Domain of Friendship

by Cold Bolt

Episode 2-2

A knock came at the door to the Golden Oak Library.

Absorbed as she was in the strange book before her, Twilight Sparkle didn’t notice at first; it was only after a gentle prod from Spike that she called out. “Come on in!”

The door opened with a gentle creak and Tank Buster stepped inside, rolling one of his forelegs at the shoulder as he went. “You know, I’m starting to think I could get used to this whole ‘earth pony’ thing. I can pound fence posts into place in one hit, and I can do it all day without getting tired. I’m a little worried I’ll be sore in the morning though…”

Twilight shook her head, smiling pleasantly. “I’m sure you’ll be fine; earth ponies have always been good at this sort of thing. Does that mean your first day working for the Mayor went well?”

Tank nodded as he approached the table at which Twilight sat. “Actually, yeah. I’m still at the outskirts of the forest, so I haven’t seen anything tougher than timberwolves just yet, and… they’re not much to write home about.” His train of thought derailed as he glanced at the open book in front of her, and he raised an eyebrow. “So uh, what book is that?”

Twilight closed the cover and slid it toward Tank. “I’m still trying to figure that out, actually. It arrived at the library by mail this morning, with no return address. I have no idea who sent it.”

“That’s… weird.” Tank took a seat beside Twilight as he picked up the book and peered at the cover. “'Filgaia Fables…’?”

Twilight sighed quietly, deflating a little. “A part of me was hoping that sounded familiar to you.”

“Not in the slightest.” Tank shook his head as he opened it and began flipping pages. “Let’s see. 'Zephyr, the West Wind…’ 'Sword of Justine…’ 'Goddess Raftina…’?”

Twilight gestured at the book with a hoof as she spoke. “From what I can tell, it’s a collection of fairy tale-like stories, but I can’t make heads or tails of them. They keep talking about 'guardians’ and 'metal demons’ and other things I’ve never heard of before, without really offering any context.”

Tank continued staring at the book as though willing it by sheer determination to reveal its secrets. “O…kay, I think we’ve moved on from 'weird’ into the realm of 'completely bizarre.’” He paused for a moment to scratch his head. “I mean, I’m assuming you wanted me to look it over because you think it might be tied to the Elements somehow, but I can’t say I’m convinced. It’s a strange book to be sure, but what makes you think it’s at all relevant?”

With a glow of her horn, Twilight lifted the book from Tank’s grip, flipped to a page near the beginning, and set it back down in his hooves. “Take a look at that opening passage there.”

Tank scanned the page for a moment before clearing his throat.

“These aspects of the heart, long lost to time
We pay our tribute thus in song and rhyme
Forgotten now, they shall await their due
Till breath of life is granted them anew…”

Spike peered at the book over Tank’s shoulder. “Well? What do you think?”

Tank stared at the page blankly. “I think whoever wrote this was being pretentious. Did it really need to be in iambic pentameter?”

Twilight rolled her eyes and gave a small sigh. “Tank, it’s a riddle! Look at the first line there. Aspects of the heart that were lost to time? That sounds suspiciously like forgotten Elements of Harmony if you ask me.”

“Hmm…” Tank gave the page another cursory reading before shaking his head once again and lowering the book. “I dunno if I’m gonna be much help here then. Nobody beats me when it comes to block puzzles, but I was never any good at riddles. Those were always Riley’s gig…”

“Wait a sec. Can I see that?” Spike pointed a claw at the book.

After a moment’s curious hesitation, Tank set it down on the table beside him. “Uh… sure, knock yourself out.”

Spike stared at the page for a moment, stroking his chin in thought. “Aha! That’s it!”

Having spent the past moment or so holding her hoof up to her mouth in anticipation, Twilight had to lower it before speaking. “What is it, Spike?”

“I thought something in here sounded familiar,” he explained, “and I think I found it. Here, in the last line - didn’t we read something in an old history book about a 'breath of life’ just a few days ago?”

Twilight gasped. With no further ado, she leapt out of her seat, dashing across the room to a stack of books arranged neatly next to a comfortable-looking pile of pillows and lifting them into the air with her magic, the better to scan their titles as quickly as possible. “Here it is!” she soon declared, returning to the table with a leather-bound book that showed signs of advanced age.

“Wow, that’s a history book?” Tank quirked an eyebrow. “It looks old enough to have been part of history itself.”

Twilight quickly flipped her way through the book, skimming page after page in search of a familiar passage. “Here it is! Spike, you’re a genius!” She punctuated this sentence by giving him an affectionate noogie.

“Haha! Okay okay, stop!” Spike brushed Twilight’s hoof away from his head, grinning in spite of himself.

“Right, now let’s see…” Twilight paced back and forth for a moment, the book hovering magically before her as she re-read the passage. “According to this book, many ancient cultures believed that naming an object gave it a life of its own. This gift was referred to as… the 'breath of life!’ Tank, do you know what this means?”

For a moment, Tank looked as confused as ever… until the gears in his mind finally began to click into place. “Wait, then…” He sat back on his haunches and began tracing something in the air before him with his hoof. “Carry the two…” Suddenly, it came to him. “So to rediscover these Elements, all we have to do is figure out what their names are?”

Twilight nodded fervently, grinning as she snapped the history book closed and set it aside. “That’s my best hypothesis so far, at least.”

Tank scratched his head. “Well, I’ll admit this idea is a bit more compelling than it was a minute ago, and it’s the only real lead we have so far, but…” He shrugged. “It almost sounds too easy when you put it that way.”

“I have a feeling it’ll be a bit tougher than you think,” Twilight suggested. “I’ve been compiling notes on friendship since I arrived in Ponyville; let’s have a look at them together and - ”

CRASH

The front door slammed open as a colorful pegasus burst through it, skidding to a stop in the center of the room.

“Wh - ?” Tank whirled around at the sudden noise. “Geez, Rainbow Dash. Where’s the fire?”

“Guys, guys!” Rainbow Dash hopped into the air, hovering as she pointed at the sky through a nearby window. “There’s a huge storm coming this way!”

Twilight stared at Rainbow quizzically. “Another one? Didn’t we just have a big storm a few days ago?”

Rainbow waved her forehooves frantically. “There was an accident at the weather factory in Cloudsdale! A storm cloud got loose, and it’s headed straight for Ponyville! It’s too big for the weather patrol to stop in time, so we’re trying to warn everypony to stay indoors.”

Tank froze in place, his eyes wide as dinner plates.

Twilight peered out the window. “How long do we have until it arrives?”

“Uh…” Rainbow Dash glanced at the clock. “…About four seconds.”

Comments

[avatoa]

Celestia dammit, RD.