taxation Level: 10%
Wheat Processed: 237 lbs
Flour Produced: 15 bags (10 lb)

Processing Registration ID: 10001473, 10020345
Taxation Level: 8%
Wheat Processed: 501 lbs
Flour Produced: 34 bags (10 lb)

“You tax the wheat?” I asked, noticing the ‘taxation level’ in the book.

“Yes.” he replied, smiling. “It helps pay for the cost of running and maintaining the mills.”

I pointed to the last entry on the page, “How come this last entry isn’t taxed the same as the others?”

“Each mill can handle a thousand pounds of wheat, but only one farmer’s crop can be handled at a time. We tax them less for the larger amounts to encourage them to combine their crops. Larger loads increase the efficiency. It’s actually a little more complicated than that, but the rest of the details are relatively unimportant…”

I nodded my head in understanding and flipped through some more of the pages. Passing through several nearly identical pages and satisfied that I wouldn’t learn anything particularly useful from them, I levitated the book closer to Nathan. He reached out and grabbed it with his own magic before setting it down beside him.

“How do you measure the weight of the grain?” I asked.

“I have been magically trained to weigh the wheat while it’s still on the wagons.” he said proudly as he fixed his posture. “We don’t tax the pounds of wheat, only the bags, so they never complain that I’m not giving them an accurate measurement and trying to rip them off. It’s strictly for record keeping purposes.”

I nodded again, “Thanks Nathan. I’m going to look around a bit.”

Nathan just smiled as we walked further into the refining facility.

Catherine followed closely as I walked around the building. It was a fairly dull, empty room that served as a shelter from the ferocity of the wind outside. Up close, the windmills were almost deafening as they moved in the air, but under the protection of the large stone warehouse, it wasn’t so bad.

Several ponies worked outside the entrances to each windmill, helping the farmers gather up their crop, clean it and bring it inside. The whole process seemed to be very quick and efficient, but it wasn’t really helping me find any answers to the drought. Most of the information that I needed was in the logbook Nathan had, and it hadn’t been as helpful as I thought it would be.

I wandered around for a few more minutes, watching them move the wheat into the rooms and eventually take the resulting bags of flour out and load them into the carts to be taken away. A few of the bags from each load were gathered into a pile beside each windmill as payment for the service.

Eventually turning to Catherine, I glanced at her nervously, “Um… Is this it?”

“It sure is.” she shrugged nonchalantly, “I said it was boring, didn’t I?”

I sighed, “I don’t think I’m going to learn anything else by staying here any longer.”

She simply nodded her head and we walked back to the entrance. After passing by Nathan once more and expressing our thanks, we left on the trail back to the city.

I was disappointed by today’s exploits. I had hoped that the mills would have given me more to go on, but it was mostly just a dead end. Like I had read in the black tower, the mills were an efficient way of processing grain that seemed to benefit both the farmers and the government. What I did not expect was that they would contain so little information on the actual production of wheat across the country. Everything seemed to be coming from small, individual farms, just like at home and anything that was just like home was exactly the opposite of what I was looking for.

~

“Well here we are, back again at the library.” Catherine said, glancing around the huge room. “Are you sure you don’t want to go anywhere else? It’s still early in the afternoon.”

“I don’t see the point.” I sighed, levitating my bags off my back and falling on top of the bed. “I obviously need to spend more time figuring out where I need to go. Today was almost a complete waste of time.”

“Well I’m going to leave then. If you change your mind, get Daniel to find me.” she said, smiling at me once more before leaving the room.

I should send a letter to Celestia. She’ll want to know what I’m doing, even if I’m not making any progress. I thought, rolling off the bed and back onto my sore hooves. I’m really getting sick of walking so much.

I moved over to the desk and sat down, taking a quill and some paper from my bag.

Dear Princess Celestia,

I have safely arrived in the capital of Prance and have made contact with King Pierre. He is a strange pony. Despite his position, he seems very relaxed, but I guess you are too.

I have learned to read their native script so that I can study the books in their library. It is far larger than I would have ever imagined, much larger than the library at home. I will spend the next few days exploring the library and searching for answers among their writing.

Most recently, I set off to investigate a grain processing facility comprised of a dozen large windmills with a very pleasant pony named Catherine who is serving as my guide. It is an efficient way to process the grain, but it did little to help me with the problem of the drought. I plan on utilizing my time more wisely in the future.

I will send you a letter every day, but I am unsure of how long it will take for them to arrive. I will not expect an answer from you anytime soon.

Your Faithful Student,
Twilight Sparkle

I leaned back, folded the paper and retrieved an envelope from my bag. Slipping the letter inside, I stood up and walked towards the door. Now I just need to find out how to send it.

Opening the door leading out of the library, I looked around the tower’s entranceway.

“Miss Sparkle!” Daniel shouted from across the room as he ran over. “How was your little expedition?”

“Disappointing, Daniel.” I answered, frowning slightly. “I guess I had just hoped to find more there.”

“I am sorry to hear that, Miss Sparkle.” he said, mirroring my frown. “Is there anything I can help you with?”

Bringing my attention back to the letter floating beside my head, I smiled.

“Actually, yes there is, Daniel. I was wondering if you knew where I could send this letter.”

“Worry not, Miss Sparkle, for I shall send the letter for you.” he said, once again mirroring my expression.

“Thank you very much, Daniel. I’m going to get back to work then.”

“Not a problem, Miss Sparkle. I shall check in on you in an hour and see what you want for dinner.”

~

“Wait.” Celestia said sharply, looking at Twilight strangely from her place on the floor. “I never received any letters from you.”

“I thought you promised not to interrupt me.” Twilight replied, smiling back at her.

“I did, but this doesn’t make any sense.” Celestia continued, shaking her head. “You sent a letter to me every day and I never got any of them? Weren’t you worried that I never responded?”

Twilight’s smile quickly disappeared. “I knew that it would take at least two weeks for a reply. Without any pegasi to carry the mail, it would take a week to arrive in Equestria and then another week for your response to reach Prance. So for the first two weeks, no, I wasn’t worried.”

She turned her head to look outside the window. It was dark now and the room was lit up by the torches on the walls. The flames flickered and strange shadows danced on the floor.

“After the two weeks had passed though, I became suspicious. You had always replied to my messages in the past, so why weren’t you now? The days went by, quickly turning into weeks, and despite everything I was learning, nothing helped my plight. I had already spent the time allowed for my trip, but I was determined to find something before returning home. I was sure that you wouldn’t mind…”

~

Everyday was spent reading four or five books and then going to some production facility, not entirely unlike the mills near the city. I would arrive and learn absolutely nothing to help the situation at home and then go back to the library to read more books. It was beginning to grate on my nerves, but more recently, I had other concerns.

The ponies I now lived with were very strange. There was something odd about them all that I just couldn’t put my hoof on. Catherine, the fierce, ambitious and sociable gatekeeper, Daniel, the intelligent, courteous, and regal soldier, and Pierre, the relaxed and elusive king, if only one of them had acted like a normal pony, I would not have been so worried. However, their professions did not match their personalities in the slightest and they would frequently change the subject whenever I tried to ask about them. To say that they were just strange was an understatement.

In truth, they were like a thick fog, clouding my vision and keeping me from reaching my ultimate goal. Who were they really? What were they hiding from me and why? I was determined to find the answers before I continued my search for the solution to the drought, if only to ease my possibly irrational suspicions.

So in the dead of night, moonlight creeping through the small windows in the library and casting long shadows across the room, I decided to investigate. The candle I had lit had been reduced to a pool of wax that had hardened when the flame disappeared. I moved silently towards the door and opened it slowly. Looking out the crack of the door I searched for the large pony that usually watched it.

Satisfied that Daniel had gone to bed, I crept out of the library and closed the door behind me. If I remember correctly, the only guards in the building are at the top of the tower and outside the main entrance. Pierre should be asleep, so his guards shouldn’t be watching his room.

Moving swiftly, I ascended the staircase towards the top floor. The identical chandeliers shone just a little too brightly for my taste, but it was the only way up the tower unless I grew a pair of wings.

As I neared the top floor, my conscience kicked in and tried to persuade me to return to the library. This is ridiculous, Twilight. You’re just a little irritated from the bad luck you’ve been having. There’s nothing wrong with these ponies. They’re just very unique.

Unconvinced, I continued on and approached the black iron doors at the top floor. Moving slowly, I tried the handle only to feel it immediately resist my effort.

Heh, locks are only a problem for pegasi and earth ponies. I thought to myself, gathering my magic and teleporting to the other side of the door.

The interesting statues and elaborate paintings that once inspired wonder and awe now conjured different emotions inside of me. They awakened the fear that lay dormant in my mind and I panicked at the thought of discovery. My heart beat faster and I could feel it thump against the side of my body as it tried to escape.

I took a deep breath and, pushing my fear aside, approached the desk and walked around behind it. Along the side of it were three simple drawers. Reaching out, I slid the top drawer open and revealed its contents.

Just some blank paper, I thought, sifting through the drawer.

Closing the top drawer and working my way down, I opened the second drawer. Inside were several, identical envelopes all addressed to the same pony.

Princess Celestia.

I gasped. Though my heart had beat fiercely before, now it had almost ceased. My body trembled as I lifted the envelopes out of the drawer and onto the desktop. Turning an envelope over, I discovered that it had already been opened and sliding the paper out, I noticed that the letter was bent in the corners, something that the earth ponies and pegasi usually did with letters as they had difficulty forcing the paper into the envelopes without the use of magic.

Gradually unfolding the paper I began to read the contents,

Dear Princess Celestia,

Today is the first day of my second week in the capital of Prance. I’m disappointed by my lack of progress, but I haven’t given up hope. I’ll find something soon, I just know it.

Catherine has been helpful with my research and I really enjoy spending time with her. She has taken me to some of the most interesting places all over the country and her knowledge of them seems almost limitless. Despite the immense cultural barriers that separate us, I feel like we’ve become very good friends…

I immediately dropped the letter onto the desk as if it had been set on fire. Not only had they read all my letters, they were keeping them! Princess Celestia had no idea what was going on. She didn’t even know I was alive!

“You found the letters…” a voice resonated from the far end of the room. “I feared this would happen eventually.”

Quickly turning my head, I looked across the desk and towards the iron doors. Standing at the entrance were the shadows of four ponies in the dim moonlight.

A bright light flashed suddenly and illuminated the room. Blinded, I turned away from the source.

“I am prepared to tell you the truth, Miss Sparkle.” the voice continued. “Including the solution to your drought problem. It won’t matter now anyway.”

As my eyes adjusted to the light, I turned back to face the figures. Standing at the door were three faces that I immediately recognized. Second from the left, was the one who had spoken, King Pierre, waiting silently and glaring in my direction. To the right of him, was Daniel and then Catherine, each in their brilliant silver armour.

“You remember Daniel and Catherine.” Pierre said calmly. “You’ve probably discovered that they’re not normal guards by now. They, like all the other gifted ponies, play vital roles in the operation of my government.”

The bright light flashed again, forcing me to turn away a second time. When the light subsided, the two ponies I had recognized as Daniel and Catherine were gone. Different ponies took their place, standing beside a pile of silver armour.

“Catherine is a pegasus. She merely hid her wings under the armour.” Pierre continued, glancing over towards the yellow pony.

Catherine, now devoid of her armour, spread out her wings slowly before returning them to her side. She looked solemnly down at the floor, almost ashamed of whom she really was.

“Daniel is a unicorn especially skilled at illusionary magic. He merely copied the form of my personal bodyguard.” Pierre continued, gesturing towards the tall grey pony in silver armour on his right.

Daniel had taken on a completely different form. A short unicorn with a fading orange coat, he nodded at me to show off his horn. He was quite old, much older than Pierre, which wasn’t surprising considering that he had been able to maintain such an exhausting and convincing spell for so long. Something like that took substantial training and experience.

“I couldn’t let you know they’re true forms or you might grow suspicious. After all, why would I send all my most capable servants to feed you and watch you wander aimlessly around the countryside? However, it appears you became suspicious anyway.”

“Why are you doing this!?” I yelled, glaring hard at the king. “What’s the point!? If you knew how to solve the drought, why didn’t you help me?”

“It’s all part of a bigger picture, Miss Sparkle. I don’t expect you to understand, but believe me when I say that I didn’t want to have to hurt you.”

“We’re not really bad ponies.” Daniel added in a low, raspy voice, very unlike what I remembered.

“We want to help the world become a better place and if that means we have to do some terrible things, then so be it.” Pierre said.

“That doesn’t explain anything!” I screamed.

“Catherine told you about the story of our creation, did she not?” Pierre asked.

The yellow pegasus flinched and closed her eyes tightly upon hearing her name.

I just stood motionlessly watching the king as he waited for some kind of reply.

“That story is part of our vision.” Pierre eventually continued, realizing that I wasn’t about to respond. “Just as the four nations were united to create Prance, we want to unite the whole world under a single banner.

“No more wars and no more food shortages. The entire world will work towards a common goal and become a better place for it!”

He smiled and walked closer to the table flanked by Daniel and the bodyguard while Catherine just stood speechlessly gazing at the floor.

“Oh Catherine,” he said, noticing her reaction. “You shouldn’t be so glum in front of our guest.”

He walked right up to the desk and gradually leaned over, staring directly into my eyes.

“She didn’t really want to help, but she knows she doesn’t have a choice.” he whispered.

He turned his head and glanced over his shoulder.

“Progress will be made with or without you, Catherine!” he shouted.

She flinched again and turned her head away, quivering and unable to look directly towards us.

“Now, how about a story, Twilight?” he continued, raising an eyebrow. “You might want to have a seat for this one.”

He paced back and forth along the desk, but I refused to sit down and give him the satisfaction. How could I possibly relax at a time like this?

“No?” he asked calmly, as he stopped pacing. “Very well then, let me start at the beginning.

“As a young colt I was born into my position as king of Prance. I was given the right to lead from birth, but I never really understood how to properly utilize it until about five years ago. I read about the legend of Florence and the four nations and I studied it heavily. I went over every aspect of the legend and Florence’s dream and I realized, why should we stop at the four nations? Why not unite the entire world!?”

Pierre raised a hoof dramatically and looked up at the ceiling, pausing for a brief moment. I looked behind me, out the window and towards the city below. From this distance, the city was not so different from the stars above. It was a few bright lights shining on the dark blanket of the night.

“But I had to come up with a plan.” he continued, glancing back in my direction. “Obviously no nation would willingly give up their independence to us. We’re just too small.

“I need help from Equestria, from your homeland. I need your power and to do that, I need to remove Princess Celestia from her position.”

“You’re insane!” I scoffed. “How could you think that you could ever replace Celestia? You can’t even touch her!”

“No.” Pierre replied. “You’re absolutely right. I can’t do anything...

He stopped and stared at me with a wicked smile.

“But you can.” he continued. “You see, I had to find someone that Princess Celestia cared so much for that she would be so overtaken with the grief of their sudden disappearance that she would be unable to respond to what happened next.

“I couldn’t use Luna, no she’s too powerful and Celestia has protected her like a baby since the Nightmare Moon incident, so I needed you, Celestia’s star pupil.”

“Are you trying to tell me that you created the drought?” I asked doubtfully.

Smiling he just shook his head.

“No, Twilight. I did not create it, but with the help of the council, I was able to greatly extend its length and weaken your poor nation.”

“The council!?” I asked. “What do they have to do with this?”

“They are working with me, Twilight. I promised them the power to rule over Equestria beside me, without their corrupt princess and her paper thin wall of propaganda and lies.”

“Propaganda and lies!? How could you possibly think that?”

He walked around behind the desk and looked out the window into the night. The moon shone brightly, a single white orb in the blackness of the night.

“On the contrary, I don’t understand how you could think otherwise.” Pierre said. “She’s lying to you, or rather; she’s not telling you the whole truth. Princess Celestia tries to isolate Equestria from the rest of the world by restricting trade and travel amongst the surrounding countries. Any information about them is immediately passed off as mere rumours. She walls you off from the world and the moment you have a problem you can’t solve by yourself, the entire country is thrown into disarray.

“After all, did you really think that it was reasonable for no one in your entire country to know anything about Prance? Someone had to know something and this ridiculous journey for knowledge shouldn’t have been necessary. We know more about your country than you do about yourself.

“Celestia is so lost amongst her own falsities that she doesn’t know what to believe anymore. She doesn’t know who to trust…”

Is he telling the truth? It seems reasonable enough, but why would Celestia do that?

He paused and turned around to flash his wicked smile at me once again. The moonlight cast a horrible glow on the grin, piercing its way through the night.

“Except you, Miss Sparkle.” he continued. “So I led you here and kept you captive as my prisoner. In a few days time, I will send a letter to Celestia stating your unfortunate passing. She will be overcome with grief and, with the help of the council, we will take control.”

“How do you know that she won’t blame you? How do you know that she won’t break down your door and destroy you for what you’re trying to do?”

“Because she doubts herself. Why do you think she created the council in the first place? And even if she did blame us, the council would stop her from invading.

“It’s all part of the plan.”

No I won’t believe him or his lies. He’s completely insane, this can’t be true.

I wouldn’t believe him because one pony in the room was showing me the truth. Catherine, who cowered in the corner by the door, was telling me something. She was telling me that he was lying, that everything he said was some elaborate plan to convince me of this falsity. She knew the truth and she was afraid of it.

“And what do you expect me to do?” I asked, smirking at him and shaking my head. “Do you just expect me to sit back and watch it all unfold?”

“I had hoped, but not expected, to convince you, Miss Sparkle, but I see now that’s not possible.” Pierre said with a deathly serious expression. “If I had expected to convince you, I wouldn’t have needed the others to come with me.”

Like the splinter forest, I was confronted with a difficult situation. Although I was sure neither Catherine nor Pierre would try to stop me, Daniel and Pierre’s bodyguard weren’t petty bandits and I couldn’t catch them by surprise. They were trained soldiers and I couldn’t hope to stop them alone.

Why does this keep happening to me?

My only hope was to try and escape. I could use my magic to teleport out of the room and away from the ponies.

Daniel and the tall grey pony neared ever closer as my horn lit up. I thought of the library below, perhaps if I could just escape this room then I would be safe.

“Twilight, I’m sorry, but we can’t let you leave…” Daniel said as he noticed the glow of my horn.

He changed my thoughts to that of the night sky just outside the window. The soft gleaming of the stars and the polished white moon filled my head and before I knew it, I was outside the tower, looking in through the window at the ponies inside. Time seemed to stand still, a cool breeze brushing against my face as all four ponies looked silently towards me.

The gentle breeze quickly turned into a freezing hurricane and I drowned in the sound of my own screams as I plummeted towards the ground. Staring at the small, bright lights below and then the identical lights above, the window shattered into a thousand pieces. The glass fell like tiny raindrops, surrounding the yellow pegasus that came soaring towards me.

Catherine!?

Grabbing onto me, she sharply changed directions, now flying parallel to the ground. Crashing through the glass window had produced deep cuts all over her body and she was losing a lot of blood.

Unable to maintain her flight, she staggered in the air and we tumbled towards the ground. Rapidly approaching the city below, the small lights growing bigger and brighter, she aimed towards a window in an old building. She knew she was going to crash and she was determined to find somewhere safe to do so.

She turned herself at the last moment and absorbed the blow as we smashed through the window and tumbled onto the floor, slamming against the far wall.

My head throbbed from hitting the wall and I was covered in little pieces of broken glass, blood trickling out of the small gashes covering my body.

“Catherine!” I screamed, getting up and rushing to her side.

She lay in a crippled mass on the wood floor. Clutching her side tightly, she was covered in broken glass and coughing up blood. The entire event had destroyed her body and now I could hardly recognized her.

“You’re… you’re going to be okay, Catherine…. We’re going to find you some help.” I stuttered, bending down beside her.

“No, Twilight…” she said, staring back at me. “It’s time for you to go home.”

Her voice was weak, but calm. Tears rolled down her cheeks and onto the floor beside her as she moved her bloodied hooves away, revealing a large piece of glass embedded deeply into her chest.

“No! I’m not going to let you die here, Catherine!” I screamed, tears falling down the sides of my face.

“Do you remember what I said to you when we first met, Twilight?” she asked.

She paused and coughed twice while I just stared into the wetness of her eyes, the weak smile on her face growing slightly when she stopped.

“I said that if you fight for what you truly believe in, you can do no wrong.” she continued. “I was fighting for the wrong thing, Twilight… I wasn’t fighting for what I believed in… Instead, I was fighting for the dreams of some insane king and his lust for power.”

I just kept staring into her soft, light blue eyes as she spoke, my tears dampening the floor below.

“But I’m fighting for what I believe in now, Twilight. I’m fighting for what good is left in this world and I’m fighting for you. You can still make a difference, Twilight. I know you can.”

She turned her head and coughed again, wincing at the pain and clutching her chest harder.

“So I want you to leave. I want you to go home and tell Princess Celestia what happened and I want you to stop Pierre and help these ponies. I know that’s asking a lot from you, but I don’t know who else to turn to. I feel like you’re the only real friend I ever had.

“Please…Just don’t let him hurt anyone else…”

“I can’t just let you die here, Catherine.” I sobbed quietly.

“I’m already dead, Twilight. My bones are broken and my body is bleeding.” she said, smiling weakly. “I lived for the wrong reasons, so I’ll die for the right ones…

“I’m sorry I lied to you, Twilight… I’m sorry it had to end this way.”

I leaned in close and hugged her, being careful not to disturb her too much and cause her anymore pain.

“You don’t have to apologize to me, Catherine. I feel like I barely even know you, but you sacrificed yourself for me.”

As I pulled away, I noticed she wasn’t breathing anymore. Her eyes were closed softly and the weak smile on her face remained.

I’ll find a way, I thought to myself, wiping the tears from my eyes and rushing out into the cold, dark streets outside.




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Author’s notes:

Hello again. The story is really starting to pick up pace now and a lot is going to happen over the next few chapters. I originally planned on writing ten chapters, but it will probably end up being eleven.

As always, thank you so much to my editor, Specter Von Baren, who spends an extraordinary amount of time on this. He always helps me find something to improve about the story and make it more exciting to read.

If you have any questions or comments about the story, I'm always happy to hear them. You can reach me at my email: admin@theamberfox.ca and I’ll also be keeping a close eye on the comments below the story.

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Disclaimer:

“My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic” and its derivatives are the sole intellectual property of Hasbro©. I do not have, nor claim to have, the rights to the intellectual property that this story is based on.