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Prologue273 words
Birth of a Hero2,833 words
The Massacre7,888 words

The Massacre

Chapter 2: The Massacre

A meteor shower.

Orion gazed up at the sky numbly, trying to assimilate all the information and emotions that had fought their way into his mind at once. His train of thought functioned as if he was in somepony else’s body, an outside spectator who was observing him from a distance.

His foal was the Chosen One. He wasn’t entirely sure how he felt about that.

On one hoof, being the pony who was destined to save Equestria and the Princesses would, naturally, be a great honour. On the other hoof, his son was going to have to put himself in danger’s way, possibly many times. He would have to suffer, he was sure- but then again, he couldn’t do anything about it.

By that time, all the medical staff were outside, admiring the rain of comets. The doctor and the few nurses who were in the room with him previously stared at him with bewilderment. Shaking his head, Orion wordlessly re-entered the hospital, heading towards the room in which his wife lay.

When he entered the room, he discovered a stunning lack of newborn foals, and a very concerned looking Starlight stared at him. “What’s wrong, Orion dear?” The unicorn could read the turmoil on his face.

“Nothing’s wrong, Starlight.” Orion knew that the purple mare wasn’t buying it.

“You’re not telling me something.” Again, she was right. Orion was struggling to decide between keeping the secret to himself for the time being and telling Starlight immediately. He elected to keep quiet until he could decide.

“Orion… are… are you alright?” Starlight tried to get up, but she didn’t have the strength.

“I’m alright. Don’t try to get up.” Orion knew that the unicorn would just get more and more worried the longer he refused to tell her, He had to make a snap decision.

“Dear… I… well…” Think, you foal! Orion scolded himself. How do you break it to her?

“Yes?” Starlight prompted him.

“Well…” Orion hesitated at the last moment, but he had already begun. Starlight wouldn’t let him out of the room if he didn’t tell her.

“The noise outside… was… well… a meteor shower.” He winced at the last words. He already knew that Starlight understood the significance of the event.

The purple unicorn stayed silent for a while, taking in what she had just heard. Her expression was a neutral one, and Orion knew that was a bad thing. She always hid the emotions she didn’t want others to see behind a mask of nonchalance, but as her husband, the earth pony knew her well enough to see through her façade.

“I see.” Was all Starlight could offer.

Now Orion felt even worse. He had made the wrong decision, and Starlight was paying for it. The uncomfortable silence dragged on, unbroken by both ponies. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity but was probably only minutes, Starlight spoke up.

“What do you want to call them?” she asked quietly.

“Hmm… I haven’t thought about that yet.” Orion was grateful to be able to break the silence and change the subject at the same time. “How about Isabel? That’s a nice name.”

“Agreed.” Starlight nodded, still wearing that neutral expression. “How about the Ch- I mean, the colt.”

Orion pretended to ignore the slip-up. “Steel. He will be as tough and as unbreakable as steel.” He looked at his wife, injecting a note of finality into his voice. “That’s his name. I don’t want him going around getting laughed at because of a stupid name, especially if- well, you know.”

Starlight nodded. “Steel it is, then. Steel D-

“No!” The earth pony cut her off. “Like I said, I don’t want my foals going around with stupid names. And both you and I know that my last name is a stupid one.”

“But it isn’t!” Starlight protested. “It’s not all that bad! I mean, Do-”

“Please don’t say it.” Orion kept his last name hidden from almost everypony. He obviously intended his wife to be one of the exceptions, so after much pestering and cajoling, he had revealed it to her. He had spent the next few days getting laughed at, even though Starlight had insisted that it wasn’t ridiculous. “Just use your last name.”

The purple mare spoke resignedly. “Fine. Isabel and Steel Sparkle, then.”

“Thank you.” Orion was grateful that Starlight had decided not to press the issue. However, he knew that since he had finished choosing the names for his foals, the topic of conversation would revert to the previous one, so he kept his mouth shut. He still wasn’t sure how Starlight felt about their colt being the one who would save all of Equestria, which was exactly why he was worried.

The deafening silence from before settled in again, and Orion’s discomfort heightened. He wished that one of the doctors or nurses would come in and say something to break the silence, but nopony came knocking. Figures, Orion thought. He could still hear the echoing booms of the comets hitting earth. He wouldn’t be surprised if everypony had come out of their houses to watch the spectacle.

“I don’t care.” Starlight suddenly spoke up.

“What?” Orion’s ears shot up.

“I don’t care.” The unicorn repeated. “Can we just live the next few days as if nothing is out of the ordinary? I’ve been waiting for this moment for a long time, and I expected it to be a happy one. We can worry about the other stuff later. Just… can we try to enjoy a few days with our foals without looking at one of them and seeing him not as our colt, but the Chosen One?”

There. Starlight had said it. She admitted that Steel was the Chosen One. That meant that she had accepted the full truth. Orion was glad that she did not take it too badly. He would never have forgiven himself if she ended up on the floor, crying her eyes out.

“Yes… yes, of course we can, honey.” Orion wrapped his forelegs around his wife. A few tears slid down her cheek. Orion nuzzled her, hoping that his attempt at comforting her would succeed. In return, Starlight tried to plaster a grin on her face. It was obviously forced, but it was a start.

Orion suddenly remembered something. “Um, Starlight?”

“Yes, Orion?” He could see the look on Starlight’s face that said that she didn’t want any more earth-shattering news for the night.

“Where are the foals?” He looked around him, scanning the room for them.

His wife’s look dissolved into one of relief. “One of the nurses took him to the nursery.”

“I see.” Orion turned around and headed towards the door. “Should I get them?”

Starlight smiled, naturally this time. “Please do.”

“I’ll be back soon.” When he reached the door, Orion turned around and blew Starlight a kiss. The unicorn giggled and winked at him. He exited the room and turned down the corridor, following the sign marked ‘NURSERY’.

****

“What? A meteor shower?”

“Impossible!”

“That must mean that the Chosen One is here!”

“Really?”

“Yes!”

“I can’t believe it!”

“It must be true! Look at the comets!”

All of the random exclamations soon evolved into a coordinated shout that echoed across the plains, rivalling the sound the comets produced.

“SALVATION IS HERE!”

The doctor’s eyes were focused on the meteor shower, just like everypony else, but he was neither bewildered nor confused. No, he had no time for those emotions. He had a duty, and that was to Equestria.

The yellow unicorn raced back into the hospital, galloping through the numerous corridors that led to the nursery. Only one thought was running through his mind: I’ve got to get to the colt! At least nopony was here to stop his advance.

Finally, when the doctor was hot and out of breath, he finally located the nursery door and burst through, hoping that nopony heard him. He stopped short when he caught sight of a confused turquoise earth pony staring at him, cradling two tiny foals in his grasp. “Is there anything wrong, Doc?”

The doctor was about to shout: Yes of course something is wrong! But stopped when he recognised the pony. It was the father of the Chosen One!

“Um…” He struggled to remember the pony’s name. It was something to do with a constellation. “Taurus, was it?”

“Actually, that’s Orion.” The pony cocked his head. “Is there anything I can do for you?”

“I… well… I need to conduct a few tests on your newborn foals to make sure that nothing is amiss.” The doctor managed to stammer out an appropriate response while recovering from the earlier embarrassment.

“Uh huh.” Orion was definitely suspicious now. “Then let’s go.”

Horse apples. The doctor was hoping that he could be alone, but evidently fate had other plans. He deliberately led Orion through a set of doors at the side of the nursery slowly, at the same time desperately trying to remember the tests. He hadn’t had to deal with this for years. His original plan was to make off with the colt, but now with Orion following, the chances of his getting away were practically nil. The door opened, revealing a whitewashed room with various apparatus.

“Alright… first, we need to weigh them.” The doctor levitated the two ponies out of Orion’s grasp and placed the filly on a scale.

“Hmm… acceptable.” The yellow unicorn levitated her off the scale, and slowly lowered the colt on it, being much gentler than before. Orion noticed this, too, and he stiffened.

The doctor pretended not to notice, and instead focused all his attention on the scale. “A little on the underweight side.” He had not expected this.

“I see.” Orion spoke slowly, and his expression suggested that he wanted to say something else, but the earth pony remained silent.

“Next: height.” The doctor brought the two foals over to a ruler taped on the wall. He put the filly on one side and the colt on the other. The green glow from his horn persisted, straightening the foals against the wall.

“Again, acceptable.” The doctor scrutinised the filly, making sure that his magic was working correctly and that she was standing up straight. After a few seconds, he nodded approvingly. Moving on to the colt, the yellow unicorn was shocked when he saw that he did not even reach the acceptable range.

The doctor turned to Orion, the glow from his horn dying out. “Your filly is perfectly fine. Your colt, however, needs to put on some weight. He isn’t very healthy right now. I recommend a balanced diet.” All of his advice would never be carried out, anyway. He had a new plan.

“Thanks anyway.” Orion wrapped the two foals in an embrace and carried them out of the room. “I’ll be leaving now.”

“Take care.” The doctor waved at him as the door slid shut. The moment he was cut off from the outside world, his horn began to emit a bright light, and a quill and a piece of paper floated out of an open drawer and levitated in front of him. He scribbled out a quick note, then rolled it up and sealed it with a piece of string. His horn continued to glow as another two objects slid out of the drawer. The first was long and slender, curved as it approached the middle, and eventually curling back into a roughly C-like shape. A string connected the two ends. The other object was a long tube, filled with many sharp copper-tipped arrows.

The yellow unicorn exited the room, passing through many hallways until he reached a room marked RECORDS. He strolled in, thanking the Goddesses that all the ponies were still outside watching the meteor shower. He trotted to the lonely storage locker that was one of the only objects in the room. His horn glowed even brighter, and a single slip of paper from the partition marked RECENT BIRTHS floated up into the air. Unflinchingly, the doctor tore the paper into many small bits and dropped it into the wastepaper basket next to the locker. Now it was completely unreadable.

Next, he galloped hospital from its back door, relying on the meteor shower once again to keep everypony else distracted. The moment he got out of the building, he was startled by the rays of the morning light shining on his face. Too much time had passed.

He galloped with as much speed as he could muster towards the Everfree Forest. When the doctor got close enough, he slid the piece of parchment onto the shaft of one of the arrows and placed it onto the bow. He pulled the string back, and with a thpwing sound, the arrow ricocheted towards the forest and wedged itself deeply into the bark of a tree.

The unicorn did not move. He kept his eyes trained on the arrow.

A few seconds later, a shadowy figure emerged from the forbidding forest and wrenched the arrow out of the tree. Grabbing it in his mouth, he disappeared back into the Everfree Forest.

The doctor breathed a sigh of relief. His mission was complete. Taking care to remain unseen, he slinked back into the village.

****

It was very dark, but this did not seem to bother the unicorn sitting on the chair at the back of the room. It was what he was used to, sitting in the room in near-total darkness and total silence.

However, he was far from used to the booms reverberating throughout the room, causing everything to vibrate ceaselessly.

“Shade! Intelligence report!”

The unicorn’s ears perked up. “Come in.”

The door to the room opened, revealing a cloaked pony holding an arrow in his mouth. He let it fall onto the stone floor before speaking up. “We’ve got two pieces of information.”

Shade snorted. “Two? It’s been ages since we’ve had one. Well, spit it out, Phantasm.”

“Well, it’s a bit hard to read in this light, don’t you think?”

Shade sighed. “Just a second.”

His horn glowed a deep blue, and torches on the side of the wall that were previously unseen lit up, bathing the immediate vicinity in a soft, orange glow. The details became apparent. It was made of stone, irregular blocks stacked atop each other in order to create a large but ugly room. It was mostly empty, save for the plain oak chair on which Shade sat. The unicorn himself had a faded brown coat, and his carefully combed mane had not a brown hair out of place. His orange eyes radiated kindness, but a thoughtful frown stayed on his face this time.

Phantasm recited the first one from memory. “This message is from Agent Seven, based in Talona. He told us that the Central Army in Talona has left and is headed towards Equestria.”

Shade pondered this for a moment. “Well, they have no reason to come here. They fear the Everfree Forest, so the chances are that whatever business they have does not involve us.”

“The other one is from Agent Nine, situated in the town nearby.” Phantasm hesitated before continuing. “There was a meteor shower.”

If Shade had been drinking anything, he would have spit it all out. As it was, he spluttered uncontrollably, choking on his saliva. Phantasm watched him silently until the brown unicorn managed to regain his composure.

“The Chosen One.” Shade definitely wasn’t expecting it.

Phantasm nodded. “The Avenger.”

“Where is this pony?” The unicorn stallion was hoping against hope that Agent Nine had reported the position of the Chosen One. “We have to get to him before the griffins do!”

The cloaked pony nodded. “Nine wrote that he was a crimson red unicorn colt, which was very unusual as none of his relatives were red at all. He should be located in the local library, and his parents are Starlight Sparkle and Orion.”

Shade raised an eyebrow. “Just Orion?”

Phantasm nodded. “Yes. Apparently, he declined to give Nine his last name.”

Shade nodded. “Good enough. Tell the Sun Council to mobilise their forces. We need to take the Chosen One before the griffins do. The Moon Council will be in charge of retrieving Agent Nine.”

The cloaked pony turned to leave. “As you wish, Shade.”

The moment Phantasm left and the door shut, all of the torches were simultaneously extinguished, leaving Shade in total darkness until his eyes could adjust.

“The time has come. We will have our revenge!”

****

“Can you get up?” Orion was watching Starlight trying to sit up and get out of bed. He was rather concerned. For the past few minutes, he had offered to assist her many times, but she had refused and insisted on being ‘self sufficient’ or something like that. Now, she looked all the worse for it.

“You know what? Just help me.” Starlight decided to give up, which Orion was grateful for. She knew when to quit.

“Okay.” The earth pony pushed her up from behind, using all his strength to support her. Soon, Starlight was in an upright position, and she rolled over so that she moved off the bed, where her legs managed to support the weight of her body. They wobbled a little bit, but held. Orion breathed a sigh of relief.

“Are you okay?” the earth pony hoped that Starlight didn’t suddenly collapse. “You can walk by yourself, right?”

The unicorn nodded. “Let’s go.”

By then, the meteor shower had ended. Most of the ponies had gone back to do their own things, but the shower was still the talk of the town. Orion could hear the words ‘comets’, ‘Chosen One’ and ‘vengeance’ being whispered to others over and over again. However, most ponies stopped talking altogether when they caught sight of Orion. Many stared at him, wondering why he chose to support the two foals in one leg while trying to hobble along with the other three when there was a unicorn that could help him. Still, nopony approached him or glared hatefully at Starlight, so at least they understood that something was wrong.

In reality, Orion didn’t even recognise most of those ponies. He had rarely been in the hub of the town before, and when he did, he was too busy rushing to complete errands. But now, he actually recognised the town for what it was. The shops lining the street sold all sorts of assorted items, ranging from food to valuable metals. It was clear that Starlight had never been in this section of the town either; she was looking around her, curiosity bright in her eyes. Orion smiled at her, glad that she was enjoying herself. She loved learning and seeing new things as much as reading, and the unicorn enjoyed reading a lot.

Suddenly, Starlight let out a gasp and rushed over to a storekeeper at the side of the busy road. Orion saw her discussing something with the shopkeeper, a diminutive pink unicorn mare with a straight purple mane and some sort of a circular object for her cutie mark. They were too far away for Orion to hear anything, but he caught sight of the shopkeeper nodding, then holding out her hoof, presumably asking for bits. Starlight appeared to explain something to her and the pink unicorn nodded.

Orion watched Starlight return to his side, a satisfied expression on her face. “What did you buy?”

“Nothing yet, at least.” The unicorn gestured for her husband to continue walking. “I’ll tell you later.”

“Okay.” Orion didn’t want to push her; he had read about post-natal tantrums, and he didn’t want to be on the receiving end of one. “Tell me when you’re ready.”

“Just as soon as we get home and I can get to the stack of bits you’re hiding behind my copy of The History of Equestria.”

Orion froze. “How did you know about that?”

“I found it behind the book when I was looking for a story to read to the foals.” Starlight giggled.

The earth pony groaned. “Of course. You have to pick the one book I don’t want you to.”

“Call it a librarian’s intuition. Don’t worry, I won’t use those bits, I’ll use my own.” Starlight gestured to the door in front of them with a hoof. “You have the keys, don’t you?”

Orion was surprised. He hadn’t expected to arrive back at the library so quickly. He would have walked into the door if Starlight hadn’t spoken up. “Just a minute.” He reached under the doormat with his face and retrieved the keys that lay underneath. He inserted the piece of metal into the keyhole and twisted it deftly. With a click, the door swung open. He turned back to Starlight to see her giving him a sceptical look. “What?”

“Seriously?” Starlight shook her head.

“Did I do something wrong?” Orion honestly didn’t know whether it was him Starlight was shaking her head at. Mares were so hard to figure out.

“You keep our key under the doormat?” the unicorn sighed. “Haven’t you considered that some thieves might break in or something?”

“Oh. That. Well, what if we forget the key and we get locked in?” Actually, the reason why Orion liked keeping the key under the mat was so that he didn’t have to carry it around with him all day. He didn’t even normally wear clothes, so there were no pockets to leave the key conveniently inside. But he wasn’t going to let Starlight know that.

“Better that nopony can go in than robbers getting in and taking everything!” Starlight was exasperated by now.

“Fine, fine, I’ll bring it in.” Orion picked up the key he had dropped on the ground and trotted in. Starlight sighed again and followed him in, making sure that she closed the door behind her. The door’s automatic mechanism kicked in, locking it. Orion dropped the dirty key on the table next to the door, where a pair of closed curtains blocked the light from entering the room. Orion flung the curtains aside and pushed the window open, illuminating the previously darkened room. With that task accomplished, he took special care to deposit the two little foals wrapped up in cloth carefully on the couch. They had dozed off during the journey, and both were emitting snorts and grunts as they slept.

When Orion had finished these few errands, he rushed over to the bathroom, trying to clear his teeth of all of the grime and dirt that had rubbed off on them. Starlight ignored him and headed upstairs to their bedroom, where she kept all of her valuables.

When the earth pony finally got out of the bathroom, having effectively disinfected his mouth with a litre of mouthwash, he saw Starlight just about to leave, a bag full to the brim with bits firmly secured between her teeth.

Starlight heard his hoofsteps and turned to face him. “I’m going now. I’ll be back in a few minutes, okay?”

“Okay. Bye.” Orion watched until the door slid shut with a click, then quickly rushed over to the bookshelves. “E… E… ah! There.” Orion scanned the shelf marked E thoroughly until he found the book that he was looking for. The earth pony yanked The History of Equestria out of the shelf and grabbed the bag of bits that was hidden behind it.

“Where should I put it now? Hmm…” Orion paced the library, looking for an ideal spot. He couldn’t hide it behind a book again, that was for sure. Anywhere in the vicinity of books would be unsafe. The bedroom would also be too obvious; Starlight trotted around there every day. Unless…

Orion raced up the stairs, hurrying towards the bedroom. Once there, he trotted towards the mattress, lifting it with his head and dropping the bag of bits there. He quickly moved out of the way, allowing the mattress to fall back to its original position, concealing the container. Not a moment too soon; Orion heard the successive knocks on the door that Starlight always carried out before she came in. He raced downstairs just in time to see the unicorn enter, holding a small box containing something within in her teeth, as well as the now-empty bag that used to contain her bits.

“So what did you get, honey?” Orion approached, trying to look innocent.

If he was showing any outward signs of nervousness, Starlight didn’t seem to notice. “See, look!” She emptied the contents of the box onto the table. Orion leaned in closer for a better look.

On the wooden table were two small necklaces, their chains made of silver. At the bottom of each was a circular pendant, and there were words engraved on them. The first read: Steel Sparkle and the second: Isabel Sparkle. At the centre of each was a sparkling ruby.

“Oh… oh my…” Orion stared at them incredulously. “These must have cost a fortune.”

“They did.” Starlight smiled. “And it was totally worth it.” She looked at the earth pony more seriously. “We both know that Steel is going to have to go away eventually if he is going to avenge Equestria, so I had this custom made so that he wouldn’t forget us. I didn’t want to seem partial, so I got them both one each. And watch.” The unicorn used her hooves to press down both rubies at once.

With a snap, both medallions shot open, revealing identical pictures of Orion and Starlight together. It was their wedding; both ponies, decked out in fine clothing, were smiling when the picture was taken. On the top cover, there were the words:

From Mommy and Daddy: We will love you forever.

Slowly, Orion reached out to touch the necklaces. “I… I…”

Starlight touched him on the shoulder. “When they grow up, I hope they look at us and say ‘I’m proud that they’re my parents’ instead of ‘who are these old timers?’ This is our first act of love towards them, and I want only the best for my foals.” Starlight reached forward and pressed the covers back into position, closing the necklaces.

“Alright.” Orion hoped the foals would appreciate them when they grew up. He cast a glance at them. Isabel was still asleep, but Steel was awake, looking at him with those adorable sky-blue eyes of his. Orion extended his hoof, reaching for the necklaces. However, they were enveloped by a dark blue aura before he touched them. The earth pony looked at Starlight, whose horn was shimmering with energy.

“You can use magic now?” Orion looked at the unicorn, who seemed to be perspiring from the effort.

“Yes, I can…ah!” The necklaces, a few centimetres above the table, dropped back onto the hard wooden surface. Starlight looked at them for a few seconds, then turned her sheepish gaze to Orion. “Or not.”

“Here, let me do it.” Orion lifted the two chains in his mouth, taking them over to the two foals. He slid one of them carefully over the sleeping Isabel’s head, tucking it under the cloth that surrounded her. When he had done the same for Steel, the little red colt looked up at him and opened his mouth.

He said a single word, but it was enough to make Orion start to tear. “Dada.”

The earth pony wiped the liquid from his eyes with one hoof, trying to contain the tears of joy. Starlight came up beside him. “They grow up so fast, don’t they, Orion?”

Orion turned to Starlight. “Yes. Yes, they do.”

The unicorn smiled. “Come on, let’s go and get ready for dinner. I’ll wash up first.”

The earth pony flashed a lopsided grin. “Okay. I’ll go and make dinner. Take your time.”

“See you in a few minutes.” Starlight trotted up the stairs, leaving Orion all alone. The turquoise pony went to the kitchen, where he prepared to fix the meal that they would be eating. He couldn’t forget to make enough for four, now.

He had just retrieved the lettuce from the cabinet when a voice from upstairs startled him. “Hey, what’s this under the bed?”

Orion groaned. “Oh horse apples.”

****

The two cloaked ponies hid in the bushes, waiting until all the lights had gone out before they decided to break in. The library was a solid hut, and it did not look like the place where one could find a stray brick or secret entrance that would allow access to it.

“So, Phantasm, how do you think we’re supposed to pull this one off?” The first pony snapped, taking care to lower his volume just enough so that he did not wake the inhabitants of the nearby buildings.

“Shut up, Ray! I’m trying to think!” Phantasm rubbed his temples. “It takes time for a genius to think of an idea, you know!”

“Okay then. While you stay here and think of an idea, I’ll scout out the area. We’ll see who can find a way in first!” Ray stalked off, leaving Phantasm all alone in the bush.

“Fine! See if I care!” Ray ignored his comrade and trotted around the library, trying to spot any weaknesses that he could exploit. I’m dealing with the parents of the Avenger here. Ray thought. They aren’t any ordinary ponies.

He walked a few dozen metres before he came to an open window. Or maybe they are. He mused. Sticking his head inside, he identified a metallic object that had the shape of a key. Grinning triumphantly, he grasped it between his teeth and pulled his head out. He was about to show off to Phantasm when the full taste of the key hit him.

“Argh!” He dropped the key onto the ground and started scraping it thoroughly with his hooves. Hearing the noise, Phantasm trotted over.

“What are you doing?” He looked down. “Ah ha! A key!” It was immediately surrounded in a grey aura, and it floated into the air. The piece of metal lodged itself firmly in the keyhole and turned. With a click, the door slid open.

“Ha! I told you I would win!” Phantasm strolled in as if the hut belonged to him. Ray glared hatefully at him for a few seconds, then hurried after him.

The room was darkened, but Ray’s eyes had already become accustomed to the darkness. He looked around the room, searching for any sign of a foal. Of course, he didn’t expect to see anything; first-time parents often slept with their foals.

His search having discovered nothing, Ray turned his attention to the stairs. He could hear Phantasm in the kitchen, looking for any clues. He carefully ascended the staircase, trying to make as little noise as possible. When he reached the top, he tiphoofed to the first room. Using his mouth to turn the knob, he slowly peeked inside.

He caught sight of a unicorn and an earth pony sleeping on a bed. The earth pony was snoring softly, but nopony seemed to be disturbed. He was not interested in them, however. He was more interested in the two foals that slept beside them. One was a blue earth pony, so he ignored that one. The other, on the contrary, was a much more promising crimson red colt. He just needed to identify whether the foal was a unicorn or not.

The colt shifted slightly in his sleep, and Ray just managed to identify the tip of a horn. Gotcha.

Ray started into the room, slowly shutting the door behind him. Now that he was so close to his goal, all the thoughts of what could go wrong started popping into his head. All the noises that could possibly wake the sleeping ponies were amplified a thousand fold, and every step was agony. By the time the cloaked pony had reached the red foal, he was sweating profusely. He slowly cradled the foal in one foreleg, careful not to wake it up. Then the terrible and excruciating journey back across the length of the room began, and Ray was trying hard not to panic. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the cloaked pony reached the door again. He turned the knob silently, opening the door that led to his freedom. Just one more step…

The colt’s eyes shot open.

Ray froze.

Both of them stared at each other, unable to move. The tension stretched on, and Ray knew that the foal could expose him with a single cry.

Finally, the colt closed his eyes again, choosing not to utter a single sound. Ray breathed a sigh of relief, then exited the room and closed the door.

He did it! He had succeeded!

Ray galloped downstairs as fast as he could, mouthing words to Phantasm on the way. Come on, let’s go!

The unicorn nodded in return and followed Ray out of the library. The sounds of griffin speech and the light from several torches urged them to hurry faster.

****

Orion awoke to the high-pitched cacophony of noises that he recognised instinctively from his language classes. It was Griffese, the griffin national language. The expert diction of the words alerted the earth pony to the identity of the noise-makers. They were griffins!

The sound of a door being torn off its hinges violently reverberated throughout the library. This time, Starlight sat up, too.

“What’s going on?” she asked sleepily, rubbing her eyes with her hooves.

The intruders switched from Griffese to Equinish in an instant. “Come down here, Equestrian scum!” the voice bellowed.

Throughout all of this, Isabel managed to remain asleep. Orion patted her gently, then turned to do the same for Steel, until he realised that the colt was nowhere to be found. He froze for a second, allowing all the comforting thoughts of explanations to flow into his mind.

There were none.

“I’m not calling you again, pony!” The voice screeched from below. “Come here now if you value your life!”

Reluctantly, Orion left the bedroom, trotting down the stairs with his wife. He could solve that problem later. Right now he had more pressing issues. His heart ached as he imagined his treasured son lying in the bushes somewhere, but it would do nopony any good if his father was dead.

While descending the staircase, Orion tried to project an air of aloofness. He didn’t want to let the griffins know that he was scared.

“What do you think they’re here for?” Starlight sounded very worried, but her face appeared completely calm. She had put on her nonchalant face again, and the earth pony was surprised by how easily it came to her. He just wished that he could do the same.

When he reached the bottom of the stairs, he came face-to-face with a griffin escorted by numerous guards carrying swords and torches. Her right talon was on the hilt of the sword that rested by her side. The rings around her eyes were purple. Purple meant that she occupied an influential position in the griffin hierarchy. Now Orion was definitely afraid. They didn’t send a high-ranking officer to bash down just anypony’s door.

“Well?” the griffin snapped. “Hand over the filly!”

Orion started to panic. He could see a few cracks in his wife’s mask of calmness. “What filly?” He decided to act dumb, hoping the griffins wouldn’t be any the wiser.

“Don’t lie to me, pony! I checked the medical records, and they say that you have a foal who was born just today!”

The earth pony’s heart sank even further. Now he was in a spot.

“You’re not going to give her to me? Fine. I’ll just have to get her myself.” The griffin snapped her talons. “Guards!”

Two griffins stepped forward, bowing as they did. “Yes, captain.”

She pointed to the staircase. “Get the foal!”

The moment she finished, both Orion and Starlight raced back upstairs, just seconds ahead of the other two guards who stupidly took the time to bow to the lead griffin again before taking off after their prey. Orion followed Starlight into the bedroom, where she grabbed Isabel in both forelegs and cried. Orion watched, still not believing what was happening. Just a few minutes ago, he was sleeping peacefully, with his two foals and his wife beside him. Now, he was being chased by griffins who wanted to kill him.

Strange how life can turn out like this, he thought absently.

He barely had time to catch his breath before the two griffins entered the room, one brandishing a threatening longsword, the other holding ut his torch threateningly.

“Hand over the filly.” One of the guards said. “If you do not comply, we will be forced to resort to lethal force.”

“No!” Starlight cried. “I won’t let you take Isabel!”

The second stepped forward, waving his weapon threateningly. “You leave me no choice.”

He slashed his sword downwards, aiming towards the unicorn’s throat. Orion felt his heart stop in his chest. “No!”

Everything unfolded in slow motion. The rest of the world fell away. All that was left was the griffin that was swinging his sword towards his wife. He tried to look away, but he couldn’t. He watched as the sword sliced through pony flesh. He watched as Starlight fell to the ground, still clutching Isabel in her embrace. He watched the life drained out of her sweet yellow eyes, and her leg hung limp, letting the little filly fall out her embrace.

He had watched his beloved wife’s death.

And he had lived through it.

All of a sudden, a conversation he had with Starlight popped into his mind.

It was their honeymoon. Starlight and Orion had taken a trip to the Waterfalls of Canterlot.

“Will you ever leave me?” the unicorn asked out of the blue, gazing dreamily at Orion.

Orion was surprised by the sudden question. “No, dear.” He smiled at her. “I swear, we shall grow old together. Nothing will ever separate us, not even death.”

The earth pony’s mind withdrew from the memory. It was too painful to continue.

Death had separated them. Now he was alone in this world.

But he wasn’t about to let Death win.

He watched silently as the rest of the griffins entered the room, the female captain staring at the dead mare contemptuously. She gestured to the guards. “Take the filly.”

“Not so fast.” Orion took one step forward. “You kill my wife and expect to get away with it?” He shook his head, taking another step. “I don’t think so.”

The two griffin guards from before lunged at him. The earth pony swiftly dodged the sword-wielding griffin and bucked the other one as hard as he could. The injured griffin staggered, giving Orion the perfect opportunity to attack him. The pony leapt onto the other griffin, grabbing the torch from him and flinging it towards the doorway. The wooden entrance was immediately engulfed in flames, barring the way out.

Orion smiled wickedly. “Welcome to hell.”

The flames started to spread, burning the room bit by bit. Now most of the griffins began to panic. Unluckily for Orion, the sword-wielding guard was not one of them.

He turned around just in time to see the griffin’s sword descend towards his face. His vision instantly went dark, and he collapsed onto the ground, feeling his lifeblood slowly leak out of him. As most ponies did before they died, Orion ran through his final thoughts.

Alone in this world maybe. But not in the next.

I’m coming to join you, Starlight.

****

Gilda couldn’t believe her eyes. This was supposed to be a simple raid. How did it come to this?

Most of her guards were running around and panicking as if they were in hell, and truth be told, it really did look like that. The flames had overtaken more than half the room already. The tongues of fire on the floor were slowly but surely getting closer to the retreating griffins. Gilda herself was almost about to descend into hysterics, but a calm voice snapped her out of her stupor.

“What are your orders, ma’am?” The griffin asked, his longsword firmly in the grip of his talons. Gilda looked at him, silently thanking him for saving her from madness.

“Do you think we can smash through the wall?” A plan was already forming in her head. “We could escape through there.”

“Not like this.” The griffin knocked his free hand against the wall, and the sound that was heard suggested that it was anything but hollow or brittle. “However, if we could burn it a little bit first…”

“I see.” Gilda grabbed the torch from one of the terrified griffins and held it to the wall. The flames licked away at it, and just as it was about to ignite, she pulled the torch away. Now the section of the wall was blackened. Gilda gave it a powerful punch, and enough of the wood fell away to make a griffin-sized hole.

“Come on! Let’s go!” Gilda shouted. All of the guards, upon setting eyes on the escape route, all dashed to it, scrambling to be the first out. The female griffin shook her head. Out of all of the squads, she had to get the most undisciplined and uncoordinated one.

“What shall we do with the filly?” Gilda had actually forgotten about the filly. She gestured to the guard griffin. “Go and get her.”

“Right away!” The guard rushed over to the foal and scooped her up in his arms. He wasted no time in escaping the flaming library after that, jumping through the hole. Gilda looked around her. Seeing no one else, she herself ran to the escape route and jumped through.

She had forgotten that she was on the second storey. The griffin had just enough time to extend her wings to land relatively uninjured on the ground. When she looked up, she saw the eyes of her squad staring at her.

“Go!” she hissed. “Before the library crumbles!”

All of the guards rushed out of the way just in time to escape their fate. As if on cue, there was a large explosion, presumably the oil reserves for the lamps, that tore the support pillars down. Unable to hold up its weight any longer, the entire building collapsed into a pile of burning rubble.

Gilda waited until the flames had gone out, then scrutinised the remains carefully. Seeing no sign of life, she nodded approvingly and turned to the griffin guard with the longsword.

“What should we do with the filly?” the guard asked, still holding the bundle in his arms. Gilda walked over and looked at the foal. Her eyes were now open, exposing her ice-blue irises. The captain was about to tell him to kill her, but then thought better of it as another idea came to her.

“Bring her with us.” Gilda commanded. “I have bigger plans for her.”

The guard bowed. “As you wish, my liege.”

The rest of the squad turned silently towards Talona and started the long march back home. Gilda wasn’t eager to get there. She’d have to tell the emperor about the mission, and she wasn’t sure what he would do to her when she found out. But she did have her trump card now, and she wasn’t afraid to use it.

****

Shade wasn’t used to the brightly lit halls that the Sun Council liked, they always chose the circle as the shape for their structures, and the Moon Council did the same. However, unlike where Shade stayed every day, this room had torches eternally burning almost everywhere, creating an effect where it seemed to be perpetually in the afternoon. The brown unicorn hoped that Phantasm and his comrade whose name he could never remember would come back soon, so that the he could get out of this hall faster.

Soon, the sound of hoofsteps grew louder, and Shade turned his attention to the door just in time to see the two cloaked ponies stumble into the room, a bundle of sheets being levitated in the air.

“O glorious leaders!” Phantasm cried, bowing low, “I have brought you the Chosen One!”

He slowly released the sheets, letting them drift to the ground. What was left was the small crimson red unicorn filly, his sky blue eyes trying to take in his unfamiliar surroundings. Many murmurs around the hall began as they stared at the foal.

“So, he is the Chosen One?” one of the Council members asked dubiously. “He looks a bit small.”

“Nay, do not let looks deceive you!” Phantasm’s comrade said. “He is most certainly the Avenger we have been waiting for!”

“I see.” The Council member let the matter rest. “So, who shall adopt this foal?”

The Council hall immediately grew silent. “What do you mean, adopt?” another pony asked from across the room.

“He may be the Avenger,” the Council member snapped, “but he is still a foal! He needs somepony to guide him in our ways if we want him to wreak our vengeance!”

Nopony answered. Evidently, no one wanted to be dragged down by having to take responsibility for the foal. Shade watched the little colt’s gaze come to rest on him, and tears began welling up in the red unicorn’s eyes.

“I will adopt him.” Shade said quietly. Every pony in the room looked at him in amazement.

“Are you sure?” Phantasm began slowly. “It will require great sacrifices on your part.”

“If that is what it takes to avenge Equestria, then I will gladly sacrifice everything.” The brown unicorn got up from his seat and trotted over to the colt. He smiled at the little one, and the foal gave him a grin and a giggle in return. Shade felt his heart melt.

He levitated the foal with his magic, lifting him high into the air. “I, Moon Council Member Night Shade of the Equestrian Remnant, hereby formally adopt this foal…” His magic wavered slightly, and a medallion came into Shade’s view. “…Steel Sparkle.”

A chorus of cheers rose into the air, most of them from the Moon Council. The Sun Council members looked unhappy that their antipode would be the one to take credit for the Chosen One.

Ignoring the shouts of joy from his counterparts, Shade looked at the tiny foal. The red unicorn’s eyes closed, and his breath became lighter.

Yes, sleep, little one. Shade thought. You have a long life ahead of you.

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