//------------------------------// // Calm Before the Storm // Story: No Heroes Part III - For Dreams // by PaulAsaran //------------------------------// It was early morning at Benjamina’s mansion. Dark clouds rolled overhead, threatening rain, but that didn’t stop the team from gathering at the meeting table in the courtyard. Everyone was present. Twilight, Rainbow, Applejack, Jimmy, Octavia, Upper Crust, Spike. Rochette and Benjamina were there, too. Even Discord, hovering over their heads and lazing on a cloud as if the conversation didn’t concern him. Twilight stood before the meeting table, all present ready for her announcement. She wasted no time. “I’ve solved the problem of the waves.” “Really?” Rochette asked, jumping to his hooves in excitement. “Well it’s abou’ darned time,” Applejack added. “Ah was startin’ ta think we’d never figure this out!” “I take it all back,” Spike noted, coming alert for the first time since he’d been dragged out of bed, “that’s worth getting up over.” “So what’s the source?” Octavia asked regally. “Riptide,” Twilight answered. Rainbow Dash obviously had doubts. “What, seriously?” “Did you find something in the temple that helped?” Benjamina pressed curiously. “If she did she didn’t say anything to the rest of us about it,” Upper Crust noted with disapproval. “I didn’t solve it in the temple,” Twilight corrected, “I found her in my dreams.” Mocking laughter came from the cloud above them. “Ohoho, that’s rich,” Discord claimed, his upper body still hidden by the cloud. His tail was swinging back and forth over their heads playfully. “You’re gonna believe what you saw in your dreams? I didn’t know you could be so silly, Twilight. I should be impressed.” Twilight glowered at him but decided not to let his comments bother her: there were more important issues at stake. “Last night I was approached by a creature that could change her shape. She claimed to know Fine Crime after she had read his book, which I’d left in the temple.” “Ah don’ know, Twiligh’,” Applejack muttered hesitantly. “Are we gonna rely on dreams, now?” “It does make some sense,” Upper Crust noted thoughtfully. “Riptide has been plaguing the nilgiri in their dreams. Some ponies, too.” “Oh yes, what magnificent puzzle-solving skills you all have,” Discord declared playfully, clearly not buying the idea one bit. “You might believe it yourself if the thing’d visited you in your dreams,” Octavia noted sourly. “Not possible,” he countered, finally dipping his head through the cloud to grin at them mischievously, “draconequus don’t have dreams!” He stuck a mocking, slithery tongue out at her, and she huffed unpleasantly. Jimmy glanced up at him with a puzzled expression. “You don't? Really?” Twilight coughed to catch everyone’s attention, then turned to address Applejack. “You remember that thing you saw in the Crystal Empire? The one that was guarding the Crystal Heart?” The cowpony nodded. “Yeah, ah remember. It kinda reminded me of him.” She gestured up to Discord with a glum expression. “Sounds like someone with class,” he threw in with a grin, sunglasses flashing into existence over his eyes. “She’s the one responsible,” Twilight assured them. “I don’t know what she is, but her name’s Tazel. As for why…” A flash of light and Discord was abruptly on the table, head down so that their faces were within inches of one another. He no longer appeared interested in jokes. “Did you say Tazel? As in Tazel Wyrm?” The unicorn took a few steps back, uncomfortable at the close range of his strange eyes. “Yeah… come to think of it, she did claim to know you.” “What!?” Rainbow was in the draconequus’ face. “You’re not in league with that thing, are ya?” Discord scowled and stood up to his full height. “I would never work alongside that abomination. But it can’t be Tazel, I dealt with her ages ago!” Twilight gave him a concerned look. “Exiled her to an island?” His eyes went wide in alarm. “What? How’d you know that?” “She told me in my dream.” He tugged at his beard, face serious as he considered this. All the ponies were watching him, not accustomed to his unusual grim manner and not sure what to expect. When he finally spoke he seemed to be thinking out loud. “It could be her. Tazel was able to enter ponies dreams, that was the one edge she had on me.” Spike was the one to ask the question on the minds of every pony present. “So who the heck is she? And what?” Discord eyed the dragon, a wry smile coming to his lips. “Oh, a history lesson, is that what you’re after?” He was abruptly dressed in a robe and mortarboard. “I’m glad somepony finally has an interest in the tragic tale of Discord.” He swept a tear from his eyes as if he really meant it, but nopony was fooled. “Just get to the point,” Octavia grumbled impatiently, dropping back into her seat with a scowl. Discord appeared behind her and rubbed her head as if she were being cute. “Oh, look at you all feisty and eager! When we have more time I’d like to pay you a few more visits.” Octavia’s scowl only deepened, and she refused to reward his playfulness with so much as a glance. Twilight set a hoof to her cheek with a dull expression. “Discord, this is kind of important?” “You have no idea,” he declared, once again standing atop the table and looking serious. “You want to know who Tazel is? Fine. You all know how I took over Equestria over a thousand years ago? Well at the time that I first made my bid to rule, Tazel was also there wanting the same thing. I don’t know where she came from or what she is, but we agreed on one thing: Equestria wasn’t big enough for the two of us!” “So the two of you had a fight,” Benjamina concluded for him. She was rewarded with some red tape abruptly flashing into existence over her entire head. “This is my story, thank you,” Discord told her with a grin as she fought to remove the stuff. Jimmy moved to help her as he continued. “Tazel had powers similar to my own, and a similar penchant for fun,” the draconequus declared approvingly. The ponies all cast glances at one another; they didn’t think him fun at all. He didn’t notice. “Because of this we thought it only natural to have a prank war! It was epic entertainment at first, until Tazel broke the rules.” “Rules?” Jimmy asked skeptically, still working to free Benjamina from the tape. “I didn’t think you had any.” Discord snapped his fingers, and when the light faded there was a miniature steel building where Jimmy had been. A second later the stallion’s legs broke through windows and struggled to free the rest of him, to no avail. His muffled shouts only made Discord giggle. “Well I do,” he went on with a royal air, interrupting just when Twilight was about to snap at him, “and I adhere to them… mostly. I had fun, but Tazel was just plain mean.” “And what do you think you are?” Rainbow snapped, glaring in his face. “You get Jimmy and Benjamina…” Another snap of the fingers and Rainbow’s hooves were abruptly five times larger than before, the added weight sending her crashing to the table painfully. “Enough!” Twilight shouted angrily, jumping onto the table and glaring at the draconequus. “We get it, no more interruptions. Now undo all this!” “Not until my story’s finished,” he answered smugly. She eyed him furiously, clearly wanting to add something else to the conversation, but finally sighed and helped Applejack get a quietly steaming Rainbow off the table. “Anyway,” he went on, brushing his mane back with mocking pomp, “as I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted… Tazel tried to form a pony army to stand up against me. Worse, her mass pranks were seriously harming the ponies. Some even died, and that was most certainly against the rules. Obviously she had to go. “Army or no she lost, and I became ruler of Equestria,” he continued smugly, but then his tone grew serious once more. “Because of her misconduct I realized that Tazel was too dangerous to keep around, so I exiled her to some island in the Everfree Sea. It was so remote that even with her teleportation powers and flight she’d never be able to get back to the mainland; she’d starve first.” There was a brief pause, all the ponies watching him as he stood quietly in a triumphant pose. After a few seconds it was Octavia who dared speak. “Can we ask questions, now?” “Of course,” he replied with exaggerated politeness. Applejack was first. “If this Tazel is stuck on some island way out in the middle of nowhere, how can she be in our dreams?” “She shouldn’t be able to,” he answered thoughtfully. “She needs to be within a certain distance of a sleeping individual to use that magic. It works just like Luna’s.” “Then she must have escaped!” Upper Crust declared fretfully. “But how could she?” Rochette asked with concern. “It couldn’t have been easy.” “I have no idea,” the draconequus admitted, tugging on his beard once more. “I suppose she could have been transported off the island in the unlikely event of a ship landing there.” Twilight’s eyes lit up, and she raised up to set her hooves on the table and catch everypony’s attention. “I think that’s exactly what happened. I think Fine Crime and his father accidentally freed Tazel!” “What?” Octavia shook her head. “That doesn’t sound like Fine at all. What makes you think he would do something like that?” “He didn’t know,” Twilight explained. “When he was a foal he and his father were stranded on an island in the Everfree Sea. They lived there for three months; the book I lost was his recounting of those days. In the book he mentions befriending a magical bird that would play games with him.” Upper Crust rolled her eyes. “A magical bird? Really?” Discord was listening to the story intently. “I thought it was just an embellishment myself,” Twilight confessed, “something to make the story more interesting. But what if it was true? They were rescued by a Nildian trade ship, and the bird was never seen again. Could the bird have been Tazel? Can she change her appearance in the real world, too?” The questions were aimed at Discord, who nodded grimly. “That was within her power. She used to take on an innocent form in order to trick ponies into bring her to their homes, and then the carnage would begin. If your friend was on her island then she wouldn’t have missed the opportunity to escape.” “So what are we waiting for?” Rainbow demanded fiercely, flapping her wings futilely against the weight of her oversized hooves. “Let’s go get her!” “But how are we supposed ta defeat somethin’ like that?” Applejack asked, worry etched in her face. “Ah mean it’s not like we have the Elements of Harmony with us this time. What are we supposed ta do?” “Leave her to me,” Discord declared, flying high above the table. He was clearly in no mood for debate. “I’ve dealt with Tazel once, I can do it again!” Twilight jumped onto the table. “Discord, wait!” Too late; he was already flying off. As he disappeared there was a flash of light, and everything was righted; Benjamina’s face was tape-free, Jimmy was out of his steel prison, and Rainbow’s hooves were back to normal. “Rainbow!” The pegasus turned to Twilight with an alert expression. “Follow him and see what happens. He might actually be able to pull it off.” “I’m on it!” she declared with a salute before leaping off. “Just watch!” the unicorn shouted after her. “Whatever you do don’t get involved in the fight yourself!” There was no way to know if she heard. “But what are we supposed to do in the meantime?” Jimmy asked restlessly. “Rochette, can you call on some carriages to bring us to the temple?” He nodded and left in a hurry. “We’ll head out there, just in case.” “If Discord dealt with her once, he can probably do it again,” Octavia noted smartly. “True,” the unicorn agreed, “but even if he does the question of what to do with her after is in the air. I think we can talk her down.” “Really?” Benjamina didn’t sound convinced. “What makes you think you can do that?” “When she confronted me in my dream Tazel was really eager to meet Fine Crime,” she explained seriously. “If we can get the two of them to meet, maybe we can end this peacefully.” “But Fine’s back home in Ponyville,” Upper Crust noted hesitantly. “How are they supposed to meet?” “In Fine’s dreams, of course. Spike, take a letter!” “It’s about time I went home,” Fluttershy noted quietly. She was hovering near the chandelier, prepared to blow out the dimly glowing candles. “I’ll see you tomorrow…” Fine was below her, still strapped to the rack. He was staring straight up, his gaze unfocused and his body still. “I’ll look forward to it,” he whispered in a voice so low she almost didn’t hear him. She blew each candle out, trembling in the complete darkness of the windowless room. She was careful in her landing, afraid she might end up on top of him. As she softly touched down she could hear his slow, heavy breathing nearby. It was a measured, forced rhythm, a sound she was growing to hear more and more from him. It meant he was resisting the pain that occasionally entered his body, the pain of withdrawal. She stood in the darkness for several seconds, listing with growing unease to that breathing. She hated this work, having to keep him tied down like a beast. More than once she’d considered giving up and freeing him, but she kept reminding herself of what success really meant and backed down. It had been over a week since the princesses had bound him to that table, though, and she was beginning to regret ever agreeing to help. “Are you okay?” She jumped at the sound of his voice coming from seemingly nowhere. No, no she wasn’t. “…I think I sh-should be asking y-you…” He huffed grimly. “You know full well how I’m doing.” She took a careful, unsteady step towards the voice. By the sound of his breathing she had to be right next to him. “Are… are you sure you don’t want me to… to stay here?” “We’ve talked about this before,” he whispered patiently. “You need to take care of your pets.” True, they had discussed this many times. She did have her duties back home, and he would be fine on his own for the night. He always was. But leaving him here with nothing but the pain and the murderous thoughts that he confessed kept creeping into his mind seemed so… wrong. It had to be torturous for him, and wasn’t she supposed to be helping him through that? Wasn’t that why she was here? His chuckle came to her through the darkness. “You’re not scared of going through the Everfree Forest again, are you?” He was trying to sound casual, but his voice was strained. “After a week of going through it at least twice a day, that’s one fear I’m… sort of over.” Maybe not entirely, but she was getting used to it. “Just go, Fluttershy,” he whispered kindly. “I’ll be fine.” She couldn’t trust his attempt at confidence, but there was nothing she could do. She couldn’t devote all her time here, not until she could find somepony to look after her animals. So, with a heavy heart, she turned away. “I promise I’ll be back soon.” He didn’t answer, which was typical. She sighed and went to the door, which she could just see in the dark now that her eyes had adjusted. “Goodnight, Fluttershy.” She paused at the door, glancing back in mild surprise. He usually didn’t bother with a goodbye at all. “Umm… goodnight.” She entered the stairwell, the door closing quietly behind her. A simple ‘goodnight’ shouldn’t seem odd, but in this case it really did. Before, when he kept visiting and helping her around her cottage, he’d been jovial and always said his goodbyes, but ever since she’d learned the truth his entire manner around her had changed. He seemed more distant and less… happy. He’d become like an entirely different pony. She walked down the dimly-lit stairs which wound around the tower to the third floor below, her mind preoccupied with his strange behavior. Perhaps it was the withdrawal acting through him? She wasn’t certain if she liked that idea or not, but if that was the case how far would his personality descend? She reached the secret doorway that hid the stairwell from the rest of the house. She’d come to learn that the entire building was riddled with doors like these. Apparently Fine had a penchant for them… which in his line of work was probably a good thing. She reached up with a wing, brushing it gently against a high spot in the wall where the sensor was hidden. The door opened with a swish and the pegasus let out a surprised cry; a pony was standing right on the other side. “Princess Luna!” Fluttershy took a long, comforting breath. “You startled me.” “My apologies,” the alicorn answered gently. “It was not my intention. I thought you would be home by now, Fluttershy.” The yellow mare took a quick bow, having almost forgotten to do so, before answering, “I was just about to leave. Were you coming to check up on Fine?” “Not quite,” the Princess replied with a mildly guilty tone. “Something of great import has come up in Nildia, and it involves Fine. I must speak to him immediately.” “Oh…” the pegasus glanced back up the stairs hesitantly. “…I just turned out the lights and everything, but he’s probably not asleep. He has trouble sleeping lately.” “Asleep or not, I must speak with him,” Luna insisted. She eyed the smaller pony regally for a few seconds. “Mayhap it is good you are here: you may wish to know of the situation. Will you join me, Fluttershy?” “Of course.” As if she would say no. “It is appreciated.” Luna stepped past and lead the way upstairs, the pegasus following behind timidly. What could possibly be so important? Fluttershy really hoped it wouldn’t require canceling their little ‘project.’ She couldn’t stand the idea of having to start this terrible task all over from scratch! The two mares entered the darkened room silently. If Fine recognized their arrival he made no indication of it. Luna seemed to have no difficulty finding the rack he was on in the darkness; perhaps being the Princess of the Night granted her night vision? Fluttershy’s eyes once again needed to readjust to the blackness, but fortunately the Princess’ starry mane glistened clearly and made her easy to follow. Fine’s breathing had returned to normal, indicating that his pain had gone away. For several seconds there was nothing but silence, but then his voice came up from the dark, patient but grim. “I didn’t expect to see you anytime soon.” “We need to talk,” Luna told him, her voice firm. Fluttershy wasn’t sure she liked her tone. “Does it have anything to do with the Archons?” The alicorn’s shimmering mane shifted back and forth in the darkness. “No, Fine. It involves Nildia.” A solemn silence filled the room once more. At last Fine spoke. “I doubt I can be of any help to them. Unless you want to cancel our little… experiment.” “You couldn’t even cross the ocean,” Luna replied critically, which made Fluttershy cringe. Fine didn’t respond, though. After a tense moment the Princess spoke once more, her voice abruptly much more caring. “Do you think you’ll have a… ‘reaction’ to my presence in this darkness?” “I couldn’t say,” he answered gravely. “I need to see you, but I doubt seeing your mane alone will cause a vision.” “Good. Then I’ll ‘cut to the chase,’ as they say in these modern times.” Her tail dropped low, indicating she’d taken a seat. Fluttershy followed suit next to her, curious despite her worries. “Not long ago my sister received a letter from Twilight Sparkle, who believes she has found the source of the freak waves along the Nildian coastline. Do you recall anything about one Tazel Wyrm?” Fine’s answer was swift and certain. “Yes. I didn’t see or meet her myself, but she helped King Sombra return to power in our last encounter with him.” “Twilight believes Tazel is responsible for the waves,” Luna went on. “She found a way to infiltrate dreams, much like I do, and was once a rival of Discord back when he ruled Equestria. She’d been plaguing the Nilgiri – and a few of the Nildian team – with nightmares about an ancient god named Riptide to fool us all into thinking that the god was responsible for the waves.” “I don’t see how I come into this equation,” he noted quietly. The Princess didn’t hesitate. “I apologize for this, Fine, but I must request that you think back to your time on the island in the Everfree Sea.” “The island doesn’t bother me, Luna,” he reassured her, then added with an audible shudder, “just how I got there.” “Do you remember a little bird?” Another long silence, and when Fine spoke again his voice was hesitant. “…you mean… Kit…?” Luna pressed him, her voice hard. “This is important, Fine. Twilight stated that in your book you befriended a bird with strange magical powers. Was than an embellishment or did it really happen?” “…it happened,” he answered slowly. “Kit was real. …she was my… friend.” Fluttershy found herself leaning forward to hear better. Fine had promised to tell her anything if she asked, and so far she believed him, but she’d never once asked about the island. In truth she hadn’t even thought to. Now that the topic was out, though, she found herself very eager to know more. Especially now; why hadn’t she thought to bring such an important subject up? “What happened to her, Fine?” “…I don’t know. Father put me to sleep because I refused to get on the ship. I never saw Kit again.” Luna sounded as if she were piecing together a puzzle. “So she could have boarded the ship with you.” “I don’t know. Why are you asking about Kit?” Luna hesitated. “Did they find her?” Luna seemed to be considering how to answer. Fluttershy was finally able to see her outline in the dark, and she had her head bent low in clear thought. “If they did… would you like to see her again?” “Of course I would!” Fluttershy wasn’t sure she’d ever heard such eagerness in his voice. “I’ve made so few friends in my life. Even if she’s just a bird, I cried when I first realized I’d never see her again. I know I was just a colt, but…” Luna’s head shifted; she appeared to be staring at Fine. After a second’s pause she said, “There is no easy way to say this. Twilight believes that Tazel and Kit are one and the same.” “What?” Fine seemed completely shocked by this revelation. “If that had come from any other pony, I’d have thought it a joke. How could that be possible?” “Tazel can change her physical form at will,” Luna explained. “Discord, who fought her back when he ruled Equestria, confirms it. More importantly, he claims that after his victory he exiled her to a distant, isolated island in the Everfree Sea. The only way she could have escaped is if she were taken off the island by a passing vessel.” “…like the one that rescued my father and me…” he concluded, clearly understanding that this was a very real possibility. Fluttershy was amazed at how calm he was taking all of this. She was certainly in a state of alarm! What if his foalhood friend really was behind the waves? That would make her responsible for the deaths of unknown numbers of nilgiri. Didn’t this bother him? “Twilight wants you and Tazel to meet,” Luna noted solemnly. “If she is your friend Kit, then perhaps you can convince her to stop ravaging the coast.” Fine shifted against his bonds, the movement easily recognized by the sound of the shackles. “I understand… but I don’t want to quit this, and we both know that crossing the ocean’s a challenge for me. How are we supposed to meet?” “I can introduce you,” the Princess replied. “You can meet in your dreams.” “Ah.” He sounded as if this answer should have been obvious. “That makes perfect sense. When can we meet?” “Tonight, I hope,” Luna answered with relief. “Twilight and the others are on their way to face her as we speak, and Discord may already be battling her. I intend to go there in the dreamscape, though I might not be…” “No.” Luna paused, her starry mane tilting back in the dark. The motion seemed to suggest surprise, and Fluttershy could understand why. She couldn’t resist asking the question ahead of the Princess. “But Fine, I thought you said you wanted to see her?” “Now is a terrible time for us to meet,” he replied ominously. “Luna, you know the kind of dreams I have when suffering from withdrawal. Introducing her to me now is not a good idea: I’m in week six.” That had Fluttershy worried; what kind of dreams did he have? Thinking back on the one time she’d witnessed him having a violent vision, she decided it might be better not to think on it. “I know,” the alicorn whispered, “but what if she cannot be stopped? You may be needed to end this.” He was silent for several seconds, apparently thinking hard on the subject. As he did he began to breath in that slow, steady rhythm that meant he was in pain again. Fluttershy fidgeted, wishing there was some way she could help, but she knew there was nothing. The Princess did not move at all, her brilliant mane flowing softly in the breeze-less room. “We can try,” Fine whispered at last, his voice strained, “but please, only as a last resort. I can’t guarantee any self control in a dream.” Luna’s mane tilted, indicating her nod of acceptance. “Very good. I will relay the news to my sister, and she to Twilight.” She stood as if preparing to go, but paused. Her mane became blocked by something, and Fluttershy realized the alicorn was looking at her. She could only see the outline of her face, but there was an intense feeling that made the pegasus anxious. After a nervous moment the Princess turned her head once more to face Fine. “How are you handling the… ‘treatment?’” “Everything’s about as I remember,” he replied without hesitation, though his voice still strained from pain. “I’ve two more weeks before I hit my lifetime record. After that… we’ll just have to see.” “And you, Fluttershy?” Once again that darkened face turned to the pegasus. Fluttershy glanced at Fine anxiously, thinking about how much she wished it was all over. She didn’t want to keep doing this… but she couldn’t possibly back down now, not after they’d already started. No matter how much she wanted to. “I’ll… I’ll be okay.” The Princess of the Night stared at her for a while. The smaller mare couldn’t return the gaze, instead glancing away timidly and hoping she’d been convincing enough. Probably not; she certainly wasn’t convincing herself. “Fine, have you considered allowing others to watch over you?” Fluttershy felt her heart sink. “No… I can do it…” But the stallion hesitated. “I’m not sure anypony else could. What if I had a vision?” There was a sigh in the shadows, clearly coming from the Princess. “You are bound so tight you cannot hardly move a muscle. Your magic has been nullified. Still you fear what you may do?” “There are no guarantees,” he whispered unhappily. “I can do this,” Fluttershy assured her, prompting the Princess to study her once more. The pegasus tensed nervously under that gaze but knew she had to be convincing. She fought to make her voice sound firm. “I can do it.” Luna sighed after a moment’s thought. “Very well. I must hurry back to Canterlot. Celestia is waiting.” “Luna?” The Princess paused, half-turned away from the rack. “…I think you should cast a sleep spell on me. It’s not easy sleeping when you’re in my condition.” “Of course,” Luna whispered understandingly. She turned back, and a moment later her horn appeared in the darkness, glowing brightly. Soon a similar glow appeared around Fine’s head, his face abruptly visible to Fluttershy. She took the opportunity to study him; his eyes, focused on Luna’s horn, appeared worn out and dull. His face was drawn and hard, almost as if he were withering away. She felt a weak sound escape her lips at the sight of him; he didn’t look at all well. His eyes closed quickly, and when they did the glow faded. His breathing was rhythmic and deep, the calm and gentle breathing of the unconscious. Fluttershy took a step away, genuinely worried. Had she not been feeding him enough? He hadn’t complained. Was it the pain? Maybe she’d been doing something wrong all this time. “Do not let his appearance disturb you,” Luna whispered from just above her. Fluttershy gazed up to find the mare studying her in the dark. “It is merely a reflection of the mental trauma he is suffering.” She said that, but Fluttershy was by no means comforted. She stared at Fine’s outline, just barely visible to her eyes, and wondered if she shouldn’t try something else. “I’ve been seeing him all this time, but until now I never realized how gaunt he was becoming.” “An illusion of the light of the magic,” Luna assured her calmly. “Fluttershy, I must ask for a favor.” A favor? She was so busy already… “Y…yes…?” She felt a hoof touch her shoulder, and turned to find Luna’s horn glowing once more, illuminating the space between them. At last the Princess’s face was visible, and it was etched with concern. “If this task becomes too great, I want you to call on your friends for help.” The smaller mare hesitated, glancing at Fine’s sleeping form. “But… he wanted me to…” “You know how stressing this task might become,” Luna reminded her gently. “He trusted you to start this, and in that he was wise. But I believe it was an error to only include you and not others. Fine wants us to believe that only you are safe, but his bindings are strong. In truth he does not wish for others to know of what he is. He fears their scorn.” That did make a lot of sense, and Fluttershy had long suspected it. To hear it from Luna only confirmed it in her mind. Even so, Fine was trusting in her to do this… The Princess went on. “Fine does not understand friendship, Fluttershy. It is perhaps his greatest flaw. He thinks the others will fear and hate him for something that was truly never his fault, but you and I both know this is not the case. I want you to promise me that if ever you think the burden is too great you will not hesitate to gather your friends.” Those words struck Fluttershy with an epiphany. She gazed up at the Princess, recognizing for the first time the truth in her words. Fine had lived his life alone and isolated by his own personality. Even his special talent was geared towards solitude, and he openly acknowledged that he had only a select few friends, and she wasn’t sure how much he valued even those. It all made perfect sense to her. A pony like him wouldn’t really understand friendship, would he? She could help him in that area. He had chosen to trust her, and worked hard to spend time with her. Maybe he only saw her as a means to an end – suddenly that seemed a lot more likely – but what if he was reaching out without even knowing it? He had been nice to her, and she had responded in kind. It was only natural. Perhaps she could show him what else he was missing by asking others to help. But not yet; at this stage he’d probably be offended, perhaps think she’d betrayed his trust. She had to wait… she just hoped she didn’t have to wait for too long. “I promise.” She looked up into Luna’s eyes with a renewed confidence. “I want to help him in whatever way I can.” Luna smiled, recognizing her determination. “Very good. Then I will leave it to you. I trust you to make the proper decision when the time comes.” Three carriages raced through the Nildian jungle road. They were small, they were light, and they were fast, which was exactly what the team needed. Twilight and Applejack were in the first one, followed closely by Octavia and Upper Crust. The last held Jimmy Stone. They were determined to reach the temple as quickly as possible, but by the roads it would be at least three hours before they could arrive, leaving the team with nothing to do but wait and fret over the situation. They were a third of the way there when Spike, riding between Applack and Twilight, let out a belch that produced a letter from Princess Celestia. Twilight wasted no time reading its contents, and what she found worried her. Spike noticed her concern. “What’s wrong? Is it a no go?” She shook he her head, slowly. “It’s not that. According to this Luna is willing to introduce Tazel to Fine, but she claims that doing so is dangerous.” “Dangerous?” Applejack raised an eyebrow. “How can it be dangerous?” “I don’t know, there’s nothing in the letter about that,” the unicorn confessed, turning the letter back and forth studiously. “It only states that ‘Fine is undergoing a very serious experiment that could threaten anypony who dares to enter his dreams.’” Spike leaned against her to get a closer look at the letter, scratching his head. “An experiment that affects dreams? I didn’t know you could do that.” “Me neither,” Applejack confessed, “but ah suppose it does make some sense. Ah mean Princess Luna had ta learn ta enter ponies’ dreams somehow, right?” “Hmm…” Twilight let the letter drop onto the seat between her and Spike. “It seems the experiment has a lot of personal importance to Fine. I wonder if it has to do with his fear of the sea?” “Fear of the sea?” Applejack was clearly surprised to hear that. “You mean a tough guy like him’s afraid of getting’ wet?” “It’s a bit more complicated than that,” the unicorn noted timidly, realizing she was dangerously close to revealing Fine’s secret. “I promised not to tell anypony why, but he’s terrified of the open sea.” Applejack considered this with a look of intense thought. “That would explain why he was so gung-ho about not comin’ on this trip with us, I guess.” Spike had the letter and was reading it intently. “Says here that Fine was okay with meeting Tazel, though, so we should be fine.” “Only as a last resort, Spike,” Twilight corrected. “We need to at least try to deal with Tazel without him.” “And just how are we supposed ta do that?” Applejack asked seriously. “If Discord fails ta stop her, what are we supposed to do?” “I don’t really know,” the worried unicorn admitted. “If he hadn’t flown off so quickly I’d have asked him for some sort of information about her.” “Tell me we’re not goin’ in there without a plan,” Applejack responded skeptically. Twilight considered the situation for a moment. “Well, Rochette and Benjamina are busy alerting the government even as we speak. They should be following along behind by maybe an hour with some soldiers.” “Assuming they can convince the president that a strange creature posing as a water god is living in an old temple and causing the waves,” Spike pointed out dully. Twilight winced, recognizing his meaning. “Well… assuming they are coming, all we technically would have to do is keep Tazel busy until they get here.” “An’ if they aren’ comin’?” Applejack asked. The unicorn sighed unhappily before admitting, “I have absolutely no idea.” Spike facepalmed. “I shoulda stayed in bed…”