• Published 29th Jul 2016
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The Bill-inning - EmperorDalek

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Chapter 5 (edited and spellchecked version)

A little visit to the Crystal Empire wouldn’t hurt Part 1


Night hung over the Crystal Empire. The entire city was quiet. The only sound indicating any form of life to be heard throughout the previously bustling streets was the wind. All the houses were dark, as everyone had turned their lights off. Everything was quiet, and yet there was some form of life moving through this quiet and peaceful city.

"But Mom, I’m not even tired yet!" a Unicorn filly whined as her mother escorted her to bed.

"I know you’re not, but you know that school starts tomorrow, and we cannot have you being late, again. Your teacher is complaining way too much about your tardiness."

"Okay, first off, he is not my teacher, he is just my 'substitute teacher',’’ she said, indicating with her hooves, "since we’re on vacation, and secondly, I am already learning enough from just reading the books I find at the Crystal Empire's Library. They're really educational."

"That they may be, and I do know that you are learning quite a bit from them, but I doubt your teachers are going to look at that way," she said, ruffling her daughter's mane.

"Learning history is one thing, but you need to be exposed to a wider variety of things if you are going to make it in today’s society."

"N’awww!" she whined, dropping her head down in disappointment. Her eyes shot open, and her head shot back up, as she turned back to face her mother.

"But since I'm not feeling too tired yet. Can't I at least read a little in the bed?" she asked. Quickly she noticed uncertainty on her mother's face about whether or not she should allow her to do it, but she appeared to be leaning more towards the negative option. "Pwease! I can at least get some reading done so I can show my teachers I didn't slack off during the weekend," she said with pouting her lips while her eyes were widening which made her pupils twirl.

Chuckling, her mother smiled, rolling her eyes.

"Okay, you can read a little, but only for ten minutes. I don't want you staying up too late… and especially on a school night."

Smiling back, she nodded her head.

"Will do, mom," she hurried into her room, leaving her mother behind in the hallway. She quickly returned, planting a kiss on her mother's cheek.

"Thanks, Mom."

Upon seeing her mother's smile, she was quick to leave again, disappearing off to her room.

Shaking her head, her mom turned away, heading back to the living room. A clear smile on her face.

"That girl really needs to get some friends," she chuckled slightly to herself as she went.

Shutting the door behind her, she crawled into bed. Getting herself comfortable as she pulled the covers over her body, getting cozy. Reaching out with her hooves, she grabbed a book from the nightstand next to her bed, and pulled it over to her and then placed it down on the bed.

Supporting herself on her hoof, she opens the first page with her magic, and starts reading it.

"Chapter 1, History of the Two Trees," she read aloud to herself, but in a tone more fitting of whispering as her eyes began following one row of words till they reached the end where her eyes moved down to the next row and she continued reading.

Slowly her eyes begin to close and her head starts leaning forward. But before her head can collapse onto the pillow, she catches herself in mid-air as her head was about to fall off her arm. She lifts it back up, blinking her eyes. She then brings her hooves up to her eyes, wiping them clear of any sleep, and looking back down into the book before she continues her reading.


Suddenly, there was a sound coming from outside her window. Her head shot up and her ears perked. With a turn of her head, she looked up towards the window.

She removed her covers, stood up in her bed, and approached the window. Placing her hooves on the window frame, she looked out.

It was not very clear, actually quite blacked out by the night, but from what little she could see, something was hovering through the air as it passed by her house. Though despite being so close, its true form could still not be seen amongst the darkness of the night.

"Hmm..." she grumbled. She stood there by the window for a few seconds, silently observing it. It might not be too big of a deal.

But when she saw where it was headed, she quickly retracted those thoughts. The hovering form was heading for the Crystal Castle.

Whatever it was, the fact that it was making its way for the castle meant trouble. That it was doing this at night was also not helping and basically meant bad news.


With a turn of her head, she gave a quick glimpse back at the door, then down at the book on her bed.

"Hm" she uttered with a stern expression settling in place of the blank one from a few seconds ago.

Pulling herself up with her hooves, she gently climbed out the window, easing herself down onto the pavement. Looking carefully from side to side to make sure nopony saw her before she started after the silhouetted figure.


A shadow peeks out from behind the edge of one the houses, looking from side to side. Scanning its surroundings. When the coast is clear, it runs out, hurrying across an open street. Not stopping until it has reached the next house.

Once safely hidden behind the walls, it peeks back out, making sure no one saw it before ducking down behind the wall, and continuing on its way up the small alley.

Rounding multiple turns and passing through several surprisingly narrow alleys – considering that it was a rather small place to begin with.

After much strife, she finally reached her end-destination.


Extending a hoof out, she grabbed the edge of the wall. Gently peeking her head out from behind it. She made certain she did not make too much noise, but when she laid eyes on the floating form in front of the Crystal Castle, a soft gasp escaped her. However, now they were in a much more open area, where the moonlight shined down upon the hovering figure's silhouetted form.

She quickly ducked back behind the wall, hiding herself from the eyes of… whatever that thing was.

"Huh, that’s odd!" she said to herself, rubbing her chin gently with her hoof.

"I swear that its body had the shape of a triangle, with arms and legs."

She touched her hoof to her chin, having a thoughtful expression settle on her face.

Suddenly, the triangular shape turned around, an eye looking behind itself.

"Hmm…" a voice said, its eye first narrowing. Looking for a moment, until it turned its back on her and started floating up towards the main entrance doors. It snapped its fingers, and a cane appeared out of the blue, which it gripped tightly with its fingers.

Peeking out from behind the wall, the little filly looked up in direction of where she had last seen the hovering triangle. But instead of being suspended in midair, it was no longer there.

Her eyes grew wide with shock, but mostly with fright since she did not know whether it had spotted her or just moved on to complete the task it had come here to do. With a rapid turn of her head, she looked from side to side. Trying her best to find it again, quickly.

At the snap of a finger, her attention was suddenly drawn to the front entrance of the Crystal Castle… where she saw a tip disappear inside two doors. She gasped, bringing a hoof up to her mouth.

"Oh no!" she exclaimed, quickly bursting out from her hiding place and running out towards the castle.

She stopped at the opened doors.

"It’s gone inside the…"

She swallowed down, staring nervously into the darkness that awaited her, "the Crystal Castle."

Her body shivering from fear, she did not want to go inside the castle, especially at night, and without adult supervision, but the floating triangle had gone in there for a reason if it was violating the privacy and majesty of the ruling government of the North.

Swallowing her fear, she reluctantly moved a hoof inside the open doorway, taking her official first step into the castle. First, it was just her hoof, but eventually she subjected her entire body to the darkness that awaited her inside the castle hallways and corridors.

"I have to do this… for the Princess, and the Crystal Empire, itself," she told herself as if to prevent her morale from wavering.

She would not lose herself to the horror that awaited her inside those darkened halls.

Author's Note:

Oh my, what is this? What's happening in the Crystal Empire?
:pinkiecrazy: