//------------------------------//
// Chapter III: The Burning of Grace 
// Story: Luna Eclipse 
// by Teeemu 
//------------------------------//




"There will come a time when I shall explain everything to you."




Silence. Blissful silence... Then.
The echoes of past events filtered through her mind's eye like a looping record player. She could hear voices talking in hushed whispers. They sounded concerned and somewhat fearful. Like ponies who were guilty of committing some unspeakable crime.
"How much longer until she comes to?" came the voice of an elderly mare.
"I cannot say for sure," replied an all too familiar monotone. "She has been through a substantial amount of bodily trauma. Couple that with watching her husband behave the way he did, and the harsh words spoken? I'd be surprised if she still isn't in a lot of shock."
"But... what if they discover what we've done with her and her foal?" the elderly mare asked, the fear still easily audible.
"Their safety is of the utmost importance at this current stage. We can only take comfort in the knowledge that for the time being they are here with us and not in the hooves of those who would do them harm."
"But what of our safety, Esteril?" the elderly mare pushed with more urgency. "How do you think they would view us if it were discovered that we harbored an… adulterer."
Alouette twitched in her sleep. She felt a pang of annoyance at the sound of that word. The events of a few hours ago began to roll through her mind. She remembered the sight of her foal. How it had sent Quicklight into a hysterical fit of rage that in all her years married to him, she had never thought it possible that her husband could ever behave the way he did or say the things he had said.
Why did he say or think that about her? What had been so wrong with her foal? And then she remembered it. The sight of which she had never seen. The foal was in no way deformed or small for its size despite the fact that it had been five months premature. She had come out just like any normal unicorn filly with just one scary exception. Her fur, white as snow, her mane just as white. Her eyes, her horn, everything about the filly was pure white. With their coats so dark, the foal was the starkest contrast to Alouette or Quicklight. To a family of ponies so steeply entrenched in conservatism and of only dark colored fur, a pure white filly was deeply suspicious. Because of this, Alouette had found herself at the centre of a controversy she had never seen coming.
She could still feel the residual tears on her face when Quicklight had lost his temper at her. He was so angry that he had refused to even look at the foal. Opting instead to storm from their house and out of sight. She was spared of most of his hysterics by passing out from sheer exhaustion and shock. The last thing she remembered was Esteril administering her a sedative before finally drifting from consciousness.
“We shouldn’t discuss this any further, Trin,” Esteril continued. “I believe she should be waking now.”
Alouette opened her eyes and found herself tucked snuggly in bed in what looked like the spare room of a very old looking home. She glanced to her left and saw both Esteril and an old mare she had never seen before standing in the doorway. The two of them had stopped talking the moment she had opened her eyes and were now both observing her curiously. Esteril quickly moved over to her side and placed a hoof on her forehead.
“You’re still very warm, my dear,” he said quietly. “How do you feel?”
In truth, Alouette had no idea how she felt. Her husband had abandoned her out of nowhere and she was now stuck with a foal that wasn’t even hers.
“Tired…”
“That’s only natural,” he replied, trying to sound as cheery as possible.
“W-where am I?” she asked, wincing slightly as she tried to move.
“Shh… You need to rest, dear. You’ve just given birth… You have to think of your recovery.”
“Just given birth to a bastard…” the mare in the doorway muttered.
“Trin!” Esteril exclaimed, turning back to face her. “You have no idea of the events that have lead up to this. I-“
“I’m not an adulterer!” Alouette said as loudly possible, glaring at the mare.
“Then how do you explain your filly?” the mare pushed, undeterred by Alouette’s outburst. “Clearly she’s not the offspring of Quicklight.”
“Trin!” Esteril breathed with venom. “This is not the time. Please give us some space.”
The old mare whinnied slightly before trotting out of the doorway and out of sight.
Esteril turned back to Alouette and tried to smile. “I’m so sorry about that, dear. My wife is still very much influenced by superstition. As is your husband’s family. It is still unclear why ponies still believe that a foal should be born with the same markings as them when they have even been seen born completely different races.”
Alouette immediately remembered the mare with her pegasus foal at the clinic. Now that she had thought about it, the mare seemed to behave as only a single parent would. She had seemed so sad and lonely, and only now had Alouette finally picked up on what must have happened to her.
“Where is she?” Alouette asked, trying to drive the thoughts from her head.
“Your filly? She’s in the other room. I had just finished cleaning her up before giving her time to sleep. I must comment on how healthy she is despite her rather early birth. She’s remarkable.”
“When can I see her?”
“Well, I’ve left her to rest now,” Esteril replied, sitting on his haunches next to the bed. “But as soon as she wakes I will bring her to you.”
Alouette wasn’t sure she even wanted to see the foal, but simply nodded.
“Please do not be alarmed by what ponies may conclude though ignorance. My wife? Trinity? She was born to a family just like your husband’s. She is simply too old to see past what has been a false reality for her entire life.”
“I don’t care what she thinks. I care what Quicklight thinks… and now he’s gone.”
Esteril had to think about his response. “Your husband is a good stallion. If he truly loved you, he would never have abandoned you outright.”
“Do you even know where he went?” she asked.
“It is most likely that he went to his family for solace.”
Alouette sighed, closing her eyes and turning over. “His family. They’re more likely to twist him against me just to protect their precious lineage.”
“You cannot know that for sure,” he tried, although not entirely convinced with his own statement. “You cannot concern yourself with what may be when the dust has yet to settle.”
“Hmpf…” she chided. “Quicklight is the only thing in my life that has ever made sense to me. And now you’re asking that I just let it be?”
“You have more to concern yourself with now. Your filly being one. Her happiness should now be your only concern.”
Alouette couldn’t hold it in anymore. “It’s true, though.”
“What is?”
“The filly isn’t his.”
Esteril leant back in surprise. “She isn’t? But… How? Whose is she?”
“You already know the answer. I told you… Luna appeared to me in a dream. After that, I was with foal. Luna had expressed that the child was neither mine nor Quicklight’s, but hers.”
“This is impossible, Alouette. You told me yourself that it was only a dream.”
“Yes! And you told me that I could never conceive! So here we are.”
Esteril seemed as though he wanted to say something, but thought against it. “It matters little whether or not this foal is yours or that of some divine being,” he said instead. “She came from you. So by that right, she is your foal.”
But she wasn’t. Alouette knew it in her heart. “Is this your house?”
Esteril had hoped for a better response. “It is indeed. I had thought it best to bring you here before your husband returned. It seemed safer for you and your foal.”
“What exactly do you think he’d do to me?” she asked in amazement.
“Nothing. But you cannot argue that your presence and hers would do little but aggravate the situation.”
“I just can’t believe he would ever hurt me. You shouldn’t have gotten involved,” she said with annoyance. “Who knows what he might think when he gets home to see my foal and I gone.”
“I did what I did because I care for you like a daughter,” he admitted with a straight face. “What would you have expected me to do? Abandon you to whatever fate may have befallen you? Allow you to be carted off to the hilltops and abandoned with your filly like some harpy?”
Alouette shook her head in disbelief. “Nopony does that to mares anymore. That’s just silly.”
“You know nothing, Alouette,” he replied sadly. “I’ve been a medical pony for years and I’ve seen many a mare in this predicament up until this day. I’ve had the misfortune of only seeing a dozen of them exiled for adultery or sterility. I refuse to let that happen to you.”
Surprise, then disbelief, crossed her features. “So what happens now?”
“Well,” he began. “As I said before, you need to recover. After that, you should see your foal. Have you considered a name for her yet?”
“No.”
In spite of all that had happened to her, Alouette couldn’t help but resent the filly for tearing her life apart. In many ways she had hoped that Luna would come and take the child away and put things back to the way they were. She could deal with not being able to conceive on her own. She would have had to. Maybe she and Quicklight might have resolved it. But now? Adultery? It looked as if such a crime could never be forgotten. Worse still, the filly wasn't even his.
Tears began to flow once more. “Please, doc… I just want to be alone now.”
“Of course, my dear,” Esteril replied, standing back up and making his way for the door. “Get some rest. You’re going to need it.”
He must have stood there for a few moments more. His thoughts lingering on the broken pony in front of him before silently closing the door behind him.


***


A day had passed and as soon as she was able to walk again, Alouette's first inclination was to visit the room the crib was in. She had refused Esteril's offer to carry the foal to her and chose to walk to her instead. Her first moments with the foal needed to be when she was asleep and unaware of her earthly mother.
Yet there was something she had felt. Something she just couldn't quite explain when she gazed down at the tiny form wrapped snugly in the crib below her. The filly seemed completely at peace with the world as she lay there, her tiny and delicate features kissed by the white of the moon. Everything about her seemed to radiate with perfection and beauty. Everything... save her eyes.
Alouette couldn't help but remember the shock she had felt when she gazed into those pure white irises for the first time. Although she hated to admit it, seeing them again felt as though it was a task best suited for another time.
"Would you like to hold her?" Esteril offered, standing beside Alouette.
Alouette shook her head, still gazing down at the sleeping foal. "I don't want to disturb her."
Esteril nodded. "Perhaps you are right."
She could feel his gaze upon her as she continued to watch the foal sleep. He didn't understand. How could he? To him it must have seemed like she was apprehensive because she was new to motherhood. The truth was, Alouette couldn't feel the spark she thought she would when a mother loves her filly. Instead, all she felt was the detached emotion of a surrogate. It felt easy to blame it on her bizarre visage, but Alouette felt no connection to her whatsoever.
"How about a name?" Esteril offered, breaking the silence.
"Eclipse," she responded quietly.
All day Alouette had remembered snippets of her first image of Luna. That dark alicorn silhouette irradiated by light as if it had eclipsed the moon. She had no idea why this picture had come to her so often, but something about it seemed significant... It wasn't until now that she had realized why.
"Eclipse," Esteril repeated with resonance, smiling at the crib. "Daughter of Alouette and Quicklight."
She turned her gaze from Eclipse and back to Esteril. "Don't call her that. She's neither mine nor his."
He remained silent, unable to imagine what was truly going on in Alouette's head. He stood for a few moments longer before turning for the door. "Perhaps some alone time?"
"No," she called after him. "I need to see Quicklight. I have to set things right."
He paused, shaking his head. "If it were under any other circumstance, I would say yes. But alas..." He pawed the floor woefully. "The situation has only declined and with all the unrest happening in the city as it is, I don't think travelling through the streets is-"
She stepped away from the crib and towards him. "What situation? What circumstances?"
"Sincerely, Alouette... I do not wish to discuss these matters here."
She continued to advance slowly upon him. "Please... Tell me..."
"We shouldn't wake Eclipse..."
"Tell me!!"
"The family has publicly denounced the filly as their true heir," he said with as little emotion as possible. "Because of this, they have declared you an adulterer and wish to void your marriage to Quicklight."
"What!?" she cried, feeling her heart crumble. "How could Quicklight allow this?! Why has he refused to even see me?!" She stood seething directly in front of him. "And how did you know about this and not tell me sooner?"
Esteril's face glowed bright red. "I could not burden you with such anguish so suddenly. There were more... important things that needed your attention," he said, inclining his head towards the crib. "You needed to see your foal-"
"But she's not my foal!" she hissed, prodding his chest with her hoof. "Quicklight needs to know the truth! I've been faithful to him my entire life and I've been with no other stallion!" she prodded his chest again, her eyes glistening. "I've loved and honored him as best as I could! But there are just some things I cannot do... Things that may seem natural to a normal mare but as foreign as a griffin to me... I was never destined to be a mother, my sterility proves that."
Eclipse began to stir in her crib, twitching at Alouette's outbursts.
"But because a mare must be punished for things she cannot control," Alouette continued, "she is forced to do things she knows she cannot accomplish. Things that have put her in a far worse place than she could ever imagine!"
Esteril continued to let her prod his chest until finally tacking her up in his hooves and letting her weep on his shoulder. "Shhh..." he soothed. "We can make things right, but now is too soon..."
Alouette continued to sob, neither in acknowledgement or disagreement. She simply sobbed. The feeling was something far greater than the vast emptiness of finding out she could not conceive. No, this feeling was pure pain. She could feel her heart ache as if the weight of her abandonment had been hung around it. Even her sobs began to burn in her throat as she continued to cry, trying her hardest to filter out Esteril's tired platitudes as she did so.
Whether it was due her sudden outburst or the crying that followed, Eclipse had awoken. She blinked her ghostly eyes and stared curiously up at the ceiling. The sound of the mare's crying had stirred her. It was a strange noise, a sad noise, a noise that made her feel as though she too was in pain. Eclipse turned her head towards the mare and frowned as tears of her own began to form. The moment after, Eclipse began to cry herself.
Alouette felt a surge of fear and anger rush through her at the sound of Eclipse’s high-pitched wailing. She stopped crying and pulled away from Esteril. "No..."
Esteril stepped backed. "No?"
She pushed past him and towards the door. "I will not allow his family to twist him against me!"
He turned and followed her out the door. "My dear, I cannot allow you to go out in your current-"
"I can go wherever I wish!" she cut across him, stepping into the hallway and advancing quickly towards the front door.
"I do not mean to force you," he tried, struggling to keep up. "I only wish to help you! It isn’t safe out there!"
"What's all this commotion?" came the shrill voice of Trinity as she stepped out of the kitchen and in front of the main entrance. "Where exactly do you think you're going?"
"Stay out of my way, old mare," Alouette hissed.
Trinity raised an eyebrow but remained firmly rooted to the spot. "My husband has recommended you stay. So I suggest you stay."
Alouette came face to face with Trinity. "I will not ask again-"

THWACK!!

Trinity raised her hoof and struck it down across Alouette's face.
"You hit me!" she squealed, reeling in shock. "What is wrong with y-"
"Listen up, you entitled little hothead," Trinity warned, ignoring Alouette's protest. "I don't particularly like you or the situation my husband has placed us in by helping you. But, I do it because I respect his oath as a doctor. Now you can shout and scream at me all you like, but the only pony that gives a damn about you in this entire city is standing directly behind you. Yet despite his efforts, all you have managed to do is treat him as badly as your husband's family has treated you."
Alouette held back the desire to snap at her but remained indignant. "You still have no right to hold me here."
Trinity stepped aside and pointed at the door. "Indeed. You are free to leave whenever you wish."
Alouette huffed and placed her hoof on the handle, but was interrupted by Trinity one last time. "What is it now?" she demanded, glaring at the old mare.
"If you walk out those doors you're disobeying my husband's wishes," she warned again. "And if you disobey my husband's wishes then that door will remain closed to you. Is that understood?"
Alouette pulled open the door. "Perfectly."
Esteril had once again piped up. "My dear, please don't go out there!"
But it was too late. Alouette had slammed the glass-paned door behind her and had disappeared into the city streets, the sound of an angry Trinity and a wailing Eclipse fading behind her.
The road alongside Esteril’s home was busy with ponies moving vibrantly through its vast expanse. Never once having been this close to the city center on her own before, the grand Temple of the Three Graces at the road’s distant end had given her some bearing. With only one destination in mind, she pushed ahead in the opposite direction. Her thoughts reared back into overdrive as she went.
The only thing Alouette knew about this road was that it was one of the city’s main avenues. The further she travelled down it, the sparser it had become. Houses had become larger and grander, giving her a sense of direction. Finally she had reached a street she had recognised and made her way down it.
The street was quiet and peaceful save for the sound of colts and fillies playing in their yards and birds twittering in the decorative trees. She had felt her panicked mind begin to ease as the sights of familiar surroundings greeted her. Yet something had felt different. The more she travelled past the odd friend and acquaintance, the stranger their behaviour had become. Some had greeted her rather stiffly whilst others had flat out ignored her. She could even hear the odd hushed whisper behind her muttering unintelligible insults as she rushed past.
It hadn’t taken her long to figure out that most, if not all, of Isabella’s elite had heard about what had happened. Yet trying to rescue their opinions of her was the least of her concerns. Alouette needed to get to his home. She needed to explain herself. She needed to see Quicklight.
After turning down at least four roads and passing over another major avenue, she had finally reached the small plaza that Quicklight’s family manor was situated on. She stopped in the middle of the plaza and braced herself for the inevitable lambasting she would receive. If there was one thing Alouette knew about Quicklight, it was that he could never stand being on his own. When she had been out of town he would stay with his parents. So if ever there was a time she had hoped he would be here, now was that moment.
Exhaling, she slowly began to make her way towards the front steps. Familiar ponies had stopped to stare at her, their expressions indignant at the bravado she had shown in daring to come to this place. She had to ignore them. She had to keep her mind focused. No matter what she would face on the opposite end of that front door, she knew that he would understand. That he would forgive her deceit… That he would love her again.
Alouette reached the steps, climbed steadily upwards, and stood at the ready in front of the home’s giant double oak doors. She glanced down a bronze knocker shaped in the form of the founding family member’s head.
No going back now, she thought, grasping it in a magic field and wrapping it twice. The sound of metal on wood began to resonate loudly through the door, making her feel the gravity of her situation. Who would she face first? Would it be Quicklight?
She glanced behind her as she waited. A crowd of five or six stallions and their mares had begun to form at the steps bellow her. Although Alouette felt fortunate enough not to know them, she couldn’t help but feel the weight of their silent staring.
“You have a lot of nerve appearing here…” came a shrill voice from behind her.
Alouette spun around in surprise and found herself face to face with Quicklight’s sour-faced mother.
Her name was Sibilla, the Dowager Figurine of the city and perhaps the most influential mare of the province. She had a dark grey coat, a greying lavender mane and piercing blue eyes… Just like Quicklight’s. Her mane was tied neatly into a tight bun and a stunning silver and sapphire bracelet adorned her right hoof. If there was one mare Alouette could never impress, it was her.
“Remove your scandalous presence from my sight at once!” she bellowed, raising her hoof threateningly at Alouette.
“Please!” Alouette pleaded. “I need to see my husband! Is he here? I demand that you let me see him.”
Sibilla’s nostril began to flare in anger. “How dare you make such demands of me? You have no right.”
“You don’t understand,” she continued, holding her ground. “You, all of you, have misjudged me completely! I have never been unfaithful to Quicklight. I have never even dreamed of looking at any other stallion!”
“I will not warn you a third time, you silly little peasant mare,” Sibilla threatened. “If you do not leave this place at once, I will call for the guards.”
The guards? Peasant mare? Alouette had never been so insulted in her life. This hatchet-faced old mare had no idea what she was talking about. All she was to Alouette was an obstacle between her and her only love. She had always been. This was the last time she would ever get away with insulting her again.
“Get out of my way, you old prune,” Alouette hissed, pushing Sibilla aside. “I have neither the ability nor the desire to indulge you.”
Sibilla squealed in shock as Alouette marched into the hallway. “Y-you… little harlot,” she stammered, pointing out her hoof. “Guards!! GUARDS!!”
Alouette ignored her, peering up the grand staircase that lead to the manor’s upper stories. “Quicklight!!” she called into the house. “Quicklight, please!”
No response.
“Somepony get this mare out of my home!” Sibilla continued to scream.
Alouette turned around to find half of the stallions that were crowded outside advancing through the door and towards her. “Stay back!” She tried to make for the stairs but was quickly surrounded by the crowd.
“Who do you think you are breaking into this home?” one of them questioned, grabbing hold of her left hoof.
“Let go of me!” she bellowed, kicking outwards and trying to evade the advances of another two stallions. “I have a right to see my husband. QUICKLIGHT!! Don’t leave me like this.”
Alouette continued to dodge the stallions until a brigade of four armored guards had arrived at the door.
“Get rid of her!” Sibilla called, still standing by the front entrance.
The guards had descended too quickly on her for any new evasion tactic to work. Alouette was quickly pinned to a decorative column by the staircase before being tightly secured and dragged back towards the door. She continued to scream out her husband’s name as she went. Pleading for him to come out into the open and hear her side of the story.
“My son does not need to hear your lies,” Sibilla spat, following the guards out. “If you have any love left for him, you will spare him from your petulant acts. You will leave the ancestral home of my family and cease to besmirch its name with your low-born presence.”
Alouette continued in vain to struggle against the guards. She could feel herself begin to tire out quickly. The five mile dash and the fact that her body was still recovering from foal birth had begun to take its toll on her. The guards stopped dragging her as they reached the doorway and turned her around to face Sibilla.
She glared up at the old mare. "He is here. I know it. And you can't keep me from him for long."
Sibilla chuckled coldly, leaning in closely to whisper in her ear. "Whatever made you think he even wants to see you?" She stepped back and nodded to the guards. "I believe this troublemaker has been apprehended. Have her detained at your prefecture overnight."
"W-what?" Alouette responded in confusion.
"Your Grace," said one of the guards holding Alouette. "We can only escort her from your premises. We have no legal right to detain-"
"If you have an objection to my demands," Sibilla interjected warningly, "You will be the unfortunate pony tasked with the job of telling your captain that you personally refused one of my requests. I'm sure he would love to hear all about it."
Alouette couldn't believe her ears. "You can't arrest me!"
Sibilla glanced casually back at her. "Oh, but I can... Remove her."
"You can't-"
Before she could even mount a response, Alouette was hoisted over the back of a particularly large pony guard and carried rather unceremoniously out of the entrance and back into the street.
"Let me go!" she demanded, kicking her hooves violently.
She glanced one last time at the manor, her eyes peeling over every window she could see. The outline of a pony-like shape could be seen in a window on the top floor to left. She could just make out the familiar shape of his mane.
"QUICKLI-... Erghh..." She could feel the wind being knocked out of her as her body was thrown from the guard and dropped onto the hard cobble street. Her back ached ferociously as she writhed painfully on the ground.
"What do you think you're doing?" a guard's voice from beside her asked angrily.
"What?" the large guard asked casually. "She was getting on my nerves. Besides, she's one of them sterile mares. Who cares what we do with her?"
"We'll see what the cap says... Till then, don't damage her too much."
"Fine, but I'm tying 'er up. Lil' filly has quite the fight in her."
"Bastards..." She groaned, feeling her hooves being wrapped together tightly in magic bonds.
"There," the large guard barked, hoisting her back over him like a travel bag. "No more squirming, see?"
Alouette could do nothing but hang over the brute's back as the troop of guards made their way down the plaza and towards one of the busier streets. The ponies in the crowd stayed well clear of her burly entourage as they soldiered past and down towards the main avenue. She could feel her bones ache in the places she had landed and could think of nothing but the pain the further they silently marched.
The streets had become darker as day shifted into night. The amount of ponies still wondering the avenue began to diminish rather quickly. Finally, the soldiers had entered into the main avenue and turned towards the city center. Alouette's focus had shifted from the pain and towards panic. Where were these lunatics taking her?
She was brought back to reality by a sudden halt in the incessant marching of her captors. What's the hold up? She glanced down the avenue and gasped at the sight before her.
What was usually the view of the temple in the distance was now a brilliant orange plume of heat. The Three Graces lay ablaze with fiery columns the height of the oculus licking through its opening and seeping out smoke like a massive cauldron. The light from the blaze could be seen from miles around and the sounds of sudden panic had begun to soak into the streets. At the far end of the avenue a massive mob of ponies could be seen silhouetted by the blaze and marching with banners.
"What in the..." The large guard shifted his weight roughly and dropped Alouette to the avenue like a sack of potatoes. "It's on fire!"
Alouette cried in pain, her ears ringing and her back once again taking a massive beating from the ground.  She could feel the vibrations of the guard's hooves trot hurriedly around her in panic.
"The temple! By the Ancients!" the guard closest to her cried. "It can't be so!"
"Cool it down, idiot!" a smaller guard behind her barked, levitating out his dagger. "Get your hoof out of your ass and get into position. That's a large crowd of rioters down there and we need to figure out how to get this situation under control."
"Ha!" the large guard laughed. "I don't get paid enough to wall off angry zealots. You ever see an angry mob before?"
"I aint seen any mob before!" the closer guard cried.
"Whatever," the smaller guard said, dropping his dagger to the ground. "If you guys won't back me up then I'm outta here too."
"Smart," the large guard sneered.
“What about the barren mare?” the small guard responded.
The large guard was starting to become impatient. “What about her? Just leave her here for all I care.”
The closer guard piped up. “But our orders were to take her to the capt-“
His voice was cut short by the sound of steel piercing flesh. The larger guard had levitated his dagger and thrust it deep into the closer one’s throat. Alouette turned her head to see what had happened, but was immediately pinned under his weight as he staggered over and dropped on top of her. She cringed helplessly as a wet trickle of warm blood began to drip from his armor onto her fur.
“You-” the smaller guard was immediately set upon by the larger. In two quick strides, he had already wrapped his massive hooves around the other’s neck and began to twist.
“ARRGHH-” The crack finally pierced through the air.
The last guard had stood as still as a statue as he watched his comrades fall. “Please!” he cried, dropping his dagger to the floor and backing away. “I won’t get in your way! I swear!”
The large guard paid no heed as he dropped the smaller one’s corpse to the floor and casually made his way to the dead guard pinning Alouette to the ground. She could feel his weight shifting as the titan lifted his body off her and extracted the dagger from his throat. Without even a moment’s glance at her, the large guard began to advance on the last of them.
“Please!!” he screamed, still backing away. “You don’t need to do this.”
"It’s the only way,” he whispered, placing a hoof on the quivering guard’s shoulder and thrusting the dagger into his chest.
Alouette cringed at the awful sound of his death rattle, unable to fathom how quickly things had escalated. All she knew that she was most likely moments away from death herself and the only thing she could think of doing was cowering on the ground. Not that she could do much with the magic restraints binding her. The sound of the big brute’s hooves trotting closer caused her to brace for the inevitable. Who knew what terrible fate he had in store for her lying defenseless and completely at his mercy?
“Hey… Blackie?” he whispered, standing menacingly over her.
“Please…” she begged in a tiny whisper, still shaking with fear.
“Get up,” he said with a gruff voice. “You can’t stay here.”
Alouette opened her eyes slowly and glanced up at him. His muzzle was covered in blood and his dagger remained levitated beside him. 		
“You’re… You’re not going to kill me?” she asked, still cringing at the sight of him.
The guard’s eyes widened in shock. “Oh…” he stammered, lowering his dagger and removing his helm. “I’m not going to hurt you, I promise.”
She stared disbelievingly up at him.
“Well,” he continued, wiping his muzzle, “apart from me throwing you to the ground a few times and killing this motley crew of guards, you have nothing to fear from me. Here, let me get those restraints off you…”
Alouette could still feel the throbbing in her back and tried to crawl from him. “Get away!”
The guard rolled his eyes, caught up with her, and held her down to stop her from struggling. His horn began to glow as the magic bindings holding her hooves in place withered into ash. “See?” he said, letting her go and standing back. “I’m here to help.”
Alouette quickly got to her hooves and took a few steps back, her eyes glued to the guard in front of her. “Why did you kill your own soldiers?”
“Because I had no other choice,” he replied nonchalantly. “I needed to figure out the best way to get you away and that riot down there provided an excellent diversion.”
Alouette glanced quickly back down the avenue. 
Now standing, she could see just how terrible the sight in the distance truly was. Who were all those ponies in the distance? Did they start the massive fire that was now burning away in the temple? And why in Equestria were they doing this in the first place?
“What’s going on?” she asked, looking back at the guard. “Who are you?”
“We really don’t have time,” he replied hurriedly. “We need to get you to safety as soon as possible.”
Alouette shook her head. “I’m not going anywhere with you until you explain to me what just happened!”
“Fine,” he replied, glancing around to make sure the area was safe. “My name is Lio, I’m a Soldier of Harmony and I infiltrated this band of guards in order to get closer to you.”
He seemed to look rather proud of himself, but suddenly frowned. “Usually what I do isn’t this messy, but we weren’t exactly expecting you to leave the good doctor’s house. The riot behind us is most likely the cause of religious unrest. You know? Those who follow the old gods and those who follow the true goddesses?”
“I know about the unrest,” Alouette responded. “But what exactly is a Soldier of Harmony? Why were you even following me?”
“Listen,” he interjected, stepping forward and placing his helm back on his head. “When I get you to safety you can play twenty-one questions with me as many times as you want. Right now, we need to get moving.”
The last thing Alouette wanted to do was trust a pony who had just murdered three of his comrades in cold blood, let alone travel with him. Worse still, he had openly admitted to stalking her. Never mind the rioters, who in Equestria would take such an interest in her?
Lio looked as if he could read her mind. “You obviously have no idea what’s going on,” he reasoned. “I promise you, no harm will come to you as we travel. All of this will be made clear as soon as we reach sanctuary.”
The streets looked as if in no time at all they would start raging in chaos. Being a lonely mare lost in an unfamiliar part of town during such an event was suicide. No matter how she looked at it, she really didn’t have a choice.
“Okay,” she whispered. “I’ll go with you.”
“Smart,” he said with a smile. “Come. We need to head down a less busy street.”
Lio turned on his hoof and began to trot quickly down the avenue with Alouette close behind him.


***



The journey through the city streets had been quiet and uneventful. Alouette had remained cautiously in toe behind her would-be saviour. The sound of shouting and glass smashing in the distance had begun to grow louder as the riot continued through the streets closer to the temple. A thick smoky glaze from the city center began to engulf the sky. Blocking out the stars and moon, encasing the old capital and amplifying the ambiance of panic.
It had only taken them a ten minute walk to reach what looked like an old horse shoe store. The building itself lay at the end of a tiny street that seemed to house nothing but abandoned buildings.
Alouette followed her balky companion into the derelict store and towards a small door near the back. From there, the two of them trooped up a flight of stairs towards the building’s second story living area.
The apartment was small and moldy. A tiny kitchenette lay at the far end of the entrance room, with a rickety old table and chair making up the dining area. To the left, a musty pair of curtains were drawn shut over what Alouette assumed to be the window, and an old moth eaten sofa stretched its way across the wall.
She stepped silently past Lio and gasped at the state of the place. “What is this? An old Cleric’s brothel?”
He looked at her grimly. “This? This is Plan B.”
“Plan B?”
“Well,” he continued, moving across the room and opening a small door that lead to the bedroom to check if the coast was clear. “Originally, housing you at Esteril’s was the plan. But then you had your unexpected excursion and I was called to get you back.”
Alouette’s mouth dropped open. “How do you know Esteril?”
Lio, now satisfied that the building was secure, removed his helm once more and dropped himself onto the sofa. “That’s better,” he sighed. “Still gonna need a bath.”
Alouette continued to glare at him.
“Yes…” he admitted. “I know the good doctor. A stallion who has been your saving grace from the start.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” she responded. “Why would Esteril send you to murder ponies for me?”
“Because, Blackie, he’s one of the founding members of the Soldiers of Harmony.”
“There you go again with this harmony thing,” she replied. “A bit of a self-righteous name for a pony who goes around killing guards and throwing mares around like unwanted garbage.”
Lio shifted guiltily. “Ahh yeah… Sorry about that. But I had to do it in order to blend in until I could get you away. There was no sense trying to rescue you in the presence of the first mare of Isabella. I am... well, genuinely sorry about that. I know it must hurt, especially so soon after childbirth.  Are you feeling okay?”
Alouette whinnied. “My back still throbs and I’m covered in somepony else’s blood. Do you think I’m feeling okay?”
He shrugged. “You’re alive. That’s gotta count for something.”
“Esteril,” Alouette continued. “How is he involved in all this? Does he have anything to do with the riot?”
Lio chuckled. “Doubtful. He’s probably having your filly brought here as we speak. That’s good news, right?”
“It is…”
In all the confusion, Alouette hadn't spared a single thought for Eclipse. All the while desperately trying to stay alive, and the safety of her own foal never once occurred to her. She shifted her hooves awkwardly, still keeping her distance from her companion.
“Why do I get the impression your well-to-do flank has pretty much no idea what’s happening in this city?” he asked curiously.
Alouette felt offended. “Something to do with the deification of Celestia and Luna over the old gods we once worshiped. I hear the lunatics in town sometimes.”
“Oh great!” he replied. “She actually knows their names. No. It’s much deeper than that. If you had taken the time to go out into city you would notice just how crazy things have become. At first it was all innocent preaching, then things got a little violent when conservative zealots decided to hurl stones at one of our gatherings. Because of this, a militant arm of ponies called the Soldiers of Harmony were created to defend our faith and stop the violence.” He prodded his chest proudly. “Nopony knew exactly when it would happen, but the attacks on our homes and places of worship still continued to increase. But this riot and the burning of that temple? You probably know just as much as I do.”
Alouette held back the urge to fire back at his earlier seemingly insulting tone. “But surely you have some idea of what’s going on?”
Lio stood up and chanced a peek out of the window. "My guess?" he whispered, closing the curtain and removing his guard armor. "it's probably the retaliation of some extremist members of our faith. We've been trying to spread peace and harmony through our works but if it turns out I'm right, that my people are behind this... Well, you can forget about any conservatives taking it lying down."
"Look," Alouette chirped in. "None of this is my problem. I'm not involved in this religious rebellion or whatever in any way. Why then, was I beaten then rescued by one of its armed forces? What do you ponies want with me?"
"Listen, Blackie," he said honestly. "I have no idea what your role in this is. I was tasked only an hour ago with bringing you back to safety by Esteril. If you want answers about that then I suggest you talk to him when he gets here."
"Fine," she replied, taking a seat at the old table. "I guess this means I'm free to go if I want?"
"You're free to try," he replied candidly.
"Great. So I'm hostage."
Lio, now completely armor free, had once again flopped on the sofa. "If it makes you feel any better," he began with a smirk, "we can say you're staying out of curiosity?"
Alouette rolled her eyes and looked away. "It's the only reason I haven't made for the door yet," she whispered darkly to herself.
"What was that, Blackie?" he called.
"I said my name is Alouette. So that's what you should call me."
The sound of quick and frantic knocks rattled the door, catching both of their attention.
"I'm guessing that’s Esteril," he whispered, getting up and making his way towards the door.
"Excellent timing," she muttered, watching curiously at how quietly such a large pony could move.
He stuck his ear against the door as soon as he reached it. "Password?" he called loudly, making Alouette jump.
"Password?" came the sound of a familiar monotone. "I wasn't aware of a password."
Alouette had quickly leapt to her hooves at the sound of Esteril's voice and darted towards the door. "Password? Really?" she muttered to Lio.
"No," he snorted, unlatching the door and opening it. "I was just having a laugh."
"This is hardly the time for comedy, Aurelio," Esteril whispered, moving slowly into the room with what looked like a bundle of blankets attached to his back. "I had to keep her covered for the journey." He turned his gaze upon Alouette and smiled with relief. "It is good to see you safe and sound, my dear. Your flight had me immensely worried."
Alouette's eyes darted to the blankets. "Is that... Eclipse?"
"Indeed it is, my dear," he replied, levitating a small bundle from within the blankets and placing it gently on the floor. "She was exceptionally quiet on the journey. I believe she is still asleep."
There, wrapped tightly in a bundle lay the pure white filly of the moon. She couldn't help but feel relief at the sight of Eclipse despite her reservations about her. She regarded just how beautiful Eclipse looked when her eyes were shut.
"Did you encounter any difficulties in retrieving Alouette for me?" Esteril questioned.
"N-nothing too out of the ordinary, sir," Lio replied, shifting his hooves guiltily.
Alouette glared straight up at him. "Nothing at all. Besides the fact that you murdered three guards right in front of me."
Lio shuffled in annoyance. "Gee, thanks," he hissed.  "Yeah... about that..."
Esteril looked as if he had been slapped in the face. "You killed city officials? What were you thinking? Do you not realize how much is already at risk?"
"Yes, I killed city officials. But these ponies were already bought by the Figurehead's family. You know exactly which side of the fence they're on. I had to act."
"You seriously misrepresent the point of our entire existence," Esteril continued. "Our mandate is to defend our followers, not incite violence. This very act contradicts everything we stand for."
"Well it won't matter much now," Lio rebuked. "The entire city will be a warzone come morning."
Esteril's usually calm expression had once again cracked under the scale of his true feelings. This time, all Alouette could see was fear.
"I never expected Cepheid would go this far," he mused, trotting past Lio towards the musty curtain and dragging it aside with his free hoof. "Are you truly so afraid of an old text that it would force your hoof thus? What were you thinking, old friend?"
Lio seemed to know what Esteril was talking about and spoke up quickly. “You can’t possibly believe the head of the chapel would-”
“Oh but I do, Aurelio,” Esteril interrupted, turning to face him. “After what I had shown you all those years ago, I would have thought it obvious.”
“But it was so long ago,” Lio tried. “You’ve seen how peaceful he’s become. He would never have a hoof in burning their temple.”
“My reason for visiting was not to convince you one way or the other, Aurelio,” Esteril remarked. “But to return a foal to her mother.”
Lio looked as if he was nowhere near finished speaking, but held his tongue on the matter nonetheless.
Alouette had no idea who this Cepheid character was and was less even inclined to care. All she had realized was just how furious she was with Esteril. She slowly levitated Eclipse from the carrier and rested her neatly upon her back. "How could you lie to me?" she blurted, trotting towards the old stallion.
Esteril turned to face her. "Lie to you?"
"You've known everything about me. You've looked out for me when I needed you the most. You've been like a father to me and all this time I never knew who you truly were."
"Who I truly am?" he responded with uncertainty.
His confused response only infuriated her more. "This!" she hissed. "That you're some secret crusader for some religious belief. I thought you were a pony of reason and here I see you're nothing but a militant zealot!"
"That's completely out of order!" Lio called from behind her. "I told you he had nothing to do with-"
"That's enough, Aurelio," Esteril interrupted. "You have every right to question me, my dear. But you must simply continue to trust that all I have ever done is insure the wellbeing of yourself and now your filly." He motioned his hoof to Eclipse snugly on her back. "It may be difficult for you now, but in time you will grow to love her as your own."
Love her as your own.
Alouette immediately recalled those words uttered by Luna in her dreams. "Wait," she piped up. "You told me you didn't believe that Eclipse was Luna's child. That my story of being a surrogate was ludicrous."
Esteril had realized too late that he had said the wrong thing. "Alouette, I-" he stuttered, glancing at Aurelio. "This is not the time."
It was Lio's turn to look confused. "Luna's foal? Eclipse?"
Esteril stomped his hoof to silence them both."Alouette," he said with an air of finality.  "There will come a time when I will explain everything to you. Until that day, you must understand that you and your filly are of vital importance."
Alouette shook her head. "But I told you she was! I told you about the dreams, about Luna-"
"That's enough!"
Alouette stopped talking immediately. Shocked by the sudden outburst of such a usually calm and collected pony.
"Aurelio will remain here to watch over you and Eclipse until I return," he said with finality, crossing the room and heading towards the door. "I have to be somewhere where I can perhaps salvage some form of peace in this city. Do not open this door for anypony but myself. Is that understood, Lio?"
"Yes, sir," Lio responded dutifully.
"Good." He turned to Alouette before leaving. "Take care, my dear."
She didn't respond. Instead, she continued to glare at the place he had been before he closed the door and disappeared from view.
Lio continued to stare blankly at the door. Still as confused as he was a few moments ago. "I... Um... What was all that about?" he asked slowly.
"Guess the Soldiers of Harmony aren't too big on sharing information," she snorted, turning on her hoof and making her way towards the bedroom door.
"Why did you say Eclipse was Princess Luna's child?” he called after her. "Don't you think that in our current situation that information would have been important?"
"You heard me," she responded, turning the knob and walking into the dimly-lit room. "It was just a dream."
Aurelio was hardly given time to answer, watching her disappear from view and close the door behind her. "Okay," he called. "I'll just stay here, then... Watching the door."
Alouette felt the weight of everything that had happened to her fall upon her shoulders the moment she was finally alone. With a heavy sigh, she proceeded to a small musty bed in the corner of the room and levitated Eclipse carefully upon the mattress. The tiny foal shifted peacefully in her sleep, gripping the blankets she was wrapped in.
"None of this is your fault," she whispered, stroking her hoof across the filly’s cheek. "It's mine. If I had in any way known how terrible I was at being a mother, I would have never challenged nature. I would have never forced the burden of something I could never be on the life of another. I behaved like it was because of you that I had lost my husband. How stupid I was."
Eclipse shifted once more, yawned silently, and fell back to sleep.
"I always thought foals would be such a nuisance," Alouette chuckled. "Not you, though. You always seem so content with everything. So quiet." She blinked a tear from her eye. "What was Luna thinking? Giving such a precious gift to such an unworthy mare? All I've managed to do is bring misery upon everypony and drag an innocent foal into it."
Eclipse's eyes cracked open and began to stare up at her. For a moment, Alouette felt herself recoil at the sight of them, but quickly regained her composure. The longer she spent just looking at the filly, the more her misty white irises began to seem less absurd. Now that she had come to think of it, the pure white unicorn was the most stunning thing Alouette had ever seen.
A tiny smile formed on the foal's face. It wasn't until this moment that Alouette finally felt herself coming to pieces. The strong feeling of regret and loss, the shame of being tossed out of her mother-in-law's home and the violent deaths that occurred in front of her were simply too much to bare. All of this and it only took the innocent smile of the last thing she had left in the world to bring the tears streaming down.
She let out a sequence of mournful sobs as she shifted into a fetal position on the bed next to her filly. "Mommy's okay," she cooed, keeping her eyes on Eclipse and trying to hold back the sobs. "All she wants is to keep you safe." She swallowed. "And hope that you'll forgive her for being so neglectful."
The filly continued to smile at Alouette. Reaching out of her wrappings and curiously tugging at her long black mane.
"You like mommy's hair?" she chuckled once more. "An inquisitive child just like me." Alouette continued to silently let Eclipse play with her mane until finally speaking up once more. "Eclipse... if you can one day find it in your heart to forgive me, I'll be the best mom I can be. I'll always be there for you. That a deal?"
Eclipse sneezed in response.
"I'll take that as a yes."
Alouette continued to lie quietly with her foal until the wave of both physical and mental exhaustion finally caught up with her. She could feel how heavy her eyes were, her body sinking into the mattress and her thoughts becoming incoherent. The arrival of long desired sleep had finally come.


***


Aurelio crept silently towards the bedroom door. For a pony so large, he had a remarkable amount of skill in moving stealthily. With bated breath, he leant his hoof against the door and pushed it slightly ajar. Peering in, he glimpsed at the mother and foal sleeping snugly together on the bed. If he could just see the foal, he might understand. It all could have been worth it.
He swallowed hard and slowly pushed forward. Each step sounding louder than the last as he made his way towards the bed. How much further was too much? What if Alouette were to wake and panic? Alouette was her name right?
As if to save him from over thinking any further, the little filly in her bundle had shifted to her side. The blanket that had encased her fell to the side, revealing half of her tiny body.
Aurelio stopped in his tracks and held his breath to stop himself from gasping. She was like nothing he had ever seen before. Her white fur glowed in the pale light of the room, giving her an almost ghostly appearance.
She was the foal from the prophecy, he thought, taking a step back towards the door. There was simply no other reason for Esteril to painstakingly keep this mare and her foal from harm. He had intruded on their privacy for long enough and decided it was time to leave them be.
Closing the door behind him, he made his way towards the old sofa and climbed up onto it. So many things had finally started to make sense in his mind. He remembered the night that he and Esteril had met at the base of Chapel of Harmony all those years ago. Even then he could tell that something was brewing... something was out of place. Yet only now had he truly realized what was at risk. How important it was for him to keep both mother and filly safe.
The only thing that seemed wrong was how Esteril had managed to keep him out of the loop. Why had the old stallion been so secretive about Alouette's foal? Had he known she was destined to be the surrogate from the start? Or was there some other force at play?
The prospect of theorizing his role in these situations was never his strong suit. Esteril always had his reasons and despite not being as open as he would have wanted, Aurelio knew that he was probably the only pony he could trust.