//------------------------------// // 24. The "Shadow Pony" // Story: A New Impetus // by Zykov //------------------------------// The group laid helpless enveloped in a strange aura that silenced them and prevented them from moving. A familiar voice came from the top of the stairs where the glow from three candles flickered. “What in the name of Equestria is going on here?” She looked over the group and moved the rock that she was lucky to stop just in time and gently placed it on the ground by the wall. “I guess I got here just in time.” Applejack was the first to speak as she recognized the voice. She could spot the familiar face out of the corner of her eye and spotted a speck of green scales. “Twilight? Spike?” Along with the others, Fluttershy looked toward the top of the stairs and her eyes bulged as she saw her pet standing on the top beside Twilight. “Angel!” she yelled and fidgeted more as she wished to embrace her beloved pet but stopped and looked at him. “You’re alright!!” Unable to see Twilight, Rainbow’s eyes widened. “Twilight?! Why are you here?” “I’ve been doing research here all night with Spike. What are YOU all doing here.” Her gaze shifted to the stallions and she waved a hoof between them and glared momentarily at Noble who she had seen slam the ground causing the rock to fall. “Especially you two...” Noble didn’t fight the spell but looked up at Twilight while his head was stuck facing down and he remained silent as his heart raced. Spike stretched his neck out looking closer at each of the stallions. “Are those two the stallions you told me about?” Twilight nodded and looked back down at Noble. His eyebrows were down and even under her control she felt like his eyes were intensely glaring at her. Spike chuckled looking over everypony there. “Boy, you all look rough. You look like you’ve all been through some kind of madhouse or something; even from here.” The alicorn nudged Spike and gave a disapproving look. She then looked over everypony and released her friends, and then looked at both stallions again before she released Soul and with another moment of hesitation, Noble. Suddenly regaining their mobility caused many of them to trip or fall to the ground as she let them go. Soul who had finally opened his eyes and was ready to observe the surroundings was immediately drawn by the sight of Spike. “...Is that a dragon?” Spike waved to Soul and leaned against the banister, breathing on his claws and rubbing them on his chest as he tried to look cool, hoping for some attention. “Hey there.” Twilight sighed, rolling her eyes away and shaking her head at her assistant. “Now can somepony please explain all of this to me and why I found all of you fighting here?” Everypony looked at each other and after they had a chance to calm down they all sulked or rubbed their forelegs thinking of all the awful things they said to one another. Out of the seven Rainbow Dash and Applejack were the ones that stepped forward. They first looked at each other waiting for one another to start, but after a moment Twilight suggested Applejack go first. Applejack nodded and started giving a short version of her and Rainbows story on how they got to the castle and what they experienced. After Applejack had finished her story it was Rarity’s turn, who stepped up and explained in short her and Fluttershy’s own reasons why they came to the castle and explained how they met Soul and Noble and how big of a help they were with Fluttershy’s wing and what happened after that. Applejack looked at the group and then Rarity. “I reckon we all have some apologies to say…” With some awkward pauses the group nodded and walked around apologizing to one another and making amends. Noble and Rarity looked at one another. Noble exhaled composing himself and felt a release of his anger but Rarity was the first to get in a word. “I-I’m terribly sorry if something I said upset you. I didn’t-” The earth pony closed his eyes and held up a hoof. “No. I’m sorry, I’m glad you are ok.” His tone was cold and concise. The two walked over to Soul and helped him to his feet brushing him off together as if they were his parents dusting him off after he fell in dirt. With a far more soft and tender voice, Noble questioned, “Is everything alright buddy...?” Soul instantly pulled away when he barely got onto his hooves and rubbed his face, still shaking noticeably. He shook his body and waved away the hooves. “Yeah yeah...” Everypony looked at Soul, their questioning eyes filled with uneasiness of what to say to him but it was clear an apology was expected from him as well. A hush fell over the room, Soul’s ears fell and his eyes scoured the ground before looking up at the group. “I’m so sorry everypony… I can’t believe what I said to you all…” Rainbow spoke out for the group speaking in a light hearted tone. “Well all I’ve got to say is, wow. At least you made it clear early on that we shouldn’t make you stressed. I mean yikes.” She chuckled which lead to the group breaking out and chuckling together as they looked at one another. The laughter crashed to a halt as a clang and roar from the organ filled the halls with a low note. The castle shook and ponies fur stood on end as they looked around and shivered. Fluttershy dropped to the ground covering her head and pulled Angel in underneath her. “T-There’s the organ again!!!” “Yes, the organ… I was on my way to figure out who was playing it when I bumped into all of you.” Twilight raised the candlestick with her magic. She stood tall and called out an order to her friends. “Everypony, calm down and follow me. Be on your guard.” The group galloped to Twilight without a second thought, the fear still present but a light forming within them where they refused to let each other down. They gathered behind Spike and Twilight in a circle with Twilight at the head. The princess looked down at Soul and Noble who stood together at the bottom of the stairs, Noble’s eyes still looked stern and unwavering. Twilight knew she couldn’t leave the stallions at the entrance and didn’t want to, she wanted to keep an eye on Noble personally but felt slightly more comfortable about Soul. “Soul, I’d like for you to get in the middle of the group. Noble… you stay beside me and help me look for traps and maneuver through this castle.” The stallions looked at one another then back at the door and Soul took the lead up the stairs forming in just as Twilight asked of them. The group moved through the halls that twisted and turned. Twilight recalled the layout of the castle she read about while with Spike and Angel and knew many of the traps, though Noble still kept an eye out for traps as he walked beside her. While they walked Noble felt tense, he had a lump in his throat and a nervous cold sweat down his spine. He looked back occasionally to the group that walked approximately a meter behind Twilight and himself. As he continued to scour for traps he leaned toward Twilight. “Princess, I think it would be best for us to speak, in private some time. No need to bring others into this.” Twilight’s eyes grew larger and shifted toward the stallion. She slowed down unsure of what to do but knew it was not the time to make a scene. She thought quickly and came up with what she believed would be the safest option. “Oh? What do you mean? What do we need to speak in private about that my friends can’t hear?” The stallion’s stomach turned and he almost tripped over his own hooves and looked back at the ponies behind them that seemed to barely notice what Twilight said. “I- uhh. Oh, what? No sorry, it’s nothing. Err- I just… hopeless flirting, that’s all.” He chuckled taking the lead. The others looked puzzled and AJ and Rarity facehoofed but followed as Twilight galloped and took the lead once more with a feeling of relief as she claimed a small victory. Through the twists and turns the organ grew louder and more clear. The melody filled the halls and penetrated the ponies hearts, it was a slow gentle melody that both ripped at the heart and pushed them forward toward the torturous resonance. They followed the crashing base and floating soft cords until they reached the entrance of another large room on the right in a hallway. The room was filled with pipes from the organ and illuminated by candles throughout the space. Twilight froze in the hallway before a single hoof stepped out of the shadows and peeked around the wall into the room. Everypony came to a halt behind Twilight and peered around her or jumped to the other side to look inside to see a single shrouded figure in the center of the room playing the organ. On a stool spinning the song was a black cloaked figure that seemed to blend in with the shadows and forced everypony to draw back together. Not much could be gathered from the figure other than it seemed to be in the shape of a pony. The entity continued to play a low wavering tone. It filled the air with a light mellow desire while low notes crashed down on the ponies very souls, weighing down their hearts in the sea. The high notes make them yearn for more and nopony could help feeling uplifted. Twilight stood at the head of the group, still pressed back into them and whispered among them. “Who in Equestria is that…?” Spike clung to the wall and turned away from the door grabbing hold of one of Twilight’s legs hiding his head. “A-a ghost gardener obsessed with it’s job, w-which it clearly isn’t very good at…?” Cowering at the other wall, ready to bolt from the scene if need be, Soul looked up in toward the figure, his head nearly touching the floor. “N-Not a bad guess at all.” Rarity held tight to her friends but closed her eyes tightly where she couldn’t help but become deeply enthralled in the music. “That melody she’s playing surely is something unique…” Pinkie peeked over Twilight’s head, pushing her down. She spoke in a whisper but louder than others. “Oooh! Maybe she comes here to play too!” Others quickly covered Pinkie’s mouth and hissed for her to quiet down. Twilight gently pushed Pinkie off and she stepped forward on her own, pushing Spike back to safety. “You all, stay here. I’ll see what this is all about.” She ignited her horn, ready to take any kind of action if the situation needed it and stepped into the moonlight. “You there!” They playing immediately ceased and in a flash the figure jumped off the bench turning to face Twilight. The pony’s face was still shrouded by the shadow of the robes and it quickly pulled it down further and backed up. It looked about, pausing at every possible exit and tried to ensure it was alone, luckily it did not see the group of ponies peering in from the darkness of the hallway behind Twilight. The princess lowered her horn and opened her wings showing her authority and tried to deter the figure from attacking. “Who are you and what are you doing in this castle? How have you found your way here?” The figure spoke in a soft light voice that showed the figure was a mare without doubt. The voice was slow and simple but was very reserved and sent a chill through the ponies spines. “You… You’re an alicorn!” The group almost calmed down simply by hearing her speak, but the chill shook them and made them hunker down once more. Twilight took a step forward which seemed to push back the cool air filling the room and gave the others some much needed reassurance. “You didn’t answer my question. Who are you and what are you doing here?” “Why does it have any matter to you? This place is owned by no one anymore so such things as trespassing no longer exist on these grounds. We’re all free to be here.” The hooded mare stood tall without fear even with Twilight threatening her with magic. “I didn’t expect to see any of your life here… Especially an alicorn…” Rarity huffed and took the moment to stomp into the room drawing attention to herself as she appear behind and to the side of Twilight. “Well just so you are aware, missy! That organ you have been playing has been releasing traps throughout the castle endangering my and my friends lives!” The hooded figure stepped back quickly and raised it’s head as Rarity entered the light. “Is that so, unicorn?” She looks toward the area where Rarity came from trying to see around Twilight without revealing herself then looked back at the organ for a moment. “I have not been aware of this...” Twilight took another step forward to stand between Rarity and the dark pony. She watched the figure for movement like a hawk and felt more confident as Rarity entered the room. “Right... Look, I suppose it doesn’t matter why you are here or how, but if you are intentionally here to cause harm for anypony, I can’t and won’t let you go on any further!” The voice became faster as the figure turned and looked about. “No! I wish no harm for any.” Rainbow Dash roared into the room flying above and just behind Twilight. “Then what’s your deal? You’re not… a ghost, right?” The shadow mare winced and jumped back the moment Rainbow flew in, becoming more and more on guard. “No, I’m not a ghost. I’m not here to cause harm. I’m simply passing through and looked for shelter in this castle.” She took a step forward, hesitating while looking at Twilight still ready to strike. The princess closed her wings and lifted her head up enough to look toward the shadow covered face with more ease. “Passing through?” The figure nodded. “Yes…. I… You see, I used to live here long ago and I’m here to reminisce my past home...” “What?!” Everyone shouted as they jumped out of the shadows. “Wait, how is that possible?!” Noble’s voice echoed and he pushed his way through the group and stood up near Twilight. “This place has been vaccant for thousands of years! There is no way you could’ve lived here!” When the figure saw Noble, she immediately leapt back and gasped, lifting a leg as if trying to shield herself. Soul reached out a hoof towards Noble. “Noble, let’s stay back, I don’t think we have any right to interfere.” “Look out!” Twilight yelled and casted a big shield over the group just in time for i to protect them from certain injury as a rock flew right at them and crashed on the shield. The spell and rubble put out several of the candles leaving dark patches throughout the room. The princess shrunk her barrier as soon as she saw everyone was alright and flapped her wings, taking to the sky. “Hey! What’s with you all of the sudden! I thought you didn’t want to cause us any harm!” “STAY AWAY! STAY AWAY FROM ME YOU TWO!” The figure yelled and pointed at the stallions. She was gasping and turned her head away holding it through the cloak and holding herself in the shadows. While still ready for other debris Twilight landed, her face was scrunched together and she took a step forward pressing forward with her light. She desperately wanted to see the mare’s face. “What’s the matter? What’s gotten into you all of the sudden?” The figure backed off flailing a leg toward the group. “P-Please just whatever you do, keep those two stallions away from me!!! No one come near me!” At that instance the mare lept in the air, wings opened and before anypony could react all of the candles were extinguished and the figure vanished. “H-hey! Wait!!” Twilight yelled and looked about for the pegasus filling the room with light. “You won’t find her.” Rainbow took to the air and flew over to a broken window looking out of it through a small hole. “She was faster than any pegasus I’ve ever seen. She may give me a run for my money. How did she get out through this hole?! Even I can’t do that!” She held a hoof up and shivered at the sharp glass then flew back down to the others. “She’s long gone, no sign of her outside.” Filled with awe Twilight looked over the ground and up at the hole that only Rainbow was able to notice she vanished from. “If you say so, Rainbow. Thank you... Is everypony ok?” A moment passed as everypony looked around at one another seeing that they were all still there and safe and the room filled with nods. As Twilight sighed in relief and continued searching the ground for anything, she noticed two large feathers, barely noticeable on the floor. She picked them up and instantly noticed that they weren’t just normal pegasus feathers. As she held them up in the room she noticed the light passing almost completely through them. She turned off her horn for a moment and held them up to the moon light with the same result before illuminating her horn once more. “Transparent feathers…? I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a thing… I can’t even remember reading about anything like this from anywhere.” Abruptly turning Twilight glared at the stallions. “Noble, Soul!” “Do speak,” Soul said as he stood beside the earth stallion now. Twilight spun around and walked up to the two. She squinted her eyes, glaring as she looked each of them in the eyes. “Do you know that pegasi from somewhere? She didn’t fly off the handle until she saw you two.” Soul looked at the opening the figure flew out of and rubbed his left temple. “I didn’t recognize her voice from anywhere at least… Kinda hard to recognize anypony under a hood anyway.” Noble was shaken by the look but shook his head glancing back and looked about. “I can’t think of anything either…” Applejack and Rainbow saw a glimmer of something on the ground by the organ. When the two approached the organ they immediately noticed some gears and parts on the floor, and an open door on the side of the organ. A huff and Applejack brushed her hat up, lifting a gear and squinting at it. “Well that explains those single keys we heard. Guess she had to do some repair work…” Once the group decided they could no longer do anything with the organ except take a few parts off it to make sure it was no longer functional anymore, they returned to the tower Twilight set up in. They decided it was far too late and dangerous to venture through the woods unnecessarily and after enjoying some of the snacks Twilight brought for her reading and enjoying water from a flowing spring channel in an extra room, the group was able to calm down. Once the group calmed down and made their way back to the tower, they finally got to to fill their bellies with the food Twilight had brought with her, and clean themselves up with bright water. With everypony reunited, things were finally calming down. Rarity had finally found a piece of cloth she was able to mend, Fluttershy sat and cuddled with Angel finally at ease even with her injured wing, and Applejack and Rainbow Dash finally calming down. Noble gazed out the window while Soul sat in the corner writing to Mineral and telling everything that has happened to them tonight. Twilight sat by candlelight as she tried to read another book but found herself drifting off the page to look at the translucent feathers left by the hooded mare. Even though he was enjoying a comic Spike couldn’t help but notice Twilight. “Still thinking about that pegasus?” Speaking softly, the princess leaned in so the others wouldn’t be disturbed, her eyebrows turned down as if she ended a good book. “How could I not be thinking about her? Nothing about her made sense. Ugh, I just wish I could’ve stopped her and gotten more answers before she got away...” Spike opened his arms wide palms up being far less discrete then threw them across one another. “Well there’s certainly nothing we can do about it now.” Twilight sighed. “I know Spike. The thing that bothers me the most is how… anxious she got after seeing…” She turned to look at the stallions, seeing them out of the corner of her narrowed eyes, leaned in closer to Spike lowering her voice to a barely audible whisper, “Noble and Soul.” Spike nodded and scratched his chin and tried to lean back with his comic book. “Yeah, it was super weird… Maybe she was just having… you know, those mares issues.” “Huh?” Twilight’s eyebrows raised and her head tilted as she drew back speaking more casually now. “Mare issues?” The dragon sighed and rolled his eyes. He put his comic over his stomach and raised a hand. “You know, that thing you told me about where you mares once a month get---” “SPIKE!!!” Twilight flushed bright red and immediately grabbed him and wrapped his mouth closed with her hooves. “THAT’S ONE OF THOSE HUSH HUSH THINGS.” Everyone’s attention snapped to the two. Spike shoved the hoof away, rubbed an arm over his mouth and made spitting and gagging noises, “Geeze Twilight, wash those before you shove them in my mouth.” He then walked over to the stallions to join their company. “Hey, you two. We never had time for proper introduction.” Soul looked up his book and from rubbing in more ointment that Rarity had for him, he tilted his head with a raised eyebrow. “Is it necessary at this point?” The dragon shrugged. “Well not really. I’m Spike and the number one assistant of Princess Twilight Sparkle. That’s pretty much all you need to know.” “Plain and simple. I like it.” Soul bowed his head with a small smile and sent his next message to Mineral. Spike couldn’t help but smile wider and gave a full bow in return. “You are Wild Soul? The new apprentice of Rarity?” he questioned and then looked up and down at Noble. “And you, Noble Poet. The pony who lost his job and got one from Applejack?” Noble nodded to greet him as well. “Pleased to meet you, Spike. I’ll try to remember your name, please forgive me if I forget.” The pale stallion nodded as well as he looked up after reading the reply that just appeared. “Yeah, your kind are a rare sight for us.” Before Spike could strike up any further conversation with the stallions, Rarity joined the group’s atmosphere walking with an air of caution. “Soul…” Soul immediately frowned and sulked. “Rarity. Um, just a second…” He picked up his pen and wrote a goodbye to Mineral and then put the book aside. The mare’s hooves were sweaty and she couldn’t maintain eye contact as she bit her bottom lip. She stood in silence for a moment as her eyes wondered around the room. “Back in the main hall, what you said…” she finally said and even managed to speak clearly and directly. “Did you really mean it? That we’re… not friends?” Taking a moment of silence before he breathed deeply and sighed. “Look, I… yeah, I did. I meant it.” He pulled his hooves in, tucking them under him. “Is that… outburst gonna have a negative effect considering my future as your apprentice…?” Rarity’s ears flinched and she drew back wide eyed at the very idea. “You cannot be serious… THAT’S what’s on your mind?!” When Noble saw where the situation was going he immediately stood up and tapped the mare on the shoulder. “Um, Rarity… Come here for a second.” Noble’s request was almost completely unheard by the mare who waved a hoof but froze as the words registered in her head. “I’m kind of busy dealing with---” The earth pony stepped forward coming between the two and catching Rarity’s attention. He looked her in the eyes. His eyes were large and the light blue brought out the mare’s heart. “P-Please, just come.” Rarity looked between the stallions, she yearned to go with Soul but her mind told her otherwise. With a deep sigh she nodded and solemnly followed Noble out into the hall. “Alright then, what is it?” Taking a deep breath before he spoke Noble looked Rarity in the eyes. He reached out and after having a hoof hoover around Rarity’s shoulder for a bit he placed gently touched it as he spoke. “Please, forgive Soul for how he was and what he said back in the main hall…” “I won’t do anything before I get some explanation out of him!” She turned her head looking back towards the room practically fuming. Noble’s ears dropped even lower and pulled his hoof back but waved it, pulling her attention back. “T-That’s not a very good idea to ask him straight about it…” Her voice sharpened and she leaned in directing her frustration towards the earth pony. “He’s the one who said all those nonsensical things so he’s the one who shall explain to me!” With a step back Noble cringed keeping a hoof up in an attempt to stop the unicorn. “Rarity, just give ME a moment to explain, you’re not going to get anything you'd like out of Soul.” “Alright, fine…” Rarity sat down and snapped her chin up in the air. She waved a hoof through the air with closed eyes. “Speak.” “Thank you...” Noble closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He opened his eyes slowly gathering his thoughts about what he needed to say. “First, don’t hate Soul for how he acted back in the main hall. That’s not typical for him at all, and this was the first time I’ve see him that angry. This whole night has been absurd and put him under an exponential amount of stress.” Rarity nodded while she held a hoof under her chin. “I can understand that, yes…” Noble put his hooves together and sighed. “You see, I don’t know how it works for your group, but for Soul…” He took another deep breath before continuing, “You can’t just ask to be his friend.” Rarity drew her neck back and tilted her head raising an eyebrow. “What? What do you mean? Please, elaborate dear.” The stallion rubbed the back of his head and spoke slowly, choosing his words. “I’m sure by now you’ve noticed what a reserved pony Soul can be. He’s... not good with opening up about his emotions and he hates to take shots in the dark when it comes to relationships. He requires time, time to get to know the pony well enough for an actual bond to form and not just wish that him and the other pony feel the same way.” The mare blank again. “But… why did he originally seem so friendly? Back in Canterlot when I told him to treat me as a friend, he smiled. And back when he first came here and we had the same talk, he didn’t show any signs of refusal or distaste.” Scratching his head as he put himself in Soul’s hooves. “I’m sure he simply didn’t want to have a bad impression…” The artisan’s brow furrowed again as her voice raised. “So all this time he has been pretending?” “No no no.” Noble quickly waved his hooves in front of him. “You see, I know for sure that he likes your company, even if he won’t say it out loud. I really hope he will see you as a true friend one day and when he does, he will open up to you like he did to me. It took months before he called me a friend for the first time. Please, just… give him time. A clam needs time to become a pearl” Rarity held a hoof by her lips and nodded. “I… I see…” “I hope you understand now… If I let you talk to him about this, he would’ve just belittled the whole thing, or maybe grown grouchy again, it is very late. He apologized to you though and that should mean a lot.” Rarity nodded more and now somehow understanding what goes on inside Soul’s head, her frustration melted away. Of course it would’ve been much nicer to hear this from Soul, but just as Noble just explained, she wouldn’t have gotten it from him. This explanation really was something she needed to hear. Upon returning to the room Rarity walked over to Soul who was clearly holding his breath as he saw Rarity coming back. However, the mare spoke in a more pleasant tone. “My apologies for that... Earlier that is... No, we shall not let your little… episode affect your studies. We shall continue like before. It’s not like I’ve never had outbursts myself, I can relate.” Soul let out a sigh of relief and looked at her with big thankful eyes. “Thank you Rarity. You’re golden...” Twilight, who had been piling up all the books and papers she had been working on, turned to the stallions. In a overly feminine and pleading voice Twilight questioned, “Excuse me, Noble, Soul, would you two stallions mind going and getting some books from Celestia’s old room for me? I don’t think we could carry all of them back here.” The stallions looked at one another a little confused but shook their heads in agreement. “Alright, sure I suppose we could do that. I’m sure you don’t really need our help though.” Soul laughed as he spoke or both of them. They left the room giving one another questioning glances as the odd request and manner that Twilight asked for it in. Once the stallions were out of earshot Twilight leaned in over the books. “Girls, now that those two aren’t here, I want to tell you something. I have been looking through these books and I believe somewhere in this castle is something that could lead to us getting the Elements of Harmony back, or at least find some kind of power that could save Equestria if we need to.” The entire group leaned forward giving Twilight their full attention. “Really? That’s wonderful news Twilight!” Rarity cheered in a lower than usual voice, keeping an eye on the door. Twilight nodded with a smile. “But…” her expression dampened and even her mane sulked. “I’m still not sure about anything, I only have slight assumptions. So, remember girls; you have to keep quiet about this. That goes for all of you” Twilight looked at Rarity and Applejack. “Especially you two. I don't mean to call you two out, but you two are around those stallions the most. Keep your eyes peeled and don’t let your guards down.“ All the mares nodded and put their hooves on their chest, whispered in unison. “Cross my heart and hope to fly stick a cupcake in my eye” “A Pinkie Promise is forever.” Pinkie winked and giggled. As the mare’s huddle finished Noble and Soul walked back through the door carrying a small amount of books. “This is all we could find in the room with a sun on it,” Soul said as he placed the books he carried over on the ground near the other stacks before helping Noble set his down. “Sorry guys, I must have forgotten how many books there were. Thank you for getting them though.” Twilight was back to her bookshelf and had a difficult time selling herself as she gave a corny laugh. “No problem, I just enjoy looking around the castle a little more.” Noble having spoken up this time, he looked at the princess accusingly then over the others in the group. “Though if I may ask, what were you six talking about just now?” Twilight, not being a good liar jerked back and gritted her teeth. She looked back at her friends as she struggled for words wishing one of them would help. “W-We uh... were talkinggg abooouut… about some, uh...” Soul stepped in. “Noble, let’s not be nosy. That stuttering tells a lot already---” Rarity halted Soul by extending a hoof. “Why, we spoke about what a brave and grand leader Noble was navigating through the castle earlier! I don’t know what I would’ve done with Fluttershy if you weren’t there,” Rarity chimed in gracefully, to the bewilderment of the others. “Oh…!” Noble’s cheeks grew bright red as he took a few steps backwards. “I-I don’t know, I just improvised… There are a lot of ponies that can do all that better than me…” Applejack walked over to the embarrassed stallion. “Don’t be like that! Ya sure seemed to know what ya were doin’! Tracking us all the way here, avoiding all those traps and mapping the castle!” she said as she rubbed his back. “And how you took care of my injured wing…” Fluttershy noted in a small squeaking voice only looking up through her mane. “And let’s not forget about that trap you and Soul fell into. You were almost killed, but you managed to avoid disaster, because you knew what to do,” Rarity cheered with a warm glowing smile. Soul turned to look at Noble. “I gotta say, I was highly surprised today too. I know you are… skilled, but I’ve never seen you like this before. I hardly recognized you,” he said and laughed and patted his friend on the shoulder. “T-Thank you everypony, but…” Noble pressed himself against a wall and sank his head back into himself. “I don’t know if it was all that great…” “It was totally awesome!!” Rainbow flew over to him, hovering in the air. “Where in Equestria did you learn something like that, huh?” she questioned, crossing her front legs. Soul put out a leg then stepped between Noble and the mares. “Come on, give him some air. We didn’t stick our noses into your business so I expect the same respect from you.” With a glance around the room Rarity clenched her teeth. “He has a point, let’s back off everypony.” “Soooooo, Applejack,” Rainbow flew over to the mare who had already got back to her place next to a window. “We still have a competition to settle!” she landed next to her. Applejack groaned and smacked her head against a pillow. “That’s right, another competition ruined like a rotten apple!” Pinkie Pie lept up between the two, she threw her forelegs around them pulling them in. “I will gladly keep score for you again!” Twilight gave them a chuckle and shook her head, rolling her eyes playfully. “Can’t you even for once agree on a draw?” “Oh hay no!” They both answered at the same time, giving Twilight two piercing deathly glares. “Fine, fine, have it your way” Twilight chuckled, “But you have time to think about it some other day.” She jumped off her couch and looked at a clock. Finally seeing the time now that things were calming down sent a shiver down her spine and made her grimace. “Wow it’s gotten really late. It must be at least 3am I’m going to get more blankets and pillows for us” The pale stallion’s eye twitched as he immediately flinched at the suggestion. He trotted over to Twilight with wide eyes. “Wait, we aren’t going back to Ponyville?” The princess shook her head. “Sorry, the Everfree Forest is too dangerous at night. For everypony’s safety, it’s better to spend the night here.” “Oh… well, how dangerous is it exactly?” Soul looked out of the blue moon window to the dark forest, he looked back at Noble and the others trying to gage the difficulty. Spike walked into the room with a book with him, laughing, “Well, why don’t you go and find out? We can have a bet here if you will make it back there or not” Air huffed from the stallion’s nostrils. “I might be stupid but not suicidal.” Spike shrugged and gave Soul a sly smirk. “Whatever.” Twilight stepped toward the doorway, “Anyway, I’m going to get those blankets for us. Stay put everypony.” Spike walked over to Noble who had made himself comfortable next to a bookshelf. “Here’s the book you asked for, hopefully it’s something you will enjoy.” The dragon smiled and held up the book, a bit of tension throughout him as he hoped this was the right one. “Thank you Spike, hopefully it wasn’t too much of a trouble.” Noble smiled and bobbed his head in admiration. “Oh, not at all!” Spike waved his claws. “Just ask me if you’ve got anything else you need. Spike, number one assistant at your service.” Noble gave him a nod and chuckle as he pulled the book closer setting it on the side away from others. “Thank you.” “Don’t mention it. I’ll go help Twilight with those blankets.” Spike headed to the reading room, stretching his arms and yawning, “I could really use a good night sleep.” Soul listened in on Noble and Spike’s small talk while listening to the tips Rarity was giving him about sewing at the same time. After Spike had left the room, Soul stood up and walked over to Noble, who stretched then looked down at the book Spike brought him. Soul laid next to him. “What book is that?” Soul questioned as he glanced down at the old book with a red cover, his eyes narrowing. Waving his hoof, Noble beckoned Soul closer. He whispered as not to attract attention. “This is a hundreds of years old poetry book. I’m interested to see how poetry was back then, and what kind of things they wrote about.” Noble blew the dust off the book and opened it, revealing old, yellowish pages. “Here are the blankets!” Twilight’s voice suddenly filled the room as she and Spike came back with a huge pile of blankets and pillows, cutting Noble and Soul’s conversation short. “Ooh, that white one with a lavender pattern must be mine!” Rarity pointed at the blanket on top of the Twilight’s pile. Spike immediately placed his pile down and grabbed the blanket Rarity was pointing at, bringing it her carrying it like a prized artifact. “Here you go, Rarity! At you service.” Spike held out the blanket as he got onto one knee like a knight. Rarity took the blanket with her magic and smiled. “Why thank you, Spikey. How kind of you.” Rarity giggled and shook it lightly, knocking off any additional dust. “Anything, Rarity. Anything.” Spike stood up and bowed. Twilight placed her pile down too. “Alright, everypony. I think we’re all ready to hit the hay” She grabbed one of the blankets and walked over to her place, yawning. Everyone took a blanket and pillow one after another and searched for a comfortable spot to sleep. Applejack and Rainbow claimed a spot under a yellow sun window. Fluttershy, Rarity and Angel chose a place under the blue, moon window, while Soul and Noble picked their place next to a bookshelf. Twilight and Spike obviously had already picked their place on the couch. Everyone wished each other goodnight and burrowed under their soft, warm covers. It was not long till the room was filled with stuffing and mild snoring. It came as no surprise after the hard day all of them just had, getting good night sleep felt like a gift from Celestia herself. As the other ponies quickly fell asleep, Noble sat awake, gazing up at the ceiling full of cracks, his gaze slowly sliding to look out into space. He was reminiscing about his day and all it’s wonders, meeting Fluttershy who he felt indecent to look over at, seeing the castle, finding all of these traps. His mind wandered further as he had begun to think of his past, the good, the bad… and the dark.” As his memories swelled and got away from him causing him to fidget, flex his muscles and force his eyes closed while baring his teeth as his heart raced. Suddenly he heard a soft sigh from one of the ponies as they rolled over. Noble snapped back to reality; with a final deep breath that relaxed his body, he was finally capable of drifting off to sleep. As he drifted to the world of dreams, he ended up to a familiar place. Small homes around but with plenty of trees and wilderness. The kind of area that always brought a smile to his face. The stallion walked slowly across the grass toward the gentle woods, admiring his environment, of course without realizing it was a dream. He lived in the moment like every living creature in Equestria does in their dreams. As he continued his walk through the woods, he stepped on something that immediately caught his eye. On the ground by the base of the nearest tree was something familiar to him. A dark purple piece of metal with a symbol of an eye. This was a chestplate from a suit of armor; armor that Noble was very familiar with. It wasn’t just a random object dreams pick from peoples subconscious, no. This piece of metal made Noble instantly snap out of his unconscious dream state, and become lucid. Noble’s heart jumped to his throat, since he knew what this meant. Closing his eyes and standing up tall, Noble literally felt the area around him change. The skies darkened, a rush of wind shook the grass and trees and a dense fog slowly rolled in. “The perfect setting,” Noble thought to himself as he opened his eyes to this new display. He looked down at himself, he saw the dark purple armor pieces covering his body. The chestplate with a silver symbol of his cutiemark in the center of it, a helmet and the rest of his body covered with a guardian seal and light purple lower body armor. It had been so long since he has visited this place that he had almost forgotten what it looked like. Noble’s heart raced in his chest as he just stood there, examining his surroundings. It was like he was waiting for something. Though, the wait was short lived. Noble heard a loud stomp of a hoof on rock echoing behind him. The armored stallion turned around to face a dark shadow figure that slowly approached him. Noble felt a strong flutter in his stomach, his breathing becoming heavier and longer, but still remaining quiet. The lips of his mouth turned up in a small smile as he took a deep bow before the figure that was just mere meters further. “Noble Poet!” The figure spoke. Noble remained bowed and closed his eyes before he responded with a slow long, “Princess Luna.”