Chapter 7: Dawn of The Red
Things were tense all over. The moment Uriah disappeared again, Celestia called out to every guard to search the castle. There was panic and concern among the staff, but in the throne room, among the ponies who had witnessed Uriah's grand appearance, there was an uneasy tension. Most of which was directed at the solar princess. No one exactly knew what to say, just that they were thankful it wasn't as bad as it could have been. First thing first, they had to address the issue at hoof.
"Just...gah...She won't stop squirming." Rarity struggled with her reluctant charge.
Twilight rolled her eyes. "Rarity, she's a baby not a badger. Just hold her." The trouble was getting the toddlerized Rainbow to hold still so the three princesses could return her to her normal age. It was one thing to reverse one's own spell, but it was another thing entirely to reverse somepony else's. There was an incredible amount of concentration needed, because not only did one need to make the magic strong enough to over power the first spell, but it also had to match the energy of the original caster. "It's going to be hard enough to get the counter spell right as it is. Something as advanced as this usually requires a fair amount of focus before it can be cast, like when Trixie did it to snips and snails."
Luna finished the thought. "But with Uriah, it took hold instantly. He simply needed to glance in her direction." She took a second to look at her sister. "You certainly weren't lying about his power."
Celestia gave an offended glare. "And just what are you implying, sister?"
Luna gave her an incredulous look. "You're kidding right? Let's forget for just a moment that you lied to all of us without so much skipping a beat. How in Equestria could you keep something like this hidden from us...hidden from me? I confided in you about so much that I had went through. Every little detail that could come back to haunt us, I revealed to you. I told you because I trusted you and wanted to keep Equestria safe. When I returned from my banishment, I asked you how you had been, how much had changed over a thousand years. I'd think the fact that you had a son would have been the first thing you mentioned!"
"Enough, Luna." The moon princess was surprised to here such a harsh tone coming from Twilight, who met her with a scolding glare. When Luna returned her gaze to her sister, who was now in tears. "Whatever Uriah's plan is, we can't let him turn us against each other."
Luna hung her head. She was still angry that Celestia didn't say anything, but she knew how much her big sister had to be hurting. "You're right. We should focus on returning your friend to normal, then we can discuss a course of action."
"Ewww! Ew ew ew!" Rarity's whine came in loud and clear. "She's chewing on my mane! Fix her!"
It took a few seconds more, but the princesses were able to fine tune their combined magics to Uriah's energy. The infant pegasus was wrapped in a glorious white light. The shape of the young infant began to grow and change, then the light began to fade. There, still being cradled to the best of her handler's ability, was the, once again, full grown Rainbow Dash. She sat there looking incredibly confused. She then noticed that there was a large lock of purple hair in her mouth. She spat out Rarity's mane instantly and began rubbing whatever remnants were left off her tongue. "Blech! Could somepony please tell me what happened?"
Rarity started straightening out her mane. "That beastly Uriah happened. He turned you into a toddler, and a particularly ill-mannered one at that." She had to pull out a hanky to deal with the baby drool still in her strands. "Honestly, it's bad enough putting up with Discord and the occasional magical mischief; you'd think we'd see something a bit less ridiculous from a prince."
Pinkie stepped in. "Hey, you heard him. He could have done a lot worse if he wanted to. We should be grateful he didn't blow her up or something...which I'm sure he'd never do." She hastily added in the last comment matter-of-factually.
AppleJack gave her friend an incredulous look. "Why are you defending him?"
The pink earthpony gave a defiant look in return. "Well, somepony has to."
Twilight looked worried. "How he was behaving is irrelevant, but what he did was tactically clever. Uriah made sure that one of us wasn't able to use their element, leaving all of them out of commission. It was brilliant, he knew he was goading Rainbow into a fight, he knew just how far to reverse her age so she couldn't remember what makes her the element of loyalty. He was ready to disable the elements in case we intended to use them right away."
"He always did have that way about hm." All eyes turned to Celestia, who had composed herself from earlier. "Uriah has an incredible talent for rhetoric. The way he talks...it's hard to describe. I've seen him work our armies into a glorious spirit, make threats to our kingdom turn and run just with the sound of his voice. It's small wonder how he was able to deceive Pinkie Pie into..."
"He did not deceive me!" Pinkie snapped. "I told him what I did because he asked me, because he wasn't a threat, he was my friend. He is my friend. If anypony is deceiving anypony, it's you!"
Celestia couldn't believe her ears. The way Pinkie was lashing out at her was mortifying. Twilight intervened before Celestia could respond. "Pinkie! Have you lost it?!"
"No," screamed the earthpony. "You ask her! You ask her what she did! Ask her why nopony remembers Uriah!" She turned with tears in her eyes and ran for the door.
Fluttershy reached out for her sobbing friend. "Pinkie, wait!" She flew after her.
Rarity started to follow, but stopped to address her other friends. "We'll make sure she's okay. Come find us if you need anything." she then galloped after her friends.
Applejack watched the scene and solemnly bowed her head. "With all due respect, your majesty." All eyes were on the farm pony as she lifted her sight to the solar princess. "I think it's time you did start telling us the truth."
Twilight knew it had to be said. She wanted to back Celestia, but how could she? Between Uriah showing up, Pinkie going off the handle, and the fact that Celestia did lie to all of them, enough was enough. "She's right."
Celestia looked at her former student, eyes pleading for her to understand. "Twilight..."
The young alicorn wouldn't have it. "What did he mean by Stardust Dreamer?" The question quickly silenced the elder alicorn and made her turn away. "She was the leading expert on memory spells. She was alive roughly five hundred years ago, so please tell me; what does that have to do with why there is literally no reference to Uriah in any text? Luna was gone for twice as long and sure ponies forgot about her, but there was still nightmare night, the tale of the two sisters, and scary bed time stories. So why then, is it like Uriah never existed?"
Celestia looked around at the questioning looks everypony was giving her. Even her dear sister and beloved former pupil were glaring at her accusingly. She took a deep breath. "Alright...I'll tell you. When I...when I exiled Uriah to the comet..." Her eyes started to water and she began to lose her words. Luna placed a hoof on her sister's shoulder and met her eyes with a comforting look. Celestia gathered herself and continued. "Please understand...this was worse than Nightmare Moon. Then it was isolated, the risks were high, but nopony knew anything outside of an eternal night. I lost my sister for a thousand years, but at least my little ponies were safe." She took another heavy breath. "Uriah was different. He wasn't just a prince, he was a hero. They knew him and what he did...it put us on the brink of total anarchy. The aftermath would have been centuries of war between at least six other kingdoms, not to mention civil war in our own. So...to protect our kingdom...to protect all of them, I cast a massive memory spell over the planet. I removed every trace of Uriah, his actions, and every detail pertaining to them."
They all just stared at her with open-mouth disbelief. It was one thing that she kept her son a secret, but this was unbelievable. Rainbow was at a loss for words, AppleJack shook her head, and Twilight was so taken aback that she started to lose her balance. Luckily her friends were there to catch her before she fell. She just couldn't believe that Celestia, her mentor, the one pony she looked up to the most, pretty much admitted to brainwashing the whole planet. Luna, who was becoming more agitated with her sister with each revelation, looked at her sister with anger and shock. "How could you? You violated the minds of every sentient creature on the planet. You completely altered their thoughts to suit your idea of peace and cover up your secret."
This angered Celestia. "It wasn't like that! You don't understand."
"Oh, then by all means, explain," Spat Luna with venom. "What exactly was so terrible, that you thought it necessary to rewrite the wills of so many."
"He murdered an entire race!" Celestia screamed in frustration. The rage was quickly dashed from her face as she looked upon the pale look of horror on everyone's faces. "You need to know the truth. It all started with those awful creatures. They brought with them an evil that would stain Equestria forever. Even with the spell, they haunt me in my deepest nightmares and they, no doubt, haunt Uriah as well."
Pinkie ran as fast as she could, crying over what had happened. She made it all the way to the garden fountain before the burning tears forced her to stop. There, in the midst of the flowers, trees and animals with sad looks of sympathy gathering in secret to see what was wrong, sat the unshakably happy party pony curled up into a ball and crying into her tail. It was too much. Pinkie had had enough of the shouting and the angry looks from the princess and her friends looking at her like she was crazy. She knew Uriah wasn't bad, but everything that was piling up in a big nasty heap of anger. She needed a moment to just cry her heart out.
Then, after about fifth-teen seconds of sobbing, there was the sound of wings beating. This made Pinkie lift her head a little. She did her best to dry her eyes, but gave up and just turned around. Coming up the trail, looking concerned, was Fluttershy and Rarity. The yellow pegasus showed a bit more speed than usual as she rushed to her friend in distress. "Pinkie..." There was a pause when she reached her, where they looked each other in the eye before, without a second thought, Flutter shy wrapped Pinkie in a big hug and let her cry onto her shoulder a bit. Rarity caught up a few seconds later and joined in. The two just held their friend until she started to calm herself down.
Pinkie caught her breath, still clinging to her friends. " I...I just wanted everypony to get along. Then Twilight and the princess started yelling, and Rainbow and Uriah got mad and...and..."
The unicorn fashionista gently brushed the back of her sorrowful friends mane. "Shhh, there there, darling. It's all over now."
In the midst of her sobbing and sniffling, Pinkie still had to defend her friend. "I know Uriah's good. I know he is. He's just had a really really bad time."
Fluttershy thought it would help if Pinkie got to tell her side of the story. "What exactly did happen? You said he told you everything, but what did you mean?"
Pinkie pulled back. "I mean everything! Who he is, how he grew up, his adventures protecting Equestria, his whole life story. He even told me how he got banished."
Rarity's curiosity had been peeked. "Well, tell us then. What did he do?"
Pinkie took a deep breath. She knew she had to be careful so could understand and not over react. "Okay, so it all started a long time ago, about five hundred and twenty-five years ago. Princess Celestia had found herself smitten with the then current captain of the guard, Righteous Blade. A romance soon blossomed and Celestia soon found herself with child." The sweet beginning incited a smile from her two friends, which made Pinkie feel better, but she then took a sad tone. "However, their story would not end happily, for while Blade was out on patrol, he came across a family of travelers in peril and he and his squad lost their lives trying to save them."
There was a gasp of shock from her audience made Pinkie stop. Rarity and Fluttershy looked so sad and surprised. The pegasus was the first to speak. "Oh, no! Poor princess Celestia."
Rarity added in. "What caused something so dreadful to happen?"
Pinkie took a deep breath. "It was..."
Celestia's eyes hardened at the mention of the name. "The Basilisks." It left her lips like a foul substance being spat out. Her grimace hardened. "If their hideous lot hadn't crawled out of their pits, then no misfortune would have ever befallen my son and I."
Twilight was puzzled. "But I've never heard of...oh"
The sun princess nodded. "Yes, thankfully, the spell I cast spared my little ponies the horror of the memory. They were serpents, ferocious, merciless, cunning, and pure evil. They were massive, the standard ones standing at least twice my height, three times as long. From the waist down, they had the body of a massive snake and their upper body was similar to that of what Twilight described of the "humans" on the other side of the mirror, with a muscular torso and a pair off powerful forearms. Their claws were like razor hooks and their teeth like daggers. Dark gray hides held armor-like scales that only the most powerful of spells could phase."
Luna noted the tension that built in her sister's voice as she described the beasts. "And these creatures were a threat?"
Celestia nodded slowly. "They had arrived just a century after you were sent to the moon. They emerged from their caverns deep beneath the surface and established themselves as their own kingdom. That's what made these things so monstrous. It wasn't the teeth or claws, it was that they were intelligent. They were thinking, sentient creatures, they were a society...and we were their prey." This received looks of shock and disgust from all witnesses. "They hunted us for food. If anypony was unfortunate to become lost in their territory, they were doomed. Settlements outside the kingdom were attacked and all I could do was hang my head."
Rainbow spoke up. "Then why not do something about it? If they were clearly a threat to ponies, then why not take them down like you guys did to Sombra?"
The elder alicorn glanced over in the multicolored pegasus's direction. "You sound just like Uriah. Believe me, I wanted to act, but then there were the politics. The Basilisk kingdom was fully recognized by the others and was respected as such. Not to mention you can't just remove a problem like that."
Luna remembered. "You take down one kingdom and the others see it as a threat, worse yet act on it. After Sombra was defeated and the Crystal empire vanished, there was a backlash from the other kingdoms. There were talks of war and blockades, it was a miracle we were able to smooth things out with all of them."
Celestia went on after her sister's explanation. "And it was the same problem all over again. We had talked about acting in response to the menace the Basilisks presented, but it came down to a question of rights and security. It was agreed that we had every right to defend what was in our territory, but there was tension over interfering outside the borders." Her face lit up with anger as she recounted more. "It was all because of Skall, the basilisk king. That demon and his silver tongue, barged into the royal summit, grinning like a devil, then had everyone believing that I was the villain. As if I were some tyrant trying to infringe on his peoples right to live in their sense of harmony, to live as they would and practice their own traditions." She gave a heavy sigh. "And they just agreed with him. They let him justify using our people as a food supply and forbid me from doing anything outside the fence, lest I incite a war between Skall and the kingdoms that sided with him."
Faces were becoming more pale at the recount of such a monstrous force. It took all of will power for the girls not to become physically ill. Twilight, especially, was feeling the weight of it. She couldn't believe that something as horrible as ponies being killed was swept over by politics. Was this really what being in charge was like? Ignore something that was a clear and present danger in favor of what might happen. "They had to have slipped up." Twilight said it on impulse, not being able to use her better judgement, but once it was said, all eyes were on her. "If Skall and his people were as evil as you make them out to be, then they had to have pushed too far, ventured into Equestrian territory. You could have declared that they were inciting war and called to the other kingdoms for support."
Pinkie shook her head as she responded to Fluttershy's question. "Celestia couldn't claim any kind of defense because the basilisks never came onto Equestrian territory. Skall was smart, he knew his speech to the summit was a double edged sword. So he was careful never to attack on our turf. The worst part was, he didn't need to. He would show up for "political meetings" in Canterlot just to taunt her. Like he was saying he could do whatever he wanted to our people and Celestia couldn't do a thing about it. That's where Uriah came in."
Fluttershy was trembling. This was quickly becoming the story that couldn't have a happy ending. "What did he do?"
Pinkie held her head strong. "Uriah was a hero. He protected Equestria from any danger that came knocking. He even risked his life to free a city from the control of an evil sorcerer. It tore him apart that ponies were in danger and politics were getting in the way of helping them. So, he got a team together to patrol the land between kingdoms. Colonies where ponies were living away from the kingdom were his top concern."
Rarity seemed confused. "Wait, why were they living away from the kingdom?"
Celestia gave a little laugh. "Not everypony liked the idea of having a ruler. They felt like they were being trapped on their own soil, having somepony tell them what to do, what to think, what to feel. Mind you, I've never behaved as such, but I suppose the business with the basilisks didn't help my image much."
Luna nodded her head. "So, Uriah took it upon himself to protect them, despite their secession?"
This made the elder sister smile. "That was Uriah for you. It was something he once said to me, that we needed to be rulers of the people, not above them. Hmm, he was a bit like you are, now, Luna. You would have liked him." Her smile faded. "I think that's where things went wrong between us. After losing you, I was so afraid of anything going wrong. Uriah becoming so rebellious toward me and the laws of the kingdom. To him, protocol meant nothing. Ponies looked up to us, with all the power we had, and thought we were gods. Uriah got the idea that we should behave as such, to keep and protect our kind without a second thought, no matter the cost."
AppleJack rubbed under her chin. "Well, not to seem out of place princess, but is that really such a bad thing? I mean, if y'all have the means to solve a problem and right quick, then why not just do it?"
Celestia kept a firm expression. "Because actions, even with the best of intentions, have consequences. It happened when Luna and I defeated Sombra and the crystal empire was lost for a thousand years. It happened when Uriah fought the evil wizard Grogar and, in doing so, set loose a swarm of monsters when the dark city crumbled. What he did to Skalll and the basilisks..."
There was a pause. Celestia shuddered and started to sweat. Twilight could see the pain in her mentor's eyes, as if she could actually see her blood running cold. It was all a lot to take in, but the young princess knew what she needed to do. She moved right up next to Celestia and gently draped a wing over her. "It's okay. Tell us what happened."
Pinkie needed another hug for the next part. Rarity and Fluttershy held their friend as tightly as they could. Pinkie had always been the most optimistic pony they knew. Nothing could get her down, but this was destroying her and who could blame her. This was a story that could never have a happy ending and, worse yet, it happened to somepony she cared about. "It got bad...really bad." The party pony sat down, her hair almost deflating. "Uriah and his squad were trying to protect this village. It was full of ponies that left the kingdom, ponies without a real home that moved from one place to another. Uriah was at a rough point between him and Celestia. He was getting more bold and she didn't like the attention his actions were getting. So he and his team were living with this gypsy village while he cooled down. He made friends with them, protected them on their travels. There was even this little filly with a red scarf that he looked after. It took some time, but he did decide to go back home. He even convinced the villagers to come back..." Her voice trailed off and her coat went a shade more pale. "He went ahead, made peace with Celestia, and had his team make the arrangements for the villagers, but they...they never arrived. Uriah was worried, so he went looking for them. There was this place where the basilisks went to...deposit their leftovers." Pinkie braced herself, as she felt ill. "They would drag what ever was left of the ponies they... and they just threw them into this pit and store them for later. When Uriah got there...he...there were so many just...falling in. Then he saw it...the little body...the torn red scarf."
Fluttershy and Rarity both felt the impact. It was cold, like a clump of snow dropped on their backs. Fluttershy wanted to cry, but she had to be strong for Pinkie. Rarity felt choked up too. Such tragedy, such pain, even for an alicorn like Uriah, it had to have hit him like nothing he could ever withstand. The white unicorn spoke up. "Is..is that when he...?"
Celestia remembered that day. It stood more vividly than anything else in her life. She thought of everything she had faced her her long, long life. Every trial, every loss, every villain, every love, and every moment that she knew would define her. She looked at Twilight, at the strong and confident princess she had become. The young mare was everything that Celestia was, what she could never be again. Twilight was something truly wonderful, having accomplished so much more than Celestia could have hoped for. She had saved Luna and maybe, if she had been born a few centuries sooner, could have saved him. Celestia hung her head. "It was the final straw. The basilisks had finally crossed the line, not only with such a massive slaughter, but, in doing so, taking something precious to Uriah. No remorse, no hesitation. Uriah burned them all. He went into the depths of their caverns, cast a massive destructive spell, and didn't stop until every basilisk had been wiped out."
Luna was still trying to wrap her head around it. "To wipe out an entire species in one spell. It seems so unreal. How could he manage to do something of such a huge scale."
Celestia's eyes went cold. "Rage, Luna. Pure rage. The basilisks weren't as numerous as other species, only a few thousand were ever active at a time, but they were extremely resilient. They burned for hours, the tunnels collapsed, and red flames erupted from the ground. It was the day that made everyone stop in their tracks. The crimson glow could be seen on the horizon from all corners of the world. Some laughed, some cried, but most were silent. After it was over, we all waited for something...no one knew what, but they knew there had to be something more. Uriah appeared at the edge of Canterlot, like some ghost on a battle field. He was battered, exhausted, cold, but above all he held himself with a strength that made everything around him seem so small. When ponies gathered to find out just what had happened, he announced, with pride, that the basilisks were dead. There was cheering and outrage, ponies being split down the middle over whether it was right or wrong, riots were already forming. Then came the worst.
The doors of the throne room swung open with a boom. The staff were frightened, then quickly made themselves scarce as they received looks from both parties. Uriah walked in with his head hanging and his wings dragging, a tired smile marked on his face and a torn piece of a red scarf tied around his foreleg. He swayed in his step as he made his way toward his mother, who sat on her throne staring daggers at him. Uriah allowed himself a soft chuckle as he passed by the stained glass windows, the colors of them dancing across his coat as the light poured in. "Well..." He finally spoke in a cold whisper, which still came in clear in the dead silence. "Anything to say? Everypony else was running to see me. The troops were especially happy to have me back, they even applauded me. Scarlet was absolutely ecstatic, but I told her to wait till I caught up with you before any 'congratulatory activities' occurred. Heheheheh!"
Celestia looked at him with a mix of horror and disgust. She could feel his magic when he cast the spell, she knew what he'd done. "You make jokes? Thousands of voices crying out in agony, only to be suddenly silenced, and you laugh? Do you even have the slightest bit of comprehension of what you've done?"
He feigned perplexity. "The way you look at me. I'm trying to find a better word than dread. Ah, let's see, ummm, I believe that I witnessed an atrocity so absolutely unbearable that I had no choice but to act." He turned to face her. "That, after years of having to watch as my people were stalked, killed and let's not forget, eaten by a soulless evil while the idiocy of politics told me I had no right to help them." His eyes hardened with an anger that Celestia wasn't expecting. "That I had to stand on the spot, staring at a force that absolutely would not stop and I was forced to make the only possible, real choice. I did the right thing. I really don't expect you to know what that feels like."
That was unexpected."Excuse me?! How dare you? After everything I've done for you, for our people. You eradicate an entire race, then you come to lecture me about taking action?! Do you have the slightest idea what I've sacrificed for our people?"
"No!" He roared. The pure rage in his voice silenced Celestia in a heart beat. "You don't get to use that! There's a difference between sacrificing for the people you love and just sacrificing them! You turned your back on the kingdom, just like you turned your back on aunt Luna!" That did it. The way her eyes widened and her pupils shrank. "She needed you. She needed you, just like all of those ponies needed you! You failed them, because you were too consumed by your image. The good little princess who can do no wrong, always following the rules. Never once does she step out of line, even if it means saving her people. Maker forbid, you ever tarnish your antiquated moral compass."
Celestia didn't bother with a response to the Luna shot. "We've just received a letter from the gryphon kingdom."
Uriah knew where it was going. "Did they enjoy the light show then?"
"They're threatening a war!" She bellowed. "They warned us, they would not tolerate an unjustified attack on another kingdom."
The young prince rolled his eyes. " So, we aren't counting the entire graveyards Skall and his lot have filled."
Celestia's temper was rising. "You go against my orders, you take away from our military to launch unauthorized campaigns, you ignore the rulings of the royal summit and as much as you claim to love our people, you open up their lives to the horrors of war!" She stood with a thunderous stomp.
Uriah puffed out his chest in defiance and spread his wings. "Let them come! There's not a force in Equestria that I couldn't vanquish."
The solar princess looked at her son with terror. "You've gone mad."
He responded instantly. "I've opened my eyes. We have so much power. We move the heavens themselves, we control the wind and weather, we split the earth, and we've faced forces that would have destroyed this world. If I have the power of the gods, does that not make me a god myself?"
Celestia was crying again. For five hundred years, that moment had haunted her. First, she lost Luna, then her own son. She had an unfortunate habit of losing the ones she loved. Now, after holding it in for centuries, bringing it out was destroying her. She just focused on Twilight and emptied the pent up sorrow. "At that moment, I knew what needed to be done. Uriah was in too dangerous a state of mind to rule and would no doubt create havoc in opposition to the coming war. So, I meditated. I built up my magic so I would be strong enough to face him. The comet was an event we had been preparing to celebrate. The staff, the guards, everypony was in Canterlot square for the party. I had a maid deliver a message to Uriah that I wanted to meet him in the palace garden. I found him feeding the fish in the pond. He didn't even see me, I just took a breath and cast the spell. I removed his mental link to his magic and trapped him on the comet. Just this flash of light and he was gone. It took a moment for it to sink in. I found..." She broke to sob for a moment, letting her sister hug her tight. "I found a bouquet of roses next to where he was sitting and with them, an engagement band. He...was was going to propose to his beloved. My son...my only son was going to confess his heart...and I sent him away, never to see his love, or his friends ever again. I ...I even made it so it was like they never knew him."
Now Celestia felt another set of hooves around her. Twilight hugged her teacher close and nuzzled into her side. There wasn't any need to wonder. Whether the context was right or not, Uriah was right. Twilight was like a daughter to Celestia and would never hesitate to be there when she was in need of comfort. The lavender alicorn held her teacher for another minute, then released her to stand with her friends. "So...what do we do now?"
Celestia composed herself, trying to be as strong as she could through tear stained appearance. 'You need to keep yourselves ready." She swept her gaze from the three ponies before her to Luna, then back. "All of you. Despite everything, Uriah is now a most dangerous foe. He's a master athlete, warrior, sorcerer, tactician, and thinker. Whether he plans it out or is forced to act on instinct, it will be a true challenge to face him. He's motivated by rage and he has nothing left to lose. Keep the elements close and do not face him separated. It's going to take everything we have to stop him. Above all...be safe my little ponies. Now, I must return to my chamber. I'll have the staff prepare rooms for the six of you." With that, Celestia stood and with a flap of her wings leaped from the throne to the door to the hall leading to her chamber. Before she exited, she turned one last time. "Luna...would you walk me to my chamber?"
The younger sister nodded without hesitating. "Of course, sister." She rushed to catch up with her, leaving the three friends to ponder what they had learned. The trio was certainly worn from the tale. They had faced many challenges, but Uriah was going to be something else. They shared a look of worry of things to come, then left to go search for the other half of their party.