//------------------------------// // The Fall of Sepiks Prime - Chapter 4 : The Traveler's Light // Story: Destiny : Twilight Voidwalker // by BackroundVoice //------------------------------// A good hour had passed before Twilight was ready to go to the Hanger Bay. Twilight had already said good bye to the Captain and Commander in the War Room. While General Armor and Lord Spike had led us out to the plaza. “Twily,” General Armor began “I still can’t tell you how much it means to me to see you again… And after so long!” Armor hugged Twilight, squeezing her tightly, and Twilight returned the affection. “Been a while since I’ve seen you this happy General” Lord Spike said. Crossing his arms and smirking sheepishly. The General opened his eyes, his piercing gaze cutting at Lord Spike, but it didn’t faze him. “I can be happy if I want to Spike, and while I’m sure you’re just as excited as I am that Twi is back, you still shouldn’t’ve interrupted us…” “You needed to know, and I think I was right to do so…” Spike said. “Ha! You? Thinking… That is so like you, always running head first into battle. Never stopping to consider the situation… You could’ve hurt somepony” “Yeah… But I didn’t…” Spike said. “No wonder Rarity is avoiding you…” Armor retorted. Lord Spike only tilted his head to that response. Tension grew between the General and Handler. And for once… Twilight and I knew how those Dregs and Shanks felt in our last encounter with that Captain. “Don’t you have a Strike mission to organize?” Lord Spike reminded the General. Armor’s eyes narrowed on Spike. Caught in the truth, with no choice but to leave Twilight’s side. The General sighed, and turned to Twilight. “Later sis, we still have paper work to do” he said hugging her one last time, as he talked for both himself and Lord Spike. “Actually, I’m already done with my paper work. I’m free to take you to the Hanger Bay Twilight!” Lord Spike announced cheerfully. “Then what is that in your claw?” the General asked, pointing to the fifty or so pages of parchment Spike held at his side. Bringing the collection of hand written pages to his face, he purposefully stuck the stack into his mouth and swallowed it whole. Soon belching with pride a second later. Twilight snickered and giggled at the frustration on her brother’s face. The General, mouth open to yell, stopped himself. He then turned back around and trotted down the stairs. All while shaking his head and mumbling. Most likely something about our friend Spike. When Armor was finally out of sight, my green horned Guardian and the Crucible champion looked at another. Lips quivering and breath held, the two couldn’t hold in their laughter any longer. The Dragon and Alicorn burst out in tears laughing. Only stopping to realize that the whole plaza could hear them. Calming down, and making their way around the plaza, the two continued to snicker and snort as we walked into the Hanger Bay entrance. “Was it really that funny?” I asked. “Completely!” Twilight answered “If you knew Shining like we do you’d understand” “Yup! Some things never change!” Spike said with a hearty laugh. Twilight’s smiling turned to an expression of concern. Looking at Spike, she couldn’t help herself but ask. “But some things have changed, haven’t they, Spike…” Twilight said. “I think it would be best if you looked up the history for yourself, instead of asking an old serpent like myself for the details” Lord Spike told Twilight, attempting to avoid anything personal. And Twilight was too. Being considerate is a virtue after all. But I personally wanted to know. “So who’s this Rarity you talked about earlier?” I asked bluntly, pretending to be oblivious. But given their reactions… I probably should have thought this through. The two turned to me, baffled. Twilight more so. Remembering the significance of my question, Twilight looked to Spike, clearly he wanted to avoid the subject. But he knew better than anypony, that this was something Twilight needed to hear. “Where is Rarity?” Twilight asked, stopping in the middle of a busy hallway. Lord Spike’s eyes looked detached. Emotionless to the Guardians bumping against his shoulders as he stood there. He sighed, and gestured down the hallway. “C’mon, we’ll talk on our way” he said. And he kept walking, regardless if we were walking with him. Twilight and I looked at each other for a brief second, and then ran to catch up with our guide. Now trotting alongside of the Crucible Handler, we waited for Spike to answer our questions. “Rarity is on Venus…” he said. “Venus!?” Twilight screamed. Turning the heads of many fellow Guardians on the Hanger Bay main floor. “Yeah…” Lord Spike said again “Rare, Dash, and Jack are all patrolling Venus. Pinkie however is on Mars, hunting down a bounty for me…” “So… Their all okay… That’s a relief…” Twilight said, relieved. Resting a hoof on her chest and breathing slowly. “And their all Guardians?” “Yup…” Lord Spike answered. Still staring ahead as he walked. “Wait… What about Flutter Shy?” Twilight asked. The second Lord Spike heard that name, he slumped. Frowning and looking at the ground. Spike rushed through his thoughts for a reply. “We don’t know…” Twilight gasped. Going so far as to raise her voice, she confronted Spike. “What do you mean you don’t- “Yet… We don’t know yet…” Spike interrupted. Twilight was furious. Now stomping her hoofs, Twilight tried to keep a level head. “It was my own theory that we’d find you when we reunited the other five… But now? It’s clear that we just weren’t looking hard enough” Spike confessed. Twilight was on the verge of tears again. Biting her lip to stop herself from sobbing. Squeezing her eyes shut, she was still trying to comprehend the situation she has now found herself in. I looked at Spike, and he me. I thought I should comfort her. But given Lord Spike’s history with my Guardian, I stayed my distance, and let her ‘Number one assistant’ take action. Lord Spike wrapped his arm around her. And guided her on a detour. Leading her across a catwalk, Spike held Twilight tightly, as two or three tears hit against his metal plated boots. Finally, we came to a stop. Now aware that she was motionless, Twilight lifted her eyelids a little, just barely enough to utter “Where are we?” but where we were didn’t need an explanation of any kind. Twilight looked out on the balcony that she now stood before. Taking only a few more trots forward, she gazed over the edge. As if seeing it for a second time. The City’s shimmering buildings reflected a multitude of colors. Each structure increasing in size as her pupils dilated when she saw the center. The Crystal Palace shined with the hearts of a hundred Crystal Ponies. Illuminating pure joy and harmony. And just like before, Twilight saw that sphere atop the highest most spire. Hanging overhead like a Hearths warming eve ordainment. She remembered it being called something, the Traveler. She’s heard that name more times in the past few hours, yet she still didn’t know the first thing about it. “We call it the Traveler…” Lord Spike finally said. “You say that as if I should know what it is…” Twilight responded. “Yes… But only because you called it something far different when we first found it” Twilight flinched, whipping her head at Spike in surprise. “You called it, ‘The beginning of our Golden Age’” he answered. Twilight quickly turned to me, and then the Traveler. Now beyond confused, Twilight peered at the moon like structure. And she wondered why she would have ever have called it that. A second passed, and before I could say Winter Wrap Up, Twilight’s eyes flashed the same white the Traveler did. And I'm assuming so did mine. A feeling of fear filled my soul as I looked around. My Guardian was standing beside me. But neither of us could utter a word. We were surrounded by a great many Ponies. All looking forward to a single far more noticeable Pony. Princess Twilight Sparkle, as she would have looked seven hundred years ago. Wearing a royal dress with a crown atop her head, she began to speak. Using the royal Canterlot Voice she gave a grand speech to her subjects. “Ponies of Equestria, many wonders have been found throughout this world we live in today. From the plants that grow beneath our hooves, to the very magic of Friendship itself. We as Ponies strive to become great and powerful… “And the hardships we’ve faced have forged hearts of gold to shine brightly to the stars and back again. And the events that have led us to this point could only be described as one thing, Awesome… “Now… I promise you, to all the Ponies that gazed at night sky to see what was behind it… That your dream has finally come true!” The Princess went silent for a moment, leaving the crowd to guess what would happen next. And then it fell, slowly descending just above Canterlot castle in the distance, the Traveler. Moving as if it were new. “My friends have come up with many names for it, but I have my own… “This… Equestria… Is our Golden Age!” As soon as those words were said, Twilight and I bounced back into reality. Waking up to the sound of Lord Spike’s voice. “-To make a long story short Twilight, the Traveler was our- “New hope…” Twilight and I interrupted. Saying it together as if it were common knowledge. Lord Spike smiled at us, who knew we would see the truth. Looking back at the Traveler, Lord Spike continued. “I want you to know Twilight, that it is still my hope, that one day, everything will return back to normal. We will find Flutter Shy, the Elements, and I swear… I will stop at nothing, to keep you, and everyone safe from the Darkness and it's armies...” Lord Spike said, claws gripping the balcony railing, squeezing the metal until it bent. Seeing Spike's anger and will power for herself, Twilight could tell that Spike had changed. But that wouldn't stop her from caring for him. Twilight placed a hoof on her friend's arm, causing Lord Spike to loosen his grip, taming the beast in a way. And then she fell against Spike, leaning on him as they both looked at the breath taking sight ahead. Feeling left out, I floated over Twilight’s head, and landed on her hair. It felt like a soft nest. If I knew how to sleep, I would be ‘dozing off’ right now. This moment, of content peace, could have lasted forever… But even this wonderful feeling I have inside me, had to come to an end eventually. “We should see the engineer...” I said, breaking the silence. I took off down the catwalk again, and Twilight and Spike followed after. Just as we set hoof on main floor again the three of us heard a repeating ring of an alarm. The source of the noise came from Lord Spike himself. It was a little awkward, as Spike seemed to be ignoring it. But the constant stare that Twilight and I gave made him answer it. “Someone’s calling me, probably about that door I broke…” Lord Spike then put on his helmet, and placed his claw against the side of it, thus answering it. “Hello!? Whoever this is I’m kind of busy here… Saladin? … When did this happen? Okay… I’ll meet you at Twilight Gap…” Spike took his hand off his helmet, resulting in a clicking noise to sound off as he did. “Got to go?” Twilight asked. But Spike seemed to be less than happy about his call. “I’m sorry Twilight, I’m only going to be gone a minute” Spike said, apologizing with earnest. And Twilight gestured her hoof, signaling him to be on his way. “Thanks Twilight!” Lord Spike said as he started off back to the Plaza “I’ll meet you back at the Plaza!” he shouted from afar. Eventually, he went out of sight. And Twilight and I made our way up stairs to where the engineer would be. As we neared the top, an abundance of yelling could be heard. “What do you mean you don’t know what went wrong!? That’s my job! I’m the strabismal blonde here!!” shouted an agitated mare. “Boss… I’m sorry, I- “Get out of my Hanger Bay!!!!” Screams were heard, and a panicked stallion darted past myself and my Guardian. Barely escaping a barrage of wrenches and screwdrivers. “YOU’RE BUCKING LUCKY I CAN’T AIM STRAIT!!!!” … Hoping that the mare would calm down, we waited a good minute before peeking around the railing. Seeing the mare, hammer in hoof, was now pounding away on a slab of metal on her desk. Figuring that she was the engineer, we trotted slowly up toward the mare. The engineer wore a Shipwright’s uniform, brandishing a silky red scarf around her neck, and goggles around her eyes. Her coat color was a plain gray and her mane was a golden blonde. Twilight stepped forward cautiously, scared that the engineer would throw the hammer at her if she interrupted her work. But she shook off that fear. Shaking her head about, Twilight cleared her mind, and reached out to the mare. “Um… Excuse me Miss- Twilight's sentence was cut short as a loud clang erupted from the hammer colliding with the metal. The sound of the hammer hitting the metal, caused it to bend like plastic as it made my Guardian jump. The engineer looked at Twilight, and took off her goggles. Revealing her crocked eye sight. “Twilight!” the engineer rang out. “Ditzy!” Twilight followed suit. The two hugged a little, but Ditzy pulled away, turning to some pieces of an engine that needed to be put together. "Spitfire said you'd be along" the engineer mentioned. “Uhh… You don’t seem that surprised…” Twilight said. “I always knew you would show up one day” Ditzy answered. ... The atmosphere grew thine… It didn’t feel awkward, in fact, but I don’t really know what to think of it. Ditzy continued her work on the engine. “So you knew her before?” I asked, but before Twilight could even open her mouth, Miss Ditzy Doo dropped the engine from her hooves and turned to me. “Ghost!? You’re her Ghost!? Oh congratulations!” Ditzy said as she flew up to me and spun me around while hugging me as tightly as she could. In the midst of Ditzy’s enjoyment Twilight appeared to be jealous of me. Pouting as she stood there, Ditzy came to a stop, laughing joyfully as she did. When her good eye met with Twilight’s she started to explain herself. “Sorry Twilight, you have no idea how long this little guy has been looking for a Guardian” Twilight was then suddenly interested “Looking for a Guardian?” “Yeah! Ghost’s, like Ghost here, are the reason Guardians like ourselves exist in the first place. They assist Guardians in whatever you do. From hunting down Fallen to organizing all of the Jumpship repair schedules in seconds!” Not even a second passed before Ditzy’s own Ghost appeared from her Ghost Storage. Hazy eyed, and rusted from work as it slowly glanced around, finally turning to Ditzy in disgust. “Ghosts should only assist… Not do all the work…” it told Ditzy. “Oh Casper, you know how much of a dunce I can be!” Ditzy cheerfully commented, sticking out her tongue as if she were being sarcastic. “Yeah; I know…” Casper agreed. “Hey Casper! Doing ok?” I asked Casper. “Ghost…” it acknowledged my existence. And then dissolved through the chain-link fence to observe the Jumpships on the ground floor. “Not good friends?” Twilight asked me. “No, not really” I answered. “Don’t worry about her, she’s just a busy work horse” Ditzy said. Watching her Ghost examine the Jumpships below. “That reminds me! I need to work on your ship Twilight!” Ditzy exclaimed. “Now which one is yours?” she asked. Twilight and I took in the multitude of Jumpships hanging from the ceiling and the organized amount on the ground. Scanning over them all, it didn’t take me long to find the one Jumpship that looked significantly older than the rest. “That one…” I pointed it out with my light beam. Ditzy was quiet, bug eyed and quiet. “T- That’s a… an Arcadia…” Ditzy finally said. “Yes, I know it isn’t like all the other top tech Jumpships you’re used to working with but it- “This is Amazing!” Ditzy squealed. Her eyes focused together for what seemed to be the first time in forever. “I haven’t fixed up a Jumpship like this since Flash brought one back from Canterlot!” “Flash Sentry!?” Twilight said aloud, but shut her mouth with her hoof. Ditzy's eyes went crocked again as she looked to Twilight “He’s on Mars right now…” she told my Guardian. “O-oh… That’s nice…” Twilight said, blushing as she avoided any eye contact. “Welp!” Ditzy clopped her hooves together “No time like the present!” Ditzy then ran to her desk, rummaging through a box of blue prints. “Wait, don’t we have to pay you or something?” Twilight asked. Ditzy whipped her head around, and trotted up to Twilight on her back hooves with a stack of blue prints in her front hooves, pressing her nose against Twilight’s. “Miss Sparkle, I’m going to ask you the same thing I ask all of my clients. To me, time is money, do you know what money is to me?” “Valuable?” Twilight said. “The thing that makes the world go round?” I said. “Bucking useless to me!” Ditzy answered “If I needed money to do what I do I’d be uptight, angry, and livid all the time!” “Like you are right now?” I said. But that was far from amusing to Miss Doo. “… I’m not going to hit you because I like you Ghost… Otherwise?” Ditzy gave me the death stare, telling me to wait by the stairs. She then turned to Twilight, who expected the same treatment. But instead, she hugged her. Now I was the jealous one. “I’m doing this for free because you are my friend Twilight… And I’m pretty sure you’ve had a rough enough day as it is…” Ditzy said. Twilight was surprised, and happy. "Thank you Ditzy..." Twilight said, hugging Ditzy back. "Please... Call me Derpy..." Ditzy said. Twilight trotted to the stairs to meet with me. Departing this friendly encounter with high spirits. “I’ll call you when I’ve got it done for you two!” And with a wave good bye, Twilight and I returned to the Plaza.