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// 28. The Summer Haze 
// Story: Sunny's Days 
// by Anzel 
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“The princess was last seen inside the palace,” the broad-shouldered unicorn colonel explained. “We do not believe she could have been taken far. Her power to resist is simply too great… although we have no idea what we’re dealing with. I know you’re all afraid, but this is why we exist; this is why we’re here. When Equestria is darkest, we will defend her.”

I was inside the palace, being briefed by the Captain of the Canterlot Guard. Any other day I’d have been amazed by that, but right now it didn’t matter in the least. All that mattered was finding Princess Celestia and getting this oozing haze off me.

“You’ve all been assigned a section of the palace to search. If you should find any hostile forces, do not engage them. Retreat, report, and get back up. Am I clear?”

“Yes, sir!” we all replied in unison.

“Good, get to it immediately.”

We all turned to go to our assigned areas when I felt a light tug on my tail. I looked back to find it held in magic. His magic.

“Hold up there, pony. You got onto the palace grounds, didn’t go with the city guard, and I don’t recognize you.”

I turned and snapped to the most professional attention of my career. “Lieutenant Sunny Day, sir. Baltimare City Guard, graduate of the School of Gifted Unicorns, student of the princess.”

His ear flicked lightly and then he shrugged. “I can’t verify that but I imagine you’re not lying and, if you are, it is probably just out of a desire to help.”

“I give you my word as an officer… as a pony, sir, I’m not lying. I know the princess! Not well, but we used to have one-on-one training sessions. She’d recognize me by face, at least. Please let me help. I think I’m meant to help…” I clamped my mouth shut.

“What does that mean?”

Shut up, Sunny. “I can see… uh… badness. I can see some kind of magic haze all around the city.”

His eyes widened a bit. “What? You can see it! I can feel it… the creeping cold, the whispers in my mind. You can really see it?”

I nodded. “Yes, sir. It is everywhere… although it is thicker here than in Lower Canterlot. It’s clinging to me and to you. To everypony. It’s very… frightening. You can get it to retreat some if you light your horn.”

Without hesitation, he lit his horn. Just enough to illuminate the tip and shine light into the gloom. The dark haze slowly pulled back from it, swirling just out of the reach of the brightest part of the magical light.

“Yes, sir. Like that. It might buy you some reprieve. Perhaps keep it off your head.”

“I don’t know why you can see it, but I’m glad. You can help with the search, but you can’t go like that.” He used his hooves to pull his helmet off. Carefully, he sat it on my head. It didn’t fit well, but it felt right. “Find the princess, Lieutenant.”

“Yes, sir!” I squeaked before pirouetting and hurrying off into the palace. Palace and house guards were everywhere, working their search patterns. Palace staff were, too. Nopony paid me much mind as I started to head to the third floor. That is where I was assigned.

The third floor was also where it was the gloomiest. Even with my horn lit, I could barely see beyond a few meters. Other guards seemed to be oblivious to it other than the fact they were acting odd.

I came across one pegasus just standing still and staring at a wall. “Hi?”

He didn’t move. He just stood there, looking at the stone.

Timidly, I set a hoof on his shoulder and shook it. “Hello, Guard. Officer here. Pay attention to me.”

Finally, he turned and blinked. “Ma’am? Where am I?”

“You’re on the third floor. Listen, I need you to go back downstairs and find the Captain. Tell him only unicorns with lit horns should come up here, alright?”

“Yes, ma’am,” he replied before trotting off in the opposite direction of the stairs and coming to a complete stop again. This time he was staring out a window.

“Alright… I guess I’m on my own.” 

Creeping around the third floor… and I did creep out of fear… was not easy. Almost all of the guards sent up were in some degree of confusion. It wasn’t equal across the board, though. A few were catatonic, others were just mildly impaired. Either way, we weren’t getting a lot done with the voice in our heads.

Run! No! Would you hush?

After a couple of hours of searching, I was having trouble thinking straight. Sleep. Oh, yeah, a nap would be really great right now actually. I yawned and stretched. “We can find Princess Celestia later, right?”

Yes.

“Okay… maybe just a little nap. Five minutes or something. Just need to find somewhere comfortable.”

I caught sight of a plush bench resting against the wall. It looked like a perfect spot to catch a little snooze. I trotted over to it and the light on my horn went out. Don’t need a nightlight to sleep. When I get up, I can just tell Dolly I was late because of school.

She could make fizzy drinks for a while. It wasn’t like I was the only pony that knew how to be a sodajerk. Then I’d go to school… or something. Apple Polish… Diddle… coat glitter.

My hooves felt super heavy as I staggered towards the bench. I reached a hoof out to it and started to slump forwards. To my surprise, my hoof went right through it and I tumbled onto the floor. The shock if it all brought me back to attention.

Using all the effort I could, I poured energy into my horn and lit it up brightly. I was laying halfway through the bench and the wall it was supposedly against… only I wasn’t. I was actually laying in an archway that was hidden behind the illusion of a bench and wall!

Run!

“Nuh-uh. You don’t want somepony seeing this,” I said as I inched forwards on my belly. My hooves were being a little woozy still. The archway led to a stairwell that, in turn, led up. Was this one of the towers? It had to be.

On shaky hooves, I started ascending the spiral staircase. Turn back or suffer!. My body started to shake as a primal fear overwhelmed me. I pushed on, though, I had a job to do! “No! I am a lieutenant in the Royal Guard!”

Calendar filly.

“Am not! Guard lieutenant.”

Failure. Weak. Whiny.

“I don’t whine! You’d know if I was whining. You’re a mean, evil spirit.”

It wasn’t clear to me how fast or slow I was moving. I just took it one step at a time… literally. The dark voices kept up their promises, threats, and insults. Eventually, I reached the landing and was able to look into the room just beyond. “Sweet Celestia…” I whispered.

Princess Celestia was levitating centimeters above the floor, surrounded by an orb of swirling blue magic. She was laying with her back to the door, head held low.

“Princess! Princess, it’s me! I’m here to help you,” I cried out, finding enough energy to rush over to the bubble. I set my forehooves on it and stood upright. It felt like I was pressing against steel.

The alicorn’s ears twitched and she turned around, looking at me in surprise. She lowered her head to be eye-level with me and then said something… I think. Her lips moved, anyway.

“I can’t hear you!” I replied, slamming my forehoof against the bubble.

Her head tilted and then she nodded softly. She set her hoof opposite of mine a moment before drawing it back and waving me away.

“What? You want me to go get help?”

She shook her head no.

“You want me to leave?”

She nodded.

“Why? I can’t leave you!”

The princess tapped her horn and then the bubble. She shook her head, heaved a heavy sigh, and settled back into the base of the magic orb.

“Are you saying it’s too hard?” She was giving up? She couldn’t give up; she was the princess! Perhaps the mist could get to her, too? “Princess, don’t say that!”

She smiled sweetly, patted the bubble near me, and then set her chin down. Her eyes closed.

Run, fool, she cannot be freed.

“If that were true you wouldn’t have had to hide her!” I yelled. When I did, it startled the alicorn into jumping up and looking at me.

I dropped back down and stepped back. “Princess, you said little ponies had to start small. I did. I started small. Now I’m a bigger pony and this might be too big, but I don’t care. The Princess Celestia that taught me would have waited forever for me to try to learn to use healing magic instead of fire.

“If you wouldn’t give up on me, why give up on you… or us. You have a kingdom full of ponies that are afraid right now. You tried alone. I’m here now. Let’s try together. We can do it together; I just know it! I promise you. Get ready!”

I didn’t wait for her. I didn’t want to give her a chance to think about it. I just dropped my head, pointed my horn, and started to draw the forces of magic to it. It was a struggle. My body was weary and my mind was cloudy.

That wasn’t a great combination for magic but this was important. This was the most important thing of my life. My eyes closed and I captured energy from the currents of aether flowing past my horn. I let that power build and grow. I’d need more. As much as I could bring in.

When it felt like I was going to burst, I focused a heat lance right against the orb and just kept it going. Immediately, I felt resistance. I’d never felt anything like it through my magic. It was unnerving and unnatural.

I peeked up. The princess was likewise poised with her horn against the orb, blasting it with whatever spell she knew. Probably something insanely powerful. It wasn’t working, though… the orb wasn’t even yielding a centimeter.

Using my magic like this was going to drain me and, in seconds, I’d be on the floor asleep. That just couldn’t happen until the princess was out. Dolly wouldn’t give up; she’d just keep going until it worked out.

Soarin wouldn’t give up, either. He worked his body to exhaustion trying to achieve his dream… and Melody? Melody ran into a burning building! None of them would just pass out because they were tired or it was hard! “I. Won’t. QUIT!”

A surge of warmth shot through my body and into my horn. The fogginess in my head faded and I pushed it even harder. The lance of heat from my horn intensified. 

My eye’s met the princess’s and it was as if she knew. Determination fell into place and she focused more. Where our magic met, the orb started to crack. The lines spread out slowly like when the ice on top of a frozen lake breaks beneath your hooves.

The heat lance finally sputtered out, but the entire orb had fractures running across it. Without hesitation, the mighty white alicorn inside its grasp reared up and stomped both of her forehooves, shattering it completely. As she fell out, she threw her wings wide and came to a soft landing in front of me.

I was woozy and stumbled forwards. She caught me and smiled. “Well done, my little pony. You believed even when I doubted. Thank you… thank you for that.”

“I just did what you taught me and when it seemed the darkest, I thought about my friends. That was the spark I needed.” My eyes drooped a bit. “How do we stop the mist?”

“I’m afraid that is an even more difficult challenge. One that we must have faith in others to solve.”

My head bobbled no. “We can do it, Princess. Let’s go.” I tried to move my hooves but they didn’t work.

“It will be alright, Sunny. We cannot go. The risk to the world would be too great. This mist comes with the return of Nightmare Moon, the only alicorn of disharmony to ever exist. I cannot face her.”

“Why?” I whispered, my eyes closing fully.

“She is my sister and no matter what, one of us must live.”

What did that mean? Oh, who cared, I’d just tell Dolly I was late because of school.

“Sleep, little pony. I shall protect you.”

Yeah… sleep. Sleep…