//------------------------------// // From Crystal to Snow // Story: An Ancient Threat // by Professor Tacitus //------------------------------// The Crystal Empire looked as beautiful as ever. The buildings glowed with a brilliant, almost blinding light from the reflected late-afternoon sunshine. The city was bustling with crystal ponies walking here and there, busily going about their day with their crystal coats glowing almost as brightly as the buildings. Twilight and her friends walked towards the central building of the city: the Crystal Castle, where the rulers of the Empire, Cadence and Shining Armor, dwelled. They walked casually among the populace, taking in the beauty of the Empire that they never got tired of seeing. Twilight began to look back and forth, noticing something, or someone, was missing from their group. She looked toward her friends. “Has anypony seen Tacitus?” The others began to glance around in the same fashion as Twilight, searching the area for their missing friend. They heard him before they saw him. “So, what was life like a thousand years ago?” they heard him ask from somewhere behind them. They turned around and saw him some distance back, talking to a crystal pony mare with a shining golden coat and an amber mane, a quill and stacks of paper held in his dark blue aura. “How have things changed since then? Has technology improved very dramatically from your time to the present? Who ruled the Empire before Sombra? What was the Empire’s relationship with the other nations of the world at the time? Have you and other crystal ponies adapted well to the present?” All these questions he asked with an excited, almost insane look on his face. He eagerly awaited her to answer his questions. The mare just gave him a blank stare. “Ummmm….” Her eyes darted back and forth, desperate for someone to pull her out of this awkward situation. Luckily, Applejack granted her request. “Alright partner, that’s enough of that.” She walked over to him and yanked him by his scarf, dragging him across the ground as he desperately but futilely tried to resist. “Applejack, wait!” he pleaded. “Just give me one minute! All I need is one minute to find out more about the Empire. Please?” “Sorry Tacitus, not gonna happen,” she responded as she dragged him back to the group. Once they were reunited, Applejack let go of Tacitus and he stood back up, dusting himself off and fixing his scarf. He levitated his quill and paper back into his saddlebag. “Great,” he sighed as he saw the mare he’d been interviewing had disappeared. “Now I have to find somepony else to interview. Rainbow Dash frowned at him. “We don’t really have time for interviews right now Tacitus. We’re kinda in the middle of a mission, remember?” “But-“ “Rainbow’s right Tacitus,” said Twilight. “We need to go see Cadence and Shining Armor to get some information about these strange happenings near the ruins, and then we’re heading straight out. Time is of the essence, so we can’t afford to waste any on historical inquiry.” Although disappointed, Tacitus knew she was right. It was selfish of him to be concerned about research when there were sick ponies that were counting on him and the others to help them. Who knows how long they had left before they finally succumbed to the illness. A feeling of guilt overtook him as he thought of this. He silently promised himself he wouldn’t let himself be distracted again. He had to focus on helping those ponies. “I’m sorry, you’re right.” He smiled at them, determined to help them in any way he could. “Let’s get going then.” Now rejoined by Tacitus, the group resumed its trek towards the Castle. As they walked, Tacitus couldn’t help but admire the beauty of the Empire. The dazzling architecture and the exotic ponies were incredibly fascinating to him. He had never seen anything like the Empire, and knowledge of it was so scarce before its return. The sight of it, this magnificent city that was of historical myth, was breath-taking. To him, it rivaled even Canterlot in its regal beauty and majesty. Once he saw the Castle, he was more amazed than ever. He marveled at the crystalline tower that reached high into the air, and his mouth was wide in awe as he beheld the Crystal Heart floating over a pedestal just outside the entrance. Although he wanted desperately to examine the Heart closer, he resisted the urge and followed the others toward the doors to the Castle. Two crystal pony guards stood at the entrance, and upon seeing Twilight quickly snapped to attention and saluted her. She gave a warm smile and a nod to the guards and proceeded into the crystal citadel, along with the rest of her companions. They had hardly taken a few steps when someone shouted out to them. Well, shouted out to Twilight at least. “Twily!” The shout was soon followed by the appearance of a white unicorn stallion with a sapphire blue mane and light blue eyes. He ran towards Twilight and enveloped her in a tight embrace. “It’s so good to see you sis! Feels like it’s been forever.” Twilight returned the embrace. “It’s good to see you too BBBFF! You remember my friends, but I don’t think you’ve met Tacitus yet.” She waved a hoof at Tacitus and her brother turned his gaze on him. Twilight had told Tacitus a lot about her brother, so he was both excited and somewhat nervous about meeting him. Before Tacitus could properly greet him, Shining Armor turned back to Twilight. “So, is he your coltfriend or something?” Tacitus’s entire face became the color of a tomato and he quickly moved to cover his face with his hat as best as he could. His friends began to snicker and giggle behind him, except Rainbow who was laughing loudly and clutching her sides. Twilight looked aghast at her brother. “What?! No! That’s ridiculous! He’s just a friend and-“ She was cut off by her brother’s laughter. “Relax Twily, I was only kidding. Thou doth protests too much me thinks.” He gave her a smug grin, and Twilight glared daggers at him. Tacitus was still recovering from the embarrassment when Shining Armor approached him. Tacitus tipped his hat and gave a slight bow. “It’s good to meet you Prince Armor.” Tacitus’s hoof was suddenly seized in a firm hoof shake and Shining Armor beamed at him. “No need for the titles. Any friend of Twily’s is a friend of mine.” After releasing his grip on Tacitus, he motioned for them to follow. “Come on, Cadence is waiting for us in the throne room.” They followed in his wake. Twilight came to Tacitus’s side. “Sorry about that,” she said. “My brother thinks he’s a comedian.” “Don’t worry about it Twilight, it’s fine.” Tacitus’s face was still slightly red, and the fact that the girls were still giggling wasn’t helping in the least to alleviate his discomfort. He considered Twilight as a very close friend. Nothing more, nothing less. But for someone to insinuate something like that, even if it was only jokingly, was incredibly flustering to him. They walked for a few moments before entering the throne room of the castle. There on a throne made of pure white crystal sat a pink alicorn with a vibrant mane of purple, pink, and gold and light purple eyes. She levitated stacks of papers in front of her and was signing each of them with a quill. She looked up at the sound of approaching hooves and smiled widely at her guests. “Twilight!” she shouted with glee as she ran towards them, the papers and quill dropping to the floor as she unconsciously released her magic. “Cadence!” Twilight responded in turn as she ran to meet her. They both spoke simultaneously. “Sunshine, sunshine, ladybugs awake! Clap your hooves and do a little shake!” Tacitus watched in confusion as Twilight and Cadence did the movements associated with the words. “What the hay are they doing?” he quietly asked Pinkie. “It’s something they’ve done since Twilight was an itty bitty filly. It’s kinda like a Pinkie Promise.” After finishing their greeting ritual, Twilight turned and waved towards Tacitus. “Cadence, this is our friend Tacitus.” Tacitus removed his hat and bowed low. “A pleasure to meet you,” he said. Cadence gave him a slight nod and a wide smile. “A pleasure to meet you too. It’s really good to see all of you again. Things have been…hectic around here recently.” The smile turned into a look of nervous concern. “Does it have to do with why we’re here?” Twilight asked. “Yes, unfortunately, it does,” Shining answered. “A lot of strange things have been happening at the old ruins. A few weeks ago, a pair of guards was on duty on the outskirts of the empire. According to his partner, one of them saw someone headed in the direction of the ruins and went to investigate. He never came back. We’ve sent nearly a dozen guards to that place and none of them have been seen since.” Cadence chimed in. “Shortly after the first disappearance, the first ponies started to get sick. Every day, more and more ponies are being admitted into the hospital. We’ve been able to keep the citizens calm so far, but I can feel their fear and anxiety rising.” A look of apprehension was present on everyone’s face, except Twilight, who remained undeterred. “Is there anything else you can tell us?” she asked. “No,” said Shining, “but we can give you supplies for the journey and an escort of guards to guide you there.” “The guards won’t be necessary,” Twilight said simply. “How do you expect to get to the ruins then?” Shining asked. “You’ve never been there before.” “Tacitus has. He went to the ruins on a historical expedition, so he’ll be our guide.” Twilight flashed a smile at Tacitus, and he found that a sense of confidence and pride spread through him. “At least take the guards for protection then,” Shining suggested. Tacitus saw a look of worry in his eyes, more so than the others. “M-Maybe we should Twilight,” Fluttershy stammered. “I-I mean, you know, if that’s okay with everypony.” Twilight shook her head. “We’ll be fine on our own. There’s nothing out there we can’t handle.” Tacitus couldn’t help but admire her confidence, but something in his gut wished she would accept the offer. “Well,” Cadence said, “we still have these for all of you.” Her horn illuminated with a light blue aura and she levitated a couple of bags that appeared to be filled with crystalline fruit and bottles of water, and eight cloaks; seven were pony-sized while the eight was the perfect size for a baby dragon. Each of them received a cloak, while Pinkie and Applejack opted to carry the bags of food and water. They each put on their cloaks, which were of a dark green color, except Rarity. She stared at her cloak for a few moments, a look on her face like she had a lemon in her mouth. Her horn glowed and enveloped the cloak, and in a few moments, her cloak was bedazzled with various gems and the edges were cut into an elegant design. “Much better,” she said as she put on her cloak. She looked and noticed that her friends were staring at her, some of them shaking their heads slightly. “What? I can do yours too if you like.” *** They all stood at the edge of the city, the green grass abruptly turning into snow-covered ground. They stood just inside the invisible barrier that kept the Empire green and lush in the frozen north, and only a few feet away was blistering cold and violent blizzard. Shining Armor had joined them at the edge of the Empire and held Twilight in a tight embrace. His eyes were still filled with concern. “Please stay safe sis. I don’t want you and your friends going missing too.” He reluctantly released her, and Twilight gave him a smile. “Don’t worry Shining, I promise we’ll be fine. We’ll be back before you know it.” She turned and headed towards the snow, followed closely by her friends. Just as Tacitus began to walk as well, he felt a hoof grab on to his shoulder. He turned and saw that the hoof belonged to Shining Armor. “I’ve got a bad feeling about this,” Shining said. “If it weren’t for my responsibilities here, I’d go with you. Please do me a favor and look out for my sister. Don’t let her get hurt.” Tacitus nodded. “I will. I promise.” Shining smiled weakly and released his shoulder. Tacitus rushed to catch up with them, soon smacking into what felt like a wall of pure ice. Going from comfortably warm to freezing cold in a matter of seconds, Tacitus shivered as he continued to run until he caught up with his friends, who were waiting for him to lead the way. “We need to start heading northeast,” Tacitus said. “With this weather, it’ll probably be a few hours before we make it to Nova Domus, so we better get moving.” With that, they began their long journey to the Roamen ruins. *** Numerous candles provide the only illumination in the otherwise dark room. The room looks as if it is crumbling; broken structures and walls littered the snow-covered interior. A single pony, shrouded in a hooded cloak and his feature hidden in the darkness, waits patiently for his “guest” to arrive. The sound of a door creaking open draws his attention, and from the door emerges two more hooded ponies, dragging a third between them. Unlike the others, the one being dragged had no cloak and his features were visible in the dim light. He was a green unicorn, although his horn had been broken off. He was covered in various cuts and bruises and was bleeding profusely. Tears of blood poured out through the socket that once held his left eye. “Wake him,” the pony commanded. The unicorn that held the left side of the prisoner turned his horn towards the prisoner and sent an electric shock into his body. The pony writhed and screamed in pain as he regained consciousness, sparks of electricity dancing around his form. “The last scion of the Sentinels. How disappointing. Your ancestors would be ashamed of you, being so lax in your duty. I can end the pain, if you but tell us where it is.” The prisoner remained silent, staring at the floor and groaning in pain. The lead pony turned to the two that were holding him. “Take the other eye.” One of the cloaked ponies immediately began to dig his hoof into the unicorn’s right eye. Amid the screams of pain, the prisoner was able to shout the words they wanted to hear. “WAIT! WAIT! I’LL TALK! I’LL TELL YOU!” The lead pony smiled and waved for them to cease. He leaned in close, excited anticipation clear on his face. After a moment of catching his breath and letting the pain subside to a bearable level, the broken unicorn looked up. “It’s in Mt. Vehoovius. But good luck getting past all the enchantments and traps. You’ll never get your hooves on it.” “Enchantments and traps are of no concern, and you have outlived you usefulness.” He drew a dagger from his cloak and slid it slowly across the prisoner’s throat. After a grotesque gurgling noise and a few seconds of twitching, the prisoner was still. They dropped him to the floor and a pool of blood began to form around his head. The leader looked to his comrades. “The master will be very pleased.” “I am indeed.” The rasping voice seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere. It echoed off the walls and sent chills up their spines. “Finally, after all these years, my power is within my grasp. But there is a disturbance.” “More patrolling guards, my lord?” “No, these are different. They are destined for Nova Domus. These ponies carry someone familiar among them.” “What are you orders master?” “Slaughter them.”