• Published 25th Jul 2017
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Rise of Char - Turtlehaus



Smolder has become the King of the Ashen Fields, and the pressures of ruling a Kingdom are already setting in for there are shadows that linger within Castle Char that threaten the whole of Equestria. The Sequel to Smoldering It Over.

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Chapter 34: Hearth & Home

Rainbow Dash stood with Wisp Seeker, Flare Fizzle, Solar Wind, and Ray Horizon who had remained within the Throne Room at the request of King Smolder. There wasn't much mystery to what this little meeting was to be about, with the looming threat of war with the Orc it was necessary to appoint a leader to the new Academy; that had yet to be built or named.

There was an uneasy tension in the room, mostly stemming from General Hearth's hospitalization. Aside from Rainbow Dash, the Flame Pony Pegasi all trained under his tutelage, always deferred to him for all troubles in the Kingdom, and in their own personal ways considered him family. Ray's seemingly endless energy, coupled with her grand standing, is what every pony was used to, but seeing her so stoic was very unnerving.

"How's the General?" Wisp asked after a while, his voice almost sympathetic.

"Resting." Ray said quietly.

"How are you doing?" Flare followed up with a question of her own.

"I'm fine." Ray mumbled; her grandfather's helmet still under her arm.

Flare nudged Solar in the rib. Solar glanced at Flare to see her motioning to him to say something to Ray. Solar looked over at Ray, then back to Flare who glared at him, he then looked up at Wisp and Rainbow Dash who nodded in agreement for him to say something. Closing his eyes, Solar took a deep breath, gently tapping her hoof. Ray looked over at him from the corner of her eyes, Solar simply nodded to her. Ray nodded back. Solar looked quite satisfied with what he did and went back to waiting patiently.

Wisp had to hold Flare back from hitting Solar for that pathetic attempt to reach out to her, but fortunately the doors to the Throne Room slid open causing every pony to compose themselves. Princess Sapphire, Golden Fleece, and Smolder strolled in.

"How's it going, Matchstick?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Eh." I said, waving my hoof side to side, having no strong feelings one way or the other.

"Are these the candidates for the Leader for the Royal Air Force?" Goldie asked curiously, holding the slates in her arms.

"All except for me, I'm just their coach." Rainbow Dash replied.

"We haven't a lot of time so I'm just going to skip the formalities and get right to it." I said addressing the pegasi ponies. "War is coming and I need to know who is the most qualified to lead the Flame Pony Pegasi into a fight."

"I have gone over the reports made by Rainbow Dash during her training sessions, as well as the reports each of you turned in during your encounter with the Orc in the mines. General Hearth had also included his own thoughts on the matter a few days prior." Goldie informed them, handing Princess Sapphire the slate, looked at it briefly before passing it on to Smolder.

"I still feel like it's too soon to make this sort of decision." Rainbow Dash said regrettably.

"But a decision will have to be made. There needs to be a leader the Flame Pony Pegasi can rally around, that they can respect and trust during this coming fight." Sapphire said, trying to encourage this to move forward.

"Flare should be the Leader." Ray spoke up.

Rainbow Dash, Flare, Wisp and Solar all looked her way in surprise. Not a few days ago she was clamoring on about wanting to be the leader, and now she's just giving it away.

"I agree." Solar added looking back at Smolder nodding in agreement.

"Ms. Fizzle did test high in battle assessments and was put in charge of the mission to apprehend the Mystery Pony." Goldie remarked.

"B-B-But we didn't apprehend the Mystery Pony." Flare stammered quickly being overwhelmed by her sudden nomination.

"It ultimately turned out to be Sapphire anyways, and she turned herself in; no worries." I remarked.

Flare could feel her face starting to flush, her heart beating rather nervously as he mane started to spark. She was already being nominated by two of her teammates already and knew Wisp didn't want the job to begin with.

"She isn't the fastest flyer we got, but she's going to be the one we need if this Royal Air Force is ever getting off the ground." Wisp said confidently.

"Rainbow?" I asked, looking her way to see if she supported this.

"If every pony hear is willing to follow Flare into a fight, then I'm sure as hay willing to stand behind her too." Rainbow Dash replied.

"Ms. Fizzle." I said authoritatively, watching her step out from the line to meet me. "Do you accept this nomination of being the Ashen Field's Royal Air Force Leader?"

"Y-Yes." Flare stated nervously.

"Do you swear to uphold this title with all the makings of a competent leader, to serve the Ashen Fields, remain loyal to your comrades, and be an example for all young cadets to follow?" I asked.

"I swear." Flare said proudly.

"When this trouble with the Orc is over, we will have a proper ceremony to usher you in, but for now I hope that this will suffice." I said holding my hoof out to her, which Flare took immediately and shook it.

Flare stepped back into line, hearing Wisp whisper congratulations, Rainbow Dash whispering good job, getting a nod from Solar, and even receiving a small smile from Ray.

"There was one more thing I need to ask, of you in particular, Mr. Seeker." I began, my tone of voice becoming a bit more serious.

"My Lord?" Wisp asked curiously.

"Some of you might already know about the Obelisk positioned out in the fields. Turns out that there is a second one that the Orc has in the mines, these two Obelisks will be crucial in our fight against the Orc and the Great Dragon Char." I started to explain.

"Hold up." Wisp said looking confused. "Great Dragon Char? Like the one from the stories? You weren't just making that up?"

"No. I wasn't just making that up." I said in a very serious tone. "The Orc used the Obelisk to spear the Great Dragon Char and poison it with spider venom. It stands to reason that once it has had a powerful enough dose, it will turn feral and rampage across Equestria." I continued much to the shocked faces of every pony in the room.

"The Great Dragon Char was said to be as large as the mountains, how are we supposed to fight something of that scale?" Flare asked in disbelief.

"If the Obelisk can pierce it once, then it can pierce it again. The current Obelisk is unmovable at the moment, acquiring the second one will allow us a second chance to immobilize the dragon much in the same way that the Orc did originally." Sapphire explained.

"That is why I am asking you, Mr. Seeker, to assemble a team of your choosing to retrieve this Obelisk once the fighting begins." I said.

Wisp glanced over at Flare who did not seem at all excited about this idea, but he gave her a wink; which only made her more flustered.

"My team will be ready before morning, my Lord." Wisp said confidently.

"A large part of this plan to win this battle rides on you retrieving this Obelisk, Mr. Seeker, you cannot fail this task." Sapphire warned.

"Just leave some spiders for me when I back with that big pointy rock." Wisp said amusingly.

"Tomorrow I will draw the Orc and its army of spiders out of hiding. That will be your chance to enter the mines and find the Obelisk." I said watching Wisp nod in agreement.

"So we're really going up against some giant mythical dragon tomorrow?" Flare asked in disbelief.

"I've already discussed this with Princesses and our allies. I about to go outside and address the Royal Guards and Soldier Ponies in greater detail about the battle we will face tomorrow." I explained, being passed another slate from Goldie who had the information all ready to go.

"I'll do it." Ray spoke up once more.

I glanced over at her. Ray's face was stoic, but I've seen that face before; just in my own reflection. It was a face trying to mascaraed grief and pain, something that only ponies who have felt this way could understand. I spied General Hearth's helmet under her arm, and I could relate to the feelings she carried concerning her family.

"You're much too young to take on the responsibilities General Hearth had, Ms. Horizon." Sapphire said apologetically.

"I can do it." Ray said again, sounding more determined this time.

"I'm sure you mean well but-" Sapphire began again.

"Please." Ray mumbled, voice shaking, seemingly moments away from crying.

Sapphire was taken aback by this, unsure if it was something she had said, looking very concerned for her. Solar was glancing at her, eyes full of concern, not having ever heard her sound so vulnerable before.

"The Royal and Soldier Ponies are gathering just outside." I said striding my way over to her, holding the slate out.

Ray swallowed hard. Doing her best to keep it together, Ray took the slate from me and nodded in understanding.

"Have each battalion ready to move out by first light. Your grandfather had things running smoothly and effectively; I expect no less from you." I said in a serious tone.

"Understood." Ray said, with the strongest voice she could muster.

"You're dismissed. Good luck." I said giving them one last nod.

Every pony threw me a salute before filing out of the Throne Room. I strolled over to the throne, deciding to take a quick breather before going to visit Wingston and the other ponies in hospital. Sapphire and Goldie followed me; both looking like they had something to say. Sapphire spoke up first.

"Was it wise giving such an important command to such a young pony?" Sapphire asked curiously.

"She's the granddaughter of General Hearth; I believe Lord Smolder is banking on this fact to sway sympathy from the Solider Ponies and rally behind her." Goldie remarked.

"Is this true?" Sapphire asked looking somewhat impressed.

"Actually, I felt sorry for her." I admitted.

"That's why you chose her?" Sapphire asked.

"I know from experience that having ones family threatened can push you to do things you'd never thought possible. I believe Ms. Horizon's heart is in the right place, her motives are clear, and she has her friends there to support her." I explained.

"It's still a rather thin reason to give her such a position." Sapphire remarked.

"It will only be temporary, until General Hearth's condition improves. Ms. Horizon will most likely lead the Soldier Ponies into battle, giving out commands on the fly while Ms. Fizzle will be orchestrating the defense from the back." Goldie explained.

"Your insight seems wasted as a Treasurer, Ms. Fleece." Sapphire complimented her.

"On the contrary, I think making informed decisions of where a Kingdom's revenue is invested is quite the challenge." Goldie replied.

"In either case, I very grateful that you stepped in for your father; I am also sorry." I said to her sympathetically.

"I-I-It's I who should be thanking y-you, my Lord. Offering your Savannah Sun to my father was very gracious of you." Goldie said, looking very flustered.

"Argo is like family." I said. "We take care of our own."

"Thank you, my Lord, and thank you for letting me step in for my father as well." Goldie said still flustered.

"It's Smolder." I corrected her.

"O-O-Of course! Smolder." Goldie said nodding her head nervously. "I should get back to my office-father's office! I need to finish getting caught up with all the work."

Goldie excused herself, bowing several times before quickly heading out down the stretch of corridor leading to the Main Hall. Sapphire turned to me, still looking like she wanted to talk.

"What?" I asked curiously.

"My mother and father told me that you intended to pierce the dragon with the Obelisk, like the Orc did, to immobilize it. Thus rendering it ineffective in the fight." Sapphire remarked.

"Yeah." I replied.

"Just how do you plan to do that?" Sapphire asked curiously.

"What do you mean?" I asked looking a bit confused.

"The Obelisk is considerably heavy, you made no mention of how you plan to propel this Obelisk through the air and strike the dragon." Sapphire commented, poking holes in my plan.

The truth of the matter was that I didn't intend to use the Obelisk in that fashion. I only said that to make the need for the Obelisk sound important, but in reality I planned to use it as it was originally intended. I was going to open the portal to the Void.

"My plan revolves around Princess Celestia, Luna, and Cadance to use their magic to propel the Obelisk at the dragon. Seeing as I don't have a horn yet." I replied; trying to direct the conversation away from the obelisk by rubbing my forehead.

"Your magic will emerge when it needs to." Sapphire remarked sympathetically.

"It seems to do so even without the horn; it keeps giving me visions and picking up my clothes." I remarked.

"Clothes?" Sapphire asked looking puzzled.

"My cloak, it flew over to me when I thought about picking it up off the floor earlier." I mentioned.

"Interesting." Sapphire remarked, stepping up the throne and examining my head. "While it is not uncommon for children of Alicorns to be late bloomers, it is rather strange to see magic happening without the horn."

"Was the thing you did at the party last night magic?" I asked curiously, remembering how close she got to me that night as well.

"It's more of a direct link to a pony's soul. Many Ice Ponies can perform similar rituals that do not require a horn. Last night I merely described your cutie mark to you." Sapphire explained still eyeing my forehead.

"Yeah, what did that mean by the way?" I asked curiously.

"What did what mean?" Sapphire asked stepping away from me.

"What you said, last night, about my cutie mark." I clarified.

"I told you what your cutie mark was." Sapphire said once more.

"Yeah but what did it mean." I emphasized.

"I don't know." Sapphire said with a shrug.

"What?" I asked in surprise.

"I only said what your cutie mark echoed. I wasn't very good at interpreting the meaning of it." Sapphire said quickly, revealing an area of her studies she was struggling with.

"Alright." I said rolling my eyes and getting off my throne. "I'm going to hospital to see Wingston and the others."

"We have a meeting with Princess Cadance and Shining Armor in five minutes." Sapphire reminded me.

"I… I knew that." I said suddenly realizing it. "I was going to go visit Wingston after."

"After our meeting with Princess Cadance and Shining Armor, we are to meet with Princess Celestia and Princess Luna." Sapphire informed me.

"Right… I guess I'll see them tonight." I mumbled.

"I'll remind you to do so." Sapphire said comfortingly.


Rainbow Dash, Wisp, Flare, Solar, and Ray waited until they were out of the Throne Room to start speaking their minds. Flare was the first to start.

"I… uh… really don't know what to say." Flare mumbled turning to all of them. "I'd be lying if I didn't say I wanted this but… now that I do… I hope… I don't let any of you down."

"You're going to do great, Flare; you've got almost as much brains as Twilight." Rainbow Dash said encouragingly.

"We all kind of knew you'd get the job anyways, I mean, none of us passed that test." Wisp said jokingly.

"I did." Solar mentioned.

"Well most of us." Wisp said looking annoyed.

"Me too." Ray mentioned.

"Alright! Okay, so I wasn't going to be the Leader! Jeez!" Wisp said in frustration.

"You just watch yourself when you're down there in those mines, you got that?" Flare warned him, getting right up in his face and glaring at him.

"I've got some colts in mind for this, you have nothing to worry about, Flare Bear." Wisp said, trying to calm her down.

Much to the surprise of every pony, Flare kissed him, which sent Wisp's mane flaring; flushing furiously. Flare pulled away, her face slightly flushed as well.

"I need to go address the rest of our flyers about tomorrow. Rainbow Dash, would you come to help me get them ready?" Flare asked.

"Are we not going to talk about what just happened?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"No." Flare replied quickly.

"Then I guess we should get those recruits in tip top shape before tomorrow then." Rainbow Dash said following Flare down the steps.

Flare stopped in front of Ray who did her best to put on a smile for her. Even though Ray had been gunning for Leader position for the Academy since the beginning of the week, to have been nominated by her before any other pony made Flare quite touched. Without much warning Flare hugged Ray, feeling Ray resting her head on her shoulder, leaning into the hug as well.

"Thank you." Flare whispered to her.

"Don't… mention it." Ray whispered back.

Flare drew back slowly, smiling at Ray and giving her a pat on the shoulder. Flare started off down the steps as Rainbow Dash paused in front of Ray as well.

"I'll be around, if you need some pony to talk to." Rainbow Dash said to her.

"Yeah." Ray said, nodding her head in agreement.

Flare and Rainbow Dash descended the staircase while Wisp seemed to be recovering from his kiss. Shaking his head several times and checking his pulse, he glanced at Solar and Ray looking very confused.

"Did she just kiss me?" Wisp asked, looking dumbfounded.

"Yes." Solar replied.

"In front of you ponies?" Wisp asked in surprise.

"Mhm." Ray nodded her head.

"I guess this means it's serious between us." Wisp muttered looking very surprised now.

"Congratulations." Solar replied.

"Oh haystacks. If I die down there in the mines, Flare will kill me for sure." Wisp mumbled grimly.

"Uh…" Ray had to think about what he just said.

"I need to get going on this, I need to meet up with a few colts and see if they'd be willing to help me." Wisp said taking off as well.

Wisp also paused in front of Ray, who tried to look tough in front of him, but Wisp causally placed his hoof on her head; shifting it from side to side.

"If any pony gives you any guff, just let me know." Wisp said to her.

Removing his hoof, Ray didn't seem annoyed by his gesture, in fact, gave him a jab in the arm which made Wisp smile. Solar and Ray watched Wisp descend the stairs and cross the Main Hall before their awkward silence was all that was left. Ray's emotions were all over the place, having been trying to bottle them all up to put on a brave face for every pony made it very tiring for her; and she still had to address all the troops outside.

"I… I guess I shoulder get going too." Ray mumbled, taking a few quick glances at Solar.

"Okay then." Solar said in his monotone voice.

Ray started to down the first step, reached the second step before looking back at Solar who remained seated in his stoic and expressionless face. Ray adjusted the helmet under her arm and glanced over the slate in her other hoof.

"I'm not doing this for me, you know." Ray said glancing back at him.

"Okay." Solar said.

"I knew Flare was the best pony for the Leader position and me being a big whiney filly wasn't going to change that." Ray continued taking a step back up the steps.

"Of course." Solar replied.

"I know that I was literally asking the King to let me take over for my grandfather, but I have a really good reason for it." Ray insisted, stepping back up in the landing.

"A good reason." Solar said in agreement.

"I know it didn't seem like it, but I grew up with all the stories of how amazing my grandfather was, and how fearless he was in battle. It's the reason I wanted to be a leader so badly, I wanted him to be proud of me!" Ray said looking a bit flustered.

"Understandable." Solar said.

"But he never wanted me to a soldier pony! He was afraid for me! He's lying in that hospital, beaten to an inch of his life and he's still worried about me! He never ever thinks of himself! He's always worried about every pony else!" Ray shouted, her mane flaring and her voice starting to break.

Solar didn't say anything at this point.

"I just… I just…" Ray whimpered, dropping the helmet from under her arm and tossing the slate aside.

Solar got up, made his way over to Ray and pulled her in close to him; comforting her by stroking her mane while she quietly cried into his shoulder.

"My Mother used to say," Solar said to her. "A hearth is in every home to make a pony feel safe, to feel warm, and to scare away the darkness. Isn't it nice that ours walks around on four legs?"

Ray chocked a laugh, caught off guard by that anecdote.

"One day, a Mom will be telling her filly something similar about you." Solar continued. "Something like, ponies have a hard time finding hope, isn't it nice that ours is just on the horizon?"

"That was… really corny, Solar." Ray mumbled into his shoulder.

"Really corny." Solar replied, holding up the General Hearth's helmet to her.

Sniffling, Ray stepped back, rubbing her nose and taking the helmet from him. Picking up the slate, Ray took a deep breath, finding it easy to smile at Solar who remained stoic as usual.

"I don't know why you put up with me, but I don't deserve to have a friend like you." Ray said sounding appreciative.

"Ready?" Solar asked, motioning to the Main Doors of Castle Char.

"Yeah, let's do this." Ray replied, putting on the helmet.


Wisp had only one colt in mind to take on this mission, he was still debating on who his second choice would be, but he was hoping his first choice would pull through. Walking for a time down the Narrows, Wisp came to a stop at a stone hut, and knocked on the door. The door slightly moved, Wisp looked at it curiously as it slightly moved again, opening a bit further, and two little hooves appeared at the bottom trying his best to open the heavy stone door. Carefully pressing his hoof against the door, Wisp helped the little foal along.

"Who is it?" Lionel asked, almost out of breath.

"I'm Wisp Seeker; I'm a friend of Ember's." Wisp replied.

"Ember! There's a spider at the door!" Lionel shouted disappearing into the hut.

"Spider?" Another voice asked in a squeak.

Wisp raised an eyebrow. It was a mare's voice, which didn't add up to for Wisp. The door opened all the way revealing Mr. Tutor. A smile quickly came across his face upon seeing Wisp.

"Hey! Wisp! You old mule you!" Tutor said excitedly, jabbing him in the arm.

"Ember, you're not fat!" Wisp replied pointing at his stomach. "I thought all that teaching would put you out of shape."

"I have Lionel to thank for that." Tutor remarked inviting him inside. "I can't leave the foal alone for more than a minute before he's off getting himself in trouble."

"That's Lionel?" Wisp asked in shock.

"Big, isn't he?" Tutor asked with a proud smile.

"I remember when he was just the size of a loaf of bread." Wisp remarked.

"Come, come. We're in the parlor." Tutor said ushering him towards the room.

"We? You have company?" Wisp asked nudging Tutor in ribs suggestively.

"I-It's just Ms. Fluttershy, she came to help teach the students about the animals outside the Ashen Fields at the King's request." Tutor said flushing slightly.

"Is she staying here at his request too?" Wisp asked with a smile.

"F-For the time being, until this matter with the Orc is settled." Tutor remarked entering the parlor.

Wisp could see the mare named Fluttershy, cowering behind the granite sofa, carefully peeking out from the corner; Lionel sat the end amused with himself.

"It wasn't a spider, Fluttershy." Tutor announced. "This is Wisp Seeker, Soldier Pony, and an old friend of mine."

"Thank goodness," Fluttershy said softly, slowly stepping out from behind the sofa. "I was worried that the battle had already started."

Wisp was very taken by the soft and gentle nature Fluttershy was displaying. Wisp had a soft spot for creatures that couldn't defend themselves and were preyed upon by bigger and meaner animals. It was one of the reasons he became a Soldier Pony.

"Lionel, say hello to Mr. Seeker." Tutor said.

"Hello." Lionel said half-heartedly.

"He's got the same attitude as his Dad." Wisp mumbled to Tutor.

"You knew my Dad?" Lionel asked in surprise, jumping to his hooves.

"Mr. Seeker used to be on the same squad your father and I were on." Tutor explained to him.

"Did my Dad like to go on adventures? Did he ever beat up a dragon? Does he hate roots like I do? Did he know what a cupcake was?" Lionel started firing off questions to him.

"Lionel! Mr. Seeker didn't come here to answer all your-" Ember began.

"You mean Ember never told you how your Dad saved his life from the amorous dragon of the Dark Marsh Swamp?" Wisp asked, his eyes getting wide, and a smile etching across his face.

"We have a swamp?" Lionel asked in excitement.

"Dragon?" Fluttershy asked quietly, sitting back on the sofa.

"No! There was no swamp and there was no dragon! Your father made up that story!" Tutor insisted, turning red and his mane starting to flare.

"We were patrolling the Dark Marsh late one night, many years ago, when we heard strange noises coming from the swamp." Wisp started to weave his tale to them, much to the agony of Tutor.

Tutor had listen to the age old story once more, having to relive every painful detail of his short lived, one-sided, and love affair with a lonely dragon. Essentially, all Tutor did was free the dragon from some vines she trapped herself in, but his good deed ended up making the dragon smitten with him and kidnapping him on the spot. Tutor had his face in his hooves for most the story, while Lionel and Fluttershy listened attentively.

"So your Dad comes up with this crazy idea to buy Ember back from the dragon with the giant ruby he found while exploring the old ruins of a forgotten Diamond Dog mine and luckily for Ember it worked. I've never seen Ember be dumped so fast and recover so quickly." Wisp said, finishing his story.

"I never knew dragons had weddings." Fluttershy remarked with interest.

"So my Dad not only crashed a wedding, fought off a horde of spiders, found lost treasure, and saved Ember, but he also invented the cupcake?" Lionel asked; eyes so wide with excitement that they almost seemed to shimmer.

"Your father was the most interesting pony in all of Equestria." Wisp said.

"Wisp, tell me you came over here for some other reason than to bring up embarrassing stories from the past?" Tutor asked hopefully.

"I did." Tutor said, sounding a bit more serious. "I need your help."

"With what?" Tutor asked, eyeing him curiously.

"Lord Smolder has asked me to gather a team to retrieve something called an obelisk, from the Orc, down in the mines." Wisp explained. "You were the first pony I thought of."

"Orc?" Lionel asked, looking suddenly concerned.

"What's so important about this obelisk?" Tutor asked.

"The King is planning on using it to stop the Great Dragon Char from destroying all of us." Wisp said bluntly.

"The Great Dragon Char? The one from the old pony tales?" Tutor asked in disbelief.

"It's true." Fluttershy said, nodding in agreement.

"Dragon?" Lionel asked sounding even more concerned.

"How are we supposed to even get close to it?" Tutor asked.

"Lord Smolder is planning to draw out the Orc and its spiders from the mines, giving us the time to searching for it, find it, and get it back to him as soon as possible. There might be some cave spiders lagging behind but it isn't anything we haven't dealt with before. Everything is riding on that obelisk." Wisp explained.

"Have you spoken to any pony else about this?" Tutor asked.

"I came to you first, I was thinking about Tiff, but I think he might be more trouble than he's worth." Wisp confessed.

"Tiff was a solid Soldier Pony, he might be farming these days but he's still got it." Tutor insisted.

"So you'll help me?" Wisp asked.

"No!" Lionel shouted.

Wisp looked over at Lionel who was looking very angry. Fluttershy was trying to calm him down, whispering to him, but he wasn't listening.

"Lionel, this is important." Tutor started to explain to him.

"You're important!" Lionel shouted back.

"Every pony is important." Tutor said sternly, trying not to match Lionel's volume. "We all have to do our part, if the King needs ponies to get this done, then I'm willing to lend a hoof."

"Let him do it!" Lionel shouted again, starting to shake from his own anger.

"Lionel!" Tutor said crossly.

"I need you!" Lionel shouted.

Tutor was taken aback by this; there was an awkward silence in the room. Before any pony could say a word Lionel quickly ran out of the parlor, charging up the stairs and to his room.

"Oh my." Fluttershy said softly, getting to her hooves and following after Lionel.

"I'm… sorry Ember, I forgot that you were… taking care of him. I shouldn't have asked you to help." Wisp said, shaking his head disappointingly at himself.

"I'll do it." Tutor said firmly.

"Look, Ember, you got Lionel to look after now and I can't promise that this is going be a walk in the park." Wisp replied.

"Jade was carrying Lionel when that dragon took me. Reggie was going to be a father but he came after me anyways." Tutor said, thinking back on it. "He could have played it safe, but he knew that if he went, he'd get the job done. If I go with you, we're getting the obelisk back."

"You'll need talk to him." Wisp mentioned.

"That's the hard part." Tutor mumbled with a sigh.

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