Precious few ponies were awake in the Royal Castle at three in the morning.
The Night Guard, of course, watching over the domain of the Princess of the Night, as they had done for millennia, even during their Princess' exile to the Moon. A janitor or three prowled the hallways, polishing floors, cleaning messes made during the day, and readying the castle for the next busy day. Perhaps a waitress-one had been recently hired by the Lunar Sister, with culinary skills and familiarity with the kitchen, so that drinks and refreshments could be served to attendees of the Night Court (of which there were precious few, if there were any at all), or more often, so that the Lunar Princess could order meals and drinks during the night. And of course, the Lunar Princess Herself would be awake, either presiding over the Night Court, or more often than not, policing the dreams of her subjects and keeping them free from the night terrors.
This night, there was one more occupant of the castle who was not in the land of dreams.
There would be no sleep for Princess Celestia this night.
Celestia sat in the Royal Library at a small study table, her normal golden regalia absent, as she idly finished some paperwork. Orders for an inquiry into the behavior and buying practices of certain members of the nobility, an addendum to Equestria's property laws, and compensation, to be delivered to the farmer who had brought the loophole to her attention; she had not lied to Corn Husk when she said she would look into the matter immediately. But the paperwork was just a distraction; busywork, to keep her mind off of the true reason why she was up at this unusual time: Ponyville.
It was often Ponyville these days, she thought, looking over the inquiry papers before placing her signature upon them. Ponyville had been a relatively quiet town for as long as she could remember, despite being so near the Everfree. Still, ever since her faithful student had moved there, the town seemed so much more exciting; Ursas, a zebra shaman, a certain violet unicorn putting the entire town under a spell... Whether or not it had been so active before, Celestia did not know, but it certainly was now.
Celestia checked the wording in her new property laws, attempting to find some way around them. It would prevent the current exploitation, of that much she was certain. Still, there was no doubt some flaw somewhere that somepony would one day exploit; in the game of crime, it was inevitable. Content with the wording, Celestia signed this as well, before moving on to the compensation papers.
The moment she had received Twilight's letter, and the census of Ponyville, she knew she would not be sleeping until the situation was resolved. Ponynapping on such a scale was unheard of; that Diamond Dogs were the aggressors was not surprising, but Celestia had made certain that any dogs within Equestria's borders were relatively docile. Something had happened, nothing good if her students letter was any indication. She would need to-
Celestia refocused on the paperwork in front of her. The lands of those who had already been hit would be returned to their old owners. Corn Husk would receive additional funds equal to one and a half times the value of the land they had been trying to steal from him, to be paid out equally between the two noble houses in question. Those two noble houses would be publicly reprimanded, though Celestia did not find enough fault with their affairs to remove their titles. Yet. The inquiry would reveal more about that, and proper action could be taken then, if such action was required.
Celestia sighed as she signed the compensations document. This was the last paper she had brought with her- the last paper she would need to sign for a week, in fact, despite it being only two days in. A thousand years of handling the paperwork of an entire government had left their mark upon her. Golden magic organized the papers into a pile as Celestia got to her hooves; perhaps assisting Luna would take her mind off things, she thought as she turned the reading lamp off, plunging the library into darkness.
Celestia headed towards the aisle where she had last seen her sister while uncomfortable thoughts buzzed around her head. The Guard could handle things. They didn't need her, and she couldn't simply go charging off, not even if it was her own student. Not without good reason. Her little ponies could take of themselves, she reassured herself. Especially Twilight, if recent history was any indication.
A faint light came from down the aisle she had reached; a mote of white, hovering in the air. In the darkness of the library, it stood out like a beacon. Behind it, cloaked in the dark, was her sister. In full regalia, her mane flowing and her fur brushed to perfection, her form fading in to the inky black beyond where the light could reach, Luna looked every bit the part of Princess of the Night.
At least, she would if her tongue wasn't stuck out of the side of her mouth in concentration while she read.
"Find anything yet, Lulu?" Celestia asked softly as she sidled up the narrow isle.
Luna started and nearly dropped the book she was reading. "Sister! We did not hear you there!"
"Silencing spell. We are in a library, Luna. We can't disturb others," Celestia replied with an innocent look upon her face. Luna gave her a deadpan look.
"Considering we are alone, I do not believe we have to do such things," she said in a flat voice. "Still, in answer to your question, no, I have not yet found anything. The mystery of the Everfree continues to elude me."
"As does everything about that forest," Celestia mused. She had, for her part, had ordered her top scholars on magic to search for clues, but Luna was convinced that she knew something about this matter and was researching it herself on her off-time. Results on both fronts had so far been lacking, but Celestia was hopeful.
Luna fidgeted, her wings twitching. Finally, she closed the book in her magic and turned to her sister.
"Tia, art thou- are you certain that we should not go to Ponyville?" Luna asked, looking up at Celestia. Even without her golden platform shoes, and with Luna in her silver ones, Celestia towered over her sister. "Should we not be getting on our armor, and flying-"
"Our little ponies can take of themselves, Lulu," Celestia said softly. "That is perhaps the hardest lesson I have had to learn during your absence."
Luna bit her lip and shook her head. "It does not feel right, sister, sitting here while ponies are in danger. Especially not Ponyville."
"I know, Lulu, believe me. But we cannot take care of every petty matter ourselves; taking care of these Diamond Dogs ourselves would be overreacting. Our little ponies can resolve this without our help," Celestia told her sister.
Did she really believe that? That her ponies could take care of themselves? Yes. But it was still hard. Like a mother watching her foal take her first shaky steps, or a father waving goodbye from the doorstep as his little colt went off into the world on his own. She could help, yes, but there were some things that needed to be done without aid.
"The Guard can handle this," she said without conviction. It wasn't that she did not believe in the Guard; merely that she would, just like Luna, much rather be strapping on her battle armor and heading out there herself.
Luna, of course saw through her sisters' hesitation, but did not have the heart to call her on it.
The sisters were started out of their thoughts by a small *pop*. Long experience let Celestia catch the dragonfire mail before it fell to the floor. Golden magic unrolled the scroll and held it where both Princesses could read.
Princess Luna, it began. Celestia was surprised to note that it was not Spike's neat handwriting on the scroll, but rather the elegant hornwriting of her student.
Princess Luna,
Please give this letter to Princess Celestia as well once she is available, I am certain she would like to read this herself.
The situation in Ponyville has been resolved. I will be writing a full explanation once I have interviewed all the appropriate parties, but will endeavor to summarize my early conclusions here.
Right now, the Guard has occupied the Diamond Dog cavern in question and has the entire pack under guard until this can be sorted through. All residents of Ponyville have been returned unharmed, and nodog was killed.
Celestia sighed in relief. The situation had been resolved without her, or her sisters', intervention. Her faith was not misplaced. Though she found it almost beyond belief that not only had nopony been hurt, but nodog had been killed. She had been expecting casualties, at the very least for the dogs, if not for the guard.
However, the situation is more complicated than I first thought. My friends and I decided to mount a rescue of our own-
Celestia made a mental note to impress upon her student (and the rest of the elements, now that she thought about it) to be more responsible in the future. She already knew nothing disastrous had come of it, but the tragedy that could have happened was unthinkable; if even one of the bearers had been severely injured, or worse, killed, the most powerful tool of harmony ever known would be useless. If it had been Twilight... well, the last time Celestia had truly unleashed her fury was before even Luna's fall to darkness and had passed into the realm of myth and legend. A fact that she was very thankful for because it meant that her little ponies assumed that much of the story was an exaggeration.
Still, she allowed, it did show that she and her friends were more than capable of taking on more conventional threats. Even if they should have let the Guard handle them.
-and fought our way into the caverns, freeing most of the ponies. Almost all the dogs had the same yellow-glowing eyes and new armor that I described in our call for aid. Just as we finished freeing the ponies, we came upon one of the leaders of the Diamond Dogs, one without glowing eyes, and he told us that his Alpha had been affected by the shadow event that recently happened in Ponyville.
According to the dog, one of the secondary leaders by the name of Spot, the Alpha, named Rover, had been changed by the shadow, and had been given 'magic'. He used this to 'bless' his followers, making them stronger and more obedient, and even managed to use it to mind-control a few Quarray Eels. Spot then begged us to help him rescue the females and pups, who had not been 'blessed' but had been put under the protection of the eels, which Spot feared would end badly.
Spot then led us to a gate, which had been enchanted by the Alpha to be impassable except when opened from the other side. It was something I have never seen before, Princess, but I can confirm that the magic was real, and was impervious to every physical attack we tried and my own magical attempts to bypass it. I theorize it is a completely different field of magic than any I have ever studied before.
Celestia's pupils widened. A brand new field of magic...
We would not have gotten through if Spike and Rarity had not opened the gate for us from the other side. I do not know how Spike managed to free Rarity, especially since I had told him to stay at the Library, but the story does involve the wolf in some manner or other. I am sorry I can't provide anymore details, Spike is asleep and absolutely exhausted. I will get the story from him as soon as I can and send it to you.
Celestia's eyes narrowed. The wolf...
Once the gate was open, we decided to take care of the Alpha before helping the females and pups, as Spike claimed he and the wolf had already driven the eels off. Princess, there is something very important about this wolf; when we arrived at the treasure room where the Alpha was holed up, we found the wolf and the Alpha already fighting.
First, let me tell you that whatever happened to Rover, he was no longer a normal Diamond Dog. He was easily as large as a one-story house on all fours, and we watched as he tore a rock out of the ceiling as large as all six of us put together.
The wolf seemed unfazed. We watched as it took down the Alpha and began ripping the gem-studded vest the Alpha was wearing to shreds. It seems that whatever magic power Rover posessed, it was bound to the jacket, as once it was torn sufficiently, the Alpha reverted back to just Rover, shrinking back to the size of a normal Diamond Dog.
At this point, every single guard dog lost the glow in their eyes and their armor reverted back to its normal steel appearance. Most began to regain conciousness just as the Royal Guards you sent arrived, and after interviewing a few of them, I have found that they do not seem to remember anything that has happened since they were 'blessed'.
As for Rover himself, the poor dog was in such pain from a splitting headache that he was unable to even remember his name. I put him to sleep with spell when it became clear he could not do anything more than clutch his head and whine in pain.
When Rover was defeated and returned to normal, whatever spell was upon him seemed to condense into an artifact of some sort. I wish I could tell you more, but all I can tell you is that it looked to be made of stone, and that it was broken. I didn't get a long look before it was taken by the wolf. It must also have some sort of magic, as the wolf teleported out of the chamber using some sort of portal the likes of which I have never seen, taking the artifact with it.
This seems to me to be a clear-cut case of artifact possession, and both Captain Steel Shod and I agree that the dogs were not in their right minds when their crimes were committed. As such, he has ordered his units to guard the dogs, but, under Spot, they are allowed to continue their normal day-to-day lives. Rover and all the 'blessed' guards are being kept under watch.
As for the artifact itself, it seems that the wolf is now in possession of it. I am unsure of how I feel on this. The artifact is quite clearly dangerous and should be contained. The wolf, however, has helped us, possibly twice now if we believe Pinkie (I told you he was good!)
Sorry, I don't know how Pinkie did that. Anyways, based on its actions so far, the wolf seems to be a friend, or at least not hostile to ponies, but until I know what its real intentions are, I still find myself wary of it.
I will try to have something more comprehensive to you by tomorrow night.
Your Faithful Student,
Twilight Sparkle
It was a good thing that alicorns had an endurance that far outstripped their mortal counterparts, and so she could do with a few sleepless nights, for there would be no sleep for Celestia tonight.
First, it had been for worry and restless need to do something about the situation. Now, it was about contemplating possibilities. The potential of an entirely new branch of magic. What to do about the once-possessed Diamond Dogs. What exactly had happened to Ponyville, and perhaps the entire Everfree. How exactly this wolf was involved in all of this.
That last question was going to become maddening, especially if-
"I told you that wolf was important," Luna snickered, a grin upon her muzzle.
Ah, the joys of younger sisters.
---
"Thank you, Spike," Twilight whispered.
Her Number One Assistant had already closed his eyes.
Spike may insist otherwise, but he was still a very young dragon. As a result, he still needed his beauty sleep, and it was never more evident than those times when he had stayed up past his bedtime.
And boy, had he managed to do that tonight. Twilight and her friends hadn't gotten back to town until nearly two in the morning by her clock, so late that even the irrepressible party pony among them knew to put off the inevitable celebration until later. Spike, the poor little guy, had fallen asleep on the way back, and had been getting cranky when she tried to question him about the wolf.
While Twilight was disappointed that she wouldn't be able to get the full story out of him until some point tomorrow for her report to the Princess (Celestia would understand that she couldn't give her a full report now. She hoped.), Spike being asleep did mean that she would be able to examine his newest toys without having to worry about his reaction- a dragon was well attached to their horde, which she now suspected included the new items held in her magic given that he had refused to release them until he was too physically exhausted to stay awake.
Twilight tiphooved down the stairs with the items in tow, closing the door to her bedroom, avoiding the random piles of books lying on the ground and lighting a candle. She would have to be careful; a dragon guarded his horde jealously, and Spike was no different. This was natural, and in fact, completely healthy for young Spike from what she understood, whose horde up until this point consisted of various small assorted items from his days in Canterlot. If he didn't have a horde, he wouldn't grow and mature as a dragon. It only became a problem if he became excessively greedy for more, like so many infamous dragons did; then, a dragon became little more than an animal, a fire breathing reptile obsessed with treasure.
But Twilight wasn't worried about that. Spike had learned his lesson on that matter, she trusted. No, she was more worried about setting off his natural draconian defense mechanisms. As a dragon, his bond with his horde was uncanny, and like any other dragon he would attack any threats, as Twilight had once found out when she stole one of his favorite toys a few years ago. Singed tail aside, she didn't think anything bad would come of examining the sword and shield. It helped that she had a close relationship with him, and that he trusted her completely- that was likely the reason why he hadn't protested her taking it in the first place.
Twilight set the sword down as she inspected the shield, levitating a quill and parchment over to take notes on. It was unique in crest, which she traced upon the parchment for later research. She did not recognize it as the crest for any of the modern noble houses, though perhaps it was one from antiquity, or a minor noble house. Research would have to be done, something that excited the scholarly unicorn- perhaps it could even help identify the wolf!
---
The wolf in question was not far away.
The wolf watched from a small window as the purple unicorn set the sword aside and began to carefully examine the front of the shield. The pony looked tired in the dim golden light, with large bags around her eyes and her hair mussed, but she ignored her condition as she studied the shield with a critical eye, drawing the crest on a piece of parchment held within a pinkish glow.
Words snapped his attention away from the window and towards the tree limbs above.
The shadowy figure, recognizable only by the single yellow/red eye and fluorescent orange magical limb from the crown on her head, used said limb to point directly at her feet as she floated above a branch.
The wolf steeled himself, crouched, then exploded upwards, leaping into the dark.
---
Turning the metal shield around, she noted the precise size with a tape measure. It was nearly as large as the young dragon was, and was too large for a pony to properly wield on a hoof, yet too small to be used as a front-line damage soaking shield as modern military strategy would dictate. Even more interesting, the shield was quite blatantly set up for a bipedal creature- the metal handle was clearly for grasping with a clawed appendage like Spike had, not for the mouth of a pony. The strap- now that she was examining it, she found it suspicious for some reason. She leaned in closer to examine it-
Twilight jerked back and covered her mouth with her forehooves as she gagged and fought down what little she had in her stomach. It was leather! Animal-hide leather! Twilight fought a short but successful battle against her own stomach.
She had heard of leather before. She had read of it. She knew, intellectually, that Griffons used leather on much of their arms and armor and even as some of their clothes. But she had never expected to come muzzle-to-muzzle with the material, seeing as how the griffons know of pony ethics on the matter and generally thought it best not to antagonize their premier trading partners.
Twilight forced herself to examine the strap scientifically. It was strong and adjustable, likely capable of being used in conjunction with the handle to anchor the shield to a biped's forehooves. She fought down a gag as she touched it- it was soft and pliable and-
Well, she was sure it served its purpose well enough and she wasn't going to examine it anymore, thank you very much! She was going to find a substitute material at some point, the animal it was made from may be long dead but that did not ease her mind and she was NOT going to let Spike run around with that so long as she knew about it!
Twilight put the shield aside hastily and began examining the blade. It was longer than the typical pony sword, though much thinner as well. On a hunch, she held the sword well away from herself and gently tried to bend it. The longer, thinner blade responded as she suspected and began to bow under her gentle pressure. Whoever had made this sword had a different combat philosophy than the Royal Guard, whose short, thick swords would not react the same way to her simple test. The advantage in reach was undeniable, though the strength of the sword suffered for it. Examining the blade closer in the light, Twilight saw a small pattern. She traced it with her quill and parchment, noting that, like the crest on the shield, she had never seen such a pattern before. It looked almost like a ram's horns, but she had never seen that arrangement in nature before on any animal.
She tested the edge with a hoof-ouch!
Swords are sharp, Twilight! she berated herself as she sucked her hoof. This time, she examined the edge in the light rather than run her hoof along it. The edge was very sharp, and she saw no nicks or any cracks in the cutting edge. This sword was in tip-top condition.
The hilt showed a much simpler design. While it was obvious this blade was made by someone of good skill, the hilt was simple, and functional. It had minimal decoration, and was thick- simple, strong, effective. The handle was interesting- rather than the specialized grip a pony was used, it was simple and straight. Clearly it had also been designed with a grasping appendage in mind, as this sword would be functionally useless in the hoof of any pony bar a unicorn.
Twilight, intent upon her notes, did not notice as the door to the upstairs creaked open, admitting a dark figure.
---
The wolf padded noiselessly through the darkened library, careful not to disturb the purple pony. He kept to the dark- any movement in the light and he would be discovered.
Fortunately, the mare was so focused upon the sword that she did not notice the shield vanish from where she had set it. The wolf very carefully manouvered into a separate, darkened room, whereupon he struggled to get the shield properly placed upon his back so that it would not fall off. He managed to get his head and a paw through, securing the shield to his back.
Now he needed to get the sword. Quiet as a mouse, the wolf returned to the main room, careful not to disturb the books strewn about on the floor as he waited for the right moment to retrieve his sword.
---
The dark figure moved closer, and though it was not particularly quiet, the unicorn was far too focused to notice the noise. A clawed hand grasped her hoof.
"YYAAHHH!"
Twilight leapt into the air in fright and alarm. However, gravity would not be denied its victim; the purple unicorn fell gracelessly to the floor in a pile of tangled limbs.
"Sorry, Twilight," Spike said.
"I thought you were asleep," Twilight accused as she got back to her hooves. Dead asleep, too. How was he up?
"I was," he defended. "But... I dunno, I just... felt something was wrong..."
"Horde?" She asked.
Spike nodded.
Twilight sighed. Even a dragon as young as Spike had an almost supernatural sense of when their horde was in 'danger'. It seemed as though it was even capable of overriding his sleep time. Probably not for the best either, he would be tuckered out all tomorrow at this rate.
Spike's eyes fell upon the sword on the table.
"Hey-" he started, reaching for it.
"Spike, it may be yours now, but a sword is still a very dangerous thing," Twilight cut off, levitating the sword out of his reach.
"But Twilight-"
"No buts. I will keep this safe until a sheath is made for it. After that, you'll get it once you're old enough to be responsible for it," she told him, setting the sword on top of a bookshelf. She'd find a better hiding spot for it later, right now all that mattered was that it was out of his reach.
"I'm old enough to be responsible!"
"Spike, it's not that I don't trust you to be responsible. The problem is that this is a very dangerous weapon and I don't want to see you get hurt," she told him.
He eyed her, as though trying to judge her intentions and resolve, before relenting.
"Fiiinnnee. But I can have the shield, right?" he asked hopefully.
Twilight nodded. "Yes, Spike, you can keep the shield, once I've made some, er, minor modifications."
"What kind of modifications?" he asked suspiciously.
"Oh, I, uh, saw signs that the strap might be getting old and worn, so I was going to get it replaced," she made up on the spot.
"Oh. Alri-"
THUMP
Both dragon and unicorn whipped around to the source of the noise.
They found the wolf, shield upon its back, gathering up the sword in its teeth.
"HEY!" Spike shouted, running as fast as his little legs would carry him, dodging piles of books.
The wolf darted away before the young dragon could reach him.
Thinking quickly, Twilight conjured a pink shield in front of the door and all the windows in the room. That may have worked, if that was where the wolf had been headed. Instead, it darted towards the stairs leading to their bedroom, its movements fluid and powerful even with the inflexible shield upon its back and the long sword held in its maw.
"TWILIGHT! Stop him!"
It was nearly to the door when Twilight, in desperation, lifted the entire wolf off the ground, just outside her bedroom door.
The wolf continued to run in place for a moment- before her telekinesis simply failed. The wolf dropped back to the floor and darted into their bedroom.
Spike was through not a moment later, yelling at the wolf to give his sword and shield back, but Twilight stood back in the center of the library, utterly dumbfounded.
She had felt it. The wolf had managed to break her magical hold!
Twilight buried her head in her hooves in despair.
Why? Why couldn't she just be allowed to find even a single answer before some new question came up?
---
The wolf darted into the bedroom with the dragon, Spike, hot on his tail.
He was glad now that the techniques the Hero's Spirit had taught him also seemed effective against the magic of these ponies. If every unicorn could use magic as this purple unicorn had done, it could become a very valuable tool. Though the purple unicorn seemed special...
The wolf leapt through the open window and fell into the darkness. It was high up on the tree, and the wolf landed with a bone-jarring thud. Still, the wolf took off at a fast clip out of town, hearing the curses of the dragon behind him. As much as he would have wanted to let the little guy keep his sword and shield (he seemed quite attached to them), the wolf would need them for the coming trials.
At the edge of the forest, the wolf slowed to a walk, then stopped. In the inky black of the night, he could not see his shadow jump, but he could see the red/yellow eye form, and the glowing orange of the imp’s head appendage.
The imp smirked as it held out the empty sheath. It took a moment to align, but the wolf slipped the sword back in with a clink. Grinning, the imp snapped its fingers, and the wolf saw the sword and sheath vanish. On his back, he felt the shield vanish as well.
The imp giggled a few words, then once again disappeared. The wolf turned and headed in to the forest, towards the portal that would take he and his companion to the next part of their adventure.