Knights of Ice and Crystal

by Leila Drake

Chapter 15: The Pulse

"Yo, Darren, the fridges need a refill," called Peppermint across the shop counter. His voice was loud enough to carry through the long room, past the numerous chest-high shelves and into the storage room.

"Yes, Sir," came a faint call back from the storage room.

The corners of Pappermint's mouth twitched. He turned back to the customer and smiled. "This will only take a moment," he promised.

The customer, a pale pink unicorn with a purple and golden mane, nodded. She let her eyes wander across the wares on the counter. Peppermint always put small sweets and gadgets there. When the line was slow, the customers tended to buy the sweets even though their price was a bit higher than that of those on the normal shelves.

"I see you've employed somepony again?" said the mare in a polite tone.

"Ah, yeah, he's a catch. Strong, fast and punctual. And I think his manners are better than mine." Peppermint laughed hoarsely, then turned serious again. "Though some ponies can't seem to appreciate getting their wares on the shelves on time. Got a few complaints but only when he wasn't around... Ah, there he comes." He nodded over to Darren who walked over to the fridge with two baskets. He put the baskets on top of the shelves and moved their content - milk jars and butter - into the glass boxes on the boards. "Really useful to be tall, too," commented Peppermint. "Got a warehouse assistant and a security guy in one person." He grinned slyly.

The mare's eyes widened ever so slightly and she gasped a little when she saw the human.

Darren looked up and wiped his hands on his dark green apron. "Ma'am." He gave her a polite smile.

"Dear goodness, you've changed!" the mare said, then grimaced guiltily.

"Have we met?" asked Darren slowly. "You seem familiar. Your voice..."

The customer rolled her eyes. She chuckled nervously. "Actually, we have. Two weeks ago, in the palace."

Darren briefly shook his head. "I apologize, I can't place you."

"Let me help you with that," said the mare. She lit her horn and a shimmering light washed over her body. It grew taller and wings which had not been visible before unfolded. Her mane unraveled into lustrous curls and a small crown appeared on her head.

"Princess!" Peppermint knelt down so fast that he almost hit his head on the edge of the counter. Darren bowed before her but did not kneel.

"Sorry about the deception," said Princess Cadence. "I just wanted to see how you were doing." She frowned at Peppermint. "Please get up, there's no need for that."

The clerk rose to his hooves, looking at the ground.

"If I had known..." he said.

"Exactly," said the Princess. "So how much for the milk?"

"For you, Princess, it's free!" he said, trying to catch his breath.

Cadence shook her head. "I want to pay for it, just like everypony else should. How much?"

"Well - your Highness - if you - insist. Three bits."

She took a purse from under her wing and withdrew three coins from it. Peppermint accepted the money, still slightly rattled, and eyed Darren.

"When will your shift be over?" asked Cadence. "I'd like to have some coffee with you and talk, if you don't mind."

"In half an hour, your Highness," said Darren. One of his eyebrows was still raised and he seemed torn between confusion and amusement.

"Eh, it's okay if you take off," said Peppermint, waving his hoof. "Just stay longer tomorrow and we'll be good."

"Are you sure, Sir?"

"Get out of here."

"Thank you, Sir."

---

"Eclipse." The was a soft knock on the bedroom door. "Are you okay? Do you want to talk?" White Alloy's worried voice carried to Eclipse who was sitting on his bed. He had his wooden shield in his hooves and stared at the blue heart that was painted on it.

"I dunno..."

"Sorry, what did you say?"

"I don't know," repeated Eclipse a bit louder.

"I'm coming in." White pushed the door open. He trotted into the bedroom and stood before Eclipse. "Where's Peridot?" He askes softly. "Still away with the girls?"

"Mhm," hummed Eclipse without taking his eyes off the shield. Then, with a sudden movement, he flung the piece of wood onto the bed and said, "Dad, where did you find me?"

"Er. Y-you mean, when we -"

"We had this special lesson at school today," said Eclipse.

"I... see. The special... right. What did you learn?" asked White to play for some time.

"That there used to be Knights of Ice and Crystal who used dark magic to defend the Empire. They turned evil from using the magic and became Shadow Ponies and were banished into a crystal outside the Empire. And they had their own evil fortress and..."

"Whoa, whoa, slow down, buddy." White sat down on the bed, next to Eclipse. "Shadow ponies?"

"Yeah. Mr Coelistine says that's why we don't have any knights. Because they turned evil. We just have guards."

White rubbed his chin in thought. "That explains some things," he admitted slowly.

"Dad, where did you find me?"

"What does that have to do with your lesson?" asked White nervously.

"There was a picture. In the old book. There was a knight and - well, he had a brown mane and his eyes were different, too, but he still looked a lot like me. Or..." he muttered something into his pillow.

"Sombra?" guessed White.

Eclipse nodded, sniffing. He turned to White. The light of the lamp reflected in his blue eyes.

"Dad, am I a Shadow Pony?"

---

"It's great to see you're doing so well," said Cadence, giving Darren a sideways glance as they walked along a path in the park.

"Peppermint is a very considerate pony," mused Darren. "Even though he owns a shop that stays open from Eight to Six."

Cadence frowned. "What do you mean?"

Darren hesitated. "One, he is the only pony to hire me yet," he said. "And two..." he paused. "I used to call in sick for a few hours. On several days in a row."

"Oh?" Cadence said, unsure how to react.

"Well," said Darren curtly, "I am glad to report that this has not happened the last few days."

They passed a bench. Cadence turned around, sat down on it and patted the spot next to her with a hoof. Darren slowly sat down, at a respectful distance to the Princess.

"Was it the curse dissipating?" she took a guess.

Darren's eyes widened. Now that he thought about it, he had begun to eat regularly, and a lot. He also had to use the bathroom. He still hesitated to use the bathroom mirror, though he never would have admitted that to the Princess. And he did not feel so aggressive anymore. It had happened so gradually that he had not even noticed.

"Possibly," he said.

Cadence smiled. "Your eyes are looking much better than at the hearing," she said.

Darren twitched. Warmth rose up to his ears. "Ma'am?"

"Darren, they aren't glowing anymore. You see, I had the time to have a talk with your friend Jonathan. He described to me how he was healed. Today, he's got a pulse and everything. And his eyes are normal again, though he said they used to be blue, not yellow."

Darren froze. He glanced at Cadence, then at his own hands. Slowly, he raised one hand and held two fingers to his carotid artery.

There was a faint thumping. With his fingers still on the side of his windpipe, Darren stared at Cadence, who giggled.

"You didn't notice your own pulse?" she asked incredulously. "I thought something like this would catch your attention. Well, I guess nopony thinks much about their own pulse except when they have health issues or do sports..."

Darren did not react. His stare became distant.

"Are - are you okay?" Concern crept into Cadence's voice.

"Approximately sixty beats per minute," said Darren dryly, lowering his hand. "I think so, Ma'am - Cadence," he quickly corrected himself. He felt his mouth twisting into a smile. "I suppose I will get an appointment with Dr. Passiflora," he said. "She should conduct a magical scan, see if there is still any residue of the curse."

Cadence beamed and nodded. "That sounds like a good idea," she agreed. "Oh, I'm so glad you're feeling better, Darren! Does Twilight know?"

"No, I had not realized the... extent of my... progress," admitted Darren. He cleared his throat. "I will see to it that she knows, of course." His smile grew wider. "Thank you, Princess. The Whites will be pleased. I have not seen them since our last dinner a week ago."

"Wait, those are the pony family with the grey pegasus colt, right?"

"Yes. I agreed to attend Eclipse's appointments and they... wanted to give me their thanks that way."

The Alicorn smiled knowingly. "Did you enjoy dinner with them?"

Darren grew serious. "Yes," he said. "They bring back pleasant memories. Mostly," he added with a quiet voice. He regretted the words as soon as they had been spoken.

"Mostly?"

Darren's mouth became a straight line.

Cadence nodded, her eyes widening with realization. "You had a family?" she asked carefully. "You don't have to answer if you don't want to," she said quickly.

The knight just nodded. She was the Princess. He had to answer.

"Five children," he said, raising his eyebrow. "They all died, along with my wife." He rubbed his nose.

"How long ago was that?" whispered Cadence.

"Ten years." His voice felt like a scratch in his throat. "At least it was not me. But I was there. Once I regained my free will, I realized the implications..." He broke off.

A tear ran down the Princess's face when she saw the way Darren looked at her.

---

White took a deep breath and sat up very straight. He had feared that this day would come soon - he had almost expected it after the episode with Darren. But he still was not prepared.

"Alright," he said. "Listen. Actually, it wasn't us who found you. That was the Guard when they searched the borders for lost ponies. They found you all alone in the snow. Since Mommy works in the Guard, she heard of it. And we discussed it and offered to take you in as our son."

"Yeah, you already said I was adopted," muttered Eclipse. "And that's why I don't really remember anything from before you found me."

"Adoption doesn't come with a memory wipe," snorted White. When he saw Eclipse's face, he winced. "Sorry. But we often wondered what your life was like before you got lost outside the Empire."

"Me too," said Eclipse. "I always thought that somepony bad hit me on the head or something... but maybe I never was in the Empire before that. Maybe I was just dumped by the Shadow Ponies for - for you to pick me up. Maybe that's why I have this black smoke magic and stuff!" His voice grew louder, challenging White to disagree.

"Maybe," muttered White. "But maybe you are just a colt who got very lost and was attacked by some weird magic when Sombra was revived."

"It doesn't add up, Dad," said Eclipse, shaking his head. "First, the smoke magic came, then Darren helped, and then Sombra returned. It can't have been him. That's what's so scary about it." He sniffed again and rubbed his muzzle. "I don't wanna turn evil, Dad. I don't wanna hurt anypony!" He whispered, "I'm really scared!"

White carefully put his forelegs around him. "Eclipse," he said, his voice full of pain and love at the same time. He hugged the colt until the sobbing subsided a little, then he broke the hug and looked Eclipse straight into the eyes. "Let me tell you something about Evil," he said. "Ponies are evil... when they do evil things and enjoy it... or think for some reason that they are doing good. When magic makes you do bad stuff, you are just sick, not evil. Tell me: Do you want to hurt me?"

Eclipse shook his head.

"Or Mom? Or Peridot? Anypony?"

Eclipse shook his head again, each time more firmly.

"What are you going to do when you feel that dark magic again?" asked White.

"Ask for help. For Darren to come and help." Eclipse smiled shakily. "Oh, I think I get it."

"You're not an evil pony, Eclipse. "I would have noticed if my son was turning into a twisted madpony, believe me." While smiled. "And even if you were a - a Shadow Pony, I think that's not even the point. The point is what you do with the powers that you've got. You'll always be my son. Nothing in the whole wide world is going to change that." He paused. "And I know you love us... because we love you, too. Just promise you won't try to solve everything on you own, okay? You can count on us. Always."

"O-okay."

White took the shield and held it in front of Eclipse.

"You want to become a guard, don't you?"

Eclipse nodded, slightly confused. "Yeah?"

"Why?"

"Because guards are awesome... they are strong and brave and they make sure everypony's safe!"

"You know what your Mom told me once?" White smirked. "Guards get scared, too."

"What?"

"Yeah. They train to get over their fears. They aren't superpowered ponies. They just do the best they can. Nopony would expect anything more. They set an example by striving for an ideal, even if that ideal is unreachable. It's like... with trees. They don't touch the sky but they grow upwards because they want to. Otherwise they'd be a tangled mess."

"Oh."

"I think you'll make a great guard," said White.

Eclipse beamed.