Chapter 1
The Umbral Shard: Chapter 1
It felt good to get back to doing some science again. My old lab and everything in it had been lost when Tirek had destroyed the library, and while it still hurts to remember that event, I had at least gotten a start on getting myself settled in my new crystal-castle-palace-tree-thing. The major parts of the new floor plan were finished, having done things like assigning rooms and furnishing them, but I was still working on little details like what to call my new home. Getting that to happen was a project in of itself though, since the royal funds would have to be reallocated.
Still, I had at least gotten some of the equipment, tools, and materials I wanted for my new lab. Newly built shelves lined the walls, a third of their space covered by meticulously organized jars and boxes that held a multitude of alchemical and magical materials. Another shelf was filled with reference books on magical crafting. Along the back wall sat a long crafting table, equipped with a variety of tools I had purchased in Canterlot. In the center of the room was my alchemy table, loaded with bunsen burners, beakers, and tubes spread across its surface.
It was still a far cry from what I’d had in my old lab, but I was confident that it was only a matter of time before that was corrected. If I followed the plan I had outlined, the new lab would be even better than the old one. A big advantage of my royal status and new home was that I now had a lot of money and plenty of space. Even if it didn't feel close to a home yet.
I was in the middle of setting up my alchemy set when a burst of inspiration took me. A talk with Zecora had made me curious to try out a particular alchemical recipe. Her potion that allowed the drinker to look back into past had major potential: imagine if you could go into the past and see any historical event, or hear what was actually said instead of what was merely recorded. The potion could revolutionize the study of history, provided it could somehow be focused and made predictable in what it showed its drinker.
In addition to my hopes of improving the field of historical research, it would be a good way to make sure my alchemical tools were all working. Seeing nothing but a win-win scenario before me, I pulled out the alchemical materials needed for the modified potion and got to work.
It was sometime later when I heard somepony clear their throat behind me. “Highness, do you require assistance?”
I jumped at the sudden interruption and nearly knocked over a beaker filled with green glowing liquid. I snatched it with my magic and held my breath as it sloshed inside the beaker. The potion could have melted right through the table if it had spilled; either that or caused the table to get up and start walking around. It depended on how the potion interacted with the table.
After making sure the beaker was settled, I turned around to face the pony behind me. Standing there with a dull expression on her face was Captain Storm Kicker of the Royal—my guard. She was a tall pegasus mare, strong in build, and with a dual black and white mane and light-blue coat. The somewhat antiquated looking, ancestral full-plate armor she wore was painted crimson and her wingblades sat at her sides. She stared at me with half-lidded eyes, not seeming particularly pleased with me.
“Oh, Storm!” I gave her the best smile I could manage. She reserved that frown for when she was unhappy about something but didn't want to say what. She could be irritatingly formal at times. “I didn't hear you come in.”
“My apologies, Highness,” she said in a tone that wasn’t particularly apologetic. That made me try and think why she might be so unhappy, but nothing immediately sprang to mind.
Fishing for what might be upsetting my ever stoic guard captain, I said, “I was just setting up some of my equipment.” I gestured at the still as of yet unopened boxes sitting on one side of the room.
Her frown only deepened. “Do you require assistance?”
“It does seem like there is a lot to do,” I hazarded. Was she upset because I had done something mundane for myself again? She could get a bit prickly when I took care of certain activities that she deemed beneath my station as a princess. She had been less than pleased the last time I had taken out the garbage, reminding me how it undermined my image in the public eye when ponies saw me doing that, and had pointedly taken it out herself or gotten Spike to do it since.
To be fair, I had been ambushed by the paparazzi when I had done that, and had then gotten a rather scathing article written about me in the tabloids. So she probably had something of a point about that. Still, I didn't think it was too much for me to set up my lab the way I liked it while in private.
“Shall I call in your new guards to help?”
Her question had a pointed edge to it and it took me a couple of seconds to properly process what she was really saying. “Wait, did you say my new guards?” I felt a sinking feeling grow in my stomach.
Storm’s tone moved to a careful neutrality. “Yes, the new guards you're scheduled to meet in fifteen minutes."
I blinked. “That was today!?”
“It is,” Storm stated blandly. She pulled out a copy of my monthly schedule and presented it to me. The upcoming meeting with the new ponies in my guard was circled in red and was, in fact, fifteen minutes away. No, actually twelve minutes now that I took a moment to look at the clock.
It had been decided that I needed my own guard since becoming a princess. Only Storm had taken the post thus far due to a number of factors—the fact we didn't have room for the hundred guardponies of a Royal Guard company for one. Plans to construct a new barracks to house everypony were being put into place, but that type of undertaking took time.
Still, my new castle had more space than the library and we had decided some guard officers would be transferred to Ponyville. The fact my old home had been turned into a crater by Tirek had probably added a bit of emphasis to the need to bolster the number of guards I had on hoof to protect me. My fellow princesses had even mentioned the idea of going ahead and transferring a full platoon to Ponyville, even if the new barracks weren't nearly ready to house them yet.
But in the meantime, I had some good panicking to do over forgetting about the meeting with the first wave of my new guard officers. “Oh nonono! I lost track of time!” I was normally much better about that type of thing. It's why I made my schedule to start with, to avoid incidents like this one.
Storm did a much better job of retaining her composure than I did as she stood impassively before me. “Shall I delay the meeting, then?”
“Yes! No! I don't know!” I paced as I tried to think about the fact I now only had ten minutes before an important meeting. “I'm not ready! I mean I have a speech ready, the introductory brochures for Ponyville printed, and Pinkie’s probably on top of setting up a Welcome to Ponyville Party as we speak, but there’s so much more I wanted to do! What should I do?”
“First, I would suggest a few deep breaths.” Storm brought a hoof to her chest demonstratively. “Less panicking, more calming.”
“Right, deep breaths!” I took some deep breaths like Cadance had taught me. Nice, calming, not panic inducing breaths despite the fact I had every reason to panic.
After I spent a solid minute calming my breath, Storm asked, “Feeling better?”
I let out another long breath and nodded. “A little, yeah.”
Storm nodded. “Good. Now, what is your intention for the new soldiers, Highness?”
With the firm way she had said that, it was safe to say the new officers had already arrived at the palace. “How about you show me where they are? Lead the way.”
A long moment crawled past before Storm replied. “Perhaps a moment to ... compose yourself?” She cleared her throat and jerked her head ever-so-slightly at a nearby mirror.
A quick glance at the mirror quickly showed me what was wrong. My mane had become disheveled during the process of setting up my new lab and now sported some dirt that had covered the boxes the new shelves had been in. My coat had a layer of dust and chalk on it, and a black splotch covered part of my leg from when I had dropped a inkwell and splattered myself. My appearance was decidedly unprincessly and not how I should look for a first impression.
An awkward laugh escaped my throat. “Um, maybe I could take a few minutes to freshen up first? Maybe even put on my crown?”
“That might be wise,” Storm agreed with grave sternness.
“Mind holding down the fort while I take care of that?” I smiled, though it felt badly strained at the edges. I was dropping the ball for something I knew was very important to Storm and that wasn't making me feel really good. Though she always tried to hide what she was thinking behind that stoic demeanor, I had known my guard captain long enough to notice the slight skip to her step since the news we would be seeing more ponies joining my guard.
She inclined her head in affirmation. “It would be my pleasure, Highness.”
“I'll be with you in half an hour.” I turned to head to the bathroom but stopped after a couple of steps as something occurred to me that I should say. “Thanks Storm. Don't know what I would do without you.”
“I expect you would manage quite well,” Storm said. “You did before I joined you.”
“I guess,” I said. “I’d still have Spike around to help and it’s not like I'm completely helpless. Still, it's nice to have you around to help as well.”
A slight smile crept onto Storm’s face. “It is my pleasure to be of service.”
Forty-seven minutes late, I arrived in the throne room to meet with my new guardponies. I had tried to quickly clean myself up, though there was only so fast I could go if I wanted to be presentable. So that meant a nice shower, putting on some makeup, and putting my crown on. I had debated putting a dress on as well, but that probably would have been overdoing it and I was in a hurry.
Storm was waiting in the throne room with a trio of individuals, each of whom was wearing the red dress uniform of the Royal Guard. A pot of tea with an accompanying set of cups sat on the table and the four of them were in the middle of a conversation that cut off as I trotted into the room.
I put on the best smile I could for them, trying to show the confidence I wasn't really feeling at that moment. “Hello, everypony. Sorry for being late.”
“Royalty is never late, Highness, everyone else is just early.” Storm’s words had been courteous, but I could sense her irritation. To be fair, she had good reason to be less than happy with me, even if she was too polite to express them.
Deciding to move past that, I said. “So how about you introduce me to everypony, Storm.”
“Of course, though in one case introductions will not be needed.” Storm stepped aside to present the first new member of my guard—a pony I was already familiar with. “You remember Knight-Magus Twinkleshine, of course”
“That I do!” I hugged my old Canterlot friend and a wide smile grew on my face. “It’s great to see you.” After rekindling my friendship with Twinkleshine, I had found out she had joined the Royal Guard’s Magus Corps. Not too much of a surprise when she was a knight in the Order of Sol Invictus, where it was traditional for anypony in the Order to join the Guard.
Twinkleshine hugged me back, if a bit reluctantly, before looking me over. “It’s good to see you. Even if it is a bit of a surprise that I got assigned to your guard.”
“Being a princess does have its privileges considering it let me pull some strings to get you here.”
It had been a pleasant surprise to see Twinkleshine’s name on the list of potential officers for my guard, and I had quickly seized the opportunity. Storm had seemed reluctant to make my friend the head of the Magus Corps detachment of my guard, but in the end she had accepted what I wanted. Getting one of my friends into my guard did help me feel better about its creation. Even if I wasn't going to be nearly as lucky with everypony else who joined. Meeting new ponies was just something I was going to have to treat as an opportunity to make more friends, or even chances to solve their friendships problems. That sounded like something the Princess of Friendship should be doing.
“I'll say.” Twinkleshine’s eyes glanced about the throne room’s interior. “Nice new castle, a crown, your own guard. What’s not to like?”
My smile became rigid as she listed some of the big changes in my life. “It is taking a bit to get used to, to be honest.”
“Her Highness has adjusted quite well,” Storm said, inserting herself back into the conversation. “And I am sure having a friend will help her. As Princess of Friendship, it is only proper that she has friends.”
I couldn't quite place my hoof on it, but there had been something a little off with the way Storm had said that. Maybe she still had some reservations with me picking Twinkleshine because she was my friend. Friend or not, Twinkleshine was still qualified for the position, otherwise she wouldn't have appeared on the list the Royal Guard had given me to pick from. Whatever the case might be, I was sure it would work out, and Storm had agreed with me in the end.
“I’m sure this will work out just fine,” Twinkleshine said.
I smiled at Storm in an attempt to reassure her. “I think it's great that I'm going to have some friends around in my guard.”
Storm nodded in agreement. “As you say, Highness.”
Before we could continue, the deep voice of one of my other new guard officers spoke up with a sense of wry amusement. “I didn't realize we would be getting quite this warm of a reception, Captain.”
I turned my attention to the hippogryph by the name of Lieutenant Speedy Tracker. As was the case with all hippogryphs, Speedy had the head and forelegs of an eagle, the body of a lion, and the rear of a pony. He was tall, about Storm’s height, if not a couple inches taller, and had the strong, muscular body of someone who regularly exercised. He grinned widely and I couldn't help but notice a mischievous glimmer in his eyes.
Storm fixed the hippogryph with a flat look and spoke with a dry tone. “Twinkleshine has history with the Princess. You do not, Speedy.”
“Ah, yes, history.” Speedy nodded with false gravity. “The bedrock of all friendships.”
Storm looked him up and down. “And I see you have not changed.” Her words had been an attempt to sound serious, but there was more than a trace of familiar humor in her voice. Storm gestured at her fellow guard for my benefit. “Highness, this is 2nd Lieutenant Speedy Tracker. He served under me in the Patrol.”
I nodded. “I remember. Nice to meet you, too. Storm's said a lot about you.”
“Good things, I hope,” Speedy said, the grin on his face being accompanied by a jovial tone. “Otherwise I'm going to be very hurt.”
Storm spoke dryly, but there was still the whisper of a smile on her lips. “I only told her the truth.”
“Oh?” He rubbed his chin. “Like that time I pulled you out of that—”
Storm’s eyes narrowed dangerously as she interrupted Speedy. “Do you think continuing that is wise, Lieutenant?”
Speedy cleared his throat and shuffled in place. “I think I'm going to practice my right to be silent now.”
“That is very wise of you,” Storm said with exaggerated graveness.
“You know me. I can be very wise,” Speedy said. “Especially where upsetting my commanding officer is concerned.”
“You do learn.” Storm waited a long moment before adding, “Eventually.”
“It is one of my virtues.”
“Along with skills to suit your name,” Storm agreed.
“We could certainly use somepony with Long Patrol experience,” I said. “We are pretty close to the Everfree Forest, so I'm sure you can be a lot of help.”
“Well then.” Speedy dipped his head in a gallant bow that wouldn't have been out of place in an old play involving valiant knights battling dastardly dragons. “You won’t have to worry about the big bad monsters from the forest while I'm here.”
“Tone, Speedy,” Storm chided, sounding like she had done this many times before. Which she probably had considering how familiar they seemed to be with one another.
Storm had warned me, if in friendly terms, that Speedy liked to think of himself as something of a dashing rogue. If not for that, seeing one of my guards acting in such a way would really have thrown me off. As Storm had told me, the Long Patrol, being a unit that focused on patrolling the borders and wildernesses of Equestria, had a tendency to be made up of individuals who were a bit rougher around the edges. Of course, considering we were on the edge of one those dangerous wildernesses, Storm and I had thought it best to have a detachment of the Long Patrol as part of my guard. Thus the reason why Lieutenant Speedy was here.
“Right right.” Speedy waved dismissively. “Be a little more respectful towards the princess, I understand.”
“See that you remember it,” Storm said firmly. “We are no longer in the Patrol, and royalty must be treated appropriately.”
“I'll make sure to keep that in mind, Captain,” he said more seriously.
“Good.” Storm stepped to the next pony in line. “And that brings us to the last new member of the unit. Our EIS liaison.”
The Equestrian Intelligence Service agent was a relatively plain-looking earth pony stallion. He possessed a dark-green coat and a neatly trimmed blue mane. Nothing immediately stood out about him, and he stood at attention in a manner that was neither rigid or relaxed. When he spoke it was in an almost bored tone that lacked much in the way of any inflections. “Masked Inquiry. Pleasure to meet you, Princess.”
I gave him the best smile I could manage. “Nice to meet you too, Masked.”
“I hope the waffles and haybacon you ate this morning were satisfying.”
The statement threw me off. “The—er, what?”
“Your breakfast,” he said in that continually plain tone he used.
I couldn't help but blink. I had eaten waffles and haybacon that morning. Though it had only been me, Spike, and Storm at breakfast. At least as far as I knew—the paranoid part of my brain said. “Wait, you know what I ate for breakfast?”
“I know what everyone eats for breakfast,” Masked said as if it were the most casual thing in the world to say.
After taking a few seconds to digest what I had been told, I said, “You're joking, right? You’re just pulling my leg.”
“It's my job.” Masked narrowed his eye ever so slightly, the most expressive thing he had done since I had met him. “I never joke about work.”
Unsure how to reply to that, I looked to Storm for some idea on how to take this. Storm replied with an indifferent shrug and said, “He comes highly recommended.”
“I'll make sure to keep that in mind,” I said, sounding more hesitant than I had intended. Pinkie had caused me to grow somewhat accustomed to ponies knowing odd things about me. Like my fear of quesadillas. But that was Pinkie, not some spy agent I had just met. One that shouldn't have even been in town when I had eaten breakfast. That caused me to start considering a number of things that were probably going to keep me up that night. Still, I didn't want to make a bad impression on the EIS agent, as odd as he might be. So I put on a smile and said, “I can see you're very dedicated to your job. I'm sure Princess Celestia has good reasons for sending you.”
“She does,” Masked said. “She believes I can balance out your more ... idealistic impulses.” After a moment he added. “At least, that's what she told Princess Luna. Or more specifically, that's what a note I found in Princess Luna's trash said. She didn't say it in so many words, but that was the jist of what she wrote.”
I opened my mouth but then closed it. Where did you even start when you heard something like that? First, I had to wonder what Masked was even doing in the Royal trash. Second, did Princess Celestia really think I was overly idealistic? Surely not. Ethics had been one of the subjects we had discussed in detail, and my former teacher wouldn't have taught me to be excessively idealistic. She was too good to make a mistake like that.
That being the case, I tried opening my mouth to say something, but once again, nothing came out. After trying this for a few times, all while Masked continued giving me that passive, evaluating look, all I could manage was to spread my lips in what I hoped was at least an adequate smile. “Good to know.”
“I look forward to serving you, Princess,” Masked said with a slight inclination of his head.
“I'm confident we can be good friends with time,” I said, trying to rally against the stumbling block that had interrupted my introduction to my guard.
“I'm sure we can.” His bored, neutral tone didn’t change an iota. I fought down the urge to sigh and decided to give him the benefit of the doubt and hope for the best. At the end of the day, the best I can do is all I can do.
Trying to salvage the conversation, I turned to face all of my new guards. “Really, I would like to spend time with all of you and get to know you.”
Storm nodded in agreement. “As I am sure they would like to get to know you.”
Twinkleshine smiled in encouragement. “You already know me, so we're covered there.”
Speedy’s smile was more cocksure in nature. “I see no reasons to reject the friendship of a princess.”
“Neither do I,” Masked said.
“Great. So with introductions out of the way...” I cast a spell and summoned up the agenda I had written for the meeting. “I wanted to go over some things with all of you. We have a busy day ahead of us, so we better get on top of it.”
“What did you have in mind?” asked Twinkleshine.
“Oh lots of things.” I smiled as I levitated over a stack of papers to each of them. Speedy quirked an eyebrow as he took the papers and looked to Storm, whose only reply was to shrug. “First, I would like to go over the introduction I have written for Ponyville and the surrounding area–as well as the rules and regulations Storm and I have come up with for my guard. Then we’ll take a tour of the town so that we can show you around. We’ll also be taking that opportunity to introduce you to some of my friends, as well as some other ponies in town.” My smile widened as I thought over the busy day we had in front of us–and with the best part at the end. “And then we’ll take a test tomorrow morning to see how much you’ve learned!”
Speedy used a talon to flip through the sixty-two pages of review material, his frown growing as the pages passed the tip of his talon. “Are we being assigned ... homework?”
“Not really homework,” I assured him. Really, why did everypony—and everyhippogryph in this case—hate homework so much? I usually learned a lot from homework and they would too. “It’s more that I wanted to test how effective my lecture and tour are. Thus far I’ve only gotten to test this on Storm, and a single pony doesn't make for a good testing pool.”
The corner of Storm’s mouth twitched ever so slightly, for whatever reason. “Her Highness has been most thorough in her preparations, and I've helped ... refine the process with her. We managed to cut down the amount of reading by half for you and made the test less ... comprehensive.”
I frowned as I remembered that process. “That was pretty hard. I’m still not exactly okay with some of the stuff we had to cut from the test.”
“I'm sure your guard will be happy to learn about the entirety of Ponyville’s history in their own time,” Storm said in that carefully neutral tone she often used whenever we disagreed about something.
Not really wanting to get into an argument about that again, I instead said, “Though if anypony does want to read the complete version of my guide to Ponyville, I have a few of them printed out.”
Masked raised his hoof. “I'd like one.”
“Great!” I levitated one of the comprehensive guides to the EIS agent and then turned to smile at Storm. “See, I told you that somepony would want one.”
“I'm sure your EIS liaison will put it to good use.” Something about the way she had said that made me realize I had just given Masked—the pony who had just admitted to going through the trash of royalty—a whole bunch of information about Ponyville and my friends. This might be something I was going to have sit down with Storm about later.
Twinkleshine covered her mouth as she giggled. “Oh Twilight, you never change.” She leaned towards Speedy to whisper loudly. “You should have seen her at school when we did group projects. She was something of a slave driver.”
“I was not,” I objected. “I just wanted to make sure that everypony got a perfect score for our assignments.”
“That much I can't argue about.” Twinkleshine flipped through the pages of the guide. “Though this might be overdoing it just a little bit.”
“That’s why I'm running all of you through this,” I said, trying to not sound defensive. “Once we’re done, I would like all of you to fill out my survey to tell me how helpful you’ve found this and give any suggestions on how to improve the process.”
Speedy tapped at the sides of his brow with a talon. “Why do I suddenly feel like I've volunteered to become a lab rat?”
“Do not worry, Speedy,” Storm said. “Knowing how things are in Ponyville, you will get the opportunity to see some action soon enough.”
“Twilight, you simply must let me design the uniforms!” Rarity jutted out her jaw in a look intended to generate sympathy in anypony that saw it, and despite knowing that, it was working on me.
“Somehow I guessed you would bring that up sooner or later.” I put my teacup down on the table in the room I had designated as the living room. The room had plenty of couches, cushions, and tables should I have plenty of friends over. Even if it was going to take a bit more time to make the place seem more homey with things like paintings and other knick-knacks. It had been a couple days since the first wave of my guard had shown up, and no doubt Rarity having to pass some of my new guards to see me had prompted this subject coming up.
My friend frowned. “Am I that obvious?”
I smiled reassuringly to try and put her fears at ease. “To be fair, I would feel pretty bad if I didn't make you my first choice for who to design my guard's uniforms.”
That instantly turned Rarity’s frown into a smile. “Oh, you're too kind, darling.”
“Besides, fashion isn't exactly one of my talents.” I picked up one of the muffins Spike had made for my get-together with Rarity.
“Well, I wouldn't say that,” Rarity said with obvious politeness. When it came to the world of fashion, Rarity had somewhat pointedly suggested that she should accompany me anytime I should go and shop for clothes—those that she didn't make, in any event. Sadly, even reading about fashion hadn't exactly given me the instincts Rarity possessed. “But I would be delighted to help you.”
“Thanks.” It wasn't a surprise that Rarity wanted to help me. For one, she was my friend. Second, she would probably pitch a fit if she had to constantly look at a guard whose appearance she disapproved of—or at the very least ‘subtly’ make her disapproval be known. Third, it would probably be a boon to her business’ prestige to design the uniforms for a princess’ guard. “Storm's suggested that it might help my guard's esprit de corps. Since otherwise they would look like every other standard unit in the Royal Guard rather than a, er, royal guard.”
“Oh, but of course it would.” She flicked her hoof in agreement. “Did you have anything in mind?”
“That's what I wanted to talk to you about.” I took a quick sip of my tea and put it down. “We’re going to need a design for both their armor and dress uniforms. And I will note that the other royal guards each have their themes based on their princesses.” I couldn't help but crack a forced smile as I imagined having a whole group of ponies dressed up to match me. “As awkward as that would be to do with myself. It feels more than a little bit narcissistic to have a whole unit of guardponies themed on me.”
Rarity hummed in contemplation as she rubbed her chin. “Well, I could certainly try something. Hrm ... gold for Celestia, midnight purple for Luna, crystal blue for Cadance...”
“I'm sure my guards would appreciate something nice, considering they're going to be wearing it all the time,” I said, trying to think practically about the issue. I looked down at the lavender fur on my leg. “I guess some shade of purple is the most likely?”
“That would be the obvious choice, yes,” Rarity said. Though I detected a note of disapproval in her tone. “But really, do we want to be obvious?”
I studied the slight frown on her face and hazarded a, “Um, no?”
Rarity’s frown immediately turned into a wide smile. “Exactly!”
Having successfully guessed the answer she desired, I said, “So we want something a bit more ... unique, then. Did you have something that might fit the bill?”
A broad smile crossed Rarity’s face as she slipped a folder out of her saddlebags. “Of course I do! I'm not an armorer, but I think I have some quite fetching designs that you simply must see.”
“No reason I can't look at them,” I said. “We can always run them past Storm after I've examined them.” There didn’t seem any reason to say no to just looking, anyways. That would have hurt Rarity’s feelings, to say the least.
Rarity was in the middle of opening the folder when there was a knock on the door. We gave each other a curious look and I called out, “Come on in!”
Storm opened the door and led a pegasus I didn’t recognize into the living room. He had a slim build, though not outright thin, and was on the small side. His light-green mane was a messy tangle that didn't look like it had been brushed in days, and his blue coat looked matted to his skin due to sweat. Even from across the room I noticed the deep bags under his eyes and the way he was nearly dragging himself along. Something about the pegasus and the grim expression on Storm’s face made me worry.
Stopping short of us, Storm saluted me. “My apologies, Highness, but something came up that I thought requires your immediate attention.” She nodded to the pegasus standing besides her. “Breezy Day here wished to speak with you about something that happened in his town recently.”
Breezy bowed in front of me. “Princess Twilight—Your Highness, I'm sorry to bother you. It's just...” He shuffled in place, his eyes glancing at Storm.
“It’s okay.” I put on a friendly smile for him and motioned for him to stand. “Just start from the beginning and tell me what brought you here.” Whatever the reason he was here, he was clearly uncomfortable in my presence. That only made me more curious.
Taking in a long breath, Breezy spoke in a slow and deliberate manner. “It's about something that happened near my town—Icepeak is its name. It’s out in the Smoky Mountains, off Icepeak Mountain. I don't really know how to start, but I'll just come out and say it. We woke up one morning and there was this strange tower that had suddenly appeared up the mountain and away from town. It hadn't been there when everypony went to sleep but was there when everyone had gotten up.”
Okay, that did sound weird. Not sure how to take this yet, the best thing to do right now was to ask some questions to get the best idea I could about what was going on. “Can you describe this tower for me?”
He nodded. “I can, or at least as much as anypony that hasn't gotten up close to it. It looked like it was made of some sort of weird black crystal, and I'd guess it was about four stories tall. It was all spiky, kinda like your castle—not that there’s anything wrong with your home, Highness!”
“It’s okay.” Admittedly, my castle was a bit ... foreboding to look at. What with its dark blues, spiky architecture, and big, spacious, and cold hallways that could be very intimidating... But issues with my new home aside, it was distracting us from the larger issue on hoof. I waved for him to continue. “Do you know how it got there?”
Breezy shook his head. “Not a clue, and neither did anypony else. It made everypony more than a little bit worried. So the mayor set Hurricane Bolt—that’s our weather team manager—and a few other pegasi to inspect what was up with the tower.” His ears flattened to his head and he spoke with little more than a whisper. “They didn't come back. We waited all day, but there was no sight of them. We considered sending some ponies after them, but the mayor worried that we were just gonna end up throwing more ponies into something they weren't ready for.”
“Then what?” I asked, prodding him to continue.
“Next morning when we all woke up the tower was even bigger,” Breezy said. “Adding that to the fact that nopony sent to the tower had returned yet, the mayor decided it was probably time we got some help before things got even worse. So considering I'm the fastest flier in town, I was sent to try and get help from Princess Celestia.” He gave me an apologetic smile. “No offense intended, Princess. It just that we’re used to thinking to go to Her Highness whenever something like this happens.”
“It’s fine,” I assured him. Admittedly, I still reflectively thought that way myself. It came from centuries of ponies thinking of Celestia as their greatest protector. “But then you came to see me instead?”
Breezy nodded. “When I got to Canterlot I found out that Princess Celestia was overseas on some diplomatic trip and that Princess Luna is visiting Princess Cadance in the Crystal Empire. So I was told to come to Ponyville to see you.”
“Makes sense.” I rubbed my chin as I thought the matter over. “Is there anything else you can tell me about this crystal tower?”
He shook his head. “I'm afraid not. I'm just a simple weather pony. This is all beyond me.”
Rarity placed a hoof over my foreleg. “This does sound like a problem that’s best nipped in the bud if we can. It might be nothing at the end of the day, but if it isn't...”
“That’s what I was thinking too.” I frowned as I considered our options. “My first instinct would be to get the girls together and see if we can deal with this. Though there’s the little problem that Rainbow is in Vanhoover for a Wonderbolts tour and Pinkie is in Canterlot for a baking contest.” A quick glance at the map confirmed that it wasn’t currently active. Near as I could tell, it would tell us whenever there was a mission for the Elements of Harmony. Not that I knew exactly how to use the Elements right at that moment. We hadn't used them since our battle with Tirek, so the question if we could even use their powers wasn't one-hundred percent certain.
“That is a problem,” Rarity agreed. “My instincts are telling me that whatever is happening at Icepeak is only going to get worse with time.”
“Right, and it's going to take time to gather everypony.” I frowned as I considered the problem.
Storm spoke up to interrupt my thoughts. “If I may suggest an idea, Highness. This might not be a bad opportunity to have a field test for the members of your guard.” Quickly she added, “Merely for information gathering and reconnaissance, of course.”
I heard what Storm hadn't said, she didn't want me putting myself in danger. Understandable when her entire job was to keep me safe. Still, her suggestion had merit. I could head out to Icepeak with my guard immediately and once there we could evaluate the situation and see first hoof what we were dealing with. From there we could pick the proper course of action. Either it would be something we felt we could handle, or we would get additional help if we couldn't. I could easily send a message to Spike if need be to help set things into motion if we needed reinforcements. Not to mention, like Storm said, it would be a good opportunity to test my guard—what there was of it at the moment.
Having made my decision, I said, “Sounds good to me, Storm. Think we can be ready to leave in about an hour?”
Storm saluted me. “I will make it happen, Highness.”
I could only hope that this idea would work out as well as it sounded in my head.
The next day found me flying beside my balloon as Storm and Speedy dragged it through in the sky. After talking over our options between flying and taking the train, we decided flight would be faster, even if that option demanded we be a bit creative on how to bring along the ground-bound members of my guard. Though having Masked and Twinkleshine ride in my balloon seemed to be working, even if it was slightly irksome that Storm wouldn't let me help pull the balloon, it being one of those things Storm considered to be beneath my dignity as a princess.
I glanced back to make sure the balloon’s passengers were alright as I flew next to Storm. “We really need to figure out a better arrangement for traveling once we get back to Ponyville.”
Storm nodded, her wings pumping to keep flying forward. “Agreed if we are going to be traveling in force on a regular basis.”
“Which we're probably going to be,” I said. “I'm used to traveling by train for long distances, but that might not always be the best option if we need to get someplace fast. So we’re going to need some sort of better option to help us bring along the non-flight capable units of my guard.”
“Indeed so,” Storm agreed. “Otherwise we will need to maintain at least fifty percent fliers in our forces.”
“We'll need to sit down and go over the math of all that later.” I reminded myself to keep flapping my wings. It was far too easy for me to forget to keep doing that when I really got to thinking. Which was a bit of a problem since flying long distance could be pretty boring, leading me to fall into my own internal thought. “Going with that many fliers would really affect some of the plans we've already got. It’s not something I'm really wild about at this moment.”
Storm nodded. “It would restrict our forces considerably. I would prefer a more flexible force, like we have already discussed.”
“I'm sorry for interrupting your conversation,” Masked called out from the balloon, not sounding particularly apologetic with that flat and even tone he always spoke with. “But I believe we are approaching the town, Your Highness.”
I looked forward as Mount Icepeak rose up ahead of us, its peak still covered in snow and ice even during the warm months of the year. According to the maps, the town of Icepeak should be along the base of the mountain. Hopefully the troubles in Icepeak hadn't gotten worse during the time it had taken us to get here.
Storm looked to Speedy. “Speedy, check the areas up ahead.”
“Yes, Captain.” Speedy unhitched himself from the balloon and then shot forward ahead of us. Even with his arms and armor he was a fast flier, and unburdened of the balloon, he quickly increased the distance between us as he reconned before the rest of us.
Slowly but surely he became a dot in my vision. An hour later he flew back, a worried frown having replaced the smile he normally carried. “The huge crystal fortress isn't supposed to be there, right?”
“Fortress?” I tilted my head in confusion. “Don't you mean a tower?” It was possible he might have mislabeled the tower we were here to check out, but it didn't strike me as likely that someone in the Guard would make that kind of mistake.
Speedy shook his head. “Nope, it's a full-fledged fortress. Maybe it grew?”
Deciding to see what we were up against myself, I cast Extend’s Eagle Eye to enhance my vision. Focusing my vision forward, I saw what Speedy was talking about. Sitting on a plateau, Icepeak clung to the side of the mountain. Farmland surrounded the town and there were paths that led up around the mountain to mine entrances.
But those things weren’t what truly drew my eyes. The bulk of my attention was on the large crystal fortress sitting further up the mountain. Castellations ran along the walls with multiple towers jutting out periodically, and a large keep dominated its center. Needless to say, our problem had just gotten a lot bigger on us.
“Um, I think we have a problem.” Casting another spell, I created an image of exactly what I was seeing for everyone else to see.
Storm frowned as her eyes scanned the fortress. “Indeed so, Highness. I hope we have sufficient force to resolve it.”
“You and me both.” I had a very bad feeling about this.
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Always fun to have more Twilight adventures from you. You know how to make her nerding out positively adorable.
Haven't read it just yet, but I'm looking forward to another of your works :)
You've got a few errant brackets hanging around the chapter.
Looking forward to more of this. I like reading about Twi and Storm and Twi's adapting to being a princess in the Winningverse context.
I get the feeling Masked is going to be an uneasy fit in this team. Twilight's practically the Princess of Idealism.
As for the situation itself, very intriguing start. The story description makes it lose a little mystery, but I'm definitely looking forward to seeing what this team can do.
Do like Twi's interactions with her guards, as well as her general adorkable nerd-ness. Of course she would give her new guards homework; it'll help them learn, and they'll have fun doing it.
So far so good. You've got an interesting mystery and a fun cast of characters (I in particular enjoy Masked. He seems like a well of dry comedy clashing with the other cheerier characters). Looking forward to more!
Something funny that popped into my head thinking about Masked meeting Pinkie.
That group dynamic looks like it'll be fun. And there's something inherently hilarious about a group of badass fighters flying a cheerful and cute balloon to battle.
7823248
The transfer over from GoogleDocs was being particularly difficult this time, but I think I got all of those errant brackets this time.
7823252
That's always the problem with doing a story synopsis. You want to give enough to hook readers to check out your story, but you don't want to give away too much about the story itself. It's a difficult balance, unfortunately.
Off to a good start.
Looking forward to seeing the rest.
Personally I've never been a fan of the Twilight gets a guard platoon against her own wishes trope, but I'm interested to see how this goes. Though already I feel like Storm is more of a hand-maiden/assistant then a guard, which kinda makes Spike's role redundant. Also I couldn't help but notice no mention of Starlight? Is she just not present or does this take place in the past/future or a different timeline?
I'm rather curious as to how this will play out. I feel Twilight will have a hard time being in command. These aren't just her friends, these are soldiers being led into battle by her. That's a bit of a different dynamic. Masked's claim that he is there to curb Twilight's idealistic tendencies is interesting. I wonder if she will be able to condone the kinds of things you'd expect a secret agent to do. And most interesting, I wonder what dangers are that fortress that could threaten an alicorn princess and the bearer of Shadow's Armor. I await the next chapter eagerly! :)
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I wouldn't say that it's against her own wishes here, more that she's trying to grow used to a major change in her life. It's not really emphasized here, but if I do write further stories where Storm and Spike make an appearance, I figure Storm will handle more official work where Spike will deal with more administrative assistant and domestic duties for Twilight. It might be something to go into detail about later in a future story, especially when Spike might feel a bit pushed out, depending on how the story is presented.
This story takes place before Starlight comes to live in the Ponyville.
7824292
Thanks for replying. I'll definitely keep reading to see where this goes.
And we're off to a great start! Looking forward to the next chapter!
Oohhhh... Another Winningverse fic!
Is this fic considered canon to the Winningverse?
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It is, yes.
7824842 OH HELL TO THE YEAH!
Now... We just need to fill the time between the wedding and now...
And RariJack. RariJack is the needed cowbell of this universe.
7823252
7824094
I have to agree about the synopsis giving away a lot of the mystery, especially as it's not quite given away in the first chapter yet. But yeah, hooking potential readers and whatnot. Looking forward to more of the story!
So Twilight's going to bring airships into Equestria. Which got me thinking on how to actually do that. Granted they'll have magic so they could just magically strengthen light metals and assist in offsetting weight and propulsion. Though they'll still want to use already strong metals, be able to achieve at least neutral buoyancy, and move the ship about without it just in case. I figure the lift/propulsion that they use for the ship in avengers would probably be a good method for them.
I'll stop now just in case you have your own ideas.
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It's a bit of a damned if you do, damned if you don't type of deal like that. You want to attract readers, but not give too much away in the synopsis. So it's a tricky balance.
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There are a few different ways to do airships depending on how a writer would want to set them up. Especially when you add magic to the mix.
Odds are they'll encounter some beastly abomination inside. Maybe a crystalline dragon. Or a roggwart. Either way, hold on to your butts.
7824292
Storm: Twilight's Personal Guard, and Captain of [Insert name] Guard. Maybe this story will properly name the unit.
Spike: Steward of Castle Friendship and Twilight's Personal Assistant and Research Aide.
Well this should be fun. Glad to see a few unfamiliar names in the editor credits.
Pretty distinctive set of characters for the new guard so far.
I'd feel pretty confident about Rarity designing the dress uniforms, but I wonder if she is up to the task of actual armor. That's got to be new ground for her
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I figure she would focus more on the aesthetics and flourishes of the armor (like the color), rather than how the actual armor is designed, since that needs to be pretty utilitarian for the most part.
And Twilight invites Murphy over for tea ...
7823252 Agreed, although Twilight had a point, Celestia taught Twi' her ethics, so why would she think Twilight was too idealistic?
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I get the feeling that Masked interpreted the sisters' memo through a very cynical lens. Someone asking him for the exact words wouldn't be a bad idea.
She needs funds...to decide what to call the place?
Wait, now she has funds? Which is it?
Is anypony else having flashbacks to Crenshinibon?
The Crystal Shard?
Sapient evil artifact?
Enslaves the mind of its bearer?
...raises crystal towers that shoot fiery solar death rays at its enemies?
No?