//------------------------------// // Chapter 21 - The Puzzle comes together (Edited by JBL 07.01. 2017) // Story: The Last Descendant // by Cup of Coffee //------------------------------// During lunch, Celestia and I chatted about a range of subjects, touching on pony society, magic, and other countries and races. It was during this conversation that I learned that Equestria was not the only country in this world with a pony majority. During the exodus of the three tribes, there were some groups that refused to create a nation with the other pony tribes. These groups left for other lands, forming kingdoms of their own. Fortunately, their hatred for other pony tribes had abated over the ages, and now members of all the three tribes lived in peace. Celestia also asked if I liked my new room. Though I didn’t want to come across as ungrateful, I still felt the need to ask I had been assigned such a nice room. Her answer only served to increase my uneasiness. They wanted to make my stay comfortable. Perhaps it was paranoia, maybe I was overthinking things, but my suspicion that they knew more than they were letting on only increased. Still, there wasn’t much I could do about it. Twilight would arrive later today, and since the clock was getting close to five in the afternoon, I hoped she would show up soon. ‘Interesting,’ I thought to myself. I was in the living room of my new quarters, sitting at the desk with a few books in front of me. With paper and quill in hand, I had attempted to delve into the Equish language and compare it to English. The differences between the two languages were enormous, and the fact that an entire language had been squeezed into my brain all at once wasn’t a problem anymore. I was simply curious about the language. The English alphabet contained twenty six letters while the Equish one had forty six. I had been granted knowledge of uppercase and lowercase letters. While block letters were widely used, it seemed as if the common form of writing was in cursive. The closest thing I could compare to with was the elven language written on the One Ring in The Lord of The Rings. There were elegant swirls, circles combined with dots, and a distinct lack of sharp corners on any given letter. The language forced into my head had saved my ass from months, possibly even years of language lessons. With how I had always hated school, I was relieved the language barrier had been resolved. I scribbled down the Equish letters on paper, saying each letter out loud to gain a grasp of the phonetics, while writing in English how each letter sounded. The first letter in the Equish alphabet was not an A, nor did it look like one. It more resembled an oval. The second letter was a line that curved elegantly to the left. The next letter was similar, but curved to the right. The letters sounded weird, but when spoken, the individual sounds made sense. Halfway through each letter, the next one took over, creating a language that was neither harsh-sounding nor crude, instead flowing together nicely. I found a book on the Equish language in my room. Skimming through a few pages revealed that thousands of years ago, some sentences required something like a whinny or snort, almost like one expect to hear from a horse. These sounds were used in conjunction with expressing emotions such as anger, happiness, comfort, surprise, and so on. The other races had similar sounds of their own, often used with similar emotions. In modern Equestrian times, however, these sounds were rarely used anymore. That was lucky for me, because I doubted I could even imitate any of those sounds. Or could I? Deciding to not make a fool of myself, I instead returned to my alphabet lesson. Not a minute had passed before I heard a faint buzz emanating from somewhere outside, so I walked to the windows. The large fancy airship I had seen leave Canterlot days ago was back, and I knew that Twilight was on it. I left the window and ran towards the door, pushing it open with such force that the door slammed into the wall. The two guards that stood outside nearly jumped into the air, but I paid them scant attention as I sprinted down the castle corridors. The only thing I was concerned about was seeing Twilight as soon as possible. *** Twilight, with Spike on her back, trotted down the gangplank towards a waiting Celestia. A great weight, that of Magnus’ fate, weighed heavily on her back. That, or perhaps Spike was getting heavier. She made a quick mental note to measure his height when they returned to Ponyville. “Twilight, Spike, welcome back,” Celestia’s warm voice greeted the two. Twilight walked up to her former mentor, nuzzling her and receiving one in return. Spike was not left out, receiving a nuzzle as well. “Thank you, Princess.” Twilight drew herself up, looking at Celestia directly. “The portal is finally gone.” She felt a prick in her heart as she uttered the words. “So I’ve read. You have done well.” Celestia turned her attention to Spike. “I apologize for all the mail, Spike. I hope that you did not suffer too much discomfort.” “Nah, I’ve had worse. But thanks, the medicine helped.” Spike puffed out his chest proudly, earning a smile from Celestia. Moving away from the airship, Celestia and Twilight, with Spike still on her back, headed towards the door that led to the castle interior. As they walked, they discussed various facets about the expedition, such as the data they collected and the specimens they recovered. Soon enough, though, Twilight gave voice to a burning question that had played at the back of her mind for a while. “How is Magnus?” she asked, glancing up at Celestia. The elder alicorn eyed Spike for a moment before looking ahead again. “Spike found a sketch I drew, so I told him,” she confessed, worried that she had broken the rule of secrecy. Fortunately, it seemed that Celestia didn’t mind. “Magnus is well for the moment, physically as well as mentally. His treatment was a success, and he was released from the infirmary last night.” Celestia’s calm smile faltered and a worried expression crossed her face. “That is not to say that everything had been smooth, as he has experienced problems in adjusting to our world, or as he refers to it, ‘our normality’.” “What do you mean?” Twilight cocked her head in confusion. “Luna and I believed our world and Magnus’ world to be similar. Perhaps they are, but they are radically different in certain significant ways. Magnus was terrified to hear that Luna can enter his dreams and feared he would lose himself if she did something to him.” Twilight stopped dead in her tracks. “What?!” “Magnus’ world does not have anypony to watch over their dreams, or raise the sun and the moon,” Celestia explained, peering over her withers. Twilight stood still, mouth agape. Spike did an admiral job of mimicking her expression. “He fears our magic, yet it fascinates him all the same. He is wary of our world and us, so unlike from his own that what is normal for us, he considers abnormal.” “But…” Twilight stepped forward, staring at Celestia in disbelief. “I-I knew that his world had no one to raise the sun and the moon, but how can he think that Princess Luna would try to harm him?” *STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP* “Twilight, do you hear that?” Spike looked around, having discerned a noise coming from somewhere. However, the two alicorns seemed not to hear him. “The mere notion of someone intruding into his dreams is something he treats as a violation of his privacy, even if it is done to aid him. It terrifies him to no end. I asked him to speak with Luna in order to resolve the problem. For now, it seems as if the situation is under control.” *STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP* “Twilight?” Spike called again, though his words were again ignored. “Okay then.” Twilight scratched her head in confusion. “I don’t know what he thought Princess Luna would do to him. So what should we do? Are there any special precautions we should take around him?” Celestia began walking again and Twilight trotted alongside her. “For now, we shall allow him to be familiarized with Equestrian society at his own pace. When he is told the truth, we shall help him to the best of our ability.” Celestia sighed wearily. She was not looking forward to that moment. It was as if she had to prepare to break him with a single sentence, destroying his life with words. “Without a doubt, it will pain him more than anything.” *STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP* Twilight’s ears drooped. “I can’t even imagine how he’ll take it.” “Twilight?” Spike knocked lightly on Twilight’s head. “What!” Twilight nearly snapped as she glared at her passenger. “What’s that sound?” As if on cue, the double doors next to them were flung open as a giant creature barged through it, panting like a beast. “AAAAAH!” Twilight and Spike yelled in unison. Spike wrapped his hands around Twilight’s neck while she reared up on her hind legs out of sheer instinct. She ended up falling on her back, pinning Spike under her. Skidding to a halt in front of the trio, Magnus leaned forward, resting his hands on his thighs. “Too… many… corridors. Got… lost. Legs… heavy…” he gasped. Celestia merely giggled at the sight. “I think you scared them,” She motioned to the petrified pair on the floor. Magnus turned to the duo, realizing what he had done. “Sorry.” “Not a problem,” Twilight replied sheepishly as she got to her hooves. “You okay, Spike?” Spike picked himself up, brushing the non-existent dust off his scales. “I’m a dragon, we don’t get hurt.” Even as he said that, he winced slightly. As he did, his eyes fell on the bipedal being that seemed to have regained its breath, noticing that it was staring directly at him. “A bit bigger than a mobile phone…” “What was that?” Twilight asked, not quite hearing Magnus’ mumbling. Tearing his eyes away from Spike, he replied, “Nothing important.” Magnus straightened himself, towering over the dragon and alicorn. Only now did Spike realize how tall this human was. Twilight’s sketch had been accurate, as he easily loomed over ponies, even Princess Celestia! Ensuring that her coat was free of dust and her mane straightened, Twilight trotted up to Magnus. “Hello, Magnus, you’re looking much better.” In return, Magnus knelt in front of her, just so he could speak to her at eye level. “Thank you, Twilight. Feeling much better as well, better than I have in years.” Smiling, he looked at Spike. “Who’s this? Your pet?” “Pet?!” Spike exclaimed angrily, puffing his cheeks out. He had felt pity for this alien who might never return home, though now it had receded. Even the lovable and gentle baby dragon had his limits, as being referred to as a pet had never occurred before. “No no no.” Twilight quickly walked between the two in an attempt to diffuse the situation. “Magnus, this is Spike and he’s a dragon. He’s also my assistant who helped me on the expedition.” Magnus looked again at Spike. “Oh, erm… sorry about that, Spike. I didn’t expect dragons to be so… vertically impaired. I thought you were an iguana or something.” “I’m just young,” Spike huffed with crossed arms. “Just wait a few hundred years and I’ll show you vertically impaired.” Twilight giggled. It wasn’t often that Spike acted his age, but his tantrum was more adorable than anything. “It’s true, Spike is a baby dragon. When fully grown, he’ll be huge.” “Hah, take it from Twilight; she knows a lot more than you!” the vertically impaired baby dragon added. “Now now, my little human and dragon, I am sure that Magnus meant no harm. He did apologize, after all.” Magnus and Spike turned to Celestia. She had closely observing them to see how Magnus handled meeting a dragon for the first time. Although she was sure that Magnus wouldn’t be afraid, with Spike being so small, it was best to be prepared in case something happened. “Fine then, apology accepted,” Spike said after a second of deliberation. “Wonderful, shall we continue?” Celestia took the lead while the rest followed. It didn’t take long before the question that Twilight feared was asked. “Princess Twilight, please tell me that you found something out about the portal, please tell me I can go home.” The hope in Magnus’ voice struck Twilight hard. Now that Magnus was healthy, she would have to be the one to deliver the terrible news to him, possibly unravelling his recovery. “I…” I cou—” “Twilight, you and Spike probably need to rest for a while after your long journey,” Celestia quickly interceded. “We can discuss more of the expedition later today.” Magnus shot Celestia an irritated glare before relenting with a sigh. “Fine, I guess I can wait.” *** This world had once more proven me wrong. I had naturally assumed that dragons were enormous ferocious beasts that could stomp a house to rubble, but the green and purple dragon that rode on Twilight’s back was rather puny. I didn’t know how large they got when they reached adulthood, but doubted it could be much more than a bus. From the corner of my eye, I noticed the dragon staring at me. He was a strange one, though somewhat ill-tempered. I did insult him, so that probably played its part. It was easy to see that Spike was young from the pudge of baby fat he still carried around and the child-like curiosity he displayed in those wide eyes. “Princess Celestia, I think I’ll go to my room and rest before dinner. I didn’t sleep much last night; could I be excused?” Twilight suddenly asked as she looked up to the larger alicorn. “Of course, I will send for you when it is time for dinner.” Celestia smiled at her young protégé and patted her on the back with a wing. Yeah, this could take a few hours. I had waited long enough, but I guess she’d earned some rest. Besides, my self-taught language and alphabet lesson had grown rather boring, so I needed something new to occupy myself with. “I’ll return to my room. Until then, I’ll find something to occupy my time with.” We reached an intersection that I remembered running through, though from a different direction. “Maybe I can fix my phone.” I broke off from the group and headed down the hallway. Looking over my shoulder, I waved to the trio. Twilight really did seem exhausted, though there was an element of wariness in her overall demeanour as well. ‘Not sure I like that look. What happened on the expedition? Did they fight some kind of epic Cthulhu monster at the portal?’ I thought as I wandered down the corridor, and quickly got lost. “Dammit, where did those guards go? I thought they were following me.” *** Once Celestia had finished her remaining paperwork, a mountain of signed documents was stacked high on her work desk in her personal offices. There were those that believed that she loved signing documents all day long. Her advisor, Kibitz, was one of them, and he often waxed poetically of the sheer ecstasy she gained by signing her name on the bottom of a scroll. Kibitz was wrong. To this day, she still wanted to inflict unspeakable agony on Discord for inventing bureaucracy during his chaotic reign. It was just coincidence that one colt received his cutie mark when he was subjected to the insane chaos of Discord’s paperwork that involved writing, reading, filing, documenting, and forgetting said documents. The little colt’s handling of documents had set back Discord’s plans by many months. Not even the Spirit of Chaos himself could figure out where those documents that contained his list of things to do to Equestria and its inhabitants had disappeared to. What was the name of that colt? Oh yes, Orderly Chaos. Still, looking back on the last eighteen hundred years, she had to admit that it made paperwork somewhat easier in the long run. Therefore, as with many things, she would simply have to endure. With her workload finally completed, Celestia trotted out of her quarters. The two guards at the door snapped to attention and saluted her, and with a nod to them, the princess was off. Her destination was Twilight’s room that was always prepared for her whenever she visited. For convenience sake, it was located close to the library. She missed those days when Twilight had been a filly. They would often sit down with a cup of hot chocolate and discuss everything between heaven and earth. As a filly and certainly as a young adult, Twilight had an extreme curiosity about all manner of subjects, and Celestia had delighted in both her thirst for knowledge and companionship. These days, the castle felt somewhat empty without an inquisitive young filly running about. How Celestia loved it when a colt or filly would send her a letter or ask for an audience. If it was one thing Celestia always made time for, it was children. Their curiosity, innocence, and carefree outlook on life were so different from adults. Sometimes, she truly felt as if she was the mother of Equestria. Perhaps that was the reason she referred to her loveable subjects as her little ponies. In truth, the honour of being mother of Equestria belonged to the original six founders. Celestia’s ears twitched as she arrived at Twilight’s room. There was no need for eavesdropping; an alicorn’s hearing was sharp and never dulled. Pushing open the door, the princess headed for the bedroom. She immediately noticed Twilight lying on the bed, sobbing into her hooves while Spike attempted to comfort her. Spike noticed Celestia and shook his head softly, his little claws gently patting her head. Celestia approached the bed and clambered onto it, lying down next to Twilight, placing a wing protectively over her. Brushing her nose against Twilight’s cheek, she wiped away her tears, causing the younger princess to realize she wasn’t alone. With a sniffle, she looked up at Celestia, who stared at her former student with worry. “I c-can’t, Princess,” Twilight sobbed even as more tears quickly replaced those she spilled. “I just can’t.” Celestia didn’t respond, instead holding Twilight closer to her body. “I-I failed. I couldn’t find a way home for Magnus.” Realization washed over Celestia. Twilight was unable to cope with the fact that she hadn’t fulfilled the human’s unrealistic hope, and she was blaming herself for it. Twilight wasn’t used to failing. Even as a filly under Celestia’s tutelage, she would cry if she didn’t pass a test on the first try. “Twilight,” Celestia murmured gently, “you tried your best and did what you could. Neither Magnus, Luna, nor I can ask any more of you.” Twilight’s sobbing ceased for a moment as she pressed herself closer to Celestia’s body. “I asked you to close the portal and you did so. In addition, you took it upon yourself to help a being we know almost nothing of and attempted to find him a way home. You have not failed, Twilight, and I am proud of you.” “Re-Really?” Twilight hiccupped, peering up at Celestia with hopeful yet teary eyes. “I am.” Celestia craned her neck to nuzzle Twilight. “I am, and have always been proud of you. Sometimes there is nothing we can do about what fate has in store for us.” “I don’t understand.” Twilight sniffled again and held out a hoof to Spike who sat down next to her. Wrapping a hoof around his midsection, she pulled him closer. Twilight used to do the same thing when she and Spike were younger, almost treating the dragon as a teddy bear, a substitute for the days when she forgot her Smarty Pants doll at home. “Do you remember my lesson about how magic sometimes acts on its own?” Twilight didn’t reply at first, continuing to hug Spike, something that calmed her when she was younger. At least Spike didn’t seem to think the situation was awkward. He would truly do what he could to help his big sister. “I remember now. ‘As we live, so too does magic. As ponies care for each other, so too does magic care for us’.” Turning to Celestia, Twilight curiously gazed at her. “Do you think that Magnus was meant to come here?” “I do,” Celestia replied as she used her nose to wipe away Twilight’s remaining tears. “Magnus, no matter how much or little of him is a pony, has his place amongst us. He belongs to Equus as much as you, Spike, I, and any other creature on our planet. He was meant to come here, to come home and discover who he is. I believe magic itself helped Star Swirl in the process.” Twilight stared at Celestia, a small glimmer of hope in her eyes as a faint smile spread on her face. “Isn’t that an encouraging thought?” “Yes, yes, it is.” She leaned against Celestia, resting her head against the larger alicorn’s soft neck. Both princesses cherished the close contact. Being a herd species, it made them feel safe and allowed emotional bonds to flourish freely. Physical contact was especially important, a remnant from ancient times when ponies lived on the plains, long before they evolved speech. It allowed them to speak without words, convey messages through body language, sense the emotions and mood of others, and allowed harmony to exist within a large group of ponies. At this moment, Twilight felt safe under Celestia’s large, protective wing, for what place on Equus could be safer than under the wing of one of the most powerful beings on the planet? Several minutes passed in silence as the two alicorns and one baby dragon lay in bed. Twilight had stopped crying, her mind at rest for the time being, while Spike simply enjoyed the attention he was getting from his sister. Celestia herself hummed a calming tune to the two youngsters. “Celestia?” Twilight murmured. “Can I stay here? I don’t… I don’t want to tell him. I just… I promised him, but... “ “Of course you can,” Celestia replied softly, brushing her primaries through Twilight’s mane. “Luna and I will tell him after dinner. Don’t worry, we will look after him.” “Thank you,” Twilight replied with a small nuzzle. “Will you be alright now?” “Yes, I’ll be fine. I’ll just sit here and think for now.” “Very well. I will tell the maids to bring dinner for you and Spike.” Celestia clambered off the bed and walked outside of the bedroom. “I will return later to tell you how it went, if you wish to hear.” “I would appreciate it. Thank you, Celestia.” Twilight smiled once again as the door closed gently, Celestia’s own promising that she would take care of everything. *** I had decided to turn on my phone earlier, but eventually thought better of it. Saltwater didn’t agree with sensitive electronics, so I had used fresh water from the faucet to carefully clean every component of the phone before drying it gently with a soft cloth. Still, I wasn’t so sure about the areas where the cloth couldn’t reach. I settled for allowing it to dry for a day or two on a pile of papers to draw out the moisture. I was fairly surprised that the phone hadn’t been stolen already. This piece of common technology could be worth a fortune around these parts. Then again, what would they do with it? This was unknown territory for them. Even if they figured out the code for unlocking it, everything was in English. Either they were very honest or the phone simply wasn’t that interesting to them. There was a knock on the door, and before I could answer, the door opened, revealing Celestia. “Hello.” She eyed the mobile phone parts before me. “Did you have any luck making your gadget work?” “No, not yet. It might be broken or needs a little rinse and dry before I try turning it on.” I moved the parts so that sunlight shone directly on them, speeding up the drying process. “Might give it a try tomorrow.” Celestia nodded sagely as she walked up to the table to gain a closer gander at the parts. Using her magic, she picked up the battery, turning it around to study it. “An incredible device conceived without magic. Fascinating.” She carefully placed the battery back at the exact same spot. “Dinner will soon be ready. Shall we go?” “We shall.” I stood up and followed Celestia through the labyrinth that made up the corridors of the castle. Still unfamiliar with the layout of the castle, I paid more attention to where we were going this time. I had a decent memory, but the castle was giving me a run for my money. There were endless corridors, open halls, twists and turns, several staircases and numerous doors. We made idle chat as we walked, and I was surprised to hear that Princess Twilight wouldn’t be joining us. It seemed that she was more exhausted than she realized, thus only Luna would eat with us. When we got closer to the dining room, I noticed the sun had begun its slow descent. Perhaps in an hour or two, it would set completely. The evening glow of the sun cast a faint orange light through the many windows we passed. It felt somewhat soothing in a way, different from the sun I was so used to. I wondered if Celestia was responsible for that. I mean, she commanded the sun with her magic, so I was certain there was a multitude of things she could do with it. Upon entering the dining room, I first noticed Princess Luna sitting at the table. When she spotted us, she approached with a warm smile. “Sister, Magnus, good evening. How has the day treated you?” “Good evening, Luna. The day was filled with work as usual,” Celestia replied wryly as she walked up to Luna and lowered her head. They gently rubbed their necks together. It seemed like a common affectionate greeting of sorts, as casual as a hug. I hadn’t paid attention to it earlier, but I quickly deduced that standing on their hind legs in order to hug each other would be more than a little awkward for them as quadrupeds, so this made sense. When they had separated, Luna turned to me. “Hello, Magnus, I hope the day has been good to you as well.” I shrugged. “Eh, it’s been okay, I guess. Haven’t really done anything today.” Luna nodded at my response, then walked to the table to take her seat. Celestia sat down next to her sister while I sat down at the opposite end of the table. Servants entered the room with serving carts behind them. They placed covered plates in front of us and removed the lids. Dinner consisted of baked potatoes with some sort of yellow gravy, salad of course, and vegetable lasagne. Even without meat, it tasted great. As we ate, we spoke of various things. I told the princesses of my appointment with the doctor and the reason for the visit. They both seemed to have a strong interest in my changes as well, explaining that cross-species hybrids had never been properly examined due to their extreme rarity. That in turn would make me the first hybrid to ever undergo a full medical examination. I just wondered how thorough the doctors would be and hoped that the word ‘probed’ would not be mentioned or put to use. The conversation slowly drifted to home, namely my friends and what they were doing at this moment. It had been perhaps a day since the last time my mind drifted to home and familiar lands. The great fields where I used to work during harvest season, the nearby forest I used to play in and went camping, the mountains that grandfather and I used to climb and set up tents near the summit. We would watch the moon set and the sun rise over the Rockies. It was a time I longed for, when my grandfather lived. Those days were long gone now; only memories remained along with a faint hope of one day seeing my friends again. Today was the day I would know, would demand to know. I had waited long enough. Dinner eventually wound down, with the servants clearing off the table and bringing us light refreshments. Celestia and Luna attempted to include me in the conversation, although I didn’t contribute much, merely sipping my coffee and nodding occasionally. It wasn’t that interesting listening to idle chat about the events of the day and some celebration that was to be held in a few weeks. Though cognizant of the fact that what I was about to do would be considered rude in most situations, I had finally had enough. “Princesses,” I said firmly as I set down my cup after draining its contents. I then turned my gaze to the two alicorns. “As interesting as this conversation is, I believe you’re just trying to buy time.” Searching for a reaction, the only thing I noticed was their smiles fading. “You both know what I want to hear, but if the subject won’t come up, then I see very little reason to sit here.” I was about to stand when I heard a sigh from across the table. Celestia stared at her cup held in her magical grasp for a moment before looking at me. “Please, forgive me. I was stalling because I wanted to think of how to say this.” I sat down again. Now she had my undivided attention. The tone of her voice had changed, her usual serene demeanour dissipating. Even the sparkle in her eyes had disappeared. A glance over at Luna and I saw the same expression. The uneasiness that had continued to linger in my stomach over the course of the day began to bubble. Celestia’s horn glowed, and a large bundle of papers appeared in a flash of light. Perhaps two hundred in all with writing on every single one, they were wrapped in a red ribbon and with a folder on top that stated Portal Expedition. “This is every document that comprises the expedition.” She untied the bundle and spread the documents over the table, nearly covering it completely. “Three hundred and twenty six pages in all. Observations, magical data, ley line disharmony and restoration, witness reports, personal accounts, analysis performed by the top experts in Equestria. Copies of the reports have also been analysed by experts here in Canterlot. The brightest minds in Equestria worked on this project.” “We gathered unto us many ponies of science from many different fields of research,” Luna added. “Magic weaving, thaumancy, experimental portals magic, and teleportation research. Every single day, they pored over these documents and attempted to understand the consequences of what the portal can do, attempting to discern its true nature.” “And?” I whispered, holding my breath. The silence of the room hung over us like a blade, deadly even in its unspoken threat. “You must understand…” Though her voice previously had a certain clearness to it, it was now gone. “We have done everything we can possibly think of, but the expedition and the research conducted only confirmed what we initially believed.” “...No.” I shook my head slowly. My chest tightened and my breathing got shallower as the pieces of the puzzle began to fit together. It was too much. Still, I somehow kept my calm, whatever was left, and with a trembling hand, I poured myself another cup of coffee. I took a small sip and closed my eyes. The cup was hot and burned into my hand, but I refused to recognize the pain. I closed my eyes to the world, but could still hear the metal shod hooves approaching me. They stopped at either side of me, followed by the sound of them sitting down. Then came the feeling of their wings on my back and neck, patting, rubbing gently, comforting. It didn’t work. “Please…” My trembling voice was so low that it was barely a whisper. “Just… Just say it.” Celestia sighed heavily next to me. “Very well.” Judging by her tone, I already knew what she would say, but I needed to hear the words and their finality. ‘Please, let it be good news in the end. Just say that it will take a long time. Weeks. Months. Years. Please…’ The pieces slowly began to fall into place in my mind, the echo of metal clinking almost deceiving me into believing it was real. ‘In the garden, several days ago, Celestia said that two magic users had to be present when casting a portal spell. No human can use magic. Even if they could, I had no guarantee of returning to my timeline.’ Another piece fell in place, connecting with the first. ‘I was suffering, but they helped me with their strange potions and by simply talking. They treated me like I was one of them.’ Driven into place by a mental sledgehammer, the next piece made the picture clearer. ‘I couldn’t go outside because I would scare ponies. The entire castle knows about me, and sooner or later, the truth would come out. It means that the princesses would have to tell everyone about me at some point in time.’ The next piece was freshest in my mind. ‘The new room. Celestia said it was to make me comfortable. The only way I can think of someone being comfortable with such a room is when they’re going to be there for a long time. They set me up with that room because they knew.’ The last piece was held before my inner eye, a single puzzle piece, unremarkable in many ways, but the most important one to make the image complete. ‘What would my life be like in maybe ten years? Would I still be alive or just a rotting corpse in the ground? Or maybe eight years? Six? Four? Two? No one can tell the future.’ I was lured from my world by a unicorn, my ancestor. I couldn’t deny it anymore. My horn, fur, ears, and hooves were proof enough, and oddly enough, they didn’t bother me and had only taken a fairly brief amount of time to get adjusted to them. ‘This is because of Star Swirl! He did this! He spawned a child that was doomed to die the moment it was conceived. He created a line of humans that was destined to die long before their time. He deserves everything I could throw at him that would kill him a hundred times over! He stole my life away! I’ve lost everything that mattered to me! My home, my job, my possessions, and my friends! I should hate him with all of my being! Why, then, was I unable to hate him? If not for him, would I exist? Would my grandfather exist? Or my mother? I had lived a life of pain and should curse his name for eternity, but I couldn’t since, for the first time in ages, I was free of pain and knew that I would live. ‘But what kind of life is this? I don’t know, but I know what I want.’ “You can never return home. I am so sorry, Magnus.” ‘I just want to go home… please...’