The Olden World

by Czar_Yoshi

Friendship Under Night

The sun had set and the last traces of twilight were slowly fading from the sky when Valey made it back to the empty plaza where the bridge connected to shore. It had taken so long for another boat to sail through her particular arch that she gave up and trusted her wings, and one had knotted so hard on the short flight to safety that she came within inches of plunging into the sea. To make matters worse, the gate was by then completely barred with a patrol of ten sitting around outside it, and she simply couldn't trust her luck in the land of eternal batpony-haters.

Anything would have been more feasible if she understood what she was working with, but Valey's biggest problem was that she knew nothing about how the country around her worked. She had mostly zoned out during Gerardo's lectures once he reached the part about her not being universally welcomed, and now that she was there, she was being treated like... Well, if she was honest, exactly the same as she'd been treated in Ironridge, only this time she didn't have a threatening job to hide behind, no one was scared of her, and she had to care about the long run and couldn't just beat people up. That, and the barbs weren't quite as easy to shrug off as they had been before.

She flopped down on the same bench she had used as a resting point earlier. No matter how many times she asked herself how she had gotten soft, the answer didn't change: she had things to care about now, friends and a future, and that meant no more rushing headfirst into danger, since the off chance that she wasn't as invincible as she thought she was had real consequences now. And even if she had been invincible in Ironridge, the Empire was too much of an enigma for her to even know what she was up against, let alone that she could safely beat it. She was unpopular without doing anything to deserve it, got hoofed mysterious golden cards used to start bar fights, found magical statues locked away in maintenance closets, and then her friends... She gritted her teeth and shuddered. Not thinking about that.

The mana-powered floodlight brightening the plaza buzzed above her and made her ears twitch, old and slightly stained and emitting colorless white light. The shadows it cast were stark and should have been threatening, but with the advent of night, the city almost to relax and grow friendly. Empty streets were streets without frowns and unwanted attention, and dark patches were nothing more than avenues for escape. And she was the one who could sense danger anywhere and was impossible to sneak up on. It was almost like the tide of society had changed hooves with the setting of the sun, and the plaza was now telling her it was her turn. Or maybe that was the suspicious statue talking.

Valey got up. She couldn't stay there, bemoaning her fate, even though the plaza was peaceful and uninhabited and almost like a refuge beneath the stars. She blinked; the stars were appearing as the final traces of purple disappeared from the sky. That was a major difference from Ironridge. The city there never turned off its lights, Sosa and the upper districts emitting a never-ending veil of light into the sky... but here, nothing was quite bright enough to wash them out. She was too low to see the moon, still early into its rise, but it would be there too, waning yet closer to full than empty. The weather was with her. She had to do something.

Just as she started moving, contemplating finding out more about what her friends had said at the castle and if there was any message for her or explanation on why she had been left behind, something rustled at the edge of the plaza. A cloaked figure stepped into the light, and Valey swiveled her ears, not sensing any danger. The pony pulled off her hood, plain brown traveling cloak held on by a clasp at the front, shook her mane out, gave a friendly smile... and Valey blinked. Another batpony?

"Hey," Valey greeted cautiously, having no idea what to expect.

"Hi!" the other batpony greeted back, speaking clearly yet keeping her voice low. "Here seeking guidance too?"

Valey tipped her head, hoping to inquire more without seeming too clueless. The other batpony couldn't have been older than her early twenties, with a banana peel-yellow mane that curled toward her neck and a very cute smile, but what drew Valey to her most was that she was an actually friendly face in the strange and annoying Griffon Empire. This was an ally she needed to have.

"I didn't think anyone came this early," the batpony admitted, stepping closer and looking relaxed. "I usually wait until around midnight, but today was eventful, and, well..." She glanced around disarmingly and shrugged. "You know how it is. I'm Senescey. You?"

Valey noted her hopefully-extended hoof and bumped it. "Valey. And, uhh..." She twitched, rubbing a hind leg with the other. "Actually, I just got off a boat this afternoon and spent the day getting kicked around by bouncers and guards, so let's say I'm figuring out how it is."

Senescey's face constricted in a look of profound apology. "Oh, that's hard. You're not hurt, are you?"

"Cramped wings from flying in, but nah. I could beat those chumps up in my sleep." Valey shrugged. "Of course, I really wouldn't appreciate the entire city coming down on my head and have absolutely no idea what I've gotten myself into, so..."

She noted that Senescey hadn't reacted at all to her name, so if the griffon on the bridge had been telling the truth... She really needed to get ahold of whatever news was currently in circulation about her friends. The other batpony, if anything, looked only more concerned. "You came to Stormhoof without researching what it was like for us?"

"...Maybe?" Valey winced sheepishly, still deciding whether or not to appear on the back hoof. "Let's just say I figured my odds were better here than out west."

Senescey nodded, eyes widening in sudden understanding. "I heard something happened with Ironridge and Yakyakistan," she whispered, voice hushed. "And you just got in... Oh, were you there?"

Valey glanced carefully at her, reading her eyes. "If I had been, would that be a good thing or a bad thing?"

"I don't know," Senescey admitted. "If you're really new to the Empire, though... you should know that a lot of citizens don't like sarosians like us. It's because of the dusk statues. They think we're heretics who won't acknowledge their goddess, even though we essentially have to because Garsheeva is the one who protects us and lets us keep the dusk statues in the first place. All the provinces treat us differently, though. Stormhoof is one of the harder ones to live in, since the official policy on us is that there is no policy. Citizens can do almost whatever they want, so there's a little good and a whole lot of bad... The only one that's really worse is Everlaste. They actively try to make our lives difficult."

"Ouch." Valey blinked, though it was more to digest the information: finally, someone who knew how the Empire worked! "Any places that are specifically good ones?"

Senescey shrugged. "Sort of. Technically, the best is Izvaldi. Percival Izvaldi, who's effectively the ruling lord, tries very hard to be a champion of all his citizens. He's famous as an equinitarian, and his province is the best chance you'll have at living the same lifestyle as any normal pony or griffon."

"Buuuut...?" Valey leaned in closer, sensing a massive downside coming.

"Percival is a griffon," Senescey went on. "His grandfather, Lord Goraldi Izvaldi, is the only sphinx in the house, and never had a noble heir. He's elderly, and has been very sick and bedridden for years. He could pass on any day now, the doctors say, and when he does, control of the house and province will transfer to Prince Gazelle, unless something unexpected happens like another house going extinct first. Every sarosian in the empire is watching him. He's been very close to the Izvaldi house in recent years and frequently sides with Percival at the Council of Lords, but no one really knows for sure what he'll do once the house is his. So while you could go there..." She looked away. "I actually came from Izvaldi, just in case. Stormhoof isn't bad if you know the right circles. But I'll probably go home once Lord Goraldi passes on and everyone gets a chance to see what happens."

Valey nodded along. "So basically Izvaldi is nice but the dudes in charge might kick the bucket at any time, and then nobody knows what the new dude will do."

Senescey thought for a moment. "Prince Gazelle and Crown Princess Gwendolyn both say they're fans of sarosians, so everyone hopes it will work out for the best. But they've never had a chance to make laws and policies of their own, and won't until the princess marries and ascends to Empress or the prince takes over Izvaldi, so no one truly knows. But the capitol is another province you could try. It's just east of Stormhoof, and while Garsheeva lives there along with her most ardent fanatics, so do a lot of fans of the prince and princess. I've heard some neighborhoods are very nice, but you'll still get extreme behavior out of nowhere like in Stormhoof. You know who Garsheeva is, right?"

"Big giant griffon goddess, right?" Valey tipped her head. "Yeah, sorta. I take it paying respects to her and stuff is a pretty good idea."

Senescey nodded. "Oh, definitely. Speaking of paying respects, though, I did come here to talk to a dusk statue and get advice. You're welcome to join me, since I assume that's why you're here..." She trailed off, eyes widening. "Wait, if you're from outside the Empire, do you know about dusk statues? Or did it draw you here without you even realizing?"

"Draw me here?" Valey took a step back in alarm, recalling the mysterious presence she had felt guiding her to the effigy in the maintenance room. "I mean, uhhh... Let's pretend I know nothing?"

Senescey's pupils were huge. "Come with me! We do need to shadow swim to reach it, so I hope you're not one of the ones who can't stand it. If you are, though, just close your eyes and hold on tightly to me..."

---

The black statue gleamed with regal mystery, its stone coat glossy as the night sky and the ruby crescent on its chest twinkling like a star. It almost seemed to have come more alive since Valey saw it last, piercing stone eyes pinning Valey to the floor as if there were an invisible door inches before her muzzle.

"Dusk statues give us a special connection to the Night Mother," Senescey explained, looking like she was receiving a precious gift just by getting the chance to tell Valey about this for the first time. "They're inert to everyone but us, but if we approach them during the night, close our eyes and reach out..." She settled down on the floor, folding her cloak at the side of the room and tucking all four legs beneath her, facing the statue. "You can hear her voice and talk to her. She will keep you company, give you guidance and advice... and sometimes, if you're truly special or lucky, tell you about other things that are happening in the world. The first time I talked to her as a foal was an incredible experience. It's not something other ponies and griffons can understand, and I think that's part of why they fear it, but it's not about disrespecting Garsheeva. It's something that's special to us..."

"Uhh... yeah," Valey agreed, standing alongside her and having a staring contest with the statue. There was definitely some kind of magical energy in the room that was making the back of her neck tingle, but something about the idea of talking to statues... or someone she couldn't see talking through the statue unnerved her. "I'll give it a try. If I'm gone when you wake up, or whatever, it was cool meeting you, and I wouldn't mind running into you again."

Senescey smiled and slowly nodded, eyes already closed.

For several seconds, maybe even minutes, Valey stood and watched the statue, but never made any motion to get closer or mentally open herself or whatever, and predictably nothing happened. It might be useful, though. The statues could tell you what was happening elsewhere in the world? She could smell Starlight behind her on the fortress island, but if there was any way it could help her get past the guards, maybe it would be worth asking. No, wait: if it could tell her how Amber was doing, or find her a way to energize the sound stone, that was someone it would do her good to talk to. It was a magic statue, so maybe...

She blinked, a memory bobbing to the surface of her mind, and spun around toward the cramped corridor to the door. There, in a shaft running up and down set into the wall, was a ladder covered by that No Trespassing sign, marking the area beyond off limits on behalf of the Power Distribution Agency. Power... energy, mana... The bridge had lights on the side, so there had to be a power conduit somewhere inside, right? Whether the statue had somehow answered her prayer or it was her own fortitude, memory and luck, Valey eagerly licked her lips and began to climb.

Comments

[RoboRed]

The only one that's really worse is Everlaste. They actively try to make our lives difficult."

Ohboyguesswherewe'reheadedatsomepoint

[Venlinelle]

The magic Luna statues are very interesting. My first thought was that they provide some sort of conduit to the moon, but Nightmare Moon doesn’t really strike me as the helpful encouragement sort.

[sploopy slooder]

valey for fucks sakes just FLY over to starlight. this is getting ridiculous. who the fuck cares what amber is doing? how is that going to help anything? this just seems like the author forcing the plot instead of something that makes sense.