• Published 12th Nov 2013
  • 1,346 Views, 121 Comments

Penn and Stone: Dynamic Duo - Pennington Inkwell



On an assignment from Princess Luna, Pennington Inkwell and his assistant, Moonstone, attempt to thwart a dragon with the power to change the weather.

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Betrayal

"Honor to Sunstone Orthos Borealis Adelind! May your scales shine bright and your fire burn forever!"

Pennington could hardly contain his giddy glee as he bowed to the titanic-size dragon standing before him. This was everything he'd dreamed of since his days as a foal writing his very first story. Action, adventure, romance, and now he was standing in the heart of a real-life dragon eyrie!

"Honor be to the Scribe of Legends. May his tongue and his blade stay as sharp as his wit." Pennington was shocked to see the dragon bow his own head in return. Moonstone had given him a crash course in the etiquette of noble dragon houses, and she'd made it abundantly clear that he was the lesser being in this situation. He glanced at Moonstone, trying to find an answer, but she merely smiled and shrugged in return. There was something else that bothered him in Sunstone's words, however. He once again lowered himself to a single knee, bowing his head until his horn nearly touched the ground.

"I am honored by you, Noble Sunstone, but I- I do not believe myself deserving! I am a humble scribe of Equestria, but undeserving of said legendary status! I am merely your humble debtor for the honor of entering your home..."

Sunstone turned his glance to Moonstone.

"My daughter, what is the meaning of this? Have you been shirking in your duties?"

Pennington raised his head slightly to see Moonstone run out in front of him, shaking her head.

"No! Dad, he doesn't know anything because the ponies' leaders said he should not be told! Any chance that word could spread that he had been found was not worth the risk!"

Sunstone's eyes narrowed in suspicion and he sighed through his nostrils in frustration, sending a wave of heat across the room.

"And you are beholden to those Equestrian princesses more than the ancient and holy traditions of your family?"

"O-of course not!" Moonstone stammered, taking a step back and dropping to one knee. "But you KNOW that even now, Scorch seeks him in the hopes of ending the cycle permanently! I could not justify the risk after what happened to Quill!"

Pennington risked turning his head upwards in surprise.

"You knew QUILL? Quill the Scribe is my hero, an Equestrian legend!"

Sunstone raised a clawed hand to his head, massaging the bridge of his snout.

"Very well, Moonstone. In light of recent events, your hesitation was... justified. In that case, young scribe, allow me to elaborate to you the oldest legend of the Adelind family."

Pennington eagerly sat his on the floor and craned his neck upwards, his heart pounding with excitement. A legend told directly from the mouth of a dragon who was likely, judging from his size, at least a thousand years old? Opportunities to be TOLD a story were rare for a storyteller, and this one promised to be a once-in-a-lifetime experience!

"Eons ago, the forefather of our house was a nameless dragon. He had no ties to blood or family, no friends and no reputation. He was no one, and treated as such. He carved a meager living for himself, if one could call the life of such a vagrant a 'living,' out of what scraps he could find, stealing and scrounging to keep himself alive. It was an honorless and miserable existence. When he foolishly stole from a dragon much larger and more powerful than himself, he was caught and rightfully punished for his crime. He was mortally wounded and left to suffer for his crimes. Shamed and in agony, he mustered up every last ounce of his will to survive and swore an oath: that he would never forget the state in which this awful world had left him. He promised upon his recovery, he would fight whatever powers had deemed him so worthless and create a new fate for himself: to stand over all dragons with the same nobility that had condemned him." Sunstone paused, looking down with a smile on his face.

Pennington looked around, discovering that he and Moonstone were no longer alone. A small crowd of young dragons had formed around them, most of them staring up at Sunstone with wide eyes and eager faces. The rest seemed to be focused on Pennington and Moonstone, some showing excitement and others sneering with disdain. Pennington wasn't entirely certain how to respond properly, so he just ignored them all and turned back to Sunstone.

"And then he DIED!" one of the younger dragons blurted out, only to be immediately shushed by so many of his siblings at once, Pennington felt the massive room raise to sweltering temperatures. Sunstone simply chuckled.

"It was then that our forefather's spirit left his body, yes. However, rather than simply vanishing as one with no ancestral home would, his soul was spirited away to a place between worlds, summoned by a power so ancient and great, it made him tremble in fear. There, a great and ancient voice made an inquisition of him, peering into and through him, straight to his heart. It asked him, 'Will you stay true to this conviction? Will you rise up and forge fate with your flame? Will you stand tall in adversity and create your destiny? Will you become the progenitor of legends?'"

The words sent shivers running up and down Pennington's spine. They were everything he'd wanted to be since the day he had discovered his talent at the heart of the Everfree Forest.

"That dragon swore to the fires of Creation's forge that he would be all that they asked and more. In return, Creation gifted him new life. He awoke in the very same wellspring in which you had spent your night, completely healed of all afflictions. He had no memory how how he had arrived there, but the magic of this place gifted him strength the likes of which he had never known. When he braved the black pit in its center, he found a treasure trove of gems and gold that boggled the mind, all for the taking. He was with everything that he needed to become one of the greatest dragons of all time, except one thing: a name. Within the treasure sanctum was one word, inscribed over and over. It was the name of the god who had once been worshipped here, to whom all the wealth had been an offering: Adelind. He took the name for himself, knowing a godly title was the only one capable of bearing the new honor he would bring it."

Pennington paused, trying to process through his mountain of sheer awe at the old legend and Sunstone's reverent delivery.

"I'm sorry, but... I still don't understand. What does any of this have to do with me or Quill?"

Sunstone raised an eyebrow.

"The story does not end there, Scribe. Adelind rose up and dedicated his lifetime to creating one of the most noble and respected dragon houses in history, even taking a mate from the ancient family of the Jeweled Serpents. He grew great and old, full of wisdom and fight, until his family name had spread to every corner of the dragon lands and even the lands beyond. Then, standing upon the mountain he had built from pebbles, he was approached by a strange creature from another land. No one was certain how the little thing had reached the innermost sanctum of our family stronghold without being detected, but when he found our forefather, he asked him a single question in that same,unforgettable voice: 'Have you stayed true to your conviction?' In that moment, he knew that standing before him was his savior, given physical form. And our ancestor, one of the greatest dragons ever known, laid himself prostrate before his savior, promising him the unending debt and gratitude of his house. THIS house." Sunstone motioned to the structure surrounding them.

"The stranger accepted that loyalty, and explained his purpose in coming: he explained that he was a spirit whom death could not take, charged with protecting the land to the north from destruction. He called himself the Scribe of Legends. However, while his spirit could not be taken by death, his body remained mortal. He could only rely upon long-lived creatures like dragons to aid him from one life to the next, to preserve his new body until his spirit could return to him. So, every generation, our forefather began the tradition of sending out hatchings to the north and the lands beyond, placing themselves among those with influence in order to find the Scribe's next incarnation and protect them until his spirit could return. It is our honor and duty. The one you knew as 'Quill' was the most recent life of the Scribe of Legends... until now."

Pennington felt the bottom fall out of his stomach as every pair of eyes in the room turned to stare at him. The only one not facing him was Moonstone, who still stood with her back to him. There was a sad slump to her shoulders and her arms hung limply by her side.

"And... what happens to the original spirit? When the Scribe returns?"

"Their minds are filled with the knowledge of a thousand lives, they become a part of that greater being."

Pennington felt fear scrambling at the inside of his chest. All of his experiences? His memories? His every soul? Just... absorbed by some "greater being?" It sounded like the stuff of nightmares, not legends. The way Moonstone was refusing to look at him didn't make him feel any better.

"And you... think that I'm this new 'incarnation?'"

Sunstone nodded.

"My daughter has been quite adamant in her letters, and she has always been a capable and reliable young hatchling." He pointed down at Pennington with one claw. "And you DO wear the sword of your predecessors, do you not?"

Pennington reached behind him, retrieving his sword from its sheathe and holding it out to examine. The blade was still a perfect, untarnished bronze, with not a single ridge of the spiraling inscriptions marred or out of place.

"This... belonged to Quill?" The idea that this blade, even as enchanted as it was, could be over a thousand years old completely boggled the mind.

"It was created by the Smith of Destinies, herself. Would you like to know its name?"

Pennington paused, then shook his head.

"I've spent a long time trying to pick a name for it. I'd rather not have one just given to me, instead." He took a step forward, placing a hoof on Moonstone's shoulder. "May I... have a moment alone with Moonstone?"

With a nod from Sunstone, Pennington picked up Moonstone in his magic and rushed to a nearby tunnel.

"Moonstone WHAT is all this about?" He hissed, spinning her around to face him. "They can't be serious, right? Tell me that this is some kind of joke!"

Moonstone's expression remained dower and her eyes still refused to make contact.

"It's ridiculous! I-I mean, we're out here looking to save all of Equestria, and your family wants to- to set me up as some kind of sacrifice!"

"It's not a sacrifice! Penn, it's- it's a rite of passage!"

"I don't CARE!" Pennington stamped his hoof.

"Why NOT?" Moonstone stamped in reply. "I didn't even need to look at you to see your eyes light up when you found out it was story time, but now you're SCARED, of all things! Why would a story scare you, especially one where you're the big hero? This one has unsettled you for a reason, and I think I know why!"

Pennington's eyes narrowed in anger. "Because I'm the one you're talking about sacrificing, I would think that's obvious!"

"It's because you KNOW it's true! Deep down, you know what you're waiting for, what you've been waiting for your whole life! My dad thinks so, I think so, Celestia thinks so-"

"CELESTIA?" Pennington grabbed Moonstone by the shoulders. "Celestia is in on this, too? This... ritualistic sacrifice?"

"Celestia believes that you're a hero waiting to WAKE UP!" Moonstone jabbed a clawed finger into his chest. "Luna believes in you, too, or else you wouldn't be here!"

Silence fell like a ton of lead, crushing down on Pennington's heart.

"What- what did you just say?"

Moonstone opened her mouth to speak, but Pennington quickly jabbed his hoof inside to stop her.

"You said I wouldn't be here if Luna didn't believe all of this. But I thought I was here because I was Luna's protege? Because she trusted me?"

Moonstone wasn't trying to speak, but the slow trail her eyes made to the floor spoke all he needed to hear.

"All this time... the reason she chose me. It wasn't my qualifications or my past exploits, not even the fact that I was the one who taught her how to speak all over again!" He staggered back, falling onto his hindquarters as his ability to stand failed him. "It was this. Always this. Leading me like a lamb to the slaughter..."

"Penn, it's not-"

"Who else knew?"

This time, it was Moonstone who stepped back.

"Who. Else. Knew?" Pennington growled, rising back up and beginning to advance on Moonstone. "Sure Shot? Quick Strike? ANYONE in the NLR? Crankshaft and Glacier? WHO?"

Moonstone pressed up against the wall, out of space to give him.

"J-Just Celestia and Luna! Not even their advisor knew about it! The only other one who knew was me!" she cried, turning her head and squeezing her eyes shut in preparation for whatever punishment she believed Pennington was about to dish out to her.

"She's lying to you again, you know..." a voice called out from the deeper, shadowed portions of the tunnel.

Pennington sighed. It looked like his time alone was up.

"I guess you're expecting me to say it..."

"I certainly am."

Moonstone's eyes snapped open with fear, peering into the darkness, then back at Pennington in confusion. Pennington backed away from Moonstone, turning to face the darkness.

"You were right, Sails. I was wrong."

"SAILS?"

Pennington ignored Moonstone, watching Full Sails and Twilight emerge into the light. Sails's head was held high with his signature proud smirk, but Pennington felt the crushing pressure on his chest double at the sight of Twilight's head hanging low enough for her to lick the ground.

"Please no..." the words slipped through his lips before he was even aware of it, but Twilight seemed painfully aware, flinching back at his whispered prayer.

"Oh, you even threw in my name this time! You must be REALLY sorry for not believing me!" Sails ruffled his feathers in a pleased manner. "We've got people who have been buried deep in the castle. They found Celestia's little conspiracy room the night she decided to share her most shameful secret with her most prized pupil..." He used one of his wings to give Twilight a faux-reassuring pat on the back.

Pennington didn't want to believe it.

"How long?"

"Ever since-" Twilight started.

"NOT-" Pennington caught himself shouting and clamped his mouth shut until the burst of outrage passed. "Not you." Sails?"

Sails stepped forward as Twilight stepped back, obviously trying to hide her shame in the shadows.

"Well, first could you verify a rumor for me? Did you REALLY find old Catherine's Carnival out in Everfree?"

Pennington shuddered, which seemed to be more than enough answer for Sails.

"Okay, you HAVE to share that story with me when all this is over! Anyway, our sources place it around the same time. Twilight went to Celestia all distraught, Celestia took her into her secret room, and they both came out tittering like schoolgirls with the latest gossip."

Twilight's head snapped up, an indignant look on her face, but catching a glimpse of Pennington's face seemed to silence her arguments before she could make them. Pennington wasn't even certain what kind expression he was making at this point, but it was enough to shut up everyone but Sails.

"So... the changeling invasion, the whole time you were trying to help me get my magic back, all this time we've been writing these letters back and forth about how much we love each other, even YESTERDAY! You've known? You've been LEADING ME ON this whole time?"

"No! No, Penn, it's real! It was always real! Please, just let me explain!" Twilight stepped forward, only to find herself blocked by one of Sails's wings. She glanced up at Sails, shocked.

"Are you protecting him? From ME?"

Sails nodded towards Pennington.

"Look at him. That statement could go both ways."

The fact that Sails was no longer smiling told Penn pages upon pages about his own reaction to current events. Normally, Sails would be giddy seeing him backed into a corner.

"You might want to take a walk, Penny. Get your head clear."

"As much as I'd love to, Sails, I can't exactly waltz out of here..." Pennington began to pace back and forth in the tiny tunnel. "There were more than three DOZEN dragons in there, and every single one of them got a good look at me! No dye, no disguise, just ME! This goes from the people in this world I trust the most all the way up to the princesses, for Faust's sake!" Pennington felt a wave of helplessness wash over him and he braced one hoof against the wall.

"By the stars... I've got no way out of this. Not without being hunted for the rest of my life... It was a perfect setup."

"No! There has to be a way out! Every time things get bad, you find the way out no one thought of! Just like Daring Do!" Twilight stamped her hoof. Pennington hardly noticed.

"You've outrun worse than a few lousy dragons and a couple of pansy alicorn princesses!" Sails griped. "You've been able to keep up with ME! You can outrun all those dimwits!"

"Can't outrun destiny..." Moonstone muttered. "And he can't outrun the thing that hunted down Quill and Threadmane in their last days. Without the spirit of the Scribe, he'll be marked for unavoidable death..."

Sails turned on Moonstone, holding the tip of one of the blades to her throat. "You stay out of this!"

It was reflex that made Pennington look over at Moonstone, an unconscious habit from every time he had found himself at a loss since the day they'd met. Moonstone looked almost empty, hollow. The eternally-burning spark of excitement he'd seen in her eyes since they'd met in the Restricted Archives was gone. She regarded him with a cold emptiness that mirrored his own growing despair. She wasn't seeing him, she only saw a vessel that she needed to fill.

He finally chose to make eye contact with Twilight. Her eyes were red and full of tears, but behind that salty veil, Penn could see the guilt that confirmed everything Sails had told him to be the truth. When Sails had told him that Twilight and Moonstone were plotting to kill him, Pennington had refused to believe it, no matter what oaths or examples the pegasus called upon. He had even deliberately chosen to go with Moonstone alone, just to spit in Sails's eye and prove him wrong. But now, everything had proven true. Twilight had been aware of Celestia's plans and done nothing but help. Luna had lied to him in every word of praise, simply waiting to lead him to be traded for some "legendary hero." He had never been chosen, not for his own merits.

Far in the darkness, Pennington saw the burning red eyes of Cha'Qued staring into him.

Is that why you picked me, too? he felt his face twist into a sneer as he thought the question.

You qualified upon your own grit as a warrior. You earned my attention. However, I will never lie to you. To bond with a being who is caught in a cycle like this one would render me unkillable. It rendered you... extra tantalizing.

Finally. SOMETHING Pennington had earned for himself.

It was also the reason the Cat attempted to endear herself to you... The oncoming cataclysm will require the congregation of great powers in order to survive.

Pennington's eyes widened.

"What? CATHERINE, TOO? Of course! Nothing, no partnership or relationship I ever had has ever been because of just ME except for one! I-I mean, what else? The only thing I ever EARNED in my entire life, the only thing entirely my own, is YOU!" He pointed an accusatory hoof at Sails.

Twilight took a small step forward. "Penny, you know that's not-"

"DON'T CALL ME 'PENNY!'" Pennington screamed at the top of his lungs, the sheer force of the noise sending Twilight stumbling back several steps.

Just like that, however, the rage was gone. It had burned itself out in mere seconds, leaving him an empty, charred husk. Pennington held back the urge to sob. He didn't have the energy to cry, any more. He turned his back on the other ponies and began walking back towards the open room.

"Whoa, whoa, Penn! Where are you going?" Sails called.

"Going to give this life to the one it was made for..." he mumbled. "What use am I just clinging on around here?"

"Hey! You're not giving up!" Sails shouted, flying up and over his head to land in front of him.

Pennington didn't even acknowledge the obstacle, the tip of his sensationless horn poking weakly against the taller pony's throat. Pennington leaned forward, but Sails refused to budge. He took a step back. He stepped forward, lightly bumping against Sails's body. It didn't budge. He repeated the motion, and the result was the same. He did it again. He did it again.

"Look at you..." Sails sneered, his voice seething with disgust. Pennington hardly felt it when Sails's hoof came crashing into the side of his face, leaving him sprawled out across the floor. He heard Twilight and Moonstone both cry out, but it stirred no emotion in him.

"Look at the mighty Scorching Quill! I was the one who was going to break you! You were the only one in the world who could match my intellect, my prowess! My ONLY worthy adversary! And you wind up losing to a pair of pretty purple faces! You're GIVING UP?" Sails kicked his hoof into Pennington's gut, driving the air from his lungs. If Pennington hadn't already been laying on the ground, it might even have affected his ability to stand.

Sails continued staring down at him for another few seconds before growling in frustration. With a decisive turn, he began pacing towards the end of the tunnel leading to the main room.

"To think I used to think so highly of you... Let a REAL adventurer show you how it's done. Maybe THAT will bring you back to your senses."

Pennington watched as Sails stepped out into the light. His sheer presence seemed to push back the dragons and form a path straight up to Sunstone. Sails flared his wings and stamped his hoof as he stood at attention, displaying his full height and stature.

"I am the Scribe of Legends! Show me this 'spirit,' I am prepared!"

Murmurs began to whisper around the edges of the room, bouncing and encircling all present until Sunstone raised his hand to signal silence.

"Pony, you wish to undergo the trial?"

"Yes!"

Part of Pennington wanted to call out to Sails, to tell him that he was taking a stupid risk for nothing and that it wasn't worth it. Apathy and despair buried the urge deep, dulling its ability to bring him to move. He could tell Twilight and Moonstone were both moving in on him, but his senses remained fixed on Sails.

"Very well. Prepare yourself to receive the ancient spirit!"

A milky-white substance began to leak from the walls of the open room, glowing with magical light. It started in small rivulets running down to the floor, only tiny pinpricks in the stone. Over a few seconds, however, the seeping portions of the walls began to grow and spread, expanding until nearly every inch of the cavern was filled with brilliant light. Time continued, the flow of white light beginning to slow to a trickle as the strange substance began to pool at the bottom of the room. As it made contact with Full Sails's hooves, he let loose an audible grunt, a growl of pain. The substance actively pooled up around him, climbing up his body and sinking into his skin as his growls began to escalate into full-on torturous screams. The light began to intensify as whatever was happening reached its peak, accompanied by the last sounds of Sails's strangled screaming.

When the light faded, Sails was laying on the ground. There was foam coming from his mouth and his body would occasionally twitch violently, but it was obvious that he was dead to the world.

"He has failed the trial." Sunstone declared. A trio of the younger dragons moved in and carried away Sails's convulsing body.

"Penn!" Twilight hissed, picking him up and setting him back on his hooves with her magic. "Let's go! Now, while they're distracted!"

"Y-yeah..." Moonstone stuttered. All of the color had left her face and her eyes were open wide enough to look like dinner plates. "Penn, I- I think I changed my mind..."

Pennington looked between the two of them. Each of their faces only made the emptiness in his chest ache all the worse.

He'd been beaten. Outmaneuvered. Nothing about this changed that it was still the perfect setup. And now Sails had thrown himself into its jaws. Even if he DID run, the Adelinds still had Lily, wherever she was. It felt as if everything he had ever cared about lay either within their claws or under Celestia and Luna's control.

His mind quickly wandered to try and correct the untruth. He could always run back to Inkwell Commissions, his parents would always welcome him back with open hooves, and he had finally mended his relationship with his cousins at Sweet Apple Acres. In his mind's eye, he crossed the street from Inkwell Comissions to his neighbor's business: Whipstitch Repairs. He could practically see Whipstitch's frustrated look as she glared into the mouse hole in her wall. Whenever Pennington had found himself stumped at a particularly action-packed or terrifying part of a story and at a loss for words, he enjoyed going to watch the cartoonish antics between Whipstitch and the small creature with which she shared her shop.

"One of these days, I'm going to take an axe and go in there after you myself, Mephistopheles!"

Of course, Whipstitch never did. The rivalry between her and the supernatural infiltrator never ended. She would always stand just outside the hole and peer in angrily with one eye, as if glimpses and peeks could possibly hurt it.

If she would just get in there, she'd get some real results, for better or worse! Pennington thought.

The image of Whipstitch straightened her posture and turned to stare at him, one eyebrow raised in surprise while the other pulled down in a scowl.

"Well, aren't YOU quite the hypocrite?"

Pennington's eyes snapped open, pulling him back to the present with a gasp.

Hypocrite? How am I...

Pennington looked down at his trembling hoof, holding it up to his face. He mustered up his courage and watched the shaking slow, then stop.

Whipstitch, or whatever vision of her he'd had, was right. He WAS being hypocritical.

He narrowed his eyes and began walking back towards the main room.

"PENN!" Moonstone ran up, grabbing at his tail and yanking it back to try and stop him. Pennington, however, didn't break his stride.

"What are you DOING?" Twilight shouted, running ahead to confront him. Pennington lifted her in his magic and gently placed her to the side.

Just as Pennington was about to enter the main room, he turned back to Twilight and Moonstone. Somehow, in spite of everything, he felt the familiar sensation as the corners of his mouth just couldn't keep themselves down, his lips parting in a giddy smile as the sheer absurdity of his next words began to boil over.

"I'm going to go tell a lousy ghost to stay out of my life, or else I'll give him a one-way ticket to Tartarus!"

Before either of them could respond, Pennington strode his way into the main room. Every pair of eyes watched him with baited breath, though Sunstone hardly seemed surprised.

"Are you prepared, young scribe?"

Pennington rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, just get on with it! I've got nothing to lose and everything to take back!"

Once again, that liquid light began to seep out from the walls, running down in trickles, then rivers. As the edges of the magic began to lap at his hooves, he gritted his teeth and prepared for the worst. When it touched him, though, his hoof simply went numb. Pennington blinked, holding up the appendage to examine it.

It was no longer his hoof. The fur had changed from his cool blue to a blazing red. More importantly, he could see the edge of an unfamiliar scar running across the center, looking like an old wound inflicted by a bladed weapon.

The Fang of Orochimaru... The head broke off of the spear when I pierced the Seal of Orichalcos...

Pennington blinked, not noticing the rising tide was up to his knees. That wasn't his memory. The Fang of Orochimaru was a legendary spear that had been broken into three pieces in a battle more than a thousand years ago! He had tried searching for the pieces, but never laid a hoof on it.

His eyes widened in shock as the world began to be drowned out in the light numbing and washing over his body.

And then everything went white, and the Adelind Eyrie was an eternity away.

Pennington shook his head. He was standing in a center of a massive city. Skyscrapers reached up to the sky, alongside towering factories belching smoke from brickwork columns. He looked down at his hooves, which were once again his own. He was standing in the middle of a impeccably paved sidewalk, made of polished marble and geometric patterns of gold filigree. The most beautiful trees were blossoming on either side of the main road, somehow growing flowers in every color imaginable on the same branches. Across the street, he could see a massive library through a set of glass display windows, with gigantic stacks of books and a perfect-looking pair of worktables, one with ink, quills, and paper and the other with needles, thread, colored leather and binding glue. It looked like everything needed to be a one-pony publishing company.

"I know... It's enough to make you drool, isn't it?"

Pennington spun in place, turning to face the stranger behind him head-on, only to stop, jaw hanging limp.

There, standing before him was a pony with a burgundy-colored coat and flaming red-and-orange hair standing on end. He wore a tattered cloak that half-covered the pouch-covered brown vest covering his chest. His cutie mark was a familiar pair of scrolls flanking a compass rose.

He- he looks just like the old illustrations!

The stranger offered a hoof.

"I'm Phoenix Quill, though I guess nowadays most ponies just know me as 'Quill the Scribe.' Nice to meet you. You must be my replacement!"