Non nobis Domine

by Dsarker

Secunda Secundae Partis Secundae Libri - Accintus Est Potentia

Johann was the first to exit the dungeons. Below them lay both Twilight Sparkle and Princess Celestia, who had abandoned the chase after that failed attempt. As the Templars exited, they found themselves in a strange combination of a guard post and common room. Though there were no guards there, there were weapons and their armour pieces hanging up on racks. Most of the weapons were spears, but there were a few more exotic pieces.

Quietly, he motioned to his brother Templars to take up some of the spears, and he took one as well. Fighting these ponies was not his plan, but perhaps this would scare them off enough that fighting would not be necessary. As he picked up his weapon, he noticed something that was only just occurring to him.

The palace was silent. Not just quiet, but silent. That was unusual even in the Temple castles, but in a secular palace? It was almost impossible. Something was up here. "Form up," he said, breaking the silence. They would not be caught unaware this time. As they formed a diamond, he started leading them out.

Although they had never been in this palace before and had never seen its layout, they found the design to conform to the same form as the other castles they had been in. As such, when they found their way to the entrance hall, they were not surprised, but they were relieved. All of them were, that is, except for Johann. That it was similar in design to their castles should have meant that it would be similarly noisy. In fact, they had seen no other living thing since leaving the dungeon.

As they made their way to the door out of the palace, it began to open before them. Standing there was a single unicorn pony, hooded and cloaked. It had seen them, but it remained where it was, even as they kept coming towards it.

"Greetings, Knights of the Temple," he said, his voice giving that part away. "I must say, you escaped earlier than I had thought. The guards were gone, I take it?"

"Yes, they were. Who are you?" asked Johann, halting before him. "How do you know who we are? And how can we understand you? Twilight Sparkle's spell-"

"Is not required by me. I know something of your own language already, and rather than Twilight's magic, I did it the old-fashioned way, by listening." He paused. "As for a name, I have many, and not many know me by my birth name. You may call me the Penitent, if you wish." His mouth crooked up into a sort of smile at that. "As for how I know who you were... Well, I have been observing you for some time, and have just been given orders by my lady to release you by force." He laughed quietly now. "Though I see that I did not need to help you much in that affair."

"You know of our language?" asked Johann, not a little surprised. They had been here only a little more than a month or so now. He had not learned Turkish in far longer than that. That this pony could do so was impressive.

"Enough to understand you," he said. "I have had to learn far quicker before. We use magic enough that it is a crutch, and makes us weak. I do not doubt that if you were placed in a situation in which you had to learn like I did, you would." He stopped in his speaking for a second, and looked to the sun. "The twelfth hour is soon, and the guards will be changed. We have little time, so let me explain quickly. Your horses and your possessions are at the north gate - there, the smaller one," he said, pointing at it. "Go there at speed and one of my agents will lead you to them. I will disguise you as best I can, but it will not be perfect. Stay out of prolonged surveillance, and it should suffice."

Johann did not quite like this. Of course it was helpful, but it was perhaps too helpful. "How can we trust you?" he asked, trying to read him.

"I don't think there is any way I can prove it sufficiently for you. My name is unknown to you. But there is one name which might be sufficient," he said, slowly nodding. "I promise you, in the name of Jesus Christ, that I am here to help you." As he said it, Johann crossed himself.

"You know that oath will hold you," he said, relief pouring through him. "Who taught you to promise upon that name?"

"An old friend, long dead now. He too passed between this world and yours," the Penitent answered. "His name was Reprobus, and he was changed by that name, and so if you follow that man as he did, then I know you are worth rescuing." Frederick gasped aloud as he spoke.

Johann did not know how to feel as he heard those words. "We should talk later. For now, though, since time is short, give us these disguises, and we shall leave."

"Very well. Hold still, please," he said, and his horn began to glow. The light began to shimmer around Johann, and it coalesced into another pony seemingly overshadowing him. He flinched in surprise, and the pony flinched too. The unicorn smiled. "Good, it has worked." His horn's glow faded, but the disguise remained.

"How long will this last?" asked Johann, experimenting with the guise. It had a slight delay, which would seem to be why it was not perfect. The forelegs moved with his arms, but also as he walked. How it worked, he did not know, but that it worked was enough for him.

The pony shrugged. "I do not know. It will last long enough to reach the gate, but how much longer is a guess. Speed will be your best help here."

Johann nodded. "Very well. We shall leave, then. God be with you."

"And with you," he replied, as the bells in the city sounded. "Go! The guards will be here any minute, and if they inspect you, you will be discovered. Run!"

The Templars left at speed, and the Penitent was still watching them as the guards began moving to their positions. "Sir?" asked the first guard to reach him. "What's going on?"

"I cannot afford to tell you now. Either it will succeed or fail, and then you will find out for yourself." He turned back into the palace. "Carry on with your duties."

---

Johann scanned the streets as they passed out from the walls of the palace. There were ponies moving around throughout, and he remembered the streets of Paris. Here too, he could almost pick out the merchants and traders by their colourful clothing, and he liked it just as little. It seemed to be a common trait that those with money either loved it, and took it as their god, or gave it away, and became saints.

In between the crowds there ran young foals, weaving in and out. They, at least, seemed to care more about living than about storing up wealth. Here too, they seemed to be better cared for than he had seen in Paris. That, though, he distrusted. For a city to be the home of the princesses, they would be less than likely to allow the poorer ponies inside. He had seen too many injustices carried out in the name of royalty to much believe in their consciences.

Despite their clear purpose, Johann was not surprised to find some of the traders pointing at them, and as they did, their underlings scurried over. The five Templars had to cross walking with waving them off. They chattered through their language, and despite not understanding them, Johann could tell they were trying to bargain with them. They were probably taking their reticence for an attempt to barter. That seemed to be the fate of all those who dealt in money, that they thought everyone was the same. One of them came up close to Johann, carrying some gemmed trinket, and he waved her away in irritation. She stopped, which did a little to soothe his irritation.

At least, it did until he realised that she had stopped completely, and was looking at him with wide eyes and jaw dropped. What had he done? It came to him suddenly – his illusion’s foreleg had gone straight through her. That was not good. He kept going, hoping she would forget it, when she started screaming. Well, that destroyed that possibility. The other ponies were looking at them, and he could feel them wondering what had happened. They had to leave, and now. “Go!” he shouted, and as they fled down the street at a run, shouts and further screams came from the crowd gathering behind them.

They had been running for only ten minutes, and the sounds were getting closer. He looked around, and spotting a nearby alleyway, he headed straight for it. He stopped the group again after entering, and watched from within as a group of the guards in armour trotted through the street. Half of them halted, and waited there, while the other half split up further and began sweeping the area.

This was going to be more difficult than it had seemed. The alleys would have to be their route out, but even in the main street they had difficulty finding the right path. How would they ever find their way out now?

He took a deep breath, and focused himself. If God had freed them, he would not leave them helpless or stranded. He had to trust that God would assist them here. With one end of the alley blocked off by the patrol, they would have to go further in. Pointing deeper into the alley, he signalled the advance. Despite it being the only way, he could not help but feel that they were heading into a trap.

---

Sweetie Belle and Applebloom sat in the clubhouse, writing out possible ideas for the friendship lesson they had to find. So far they had precisely… zero. It did not look good for them, and until they could do that, they would never be able to talk with the Templars. Admittedly, it was mostly Scootaloo who had that aim, but all three of them had been helped by them and if they could help them back…

There was a knock at the door, and it opened to reveal Scootaloo. “How is it going, girls?” she asked, and Sweetie Belle knew her well enough to read her face. She was definitely hiding something.

“It’s not going,” said Applebloom, after spitting out the quill in her mouth. “We’ve been thinking and thinking, but there hasn’t been too many problems around that we could really solve.” She shrugged her shoulders. “Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon are still their usual selves, but since when could we solve that?”

Scootaloo nodded. “That’s okay. I had been thinking of that myself, and I had an idea.” She walked into the room, and sat down, clearly waiting for them to ask her what the idea was. So Sweetie Belle did.

“What’s the idea?” she asked, trying to get to the point. The whole morning had been wasted here, and she wanted to get something done. If Scootaloo had got something that they could do, then she did not want to waste the rest of the day.

“Well, you remember our work as Gabby Gums,” Scootaloo said. “Well, I checked on our old sources. It’s not a big secret we want to try and make up for that hurt we caused. So I checked our main insider – Spike. He said that he and Rarity had been digging more gems up, and we could help there.” She looked so pleased with herself that Sweetie Belle knew that it could not be just what she said.

“Digging gems?” asked Sweetie Belle, and frowned in a slight warning to Scootaloo.

She seemed to take the hint. “Nope. There’s a ghost, Spike reckons, and I think we can help it. That’d be worth a friendship report, and no mistake,” she said. “It was in the quarry, and he heard it weeping, though Rarity said there was no such thing. I don’t know, but I think it’s real. And if there really is a ghost, then we should help it.”

Sweetie Belle thought for a second, crooking her head. Rarity did not usually lie, but if she knew what they were intending to do, she might be trying to do it to keep them safe. Spike was too blunt to lie, though, so perhaps there was truth to this story. “That’s a good idea,” she said, still thinking the matter over. “But how can we help a ghost anyway?”

“Well, it’s crying over something, right?” said Scootaloo, not sounding like she wanted an answer. “So maybe we can fix that. All we have to do is ask it.”

Sweetie Belle was not all that knowledgeable about ghosts. All the knowledge she did have was from scary stories Rarity had told her. Even so, she did not think it could be quite as easy as Scootaloo was putting it.

“What if it doesn’t talk?” asked Applebloom, who was looking a little edgy. “What if it tries to foalnap us? Or eat us?” Sweetie Belle admitted that this was the usual result of messing with ghosts in the stories, but even Spike wouldn’t have let them get near the ghost if that was likely to happen.

“Ghosts can’t eat you. If they could do that, they would have eaten Rarity or Spike. And if they need help, they won’t foalnap us,” reasoned Scootaloo.

“That’s… well, that’s fair enough,” said Sweetie Belle. The idea was almost enticing now. “So all we have to do is find this ghost, talk to them, and hope we can find out what will make it happy. That’s simple enough.” That was leaving out a lot of the steps along the way, but it was a plan. That was better than anything they had had before, and it might just work.

“Yep, that’s about it,” said Scootaloo, nodding enthusiastically. Sweetie Belle looked around, at both of her fellow Crusaders. Although Applebloom still looked a little uneasy, Scootaloo clearly did not think the idea was anything other than good.

“Well,” she said. “What are we waiting for?”

---

They had been struggling through the alleys as they twisted and turned for some time when Johann heard a sound from above them. He looked up, and there hovering above him was a pegasus. He or she, whatever it was, was looking at them, and obviously signalling them, pointing them back up the alley. Whoever it was, it was no guard.

It stopped the signalling, and started flying slowly in the direction it had indicated. Johann sighed, and putting his trust once more in someone he did not know or understand, he began leading the Templars back up the same alley that it felt like they had spent a lifetime within.

It took them through another turn of the alley, and down a path they had ignored. Johann wondered how often these alleys had been used for just this very purpose. From his guide’s knowledge, it seemed to be too often for his liking. He did not like this sneaking around. Even a straight fight would have been better. Nevertheless, this was what he needed to do now, and his own preferences did not matter.

Another turn through the alley, and the pegasus suddenly ducked down with them. Five pegasus guards flew over, but they did not spot them. Johann shook his head. That one was too close. If they were starting that, it would not take them long to find the escaped Templars, and he turned to their guide. He started trying to gesture at it to hurry up, but he could not think of anything that would be clear. It ignored the confusing signals, and instead started guiding them at the same pace it had before.

“Please, just go faster,” he whispered under his breath. Even so, it kept on guiding them through, until they reached the end to the alley. It halted before they exited, and Johann looked through, pulling his head back quickly. “More guards,” he said quietly to his brother Templars. “A score of them, at the least.” Even Jacques frowned at that. Twenty of these ponies would be difficult to fight past – even if they were badly trained. As disciplined as they seemed to be, though, that felt unlikely to him. They needed a way around, or a distraction.

The pegasus above them did not seem to think so, though. Pointing at Hugo and Jacques, it indicated across the road, past the roadblock. Then it raised its hooves, as if to indicate a halt. Then it pointed at Frederick, Johann, and Raymond, and again across the road. The idea clicked after a second of thought. If they were looking for five, three twice would not match.

“Brothers, we will split to pass between the roadblock, and then we will meet again on the other side. God be with you,” he said. “Jacques, Hugo. Follow the pegasus, and wait with it on the other side until we come to meet you.” The two sergeants nodded, and as their guide landed, they walked up to flank him. Johann held his breath, hoping that their obvious militancy would not betray them.

They walked across the road as Johann watched, and although one of the guards challenged the trio, their guide chattered back in a response and it let them go. He had not thought of that possibility. If the guard challenged them, what would they do?

They waited, watching the trio over the way, until their guide nodded slowly to him. “Here goes nothing,” whispered Johann, and he began to make his way over to follow them. The walk was slow and measured, and the guards looked over them. He held his breath, and let it out slowly as they continued to cross the path. The guards turned away, ignoring them, and he let the rest of the breath out. When they reached the others, just around the corner of the street and out of the vision of the guards, he felt suddenly dizzy, and leaned on a nearby wall. The ground felt like it had been moving, and he thought of the time on one of the Order’s ships.

He crossed himself at the thought, and as he did so, the disguise he had been… for lack of a better word, wearing, shimmered and faded away. That could mean trouble, and as the pegasus looked at him now revealed, it did not look happy. Turning around, it looked to the gate. It looked closer now, and could not be more than a five-minute walk at most. The pegasus pointed at it, and started racing off. With a sigh, Johann hurried to follow, and his brothers came after him.

---

The Penitent looked through the window out at the gate. His princess had not yet called on him, which was good. His agent at the gate had not yet signalled him, and until that happened, he was not going to call his mission a success.

There was a knock at the chamber doors. "Come in," he said, and the door opened as Princess Luna walked in, before closing behind her. "My lady. What may I do for you?" he asked, bowing to her.

"Are the Templars safe?" she asked as she swept into the room. "My sister is on high alert, and has ordered the guards to sweep the city."

"I know it," he said, keeping his voice calm. "Rest assured, your highness, they are in safe hooves. You can trust my agents to protect them." He rose up, and as he did so, he saw a light pulse twice from the gate. At last, the signal had come. "I have just received word from my agents that they have left the city. No matter how deeply the guards sweep, they will not find them."

"Good," she said. "All this effort would have been wasted otherwise. Now, I have a new mission for you." As she was speaking, he could feel a distant shaking under his hooves. It was the second time that day, and that did not feel like coincidence.

"What mission is this?" he asked, half-distracted. The noise from outside was rising, and was enough to make him want to turn and see what was going on. Nevertheless, he refocused on Luna.

"I need you to find out who is interfering with-" Her voice was cut off as she noticed something through the window, and he turned to look as well. In the streets of Canterlot, buildings were shaking and walls were collapsing. Ponies were shouting and running, and his blood ran cold. An earthquake? That had never happened in Canterlot before. That it was happening now did not bode well at all.

"What in Tartarus?" cried Luna, who was watching the city with horror-stricken eyes. "We have to do something!" The unicorn noted that she seemed to be far more worried than he had imagined her looking before.

"Do not worry, my lady," he said, shaking his head. "The buildings are more sturdy than it might appear, and the guard will do what it can. Two more ponies will not help right now." He did not like that it had happened, but perhaps they could use it.

As he looked down into the streets, and looked more clearly this time, he could see that the actual damage was minor. Though some buildings had walls that had fallen, these were very few. There was rubble in the streets, but if he had to judge it, it seemed like a far better earthquake than most. The real issue was that it had happened at all. He would find that out, and if, as he thought probable, someone had done it deliberately, it would not recur. "Do you have any orders, my lady?" he asked, almost absent-mindedly as he began to think about what could have caused it.

"I... No. Not for the moment. Except this," she said, turning back to him. "Keep me posted on the Templars. Is it a coincidence that they exit the city just as an earthquake hits it?" She left the room before he could answer, but the thought lodged home in his brain. Was it coincidence, or did someone want them out of the way before they made a move?

He had not reached where he was without doing what he could to keep aware of every thing that was happening. That he had not foreseen this was troubling. He had to do something quickly, before whatever was causing this revealed itself. If it could keep itself from his knowledge, it was already a dangerous enemy.

He composed a small letter to his agents. Find any links between the locations most damaged by the local earthquake. Five hours. In twelve hours, be ready to move on possible antagonists. C.25, follow the path of freedom. Keep me posted.

As he sent it, he stood up and dressed as his current face required. He preferred to join in these things himself when he could, and he had nothing else that he could do anyway. Might as well get his hooves dirty, and at that thought, he smiled for the first time in a long time.

---

Sparks flashed from the cobbles as the Templars rode down the highway from Canterlot. When they had reached the gate that their strange helper had pointed out, their horses were already spooked, and it had taken some effort to calm them. The agent had uncovered a hidden cache holding their arms and possessions, before silently fading into the shadows. Frederick had led them in a short prayer of thanksgiving, and as they each made the sign of the cross, their disguises had faded and their original forms returned.

They had dressed in silence, girding their waists and bridling their horses. As soon as they had been ready, they mounted without a word, and began their procession out. At first, they had been at a slow walk, but when they heard the sounds coming from the city they had moved into a canter that they had maintained since.

"We should go back," called Frederick, raising his voice to be heard above the clatter of hooves. Johann turned his head for a second before swinging back round again. "We have taken enough time here, while our order is in jeopardy."

"How could we do so?" asked Johann, slowing his horse to match the priest's. "Do you know how?" The truth be told, he was of two minds in this area, and even if he knew how to go back, he was not sure if he would do so.

"I believe so. What our friend spoke of... Whom our friend spoke of, rather, matches a story I have heard, about a saint," replied Frederick, his voice only just audible now. "I think we can get back, though it might be difficult."

"I think we might not be able to do the same," said Johann. "I think we have a different purpose here, and that we must remain." Where these words were coming from, he did not know. Even so, they felt right.

"What do you mean?" asked the priest. "Our Master command-"

"Our Master commanded us to seek assistance, and gave us a letter bearing his seal," interrupted Johann. "That letter still remains, though with one difference - the seal binding it has been broken. It will not suffice." That had been the decider in his mind.

"That... By the ponies?" asked Frederick, looking at him with scrutinizing eyes.

"I believe so," said Johann, meeting his gaze. "Besides that... That pony's tale, about another here finding Jesus Christ, and receiving his grace? I feel that it is not coincidence that he spoke of His name."

"We are here, then, as the apostles to the ponies?" asked Frederick, a sardonic tone to his voice. Johann reined in his mount, slowing to a stop. Frederick wheeled around and stopped next to him, the other Templars circling the two.

"Maybe we are," Johann snapped. "Do they not deserve the gospel? Will you judge what God has done? I want to go back, to return to our home. That is my will, and I renounced that when I joined the Order. This is where I feel God is calling us."

Frederick nodded. "Good. I feel the same. But I wanted to make sure you were doing it for the right reasons. What is your plan then, my lord?"

"I do not rightly know. We are hunted by those in power, and those who are not we cannot communicate with." Johann sighed. "The foals we rescued are the only ones I can think of who might help. If we can start with them, learning how they speak, then we may be able to reach their elders."

"That sounds like a plan, my lord," said Frederick, and Johann quirked his head at him.

"Why do you call me that?" he asked. "I am only a brother."

"You are our commander now, Johann," he answered. "Until we return to our own land, the burden of leadership lies on you."

---

In the Canterlot Archives, a single unicorn stallion was browsing by candlelight, searching for the answer to his riddle. How were the buildings that had been affected connected? The palace had been less affected than the others, even though it was in the centre. That meant it had to have been unnatural. Deliberate. That meant there was a connection, and he thought he had found it. There was no apparent symbolism in the buildings hit, or targets. The damage was as random as the selection.

So it was a side effect. Someone was doing something, and it was causing this as a side effect. That meant something big. The dragons were out, far away as they were, and nothing else was individually big enough to cause it. That meant there was a connection between the places, and the one real connection between the places that were hit was to do with the history of this city.

Built as it was upon the mines, the city had almost grown haphazardly. It had started with the mines, and the buildings around them, and as more and more ponies had come to find their fortune, the city had come into existence. For the most part, the buildings had firm foundations and had not been damaged much, if at all, by the quake. The only ones which had been were those close to the mines, and it was almost as if the mines were trying to take their revenge.

Something was happening in the mines, and it was threatening the city. That was the only explanation. With that as the only explanation, he had to stop it somehow. As he put the last survey of the mines back onto the shelf, and blew out the candle, he knew he needed to go down to the mines, and find it out himself.

---

"Ignore them," said Dizzy in an authoritative tone as the armoured things moved past them. "We have more important things to do." The zebras around her continued to creep forward through the grass and behind the trees, tightening the noose that had been slipped round Equestria's neck

Their destination was Canterlot, not too far away now. The ponies inside had betrayed them for the last time, and now there would be repercussions. No matter what strange allies the ponies had recruited, they would not be sufficient to protect them. Her zebras were prepared to die for their Master, and the ponies did not have that same courage.

Only one pony had ever known them well enough to stop them, and he had not been seen in twenty years. He was why she had never been accepted among either the ponies or the zebras, and she could not decide whether she loved him or hated him, for he was her father. Dizzy put the thought from her mind, and refocused on the goal, to kill every living being in Canterlot and leave it a domain of corpses. It was the only thing that mattered to her for now. After they had succeeded here...

It seemed to her that the question had never been asked. What would they do after this? Almost as soon as the question had been asked, though, she dismissed it. That did not matter for now, and focussing on it would only distract her from the mission.

Such distraction would only help her to fail. That was something she refused to do. So she continued to creep forward with her zebras, until her senses told her to stop. Something was wrong, and as she watched the zebras continue moving, she recognised it. It was an ambush about to happen to them. "Attack," she called, and as she had hoped, the ponies had been so cocky that they took the voice to be one of their own orders. The ambushers shot up before the zebras were quite in the killing zone. Crossbow bolts loosed off-target, and the few that did hit were not lethal.

A violet light shot up from one of the ambusher's horns, and Dizzy was angry. "Kill them all!" she shouted, and the zebras leapt into the fight. The ponies were brutish fighters, having none of the agility of the zebras, and though their armour protected them, the fight was not in doubt. She ran and leapt over to the one who had given the signal, a unicorn stallion carrying a sword, and jumping at him she knocked him to the ground.

She grinned down at him as he tried to get up. She was pinning him down, and though he was stronger than she was, he did not have the confidence to use it. "You ruined my surprise," she said, and drawing her tulwar, she prepared to cut his throat. He began to beg for mercy, and that annoyed her more than ever. "You tried to stop us, and you don't even have the courage to die without screaming?" she whispered to him, and then she drew her blade viciously across his throat. Blood spurted out, covering her face, and she licked her lips.

Around her, her minions were finishing the remaining ponies, and her mood began to lift. After all, even if the ponies had seen the message, all they knew was that a single patrol had been ambushed. That they knew about her small group was not sufficient for them to stop her entire army. They could not possibly imagine the havoc about to be wreaked on them.

---

When Scootaloo had first suggested trying to help a weeping ghost, Applebloom had been interested. That was surely worth a friendship report. When it came to actually meeting that ghost, she was not quite as enthused. She crept closer through the grass to the shimmering white thing, turning her head from side to side to make sure that Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle were still with her.

They still were, and so Applebloom resigned herself to continuing her way forward, every second pace turning to make sure her friends were still there. Slowly, she could begin to hear the sound of the ghost crying. It started off with a quiet whimpering, and as they got closer it turned into a wrenching sob. She could feel the sadness in the sound.

She looked at the ghost again. Closer now, she could discern the form of a pony in the ghost. It was crying into its hooves, and Applebloom shivered as she watched. The courage she had been counting on was fading away. Even as it did, though, she felt sorry for the ghost. It probably did not have a choice to be a ghost or not. But maybe she and her friends could help it. Then they could be doing something important, then they could write their friendship report and ask Twilight about the strangers who had rescued them.

With the goals for why they were doing this in mind, she continued to get closer. Even as they did, the air around them began to cool down. Applebloom turned to Scootaloo and then Sweetie Belle, wondering if they were feeling the same thing. She turned back to the ghost, only to discover that it had moved right up to her, and now it was no longer crying. Applebloom could see parts of the ghost were open wounds, and she screamed.

---

As the Penitent reached his own quarters, a letter popped onto his desk. It was rolled up, and with a seal on which seemed like a snake. That was unusually fast, and that never meant anything but trouble. He quickly opened it, unfurling the scroll. C.25's report was a simple one. 'Following. Zebra attack patrol. Zony leader.' As he read it, shock pulsed through his system. This was not good news. In fact, it could be the worst. He had forgotten about her, had been too caught up in his cloak and dagger work to think about what he had done. It seemed like he could not quite escape from that failure.

He re-lit the candle, and burnt the letter and seal. Here was the crossroads. He could go to the mines and investigate it, or he could deal with what he had caused. It was not a question, though. Investigating the mines did not need his personal touch. It was just observation.

What needed to happen, then? The mine was most urgent. If something was causing an earthquake, then that was something that needed to stop. T.14 could take care of that. He took a quill and paper, and wrote down the order and sent it off with a crack of magic. Then there were the zebras. If they were getting more aggressive, and if they were as close as they would need to be for C.25's message to have reached him already, then the guard needed to be notified. He wrote that order and sent it off as well.

He could not stop her yet. Until she was closer to the city, he could not risk missing her. He would just have to wait here until then. Waiting and co-ordinating efforts still tired him out a little. With a little laugh, he sat down. That was the reward for success - losing the little freedoms you enjoyed. As he thought that, he dismissed the anxiety that he had felt. He had never failed this kingdom before, and he did not intend to begin now.

---

Twilight wandered through the city, a trio of Royal Guardsponies at her side. Her unique magical talent made her well suited to help in the restoration of the city and the rescue attempts of anypony trapped by the rubble. Whether it required telekinesis or first aid, she had the knowledge to help, and in a strange way she was actually grateful for the earthquake. It meant she did not need to think about what had happened, when the Templars had escaped.

The events had replayed themselves in her mind several times since they had happened, and had planted the seeds of doubt in Twilight's mind. How had the Templars withstood such powerful magic from Princess Celestia? Was something more powerful than her protecting them, and if so, who was it? That was the looming question, and something Twilight feared to answer. Whatever the answer might be, it was not a comforting thought.

That meant finding another answer. That was the real question, though. What could that other answer be? Did magic have no effect on their kind? No, for the translation magic had worked. It was the sort of thing that worried her. That was why she was putting so much of herself into the mundane rescue efforts.

So far, nopony had died. Nopony had spotted the Templars, either, and she half-dreaded what that meant. Had they failed in their escape, and the ponies responsible not reported it? That was the best result, but it also felt like the least likely one to Twilight.

"Miss, we've got another one," called one of her guards, and broke her from that train of thought. She hurried over to him, and scanned the scene. They were in the half-standing Museum of Canterlot, and several visitors had been trapped both by broken walls and relics. Ancient jar and potshards were scattered through the more-modern bricks and mortar in the rubble, and it made the ponies trapped under more difficult to discern. Even so, the Guardsponies tirelessly checked every pile, and lifted off as much rubble as they could. In the more difficult cases, however, they waited for her.

This was certainly one of those difficult cases. She reached out with her magic, and let it feel out the rocks. They were precariously placed. A single pony was underneath, and the rubble had not fallen completely. It was almost balanced on three leaning pillars, and if they started removing it by hoof, it could fall, and crush the pony trapped beneath.

She closed her eyes, focusing on her magic. Slowly she solidified it, gently beginning to hold the rocks in its grip. She was starting to lift the rocks when something else shattered her hold on them. They fell back down, and Twilight was about to shout in shock when she noticed that they had fallen in the same pattern as they had been in before. She gingerly reached out with her magic again, and found that the pillars supporting the rock were still there.

"Sirs, I think it is safe for you to lift the rocks away manually," she said, and took a step back. This was a new mystery, but it was comforting this time. Perhaps the pony underneath the rubble was more magical than they knew, and had caused this him-or-herself. Whatever it was, she would be able to find her answer soon enough. She stepped back, watching the guards take pieces and remove them in a chain. Whatever anypony might say about them, they certainly were efficient at moving rubble.

After a couple of minutes, they had removed the rocks, leaving the three pillars. These were too heavy for them to move, and so Twilight stepped forward again and flexed her mental muscles. Slowly, the pillars began to lift up into the air, and Twilight moved them over to fall into the pile of rubble that had been created by the guards. As they dropped, they shattered, and Twilight frowned. That should not have happened. Some damage was understandable, but that much? Why didn't they shatter when the rocks had fallen on them? Some magic was definitely at work here.

She moved over to look at the pony they had freed, and her eyes widened. It was a pegasus pony underneath the rubble, unconscious and mostly unharmed. That was good, but it left the question of how it had happened still unanswered. That had to have been magical, but who or what had caused it, if it was not the pony inside? The guards came forward, and lifted up the pegasus filly, taking her to safety. As they did so, Twilight saw a metallic shine where she had been, and peering closer, saw a black-metal horn ring. It obviously did not belong to the filly that had been lying on it, and so she lifted it up.

Inscribed upon it were two words: Princess Luna. What was a ring doing in this museum with the Princess' name upon it? As far as Twilight knew, the Princess had never married, so it could not be that. Even if it had been, wouldn't she have kept it herself? Besides that, why was it magical? She could feel the magic emanating from the ring now, unclouded by the pony and the rocks as it had been. This was another mystery, but one she could easily solve. Slipping it into her saddlebags, she turned to the guards. "Sirs, I must return something to the Princess. Please, continue to help with the rescue efforts until I return," she said, and they nodded. "I will come back soon," she promised, and turning to the palace, she began to gallop off.

---

The winds cut through Shining Armour as he made his way across the landing pad. There was waiting his personal airship, now being loaded by the Guards loyal to him. It had been too long since he had to load it for such an extended mission, and it had taken longer than he had planned. He shivered under the heavy winter cloak around him. At least he would be back within the warmer climate for a time, though flushing out the zebras was not what he considered a leisure time.

The landing ramp was dropped as he reached the port aft, and he looked up with a smile to the pegasus on guard. "Permission to come aboard?" he said, and as she nodded, he began to make his way on. He was halfway up the ramp when he heard a scream from behind him, and he turned, drawing his spear.

Cadence had run out and was looking at him, tears streaming down her face. He dropped the spear on the ramp, and ran down to her. He held her close, and with as much tenderness as he could muster, he spoke to her. "What's wrong, my love?" he asked, brushing away her tears with a forehoof.

"Please," she begged, collapsing into his hooves. "Don't do this. Stay with me. You're a good pony. Don't do this." She looked up at him, her eyes watering up. Her words did not make sense for a second, but after a second it clicked.

"No, no, my love," he said, his voice soothing. "It isn't what you think it is. We have been summoned, on Princess Luna's authority. There are some rogue zebras threatening Canterlot, and she has asked us to bolster the defences. You don't need to worry." Even as he said the words, the idea came into his mind. He could use this opportunity. If the zebras were here to take revenge on Celestia... All he needed to do was let them injure her, and then imprison her while she was weak.

He shook his head. Those thoughts could come later. Right now he had a mission. "Does that make you feel better, love?" he asked, stroking her mane back. She sniffed, and nodded slightly.

"Yes," she managed through the tears still running down her face. "A little." She looked up at him plaintively. "Will you come back soon?"

"Yes," he said, and in that second he forgot his thoughts of dominion. This was the pony he cared about. There was no point scheming if it meant hurting her. He would do his duty well and quickly, and then dissolve this little conspiracy. Celestia had returned to her usual self, and with that she had left no reason for him to continue. "Yes, I will. Within the month, I will be back. Don't worry."

She hugged him close, the first resurgence of her smile coming through. "I'll be waiting for you," she said, and he nodded.

"I know. But you won't have to wait long," he said as he left. Despite his words, though, Princess Cadence could not shake the feeling that he would not be back for a long time. No matter how long it took, though, she would wait for him.

Comments

[Dsarker]

New chapter ahoy!

The Zebras are on the move, the Diamond Dogs are betraying their Equine Overlord, and the Templars are deciding their future path.

tl;dr - Business as usual.

[Icy_Breeze]

And so the pieces begin to fall into place. Awaiting eagerly for the next one!

[Amethyst Blade]

See if this fit...

[Schroedingers_Katze]

Oh shit, it´s the Kushan empire!

[xarl2]

I can't wait for more