My Story

by Richer19

Chapter 13: Of Marks and Orders

Here is the next chapter and as a little something to show my thanks for all those who have taken the time to read my sub-par writing skills; I have a little something planed for July 1. Keep an eye out for that date.

Chapter 13: Of Marks and Orders

I wasn't sure how long I was out but the slight pounding in my head plus the rumbling of my stomach informed me that I was asleep longer then I should have. What was strange though was that rather then feeling the usual feeling of grogginess from waking up, I was feeling rather energized and alert. Still, my legs felt like they were weighed down with a ton of bricks and I was having trouble focusing on anything. I was hearing voices but they seemed distant and faint and various memories were dancing around my subconscious mind. Eventually, I started to feel the return of strength within my body and the voices were starting to become clearer and more focus but I was still unable to identify who was speaking or even what they were talking about. Eventually, I was unable to hear anything else as the room or wherever I was at went quiet. It wasn't that bad at the moment for me as I did enjoy a bit of peace a quiet and it afforded me a chance to get a better feel of my surroundings. I did feel a warm embrace around my body and my head was resting on something soft so at least it meant that who...or what ever had mean at least wanted me to stay comfortable. Though the new question was wither it was for my own benefit or for something else.

When I felt that had enough of my strength returning to me, I started to open my eyes to find that I was staring at a white ceiling. My body was still feeling heavy so I was unable to get up to a sitting position at the time. Vaguely, I was aware of a slight but firm pressure on my stomach but I was unsure as to what it was. I started looking around and I notice the rather bland-color walls and a night stand to my right. There was also a window there that was showing the skies over what I believe to be Ponyville bathed in that colorful blue color that I associate with any cartoon. The window was open slightly letting in a nice cool breeze. To my left, I saw only a green-color curtain which actually sparked a memory from the show. Under a normal mindset, I might have recognize it right away but I was still feeling a little groggy. Eventually, I realized that it was the same curtain that was in the Ponyville Hospital. I gave a tired sigh and thought "I wonder why I'm here. I hope there was nothing wrong with me." I tried to remember what had happen back at Fluttershy's cabin but it was a haze.

Feeling more of my strength returning to me and started to lift myself up to a sitting position, however there was something that appeared to be impeding my progress. I tried to focus on what it was but my vision was still kind of blurry. I rubbed my eyes to try and clear them and I realized that I wasn't wearing my glasses. It wasn't that much of an issue to me in my case as the two reasons I was wearing glasses was first being that it helps me see at a distance and the second reason was because I thought glasses were easier to use then contacts. Looking at my stomach, what I saw caused me to have a mild heart attack.

Twilight was currently resting on my stomach, appeared to be asleep even though there was still some light outside. Her mane appeared to have been unkempt but I was unsure if it was because of time or worry. Despite that, I was barely able to see, due to my lack of glasses, the smile that was on her face. She must have fallen asleep listening to my heartbeat. I really didn't want to wake her up but I was really curious as to what had happen and why I was here. I looked over and saw that my glasses were laying there. I used my magic to place them back on and adjusting them them so that they were right where I wanted them to be. I looked over at the clock that was up on the wall and saw that it was around what I would consider to be dinnertime for me with was five in the afternoon.I then reached over to Twilight with my right for-hoof and gently nudged her to try and get her to wake up. She stirred in her sleep and shuffle a bit to get into a more comfortable position. I try nudging her again and she gave that tired yawn that made her even more adorable then she was before. Part of me wanted to leave her like this but in my honest opinion she was kind of squishing me right now so in addition to nudging her again, I said "Twilight...Twilight are you awake."

She groan and started to slowly open her eyes. In this light, they appeared to shine as she saw what I hope was a small smile and a caring expression though with my luck I would have a blank stare on my face. I was about to ask what had happen when Twilight suddenly grabbed me into an unexpected hug. I was shock to say the least as a wave of new smells entered my nose as well as the feeling of her coat pressed against my own. My brain felt like it someone was hitting the reset button over and over again and before I could even process this turn of events; Twilight disengaged herself from me. I could see a mild blush on her face as she replied "Sorry about that...I had no idea what came over me." I shook my head a bit to try and clear my mind and said in a quiet tone "It's alright Twilight." She smiled at me which caused my own heart to flutter a bit before I asked "What happened Twilight?"

Her expression soften a bit and she said "I...I don't know what happen. One moment everything was fine and the next we saw you trashing on the ground. There was all this purplish magical energies around you but the were arching out in ways I've never seen before. When it finally stop, we found lying on the ground unconscious. I...we were quite scared and decided to take you back to the hospital to see if there was anything they could do. When we got there, they just put you in this room and told us to return home but I...I wanted to make sure you woke up to a friendly face so I decided to stay here." I gave a small smile and said "Thank you Twilight, I don't know what I would have done if I had woken up b myself." She returned the smile as we shared a moment of quiet before a soft purple/blue light started glowing. I was a little surprise by the unexpected light and thought that it was another one of Pinkie Pie antics until Twilight said "Gamer, look on your hoof." I looked down at it and I felt the shock all over my body.

Located on my right fore-hoof was what appeared to be some kind of mark. The mark appeared to be some kind of symbol that was used in the Chinese language back on earth but I was completely clueless as to what it might have been. Before we could have a chance to examine the symbol further, there was another glow of purple/blue light on my left fore-hoof in which upon inspection turned out to be another Chinese symbol. Confusion in the forefront of my mind, a curious thought came into my head and I placed the two paws together so the symbols were next to each other. Even though I had no idea how to understand Chinese; I felt like the two symbols together form some kind of word. The symbols looked something like this...
管理

"I've never seen symbols like this on anypony before." Twilight remarked as she examined the strange markings. They continue to glow in the purple/blue light but they had soften the brightness considerably. The more I stare at them, the further they seem to draw me in. I was able to see what appeared to be flowing energy running through the lines that formed the symbols. I was so engrossed by the markings that Twilight had to actually zap me with a small jolt of electricity. I gave a yelp of surprise and said "What did you do that for Twilight!" Despite the expression on my face, Twilight couldn't help but give a small chuckle and said "Well...you were staring at those marking with the same expression as I have when reading a book." She continue to chuckle at my expression and I couldn't help but laugh as well. It felt really good to laugh and to hear her laugh as well. Once we had gotten all the laughter out of our system, Twilight then said "If you feel up to it, we should head back to the library. I believe that is where Pinkie wanted to have your party." I got curious about that and replied "Why at the library? I thought she would have the party at her house." to which Twilight replied "I don't really know why. She has always been a random pony." I nodded my head in understanding and said "I think I might have recovered enough to stand."

Slowly, I removed myself from the comfortable bed and got back onto my hooves. I was really glad that those strange markings were located on my actual hooves so it would be almost impossible for somepony to actually notice them. I felt myself wobble a bit as I got reacquainted to the center of gravity but I managed to recover and was standing tall and steady. I started walking around a bit and when it appeared that I was able to move normally we started to make our way out of the hospital.
Meanwhile at Canterlot Castle

Luna was feeling a little nervous being in her sister's study room. She knew that there was something very important that her sister wanted to talk to her about and she had a good feeling as to what it might have been. It was a very strain day here at the castle. Ever since Celestia had that moment of sharp pain in her head; she has refuse to speak to anypony save for her Champion. Luna had tried asking her as to what her sister was doing but her loyalty to Celestia was still as strong as ever. This was the first time she has asked anypony besides her to center her private chambers and that was the reason to Luna's nerves.

It was then that a door opened opposite from the door I use to enter the room. Luna looked over and saw a unicorn exiting through the door. From the armor, one could tell that she was a member of the Royal Guard but Luna knew that she was much more then just another guard. For instance, she and one other pony are the only members of the Royal Guard to have clearance to carry a weapon at all times. Her weapon of choice was a longsword that was strapped on her right side. The longsword was a gift from Celestia in addition to her armor and it marked her as Celestia Champion. Her coat was bright yellow color and her mane was a reddish orange color that would give somepony the impression that her mane was always on fire. The mane was tied back into a new fashion style that Luna did not know about called a 'ponytail' which to Luna made no sense considering it looked nothing like a real pony's tail. Her green eyes and overall facial expression would give some pony the impression that this was one mane you would not want to get on her bad side but Luna knew of the gentler nature this pony have...even though the only pony to actually see it was Celestia herself.

Luna was brought out of her train of thought when the mane said in her usual blunt serious tone "Celestia is ready to see you now, Princess of the Night." Luna nodded her head, not taking any kind of offense as to the rather direct tone that she uses. Her position does give her a more lax position compared to regular guards and the castle staff. Luna got up from her cushion and made her way towards the door that lead to her sister's private quarters.

Her sister's room was normally in such a prime state but due to her sudden isolation had cause her room to become slightly haphazard. There were various books, tomes, and scrolls scatter around the floor and Celestia herself was reading one of the scrolls at the moment. Even though Luna was unable to see what was written on the scroll, she recognized the marking that was on the back of the scroll. The mark cause a mild shiver to run through her spine as she knew the significance of that symbol. Suddenly, clarity shone in Luna's mind as she realized the reason behind her sister's isolation in addition to what had appeared to be a state of frantic reading quite similar to her own student. It was at that moment that Celestia removed her focus on the tome; almost as if she had been waiting for her younger sister to realize the gravity of this visit. Celestia knew that her sister would oppose what she was about to suguest but it was the only way Celestia could deal with the problem without unleashing...that side of her. Already she could feel the creature trashing about in its mental cage begging to be awaken to unleash it terrible justice.

Celestia motion for her sister to take a seat to which Luna did without protest. Luna knew her sister was preparing to explain herself and Celestia knew that Luna would wait until she was ready. It was that kind of understanding that they grew up together over their long and many years as rulers. After a few minutes of silence, Celestia took a deep breath and it was that signal that Luna knew meant that her older sister was ready to speak. Celestia, though still facing her sister, was unable to look her dead in the eyes as she knew in her heart that what she was about to ask would enrage and sadden her at the same time. She also knew that there was no point in dawdling or beating around the bush with her younger sister as even one thousand years of exile had done nothing to weaken Luna natural wit and diplomatic skills. Celestia took another breath and said "I need your Champion to do a mission for me."

Luna gave a small nod that she was listing but refrain from speaking at this moment. She knew that from time to time, Celestia and her would require the skills of the Champion from the other. By law, the Champion of the Sun would only take and follow direct orders from the pony who controlled the sun; the same goes for the Champion of the Moon. However, if say Luna wanted something done that she believe only the current Champion of the Sun was capable of doing; she would ask Celestia if she could give the order in her place. It was set up that way so each Princess could know what the other might want done and maintain the delicate balance of harmony within the Royal Court. Luna pushed those thoughts to the back of her head when Celestia said "I need the Champion of the Moon to go out and find a certain pony."

To any normal pony, they would have thought that it was a simple enough request. To Luna, she was able to see the fine print and asked "And what would you have my Champion do once he found this pony?" Celestia knew she couldn't lie to her sister; their relationship still had some rough patches left and she didn't want to create new wounds. However, Celestia was scared of how her sister might react and decided to try and word differently then her real intention. With that in mind, she answered "I would like this pony...'removed' from Equestria." Luna didn't buy it for a moment but she had a feeling as to why her sister chose to word it in the way she did. Still, Luna saw that if she were to agree with this, it could be a blow in her standing with the citizens of Equestria and she was still on somewhat shaky grounds at the time. In an effort to offer a counter suggestion, Luna asked "Why couldn't you have your Champion do it?" Celestia shook her head and replied "I know that she could if I ask her, but I worry that she might become distracted with her other duties here at the castle. However, your Champion would perform any task you give him with one hundred percent focus and motivation..." Celestia paused for a moment before adding "...If he does complete this task, then I will accept whatever repercussions happen and he will be cleared of his crime."

That piece of news both surprised and shocked Luna. She knew that her Champion was feeling terrible about betraying the trust she had placed in him. If he managed to complete this mission, and Luna knew that he would, it would restore his sense of worth. It was the fact that Luna knew he would complete this mission that frighten her and she had to at least try and appeal to her older sister's better nature.

"Sister..." Luna started "surely there must be..." Before she was able to complete her sentence, Celestia slammed her hoof onto the table so hard that it left a large hole right in the center. Luna shot up in surprise and looked at her sister and gasp when she saw the same kind of eyes she once had, but rather then jade color they were an intense white. Celestia shouted in her own Royal Canterlot Voice "DID YOU FORGET WHAT THEY DID TO OUR KINGDOM? WHAT THEY WERE CAPABLE OF? THESE BEINGS HAVE DONE NOTHING BUT SUCK OFF THE RESOURCES OF THIS WORLD TO FEED THEIR OWN POWERS! HAVE YOU FORGOTTEN WHAT THEY DID TO THE SERPENT OF ORDER? WHAT THEY DID TO YOU, TO ME!?"

Of course Luna remembered what had happen to the serpent of order and what happen to her. Those memories were burned into her mind. She could remember all the pain, the suffering, the despair and hopelessness. She was a little curious as to what they did to her older sister but her gut was telling her that it might not be the best time to ask. All she could do was replied in an even tone "I haven't forgotten dear sister...I...I will give the order." Celestia, happy by her sister's response, managed to calm down enough to reply "thank you Luna. I know it must be a very difficult choice. Now, if you don't mind, I have some work I would like to catch up on." Luna nodded her head in understanding and made her way out of her sister's room. Once she was clear of her quarters and was starting to make her way back to her room, she thought to herself "Something terrible must have happen to you Celestia. However, I can't allow your emotions to cloud the kind nature I know you have. You may not be happy with what I plan to do, but it is the only way I know to keep you happy and our land peaceful."
Really hope you all enjoy this chapter. I really do appreciate all those who take the time to read this story and I do hope you will take the time to leave a comment about how you think the story is progressing so far.