Chapter 15: Scions
Daring Do: the Legend of the Algae Photis
by Wanderer D
Chapter 15: Scions
"They're gone, your majesty."
The guard's words cut through the muttering of several hippogriffs at court, and they all turned to look at Queen Novo, who shook her head sadly. At the bottom of the stairs leading to the throne, Sky Beak sighed and looked away. He didn't look like the proud hippogriff of the previous day; his front leg had been bandaged and hung in a sling. His ribs and his left hind leg were also wrapped in bandages.
He had no restraints, but the two guards on either side of him were clearly intended to keep him in place, even though he didn't look like he'd be attempting any sort of escape. Silverstream hovered behind her dad, worryingly looking up to the Queen and back to him.
"The Pearl was to be our last line of defense, were anything to go wrong in our war against the Storm King, we will have no escape."
"I-I know, my Queen."
"And even though you did all of this to save your daughter, my beloved niece… brother… I can't let this go unpunished."
Sky Beak gulped and nodded, kneeling down unprompted, and lowering his head in submission. "I await your command."
"Sky Beak, despite the circumstances, your actions have resulted in an international incident through your false accusations of Princess Sparkle and her retinue. Furthermore, you are personally responsible for our enemies obtaining a powerful magical item used to protect your country against them. Thanks to your actions, several guards were injured, although thankfully none of them died. In light of all of this, I am first revoking all of your titles. You are no longer a noble of Hippogrifa, while we might be related by blood, you can no longer claim kinship to the crown. Furthermore, your military rank has been stripped, although you will not be removed from military service." She sighed. "You will still serve your country, but no longer in a position where you might endanger national security more than you already have."
Sky Beak cringed, but didn't argue.
"But!" Rainbow Dash made to move forward, but Twilight's hoof stopped her. She looked over at her friend, and frowned when the princess shook her head.
"Do you understand, Sky Beak?"
"Y-yes, your majesty."
"It's not fair," Rainbow Dash hissed to Twilight. "He was being blackmailed!"
"I'm sorry, Rainbow Dash," Twilight said, shaking her head. "But even if he was, he could have acted differently."
"Daddy!" Silverstream barged through the crowds to hug her father, who hugged her back.
"I'm sorry, sweetheart," Sky Beak said, "I did the best that I could."
"I know. I'm sorry…"
Queen Novo cleared her throat. "Court is dismissed, I must speak to our guests privately. Sky Beak you may stay, whatever information you might share could be important."
Slowly, with some grumbling, the rest of the hippogriffs left, all except for Queen Novo's guard—who took their place at the entrance—Sky Beak and Silverstream.
"Princess Twilight," Sky Beak spoke up, "I'm sorry for what I did, I—"
"No need," Twilight interrupted. "I know you were under a lot of pressure. Especially with your daughter being kidnapped by Ahuitzotl."
"But still, our Pearl is now in the hands of the Storm King," Novo said with a sigh.
"I… don't think so," Sky Beak said. When all eyes turned to him he took a deep breath. "Before they reached the Pearl, Ahuitzotl told Tempest about some sort of artifact, which could only be acquired with the Pearl… something called the—"
"The Algae Photis," Daring Do said.
Everyone in the room turned to face the adventurer, who shrugged. "You didn't think we were here just to ask for directions, were you?" she asked the others.
"What is this Algae Photis artifact you mentioned in your letter, Daring?" Novo asked.
"It's an ancient weapon… or an ancient device," Daring explained. "We're not sure. It's described as a sword but, how can you use a sword to heal?" She shook her head. "It's a magical artifact of some sort that could heal any illness, cure any wound… magical, mental, physical… it didn't matter. According to legend, the Algae Photis is hidden in an underwater sanctum, a palace made for the kings of what ponies call Maretlantis." She started pacing, gazing at the walls as her mind turned to old lore. "It is said to have existed before anything else. Temples older even than the battle between the hero Icetlacatl and the Shadow Mage, Tonameyotl.1"
Alejandra blinked. "Oddly Aztec."
Daring Do nodded. "Indeed. But Maretlantis never seemed to really exist as a place reachable by the normal sheep, pony, hippogriff or harpy of the time. It existed… away. Far, far under the water, unreachable, save for one way…"
"The Pearl," Queen Novo whispered. "That's why you wanted Twilight to study it?"
"Yes," Daring Do said, nodding. "Even if you wouldn't let us take it, I thought Twilight might be able to design a spell based on its properties if she saw it used a couple of times."
"And what would that be?" Twilight asked.
"The Pearl is—was, the last line of defense we had against the Storm King; not because it was to be used as a weapon, although it can, but because it would allow me to evacuate everygriff in my nation in one magical reaction… by turning us into Sea Ponies."
"So you would rather run than die defending your lands?" Tala asked, forelegs crossed as she sat on top of Rainbow Dash.
Novo turned her head to regard the Skirmisher with a cold look. "Yes. The safety of my people takes precedence over my need to keep control of land. Even if it took a hundred years, I'd have my revenge, but my people come first."
Tala didn't respond, but she did bow slightly to Novo, conceding the point. The Queen sighed, turning around. "But now that is gone. Besides that, the Pearl has served other purposes, such as controlling the weather in ways that can hide our capital from the Storm King if needed."
"But you're not alone," Twilight said, stepping forth. "If we make an agreement, we can have a letter delivered to Princess Celestia quickly enough for her to mobilize troops and bring them here to support you."
Novo smiled a little. "Even then, it would take a month to reach the princess."
"Not necessarily," Galahad spoke up. "I can make sure that it is delivered within a week."
"That still leaves the problem of the Pearl being in the hooves of that General Tempest," Novo said. "Unfortunately I cannot mobilize the troops without risking the unwanted attention of the Storm King."
"We do have an advantage," Daring Do said, looking at all the gathered creatures. "If what Sky Beak heard was right, then we know where Ahuitzotl and Tempest are headed. And it is not towards the Storm King's army."
"It's nice to see he commands the loyalty of his soldiers," Twilight said with a smirk. "And don't worry, Queen Novo. Our objective was the Algae Photis in the first place. We'll bring back the Pearl with us when we catch up to Ahuitzotl and Tempest."
"What makes you think you will make it in time?" Sky Beak asked bitterly.
"Simple," Daring Do said, "Ahuitzotl will have figured out we want the Algae Photis from the context of the murals in the caverns, but he just figured that out. We've been planning and researching this for much longer, and I have done research on Marelantis on my own before this came up."
"Wait," Rainbow Dash spoke up, raising a hoof. "So what you're saying is that we don't need to be faster than them? We just need to head straight to where Maretlantis is?"
"I am saying just that," Daring replied, nodding. "Ahuitzotl is not stupid so he'll figure out the general location of where the entrance is supposed to be. He'll head over to the coast of Phoeris, thinking that Maretlantis is located between that and Archaia."
"And I'm guessing it's not," Tala spoke up, her drab tone almost hiding a hint of amusement.
"Sort of," Daring said with a sigh. "You see, this is why I didn't try ever to reach it. Because of what Maretlantis actually is, there is no way for an air-breathing creature to reach it." She paused, gathering her thoughts. "My investigation led me to believe that the location is deep underwater where Ahuitzotl would look, but not just that, it's an undersea cavern, only accessible from the caverns in a lake further East, Locked Trees, and close to the border with Arctodia."
"They named the place Locked Trees?" Alejandra asked.
"There's an ancient legend about how a king was very protective of the trees there, so he had them caged and locked," Daring said.
"Oh." Alejandra blinked. "Really?"
"No, but I'm not going to spend time guessing why they did that," Daring replied, getting a snort out of Rainbow Dash. "The name of the city is not important, what is important, is that there's several layers to this whole thing. We need to get to Arctodia. We already have a local guide who is familiar with the legend of the Algae Photis…"
Rainbow Dash's eyes went wide. "Captain Celaeno! But how did she know about it?"
"The sword she had in her cabin." Twilight turned to look at Daring Do for confirmation. "You said it had a mark on it."
Daring Do smirked. "Yes. She has the mark of King Secrops on the sword. Only a descendant of the line, or a descendant of his Elite Royal Guard would have owned one of those, and have it passed down for generation after generation."
"So you're saying she's royalty?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"No," Novo replied, frowning slightly. "Our people hail from that land, my ancestry can be traced back for generations, and we have documented well plenty of our history. If I recall correctly, all of Secrop's descendants were murdered during a succession war by a later king."
"That is correct," Daring said. "Not only that, but according to legend, Secrop was supposed to be a Hippocampus, half-pony, half-fish. His guard, however, did include several Harpies." She hovered up with her wings and crossed her forelegs in a self-satisfied way. "Which helps us, because, if she really is a descendant of his guard, then she might have a full set of armor somewhere."
"And what good does rusty armor do us?" Tala asked.
Daring Do winked at her. "Spoilers."
Twilight raised a hoof. "Alright, we can find out more about that later. Right now, we need to come to a decision." She turned to face the three Hippogriffs in the room that were not part of the guard. "Queen Novo, will you accept the help of both Equestria and my team? Equestria will assist you in securing your borders, and my team and I will find Tempest and return the Pearl safely to you."
Novo considered her guests carefully, then sighed. "It's not like I have much of a choice in the matter now."
"You do," Twilight said, "you can choose to trust me."
Novo smiled, then nodded. "This is true. I choose to trust you and our friendship, Twilight Sparkle. I will draft the letter for Celestia, and pass it over to Sir Galahad to ensure it makes it in time."
Twilight grinned. "Excellent. I'll make sure we're ready to depart soon. We need access to your markets for provisions."
Novo looked at her guards. "Please escort Princess Twilight to her ship, and assist her in obtaining anything she might need."
"Yes, your majesty."
She then turned and regarded Sky Beak with a small frown. "As for you brother…"
"No need to say more, your majesty," Sky Beak said, bowing deeply. "I will clean up my office and await further commands."
Novo hesitated, but pulled him into a hug. "I'm sorry."
"Me too," he confessed.
The others looked at each other awkwardly before Daring Do motioned with her head towards the door. It was best to leave them alone.
Silverstream hadn't been able to stay long with her father. Even though she had been kidnapped from her own bed, she still felt responsible about the whole thing. "I just needed to be stronger. Faster. Smarter," she whispered as she watched the crates being piled up one after the other for transportation to the Arpia. "Now dad is paying for it…" she narrowed her eyes. "I won't let things stay like this."
She slowly made her way between stalls and boxes, to where an Abysinnian was arguing prices with one of the merchants. Their backs were turned away from the crates. This was the perfect chance.
She would make everything better.
End Chapter 15
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And now they have one. They going to somehow pick up the other five as they go?
Is Tempest trying to find the Algae Photis to fix her horn if that is so then she is a big goddam idiot for trying to do something that petty when there’s somepony else who needs it more than her and her name is Sunset Shimmer.
Very nice! The traitor, its understandable but even Blackmail is no excuse. He can be Lucky to have a miid Punishment.
So if someone tries to follow our gryphon courier back to Canterlot, would that make him Sir Galahad, the Chased?
Yes. Yes she will.
9828831
Well the thing's hardly a one-use item, and she's never heard of anypony named Sunset...
"Silverstream hovered behind her dad, worryingly looking up to the Queen and back to him."
""Daddy!" a new voice shouted. Silverstream barged through the crowds to hug her father, who hugged her back."
...What's going on here?
"Everyone in the room turned to face the adventurer, who shrugged. "You didn't think we were here just to ask for directions, were you?" he asked the others."
"Everyone in the room turned to face the adventurer, who shrugged. "You didn't think we were here just to ask for directions, were you?" she asked the others."? Or am I missing something?
"Gabby blinked. "Oddly Aztec.""
Meant to be someone else?
"how a kind was very protective"
A kind what?
did you mean a king?
guessing
'His guard, however, did include'
I can't be the only one getting distinctly Daft Punk vibes from that statement ...
9829041 9828935 fixed! Thanks guys.
I bet she makes everything worse
I do find it odd that the term "Aztec" means something to Daring. Or she just didn't want to get sidetracked during such an important discussion.
I guess Twilight never learned the "send to Spike" spell.
"We're not reading a book, we're going out to risk our lives."
"Yeah, but the chapter will end soon."
"The what?"
In any case, we have a new mission. And a stowaway. This could get complicated even before considering that Ahuizotl and Tempest could tail the team.
9829145
Ah, you're welcome. :)
Underwater breathing enchantments?
Specific magical keys?
What might it be?
9829975 Spoilers!
Silverstream no
9828831
If there's one thing I've learned from Tempest, it's that Equestria really needs universal healthcare.
9828850
Would love to see what would YOU do, if YOUR kid was kidnapped.
9920339
Well i wouldn't have to worry about that, cause I ain't having kids. FUCK KIDS
Sooo... He survived. Unexpected...
Silverstream play hero. I wonder if she get maimed or worse?
Silverstream is a child, not knowing what she is doing indeed...