//------------------------------// // Chapter 1 // Story: Redemption of One Shadow // by Ookami88 //------------------------------// Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, or Princess Cadence as she preferred to be called, stood on a balcony of her and Shining’s chamber and looked upon her kingdom. Ever since Twilight and her friends helped in getting the Crystal Heart back, the life of her subjects had turned for better. Thanks to their efforts, the Crystal Empire got the chance of hosting the Equestrian Games, The first big sporting event after a thousand of years. Cadence was enjoying the gentle breeze that pleasantly tickled her mane and coat, however she knew that there was still a great stack of paperwork waiting for her approval, on the desk in her office. When the Princess exited from the balcony, on her way towards the chamber’s door, she heard somepony knocking. “Come in.” A middle aged stallion of bright yellow coat and silver mane and tail walked inside. His Cutie Mark was a scroll parchment crossed with a dark gold quill. He bowed down before the Princess. “Your Majesty.” “Chancellor Topaz Script, what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?” Cadence asked, though she knew this question will bite her in the flank later. Every time Topaz Script showed up there was one internal crisis after another. It wasn’t that Cadence disliked the stallion, on the contrary, she respected his dedication to his work. What did irk her was his uncanny ability in finding the smallest error in any department and overblowing it to catastrophic proportions, and writing a report that could be taken for a book. Still, despite those tiresome tendencies, Cadence wouldn’t want anypony else on this position. “I’m afraid I have greivious news, Princess.” Topaz ignored the small sigh from his ruler as he accompanied her to the office. “There are more infected sheep. The numbers already reached over twenty cases.” The stallion looked at the Princess with worry in his eyes. “Our veterinaries still don’t know what this disease is, or how to cure it. We have already went through all materials and documents we have in the Royal Library, but we’ve found nothing. If this goes on there may be more ill ewes and -- fatal casualties.” This was something the princess was afraid of. For the last couple of days she was receiving reports about the unknown illness that started to spread among the colorful sheep her kingdom was known for. It caused the infected sheep to lose strength, appetite, and worst of all, their wool paled very quickly over a short time, until it becomes a very unpleasant shade of grey and its quality drastically drops. A known fact was that the Crystal Empire was a very big exporter of naturally dyed wool, which was a very important source of her kingdom’s income. Not to mention that the Crystal Fair was just a month away, and the tiny ewes always were the main attraction of the petting zoo. “I will see to the matter personally. If it becomes necessary, I’ll contact with Equestria and ask them for help in this case. You may go now, Topaz.” The stallion bowed deeply as he walked himself out of the royal office. Cadence sighed deeply, thinking about the dire situation she was in. Despite the vast knowledge she gained and training she endured after her ascension as an alicorn and a Princess, there was always something she was unprepared for. This was one of those situations. To occupy her mind, Cadence started filling and reading various documents and reports. It helped at first, but after three long hours of scribbling her signature and trying to understand what she was reading, the unnerving thoughts came with doubled strength, making the young ruler more and more frustrated. Her musings were interrupted by a pair of white, strong hooves, wrapping around her from behind in a warm embrace. She almost melted when a pair of lips trailed down her smooth neck. “Shining,” Cadence moaned and whined at the same time. As much as she liked her husband’s affectionate ministrations, there was still much work to do. “Not now. I still haven’t finished my paperwork.” “You looked stressed out.” Shining Armor continued to lightly kiss his wife’s neck. They both were very tired from the recent events, and he knew Cadence was exhausted because of the mysterious illness that befell the Empire’s sheep. “Take a little break.” “You know I can’t. There is still so much to do. The Fair is closing up, and there is also this whole thing about the ewes ... .” “Cadence, I’m serious. You need to rest,” Shining said with his brows crossed a little. “Maybe we could ask Princess Celestia for help? Equestrian veterinaries are quite good from what I’ve heard.” “I have already sent letters to some specialists, but none of them have replied. I’m afraid that because of the recent bovine flood in Equestria, many railroads are damaged, so even if they’d want to help us, it’ll be too late for many of the ill sheep before they find time.” Cadence sighed deeply, her eyes became moist as the hopelessness of the entire situation became unbearable. She snuggled to her husband’s coat, seeking comfort by feeling his warmth. “I just don’t know what else we can do.” Shining Armor was lost. He wanted to cheer Cadence up, but he didn’t know how. Despite being a prince for over a year now, the stallion was still an ordinary guard pony at heart. Unlike his wife, who was groomed and trained for such position, he learned how to protect ponies by military means. Sometimes he felt very overwhelmed with political duties, and many times he has entertained himself with thoughts of going back to being just the Captain of the Royal Guard. To this day Shining wondered, how his younger sister managed to get acclimated to the royal lifestyle so fast after her own coronation. Suddenly the unicorn’s face went from frowning worriedly, to thoughtful, to finally settle into a bright smile. “I think I have an idea.” ~*~ “I’m sorry Twilight, but you’re asking too much!” “I told you it wasn’t a good idea to say it so bluntly.” “You’re not helping Spike!” Princess Twilight Sparkle adored Ponyville. Even after living most of her young life in Canterlot, and then ascending as an alicorn, she still considered the small town her home. Her friends lived here and she could always count on their help, no matter the task. This time however, there was a small complication that prevented Twilight in doing the job herself. “This will be a very safe trip. You were in Crystal Empire on several occasions now.” “Yes, but never alone! It’s too far and too scary to go without you and the others!” Twilight groaned slouched slightly in tired irritation that grew because of the her shy friend’s refusal. In the morning the new Princess received a message via Spike, from her brother and Princess Cadence. They asked for help in the matter of the illness was plaguing the Empire’s small sheep. Good news were that Twilight could easily find a solution in the Animal Section of Canterlot’s Royal Library. Bad news, she also had duties as the new Princess, and that was exactly what prevented her from going to the Empire herself. From the letter she could easily decipher that time was of essence in this case. Thus Twilight decided to convince Fluttershy in going by herself to the Crystal Empire and assisting the royal couple in the matter, or at the very least use her vast knowledge about taking care of animals and buy some time before other options were found available. Spike had a very bad feeling about that plan, especially the part of convincing the most shy mare he had ever met to journey to a foreign land, without the company of her friends, where the sinister foe they had fought against had used his dark magic to instil fear into his subjects and reclaim his throne. For the timid pegasus, she'd likely be terrified of the shadows in that land. Ten minutes after getting the message they visited Fluttershy and Twilight explained the situation. Three hours later both Twilight and Spike were still talking to Fluttershy through the closet door. Once the butter-yellow pegasus heard the plan, she simply barricaded herself inside the small cottage, refusing to come out. “You know that I’ll be very busy during my next stay in Canterlot, I don’t even know when I’ll have any free time,” Twilight tried to argue. “Rainbow is still in the Wonderbolt Academy and the course won’t finish until the next week. The Apples are busy because of the recent accidental storm, Applejack has much more work to do than ever. Rarity is in Canterlot for a very big commission from Fancy Pants and his wife. And Pinkie Pie is foalsitting the Cake Twins for the next few days, and they are too young for such journey.” Twilight calmly reminded, as both mares knew about their friends’ activities. “Angel knows how to take care of the other animals in your cottage, you said so yourself. Also I promise that this shouldn’t take more than a week, so you’ll be back before you know it.” “You know you’ve been repeating this argument for the last hour at least five times, right?” Spike said with a bored expression on his reptilian face, earning himself a very heated glare from the purple mare. “Okay, okay, I’ll be quiet now.” Turning back from her snarky assistant, and still not hearing any response, the newest Princess decided to strike where Fluttershy was sensitive the most. “And what about the ewes? They are sick and nopony in the Crystal Empire knows how to cure them!” Twilight said, putting a hoof over her eyes in a dramatic posture. “Right now you’re probably the only pony that can help those poor little things!” “A-Are you sure there is nopony else?” Fluttershy asked timidly, as she cracked her door just a tiny bit. “I’m not even a certified veterinarian.” “But you still know many things about caring for sick animals. You’ll be at least able to buy some time before a proper help can be sent. From what Celestia told me, the railroads to the Crystal Empire will be passable by the end of this week, but Cadance needs help right now.” “If the help is needed now, and the train can’t go there, then how will I get there in time?” “A chariot will take you there. If you agree to go you’ll have about two hours to pack any necessities and then you’ll be on your way to the North.” Twilight explained calmly, while Spike decided to silently watch the interaction. Though the purple mare was ingenious in many aspects, especially those revolving around magic, he actually doubted she’d be able to convince the overbearingly shy pegasus to cooperate. “A-Alright,” Fluttershy says softly, as she comes out of her cottage. “If there really isn’t anypony else ...” “That’s the spirit! Spike, send the letter!” At the command the small dragon took the already written message into his claws, before burning it with his emerald green, magical fire. The parchment instantly turned into a small cloud of ash and smoke, flying away into the sky. Twilight again turned to Fluttershy, her face expressing a huge relief and joy, like a great weight was lifted from her back. “You have no idea how happy I am that you agreed to do this!” “I just hope I’ll be able to help those poor sheep. And that the journey won’t be ... dangerous ... ” “Come on Fluttershy, there is nothing to worry about,” Twilight said reassuringly. “You’ll be safe in the chariot, with two Royal Guards. They know how to deal with difficulties.” “Yeah! Besides, the Crystal Empire is one of the safest places,” Spike piped in the conversation. “What’s the worst that could happen?” ~*~ Violent northern winds hurled the small chariot, like it was only a foal’s toy. The two pegasi guards were doing all in their power to prevent a tragedy, however their efforts seemed meaningless in the face of the monstrous elements. Their only passenger, a butter yellow pegasus mare with pink mane and tail, was curled into a tight ball on the chariot’s floor, shivering, with her eyes tightly shut, to shield herself from the terrifying snowstorm that hit them so suddenly when they were flying over the mountain pass that was a border between the Crystal Empire and Equestria. Despite not being on the weather team, Fluttershy knew that such storm could prove fatal. She silently prayed to Celestia, Luna, any higher deity that was willing to listen, for safety of her and the two guards that accompanied her. The two guards were still struggling against the wind and snow when an unexpected gust from below threw the chariot on a collision course with a mountain peak, which unexpectedly appeared from behind the heavy, dark clouds. With titanic effort the pegasi managed to slightly correct the flight, but the left wheel still got caught by an unseen rock. Fluttershy felt the hit as the chariot violently jumped, sending the mare’s luggage over the wooden board and into the vast terrains below them. That was also when the two guards finally lost any kind of control they managed to salvage, making the wagon a toy for the unstoppable blizzard winds. They got tossed into another mountain and despite the guards’ best efforts, the chariot crashed on the side of another mountain. The three ponies were now falling towards their doom as the howling storm deafened their screams of fright. ~*~ “Your Majesty! We found it! We found the solution!” Chancellor Topaz Script shouted as he suddenly barged inside the throne room, a light blue Crystal Pony stallion with a wine glass Cutie Mark accompanying him. Cadence and Shining Armor at that time were discussing the topic of new guard exchange project with Canterlot’s representative. Seeing that he interrupted an official meeting, the stallion paused for the moment and looked more than a little embarrassed. “I’m sorry Princess, for barging in like that, but we found the answer for the ewe’s mysterious illness!” “You really did?” Cadence asked, raising herself from her throne, hope lingering in her voice and on her face while Shining Armor quietly dismissed the representative, promising a private audience first thing in the morning. Now there were again three ponies present in the chamber, the alicorn of Love focused her gaze at the new stallion. “Please, tell us your name and explain why the ewes are sick. Is there any cure?” “I’m Agate Twist, your highnesses, and I own a few wineries. Our trademark product is the Crystal Wine, which is made from the crystal berries. It shames me to say that the whole illness may be mine and my workers’ fault.” “Why is that?” Shining asked. “Because all sick ewes most likely ate the berries from one of our warehouses.” Agate started explaining. “We left the berries there to spoil a little, because that’s when they’re the sweetest, and our wines are famous for their delicate and sweet taste. However those berries also became almost inedible, but perfect for our wine production. The ewes must have founded some kind of entry inside and ate more than half of our stock.” “I have consulted this possibility with the veterinaries and they all agreed that the symptoms are just like in cases of poisoning with spoiled berries,” Topaz added. “How do you cure it?” Cadence asked as relief washed over her. “The veterinaries said that we have to give the sick ewe a soup made from black salt and fresh crystal berries. The potion will cause their bodies to eject the tainted food from inside their digestive system, thereby purging the impurities tainting them and inducing these symptoms of illnesses in them from their bodies. We have plenty of both for all sheep so they should be better by morning.” “Thank goodness,” Cadence sighed, relieved that the crisis was resolved. Then something occurred to her, as she looked at her husband. “Then we needlessly invited Fluttershy to come here. She’s probably already on her way.” “Don’t worry, I’m sure she’ll understand the situation,” Shining said reassuringly with a smile. “Besides, we can always offer her free vacation he-” “Your Majesties!” A Crystal Guard pony suddenly barged inside the throne room. Not waiting for any approval he kneeled before his liege. “I bring grave news.” ~*~ Frostjackals, northern cousins of the Everfree’s timberwolves, but instead of using wood to create their bodies, the cursed souls of carnivorous canines make them from the ice and snow that is plentiful in these lands. Their hunger was immeasurable, constantly traveling in packs of eight or even ten, seeking out dead or sick animals to consume. When a pony was lucky enough to escape those predators, they had an image of blood-red, dead eyes forever burned in their memory. A pack of jackals was currently surrounding a wreckage of what just an hour ago was a royal chariot, at the bottom of a mountain. There were three bodies of pegasi lying there, two stallions in armors and one mare, from which only she was fairly unscathed. The other two, despite their armors, were quickly killed by sharp fangs and razor claws to their throats. The only reason that the smallest pony didn’t share their end was because she got covered by the larger piece of the wrecked chariot, making it like a make-shifted wooden tent. However, once the beasts lose interest in the two guards, they might sniff out the unconscious mare. Suddenly, a crimson flare exploded over the scene, the bright light and loud bang scaring the frostjackals away. Despite their ferocity, these creature were cowardly towards noises, though they won’t abandon the newly found prey. They will pull out only a couple of yards, waiting for a good moment to come back, either to finish the already dead victims or kill anything that dared to wander into their territory. A tall unicorn stallion, who was covered in a thick coat, knew he had little time to check the wreckage before the jackals’ return. Looking at the two already dead and partly devoured guards made him sick, but he had to keep his composure, there was nothing that could be done for them. Just as he went to use his horn to levitate some of the broken wood out of the way, the unicorn’s ears picked a faint noise, something like a whimper or moan of pain. His heart leaped at the thought of finding living survivors, so he started to go through the remains of the chariot, listening closely, until he came across the largest piece there was. When another noise, similar to the one he heard before, came from under the wood, the stallion didn’t wait long before taking action, by using a levitation spell, he picked up the wooden piece and then tossed it aside. His black eyes widened, mouth opened agape and his body froze. There, in the cold snow, laid a small pegasus mare, with butter-yellow coat and pink mane and tail, both of which were now covered in dirt, many bruises and small cuts, some of which were still bleeding. There also seemed to be a problem with her left wing, as it was bending in an uncomfortable way. The most threatening wound the mare had sustained seemed to be the cut on her head, evident by the red blood that now clashed with her naturally pink mane. Despite being unconscious, she was shivering uncontrollably from the freezing wind, even though it was a known fact of that pegasi had natural protection against cold. Chilling howls mixed themselves with the wind, making the stallion turn his head towards the nearby snowdrifts. He noticed several shadows sneaking around, surrounding the crash site. It was clear that there was much less time than the stallion was hoping to get, even his flare spell won’t keep the frostjackals away for long. Wasting no time, the unicorn carefully levitated the mare onto his back, aware of her visible injuries, as well as keeping in mind a fact that there could be more damages he could not see at the moment. Shooting another flare high into the sky, the stallion made his way through the blizzard with the injured pegasus mare on his back. Only blizzard wind and howls of snow predators accompanied them.