The Archmage's Last Bow

by Rytex

Return of the King

The Archmage’s Last Bow
Chapter 05 - Return of the King

Nova Shine was standing in the familiar inky void, just as he had the day before during his naptime.

“Oh,” he frowned. “I thought this place was a dream.”

“Apologies for disappointing you,” said the voice of Imperius, sounding slightly amused, before growing more serious. “In time I will not need to bring you here, just so I can converse with you at will, but as of now, I must just bide my time, and keep a watchful eye upon your world.”

“Oh, great,” Nova sighed, sitting down and then flopping onto his back. Wait a minute. there wasn’t any floor in this place. How was he doing this, exactly? “So you saw everything yesterday, didn’t you.”

“I did,” Imperius replied. He sounded… cautious. As though he didn’t know what Nova was going to do next and didn’t want to set things off.

“Say hello to Equestria’s new Archmage,” Nova sighed, laying his head back against the ground, or whatever it was. “I can’t even keep my cool around someone I don’t like and not take it out on my own fiancee.”

“I must admit, I do not understand,” Imperius replied. Nova could hear the confused look on his face, whatever it looked like. “Why do you say such things about yourself? I saw what happened in that stallion’s mind, the feelings that he carried for your mare and that he has not let them go away. In your reaction, I can’t find a fault.”

“I haven’t yelled at Twilight like that in years,” Nova reached a hoof up and rubbed at his eyes. “Not since she refused to stop digging into--”

He blinked.

“Wait. Were you speaking in iambic pentameter just now?”

“Why yes it was; it is the way I speak. At least, it is when I am in the flow. It’s taken me some time to readjust, but please don’t change the topic here at hoof.”

“Fine, fine,” Nova just resigned himself to having to return to an uncomfortable topic, even if he was sort of the one who brought it up in the first place. “I love her. Why would someone scream something so horrible to someone they love? Can you answer that?”

Imperius was silent for a time, making Nova feel even more self-conscious about it. As if the Alicorn King were judging him for something.

“I still cannot find cause to blame you for.”

“Why?” Nova snarled. “Were mares only meant for staying in the kitchen and being yelled at?”

Imperius fell silent again. These pauses in the darkness were starting to get unbearable. Nothing to look at, nothing to see, just him, his shame, and the unseen judging eyes of the one who was once the most powerful pony in the world, perhaps of all time.

“I’m sorry, that was uncalled for,” Nova closed his eyes. Not that it made a difference here. “Your kingdom was supposed to be the height of civilization or something. Probably wouldn’t have gotten that far if there weren’t equal gender rights.”

“It seems that you are full of rage and shame, and though you make an effort hiding them, your feelings have an impact on your speech.”

Why couldn’t this Alicorn King just let him hate himself in peace?

“It’s clear that you regret what you have said. For that, just give yourself some time to mend. In time, you will not make the same mistake, and to that end, you must improve yourself. But that is something only you can do.”

“I’ve been trying!” Nova snapped, slamming a hoof down onto the surprisingly-hard surface. “I’ve been trying to make myself better. A better Archmage, a better spellcaster, a better partner for my Princess of a future wife…!”

“You must forgive yourself for slipping up.”

“Were it so easy…” Nova mumbled.

“In truth, it is the hardest thing to do, to make your peace with errors that you’ve made. But even so, you must let go of them. For if you don’t, they will devour you.”

Now it was Nova’s turn to fall silent and think on the Alicorn King’s words. He didn’t sound much older than Nova did, yet he was capable of wisdom like this. Just who was this pony?

“My time is short and you must rest your mind,” Imperius said, his voice considerably gentler and less instructive than it had been a moment ago.

“Is that your way of saying goodnight?”

Imperius chuckled.

“If you would like it so, I can oblige.”

“Even wishing ponies good night, you can’t resist the iambic pentameter.”

“The pot informs the kettle that he’s black.”

Nova couldn’t help a humorless smile at that. Indeed, it really was the pot calling the kettle black considering his own hobby of annoying Twilight with conversational iambic pentameter from time to time.

“Good night to you too then, I guess.”

“Until we speak again, sir Nova Shine.”

---

Twilight laid her head back against the edge of the tub she was currently relaxing in. It felt so nice to simply stay here relaxing, letting her worries wash away as a spa pony tended to her mane somewhere behind her...

“So, about yesterday,” said Cadance from her current table, where she was sprawled on her belly while a masseuse set to work on her back. The tone was conversational despite the subject matter. Twilight noted she had all the subtlety of a drunk Princess Luna, even though she knew very well Cadance was going to bring all of this up. There was no beating around the bush today, it seemed..

“About yesterday,” she parrotted, though a lot more morosely than Cadance had.

“How are you holding up, Ladybug?”

“‘m fine,” Twilight mumbled back, trying not to think about what he had shouted at her in the heat of the moment.

“Twilight...” Cadance gave her a look out of her one visible eye.

“I’m fine,” Twilight repeated, more firmly this time.

“Ladybug, you are a bad liar and you know it.”

“Cadance, I don’t want to talk about it.”

“But you need to talk about it.”

Twilight let out an impatient growl, burying her face in her hooves.

“Twilight, I won’t mince words. While I don’t doubt that Nova Shine does regret what he did,” Cadance rested her chin on the table and somehow keeping her voice straight as the masseuse set to work on her shoulders, “I think you were too quick to welcome him back in.”

“I understand you feel that way,” Twilight tensed, the very opposite of what the spa trip was supposed to accomplish. “But you don’t know him like I do. Whenever he messes up, I’ve learned that the worst thing I can do is encourage him to punish himself like he always does.”

“I’m not saying you need to encourage him to punish himself,” Cadance gave her a sympathetic look, “but… don’t let him off the hook.”

“He’s not,” Twilight replied flatly. “But I’m not going to leave him to himself so he can run off and do even more harm by drinking or isolating himself like he always does when he does something like this.”

Cadance nodded her head in understanding. Twilight let out a breath in relief.

Now, to confess the hard part.

“And… he was...” her voice grew softer with every word, until it was barely a whisper, “sort of… right.”

“Come again, Ladybug?” Cadance turned an ear to her.

“He... “ she bit off the end of that statement, feeling tears spring to her eyes, and lowering her head to hide her face. “He… wasn’t wrong.”

There was a heartstopping pause. Even the ponies working on her mane had completely come to a halt, though that may have been because she had leaned forward.

“Oh, Twilight,” Cadance sounded as though she’d received the cruelest surprise she possibly could have, and Twilight couldn’t help but feel as though it was a distinct possibility. It was almost as bad as when Nova had said what he did. “Tell me you didn’t. Tell me you didn’t!”

“I… I d-didn’t do anything,” she forced out, feeling tears already start to spill down her cheeks. “But... b-but I…”

She couldn’t finish that sentence.

“Twilight,” Cadance’s voice was firm and… and she seemed to be struggling to stay in control of things, “tell me what you did.”

Twilight let out a shuddering sob, and the dam finally broke.

“I didn’t do anything,” she repeated, wiping her eyes, “but I… I never did tell Flash to stop.”

“Why!?” There was a clatter of hooves, and the next thing she knew, Cadance had entered the bath, grabbed her face in her hooves, and was staring into her tear-laced eyes with her own thunderstruck ones. “Just why!? I can feel the love you two have just radiating off of each other! Why would you do something like this!?”

“I-- I…”

Cadance’s eyes were boring into hers now. There was so much Twilight could see in them. Anger, disbelief, disappointment, complete and total dejection…

“Because of Clover,” she finally whispered.

Cadance let go of her face immediately, letting out a long slow breath as she covered her face with her hoof.

“Because of Clover?” Cadance asked, a harsh edge to her voice Twilight had only heard when she was being impersonated by Queen Chrysalis. “Because of a mare Nova left to be with you?”

“He’s not over her!” Twilight now grasped her head in her own hooves. “I know he left that time and came back to be with me, but what if he didn’t want to?”

“Twilight--”

“What if he only came back because… because he had to!?” She asked, her eyes wide, and the tears now falling freely. “C-Cadance, I… I love him and that hasn’t and will never change, b-but…”

“Oh, Twilight,” Cadance grabbed her and pulled her into a hug, letting the sobbing princess cry freely into her shoulder.

“I th-thought that… that I n-needed to…”

“You thought that it hanging over your heads would have done even more damage. You thought that paying him back was fair play, even if all you did was nurture the crush of a guard,” Cadance finished, with a small shake of her head. “Twilight…”

“W-when he said that yesterday…” mumbled, just barely loud enough for Cadance to hear, even as she tried to push free of Cadance to no avail, “I… deserved it.”

“No!” Cadance shouted. “Don’t you dare accept it. Something like that should never be said.”

“I never even told him, either,” she added, her voice now barely audible at all. “He… he found out.”

“How?”

Twilight sniffled, and pushed Cadance away. She felt… unworthy. Of what? Everything. How could she be worthy of the wings on her back and crown she was to wear, when she was actively hurting one of the very subjects she would rule and love? How could she be worthy of Nova Shine, when she had done what she had in the name of petty revenge to satisfy her irrational self? How could she be worthy of the Element of Magic and Spirit of Harmony, when she was spreading disharmony?

She had been irrational. She knew that. Deep down, she had always known that what she believed was irrational, and what she did was wrong. What was something like this supposed to do? Build their relationship by breaking his trust?

“All I ever had in Flash was a way to make Nova jealous,” Twilight shook herself out of Cadance’s grasp. “Cadance…it doesn’t matter what you think, you know that, at least s-somewhat, I did deserve--”

“That. Is. ENOUGH!”

Twilight flinched. She had never heard Cadance yell like that. And judging from the expressions on the spa staff’s faces, neither did they.

“Ladybug, just stop.” Her voice was calm, but she could just sense that it was a forced measure of calm. Like she wanted nothing more than to yell some sense into her, but was containing herself for the sake of not pouring oil on the fire. “For the life of me, I do not understand at all just how the two of you have managed to make it this long if you never take the time to talk to each other. A relationship cannot be built on secrets and lies, Twilight! It can only be built on trust and communication.”

“We-- we do talk--”

“Ladybug, there’s a difference between talking and communicating.” Cadance took a deep breath through her nose. “I have no doubt that the two of you talk all the time. But when was the last time the two of you truly had a heart-to-heart, spilled your guts out, and grew closer as a result?”

“...a few days ago, when we found him drinking,” Twilight answered in a small voice.

“When was the last time you two talked about your insecurities and feelings?” Cadance amended. “How did he even find out about Flash?”

Twilight just deflated at that. Memories of that awful night sprung to her mind, when they had been sharing dreams like they did every once in a while, only for her subconscious to just insert Flash into what had been a peaceful flight through an endless night. Of awkward questions, of cold shoulders for some time after, and of burning jealousy every time she so much as mentioned coming up here alone…

“He found out from someone else, didn’t he.” It wasn’t a question.

“No,” Twilight shook her head. “He… we were dreamsharing.”

“And he saw,” Cadance covering her eyes with her hooves and blowing a slow stream of air from her nostrils. “You regretted it. And when you did, you tried to keep Flash hidden. You thought what Nova didn’t know wouldn’t hurt him.”

“And he found out.” Her voice was barely audible, despite the silence of the room.

“And he found out,” Cadance repeated, with the tiniest shake of her head.

“What… what do I do?”

“This problem won’t magically go away, Twilight,” Cadance warned her, giving her a hard look. Twilight was so unused to seeing it from her, and it made her shiver. “Just like with what Nova said to you last night, it will take time. But I think you know the first thing you need to do.”

“And that is?” she asked, waiting for the hammerblow. Step down from being a princess? Postpone or cancel the wedding and end the engagement? Offer to be turned back into a unicorn?

“Tell him the truth, tell him you’re sorry, and mean it.”

Oh.

“The first step to fixing any problem is to recognize there is a problem,” Cadance continued, drawing her close with a wing, a much more comforting gesture than the harsh grabs from moments ago. “The second is to be honest with yourself and anyone else affected about that problem as well. Go to Nova. Tell him everything. Apologize for it all. Then never let this happen again.”

Twilight shook her head. No, this would not happen again.

“I’m sorry, Cadance,” she whispered.

“I’m not the one you need to apologize to,” Cadance frowned.

“You are, though. One of them, anyway,” Twilight shook her head. “I… I let you down.”

“You did,” Cadance agreed bluntly. “When you sit upon your throne in the coming months, you cannot do this, Twilight. Why would your subjects be inspired to follow you if you would do this to someone you love?”

With that, Cadance’s eyes softened, and she planted a gentle kiss on her brow. “I’m here to help, Ladybug. You aren’t doing this alone. Now that we’ve had our heart-to-heart, let’s relax and unwind. We can worry about you and Nova when it’s all done.”

Twilight nodded, and allowed the spa ponies to begin working her mane once again.

She and Nova had a lot of work to do.

---

“RAWR!” growled Pink the Bear, as she prowled across the ice-covered fields of the Giant’s Hollow. It had been a long day for Pink. She had journeyed through the Blocky Hills, over the Shelf Mountains, even doing battle with the Great Whammy, Snail of Sorcery.

It had been an epic battle. Gargantuan beasts had smashed against each other with all the strength they could muster. The Great Whammy had thrown entire sections of the Blocky Hills at Pink, but Pink would not be denied, and eventually, she stood victorious over her fallen foe, letting out a victory roar, before giggling for some reason.

But the end of her journey was near, for she would soon rescue Bluersa from the clutches of the giant Uncanoba the Terrible, who appeared to be slumbering on his icy floors. And there… there in his hooves, surely that was Bluersa! It was her paw, Pink the Bear could clearly see it!

The giant let out deep, rumbling snores, shaking everything around him, but Pink the Bear persisted, climbing up onto one of Uncanoba the Terrible’s arms and beginning to inch up the titan’s massive form. Pink knew that a giant’s weakness was its face. She had seen mommy and daddy boop each other in the noses and it always made them flinch. Pink knew that if she could just boop the nose of Uncanoba the Terrible, then the giant would let Bluersa go, and they could be together forever and ever.

Using the white hair that grew all over Uncanoba the Terrible’s body, and sometimes having to use the blue hair on his head, Pink finally climbed onto the titan’s face. A great wind rushed past her every time he took a deep breath with its massive lungs, and the rumble of Uncanoba’s snoring felt like an earthquake every few moments. Pink crept along, keeping her balance as best she could, before finally, she climbed to the top of Uncanoba’s nose. Raising a mighty paw, Pink reared back and slammed a hoof down onto his--

Nova Shine sputtered, startled out of his fake-sleep, as Flurry Heart rammed a stuffed bear paw into one of his nostrils by accident. He rolled over onto his side before entering a sneezing fit as his respiratory system tried to clear out an airway that wasn’t blocked anymore after he’d accidentally sent both stuffed bears flying across the room.

Once his sneezing fit subsided, he turned back to glare at Flurry, who was kicking her hooves into the air from how hard she was laughing. Within moments, his glare was gone and he was laughing with her over the silliness of the situation.

This filly, I swear… he thought with a shake of his head.

Nova just could not stay mad at her, even if it was fake mad. He just curled a hoof around Flurry’s belly, yanked her close, stuck his head right into her tummy and blew.

PBBBBBBBBBBBBBT!

Flurry squealed with renewed laughter, thrashing wildly in her favorite uncle’s grasp, all while Nova started tickling her relentlessly, which only added to Flurry’s kicking and squirming.

It had taken all of about thirty seconds for Flurry Heart to successfully get Nova Shine to forget entirely about yesterday. At first, he’d been skeptical on how a little foal, albeit one he loved dearly, would be able to just make him forget. Nevertheless, a Whammy thrown right into his face by Flurry’s golden aura had been exactly what he’d needed.

“Aaaaalright, I think it’s time to calm down now,” he said, sweeping Flurry onto his back, stepping over the many toys that littered the floor of Flurry’s playroom, and settled into a comfy chair next to a lamp and a bookshelf full of foal’s books. “According to your schedule, it’s almost naptime.”

Flurry’s face fell at once. “Nap ty?”

“Yep,. Naptime.”

Flurry slumped on his back. Nova wasn’t fooled. She always did this when she thought it would work and get her out of her nappies, but it never worked on him. It definitely worked on Twilight, who couldn’t bear to see her little niece sad, but Nova wasn’t so easily fooled.

“I’ll read your favorite book to help you go to sleep, too,” he smiled, his blue aura taking hold of a particularly famous foal’s book. He learned a long time ago that Flurry really liked rhymes and tongue twisters and all manner of wordplay. For whatever reason, she thought it was the funniest thing in the world whenever he told her that she sells seashells by the seashore, and she would always laugh uproariously whenever he told her about Peter Piper and how he picked a peck of pickled peppers.

Today, the book of choice was Green Eggs and Hay.

“That Sam-I-Say, that Sam-I-Say, I do not like that Sam-I-Say!” he read, as if it were the most enthralling thing in the world.

Flurry giggled, pawing at the page where Sam-I-Say was pulling out a plate with green-colored eggs and hay-bacon.

“Do you like green eggs and… toast?”

“Nooooo,” Flurry gave him a look.

“Sorry. Green eggs and oats.”

“Nooooo!” Flurry frowned, now seeming actually irritated. “Hay!”

“Right, sorry, green eggs and spam.”

“No, is HAY!” Flurry huffed. Nova reached up and tousled those purple locks of hers, with that same style of streak that Twilight had, albeit a bright teal instead of purple and magenta.

“Well, I do not like green eggs and hay, I do not like them, Sam-I-Say,” Nova read, successfully placating his niece. Said niece giggled again as though the last few seconds hadn’t happened.

“‘Would you like them here or there?’ ‘I would not like them here or there, I would not like them anywhere! I do not like green eggs and hay, I do not like them, Sam-I-Say.’”

He got further into it, roundabouts the part where Sam-I-Say was urging Guy Say I to eat them in a boat before he noticed that Flurry had finally dozed off. She hadn’t giggled for a little before, but only now did he realize, she was actually completely asleep, snoozing peacefully on his belly, with her head cradled in the crook of his neck.

Such a beautiful little filly… he observed, lightly brushing a stray lock of her mane out of her face. Can even see a bit of Twilight in her.

Nova watched her for a long while, seemingly entranced by the simple act of Flurry snoozing peacefully.

But after several minutes, his eyes seemed to gloss over, and he imagined there was a different filly in his arms, napping after he had finished telling her the story of the fateful Summer Sun Celebration. This new filly wasn’t Flurry Heart, however.

It was his daughter.

He imagined little Glimmer sleeping just like Flurry was now, after he’d told her the story of her mother. Her navy mane would be just as messy and untameable as his own, her white coat matted and scuffed from tossing and turning in her father’s grasp. Maybe her mother would peek in and watch the scene, a tender smile on her face as she appreciated the father-daughter bonding from the doorway of Glimmer’s room. A scene that he would treasure, the family all together.

The life he wanted. The life he didn’t deserve.

The scene cleared from his mind, and he had to reach up and paw away a tear, sniffling slightly. Flurry didn’t move from her spot, continuing to snooze without a care in the world.

Nova yawned, before his eyes drifted over to the doorway, wondering vaguely how Twilight and Cadance’s conversation was going, or what Gleam was--

The bottom dropped out of his stomach.

A green mare with a maroon mane was leaning against the doorway, watching him with an unreadable expression through her red eyes, while the ruby Spirit Gem glinted in the light.

“Shimmer,” he growled, his horn glowing softly as he prepared a defensive spell. Until Flurry was in a safe place, her protection had to be the highest priority.

Shimmer shook her head and held up a hoof. “I’m not here to fight today,” she said. It could have been Nova’s imagination, but there was a certain gentleness in her voice, as though she didn’t want to disturb the sleeping foal.

“Bull,” Nova retorted, snarling. “You’re never not looking for a fight when you’re around.”

“Hey, I can’t help it if the game is always so much fun to play,” she shrugged. “But really, I’m not here to shoot lasers and get the castle staff all alarmed or anything. I’m actually here… to ask a favor.”

Nova stared at her. No, there was no way. His mortal nemesis, the mare who was holding a loved one hostage in her own body and represented a threat to his, Twilight’s, Gleam’s, and many of their friends’ lives had not just asked him for a favor.

“You don’t believe me,” she noted, staring at him with a hint of a wry smile. “Can’t blame you for that, I guess.”

She stepped into the room, and Nova briefly wondered why the alarm hadn’t sounded, but there wasn’t time to worry about that. But to Nova’s astonishment, she simply trotted up slowly, eyes fixed on the sleeping Flurry, and just laid down off to his side.

“A favor,” Nova repeated, his mouth dry and his voice weak.

“Yeah,” Shimmer’s wry smile broadened. “It’s this thing friends do for each other where they don’t expect to be paid back.”

“Friends?” Nova repeated, blinking dumbly.

“Yeah,” Shimmer seemed to be revelling in how uncomfortable she was making him. “Friends.”

“You hold a mare I care about hostage in her own body, possess a close friend of mine, terrorize everyone, and try to kill me and my actual friends, and you think I’d consider you one of them?”

“Well, when you put it like that…”

“Shimmer, let’s not mince words,” Nova growled. “We’re mortal nemeses. You’ve been a thorn in my side since the day you nearly smothered us in the Vaults. Doesn’t really leave much in the room for being friends.”

“Hey, ask Sunbutt and Moonbutt about Discord,” Shimmer shrugged. Her eyes had gotten somewhat distant. “When you’ve lived as long as we have, sometimes the closest thing you have to a lifelong friend is a mortal nemesis.”

Nova had no words for that. All he could do was stare at his prone enemy, staring somewhere a thousand yards past the wall her eyes were pointed toward.

“Anyway,” she shook her head, “I promise this is a favor you might be interested in, when you hear about it.”

“Oh yeah?” he arched an eyebrow. “Go on then. What sort of thing that will advance your villainous agenda do you want me to do?”

Shimmer snorted, before giving him an annoyed look. “You really think I’d ask you to take all the fun out of things by getting you to do it yourself?”

“I wouldn’t put it past you.”

“Look, bonehead, all I want is for you to keep that little foal of yours out of the line of fire, alright?”

“Flurry’s not mine,” Nova glanced down at Flurry, who seemed to be dreaming about eating something if her mouth was anything to go off of.

“Oh I know she’s not,” Shimmer rolled her eyes. “She’s too cute to be your kid. I’m talking about that apprentice of yours.”

Nova felt his jaw clench instantly. Oh, oh this was going to be good.

“You want me to keep her out of trouble, right?” he scoffed. “What makes you think I’m not already doing that?”

“If you were trying to keep her out of trouble and she still stumbled into our little fracas in the forest, then you’re doing a greeeeeeat job,” she smirked. “Who thought it was a good idea to trust you with the baby again after your apprentice bumbled her way into the middle of our playtime and nearly got herself zapped?”

“My sister,” Nova growled, his horn now lighting up as he felt as though the inevitable fight was growing closer.

“I didn’t know you had a sister,” Shimmer gave him an odd look. “Wait. Her Royal Pinkness is your sister?”

“Surrogate,” Nova answered curtly.

“Oh, so you’re an only child,” Shimmer rolled her eyes. “Just like me. Surrogates don’t count. They’re just a way to play pretend.”

“I’m not that either.”

“But-- wait,” Envy’s odd look grew positively flummoxed now. “I’m lost. Do you have any siblings?”

“Not alive,” Nova responded, feeling the oddest twitch in his belly.

He had only learned about his deceased biological sister a few years ago. He’d been too young to remember her when she passed, and he’d spent ten years avoiding contact with his family, after all. His mom telling him the story was something he had never been prepared for. He had never seen her look so hopeless and full of despair, not even when he had stormed out after screaming obscenities at them four years ago.

“Oh,” Shimmer frowned. “Sorry about that. And on that note, sorry about last night.”

Nova gave her an odd look of his own. “What? You, sorry?”

“Yeah,” she returned fire with the frostiest look he’d ever seen from her. “Sorry. I had no idea that stallion was entangled with your pretty purple princess.”

Nova drew in a sharp breath as a vein started bulging in his temple. “Don’t remind me,” he growled.

“See, that’s what I mean,” Shimmer tossed a hoof at him. “He was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Didn’t expect it to turn out like… well, like that.”

“What difference does it make to you?” he snarled. If looks could kill... “Doesn’t it make things easier? The two of us this majorly pissed off at each other, and me in one of my little self-hating frenzies?”

“Look, handsome,” she smirked at the sour expression that crossed his face, “you’re fun to needle and generally get a rise out of. I’m never going to apologize for that.” The smirk faded into a frown. “But I don’t go out of my way to turn your life upside-down. I’d have thought Trixie might have told you about her time as my horcrux.”

“She doesn’t like to talk about it, no thanks to whatever you did to her.”

“I kept her well-fed, I kept her in a warm prison cell that was well-furnished, and I treated her like a guest,” Shimmer replied flatly, giving him an irritated look. “Believe it or not, Archmage, I don’t just do mean things for the sake of doing mean things.”

Nova didn’t know what to say to that. He wanted to call her a liar, but the fact that he couldn’t seem to sense her at all made that a little difficult, since he couldn’t tell like he could a normal pony.

Flurry let out a little groan and stirred, before opening her bleary eyes to look at him. Nova tensed the moment he and his niece locked gazes, already flashing back to the forest and Gleam, but the moment he glanced at Shimmer, she seemed to be gazing at Flurry too, with an oddly-thoughtful look on her face.

Before Nova could do anything, Shimmer shifted, her form obscured as she dissolved into shadow, before it reformed into her natural form, with a slender matte silver body, a shining silver styled mane and tail, a jewel on her flank, and the same red eyes as usual.

“Simma! Simma!” Flurry’s eyes brightened instantly, and she started squirming.

Nova’s mouth fell open, and he couldn’t even bring himself to act at all, even when Shimmer’s magic took hold of Flurry and started zooming her around the room, all while Flurry giggled and made Wonderbolt noises, arms stretched out in front of her like Supermare.

“What…?” Nova’s gaze flicked between both of them, struggling to process what he was seeing.

Shimmer ducked and weaved Flurry everywhere around the room, even buzzing Nova’s mane multiple times, which caused him to flinch. Even after he fully realized what was happening, he couldn’t go after Shimmer. What if she threw Flurry to the ground to get him away, or dropped her while distracted?

And if he went for Flurry, she could take advantage of the distraction and--

Flurry was settled right back where she had been mere moments ago, and she curled right up in his grasp again.

Nova could just stare dumbly at Shimmer, even as she reached over and gave Flurry’s mane a quick brush to set a few locks in place.

“Be good for your uncle Nova,” she whispered to the foal. “If you’re not, I won’t come play with you again before I have to leave.”

Flurry nodded eagerly, which elicited a pat on the head from Shimmer, before she turned tail and began to trot out.

“What… what was…” Nova couldn’t even complete the sentence! What the hell had he just been witness to?

”I mean it, though,” she abruptly said, turning her head to face him again. “The infirmary stallion really was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. I really didn’t mean to intentionally cause you to blow up.”

Nova just stared at her.

“Remember, keep that apprentice of yours out of harm’s way, or I might have to hurt her,” she added, with a deep frown. “I wish I could say it was up to me, but it’s not. So please do us both this one small favor.”

And with that, she dissolved into shadow, sank into the floor, and was gone.

---

Gleam paced around in blank hallway #247 of the Crystal Spire. Or was it blank hallway #248? It was definitely in the #240’s, at least. Right? Not the #250s?

Wait no, it was clearly in the #350s.

...she was lost, wasn’t she?

“Oh, just follow the magical voice in your head, Gleam!” she rolled her eyes. “It tooooooootally won’t get you lost in a maze of identical crystal hallways and identical crystal doors and no numbers or directions on anything!”

She sat down, promptly fell onto her back, and dragged her front hooves down her face.

It had started so simple. She had been on her way to the library to see if they had anything particularly interesting to read. Maybe they had the new Daring Do book! Apparently, it took place at a fan convention this time around, so she was hoping it would be full of nonsense and light-hearted things making fun of the fans. And that character that everyone liked was supposedly back! Prism Streak’s appearance in the previous book had been really well-received when they’d gone after Dr. Caballeron, and now she was supposed to become a full recurring character.

...she was wandering off on a rabbit trail again.

Maybe Master Nova Shine could teach her how to keep her mind from wandering off-topic.

Point was, she wanted to go to the library. She just wanted to see if they had the new Daring Do book! She didn’t ask for the whispers to show up and start directing her into the Wing Of Identical Hallways or anything.

She had almost been completely out the front doors of the Crystal Spire when she’d heard it.

...back…

Well, the Mysterious Voice hadn’t been wrong before.

So she went back. She was about to ask it what it wanted this time, but it seemed to read her mind.

...hall…attack…

She interpreted that to mean the hall that the Flash Sentry stallion had been attacked in. Mysterious Voice hadn’t corrected her, so that was something.

Of course, what was Miss Terryus Voice gonna even say to her? She hadn’t even done anything but send her to a place she’d nearly gotten herself killed in, and yesterday, she sent Gleam off to comfort a stallion that she had some mixed feelings about now.

...no she didn’t.

She wanted to. Goddess above, she wanted to feel differently about Master Nova Shine. It just felt… right. What did it say about her that she didn’t feel any differently, despite what she’d heard last night?

What did it say about her that she would still stand tall and call herself proud to be the chosen apprentice of Archmage Nova Shine, even after the horrible thing he said to Princess Twilight?

...peace…

Gleam took a deep breath just like Master Nova Shine had taught her, sucking in air through her nose slowly, holding it for a few seconds, and letting it out through her mouth with a solid blow.

...behind you…

Gleam stood up, turned around, and, surprise surprise, there was another featureless crystal wall. Cleaned so spotlessly, she could see every tiny little detail about herself in it. From her ponytail mane that she had only barely styled a little too much to the right, to the slight bags under her eyes from the lack of sleep the night before, to even the tiny scar just below her lower lip where she’d pierced her lip with her own teeth when she was a foal after losing her balance and falling on her face.

Gleam’s eyes shifted from one of her reflection’s eyes to the other and bac, and she finally let out a tired sigh and slumped back to the ground.

“Why do you even want me here?” she asked aloud. She hadn’t tried talking to Voice, but it was worth a shot.

As expected, however, Voice did not respond.

“Great,” Gleam groaned. “Just great. I just wanted to read Daring Do today. I just wanted to learn powerful magic from my idol. And here we are, two weeks later, and I’m involved in a personal vendetta between my Master and a shadow-mare, I get to see my Master scream at his own fiancee about personal issues, and I’m lost in a hallway that’s identical to every other hallway in every other direction, and I’m hungry because i skipped breakfast!”

Gleam dragged her hooves down her face. This was shaping up to just be the worst day.

She glared at herself in the reflection. “Sign up to be the Archmage’s apprentice, Gleam! It’ll be so fun!”

She huffed, preparing to just stomp out and see if she could find her way back, but something about the reflective crystal surface caught her eye…

A smudge.

Gleam frowned. It didn’t seem particularly interesting or out of the ordinary, but the crystal walls were self-cleaning. So… why was there a weird smudge on this one?

Short answer, either the self-cleaning was a little faulty in this exact section of the wall, this portion of crystal was clouded from within naturally (unlikely, given the smudge appeared to be on the surface), or...

To test her working hypothesis, she breathed on the crystal, causing fog to appear, but it vanished almost instantly, even when she tried to smear it with her hoof. So the self-cleaning was working. At least where she had breathed on the wall. Well, time to test the other possibility.

She reached up and tried to wipe it away, but nothing happened.

Gleam frowned.

I’m going crazy, she thought to herself. I’m obsessing over smudges now.

...look deeper…

What was that supposed to mean?

Gleam squinted extra-hard at this smudge. It didn’t seem remarkable, really. It just looked like your average smudge on a glass window. Only this one was either tinted crystal or magic.

Wait… “or magic”...

Her horn shone green, and she probed the smudge with her magic, trying to see if there really was some kind of enchantment behind it and--

“WAH!” Gleam yelped and scrambled backwards as she felt something behind the smudge. Something awful, something… unnatural.

Normal magic, when probed, felt like a warm surface on a sunny day. Comforting and welcoming. Normal magic was beautiful and harmonious.

Whatever it was that was behind the smudge-- because there was definitely something behind the smudge-- felt twisted, cold, and alien to her. It felt like magic drained of the very warmth it provided, of frozen fire, of an icy star. It felt like wet, cold slime that immediately sought to swallow anything of light that touched it. It was all-consuming, dark, and lifeless.

It felt wrong.

The world was not meant to produce something like that.

She didn’t know what it was, but she knew who the most likely ponies who would know were. And frankly, she didn’t want to stay anywhere near something like that ever again, if she could help it.

Galloping out of the crystal hallway, hooves sending loud clack!s echoing throughout the labyrinthine halls, she didn’t even really bother to pay attention to where she was supposed to go. Straight along the hallway, passing at least four intersections, before she arrived at a wall, and she just turned left and continued her gallop. It took her around the edge of this wing of the Crystal Spire, but eventually, she was able to find her way back into the entry hall, where she looked around frantically for the stairs to the residential wing.

“Something the matter?” a guard asked from his station by the front door.

“Need to… talk to… my master,” she gasped, her lungs catching up to her gallop.

“The Archmage is in Princess Flurry Heart’s room,” the crystal stallion said again, his amethyst color somehow having a calming effect on her. “Up those stairs, fourth floor, look for the door with a crystal heart and pink wings on it.”

“Thanks,” she gave him a tired nod, before taking off again. Up the stairs at the end of the mezzanine, up four flights of stairs, out onto the fourth floor, and she was back in familiar territory. The door to Princess Flurry Heart’s room was not far at all.

She burst inside, paying absolutely no mind to whether the little Princess was asleep or not, and found her master sitting in a chair with Flurry Heart curled up on his shoulder. Master Nova Shine’s eyes appeared misty, but Flurry Heart appeared to be in quite a playful mood, as she was busy smushing two stuffed bears and a squeaky snail together.

Master Nova Shine’s eyes returned to clarity immediately as she barged in. Flurry jumped, dropping the stuffed animals and giving her a frightened look, though it turned into laughter when she recognized her new visitor.

“Gleam?” Master Nova Shine asked, rubbing his eyes and sitting up. “What’s going on?”

“Geem?” Flurry mimicked, before looking up at Nova and giggling.

“Ifoundsomethinginthehallsanditscaresmeandineedhelppleasecomewithmeto--”

“GLEAM!”

Gleam jumped, startled out of her rapid-fire explanation

“GEEM!” Flurry repeated, before laughing again.

Master Nova Shine ‘s magic lifted Flurry Heart from his belly onto his back as he stood up and summoned his cloak.

“What’s got you spooked?” he asked as he settled Flurry onto his back, and began to trot out. “Is it something at the library?”

“Spoo!”

“I didn’t go to the library, master,” she answered, feeling a bit queasy as the horrible feeling of that magic crept into her mind once more. “I… went to the place where the guard was attacked.”

“I thought you said you were going to the library,” he frowned. “Did you change your mind?”

Gleam paused, not sure how to explain it. I mean, how did you just tell your Master “Hey, there’s a voice in my head telling me what to do and where to go and it nearly got me killed?”

“...I listened,” she finally admitted with a tiny shrug.

Master Nova Shine’s frown deepened. “To what?” he asked, his eyes narrowing. “Is this that pull thing you were talking about before?”

“I think so.” It had felt very similar. It hadn’t been a forceful pull; more like a gentle suggestion, really. As though some invisible force were trying to lead her by her hoof where she was needed, as opposed to yanking her along.

The Voice had felt the same way. Gentle, not forceful.

“It’s a whisper now,” she continued, furrowing her brow and frowning at the floor, “but it feels the same. She led me to--”

“She?”

“See!”

“Yes,” Gleam nodded. “The Voice feels like a she.”

“You’re hearing a voice in your head?” Nova asked, trotting over and laying a hoof on your shoulder. “Gleam, you shouldn’t just follow instructions from a voice that’s whispering suggestions to you. It could be somepony trying to manipulate you, or even trying to worm its way into your head like Envy did to Sergeant Sentry.”

“I know,” Gleam frowned even deeper, her eyes losing focus as she cast her mind back to the voice. “But… the voice just feels… familiar. Like I’ve heard it all my life. And I know it doesn’t sound like Envy in the slightest.”

Master Nova Shine just stared at her for a long moment. The longer it went, the more awkward she felt, even idly kicking her hooves as he frowned at her.

A thought occurred a few moments later.

Is he trying to read into my mind to see if everything is alright?

After several seconds, he shook his head. He checked to make sure Flurry Heart was secured to his back, the little princess squealing with glee and immediately grabbing hooffuls of his mane when he turned back, and stepped out into the hall past her.

“Alright. So, voice in your head. And it told you not to go to the library.”

“Yeah,” she nodded.

“And I assume you found something, which is why you ran all the way back here to tell me.”

“Yeah,” she nodded again.

Master Nova Shine looked back at her, and the tiniest of smiles graced his face. “Bravo for the initiative, Gleam, but I would have thought you’d remember what happened last time you went looking at this mysterious voice’s suggestion.”

Gleam said nothing. How was she supposed to explain that she didn’t believe she would be in any danger? That the Voice had reassured her of that fact?

But then again, it hadn’t felt like she’d be running into danger when she followed the pull back in Ponyville.

Her master had now started trotting out of the hall, back toward the staircase she’d just ascended. Flurry was flapping her wings excitedly as they went, and Gleam couldn’t help but be reminded of that day in the forest, when Master Nova Shine had seemed to get between her and Envy at an impossible speed.

But he hadn’t teleported. She would swear it before Princess Celestia itself, but Master Nova Shine had flown. And even for the briefest of moments, she swore she could see the faintest outline of wings extending from his back, even after he had braced himself behind his cloak.

Focus, Gleam. Back on topic.

“I… know, master,” she shook her head. “But I found something.

Master Nova Shine’s eyes widened. “What? What did you find, Gleam?”

“Something… horrible,” she clenched her eyes shut and shuddered as the memory of the Dark Magic washed over her again. “It was… cold, and it just felt so wrong!”

Master Nova Shine sped up, taking long strides, and seeming not to wait for her to catch up. For a moment she just kept at her usual pace, but before he turned out of sight into the stairway, he gave her a look and motioned with his hoof for her to catch up, so she scampered after him as he descended.

They were in the entry hall again now, and he set to pacing in the large open space

“If you found something full of dark energy, it’s probably best to wait until we can get all four of us and a cadre of anti-mages assembled,” he said. “You two!” he barked at the two guards flanking the doorway to the stairs she had passed earlier. The guards instantly snapped to attention. “You,” he pointed at the amethyst one who had been so helpful earlier, “run and grab Prince-Consort Armor, tell him this is an emergency, and to meet me in here. And you,” the other, “find a group of anti-mages. I’ll watch the door till you are both back. Go!”

Both of them saluted and cantered off in different directions, leaving Gleam and Master Nova Shine in the room alone. The moment they were out of sight, Master Nova Shine let out a deep breath and ran a hoof down his face.

“It’s been a long couple of days,” he sighed. “How are you holding up?”

“Considerably better than you, by the look of things,” she commented wryly, before clapping a hoof over her mouth. She hadn’t meant to say that! It was just so disrespectful!

Master Nova Shine, however, smirked. “You’re learning! I’ll have you fluent in snark in no time.”

“I’msorryIdidn’tmean--”

“Gleam.”

“--tosaythatitwasuncalledforandIreallyshouldn’t--”

“Gleam.”
“Geem.”

“--haveallowedmyselftosaysomethingsodisrespectful--”

“Gleam!”
“Geem!”

“--I’msorryIwon’tdoitagainpleasedon’tsendmebackIreallydowanttolearnfromyou--”

He flicked the tip of her horn, and she froze for that split-second as the tingle went down her spine. Flurry started laughing as Gleam reset herself, shaking her head and causing her golden mane to dance about in the sunlit room.

“How many times do I have to tell you to take deep breaths?” her master asked with an amused look. “And I’m not in the least bit offended. I keep telling you, I would prefer you just talk to me like any other friend of yours, but you just insist otherwise…” he exaggerated his eyeroll.

“Sorry, mas--”

“No!” Nova shoved a hoof into her mouth. “Stop that. Don’t apologize. I want you to feel comfortable being you around me. I would prefer you not call me that, but if you loosening up around me means I have to get used to you calling me ‘master’, then I’ll deal with it.”

“Okay,” she nodded, letting out a deep breath she had been holding. “Sor-- no, I’ll get used to it.”

“That’s better,” he smiled fondly. “I know it’ll take some getting used to, having me there to keep an eye on you, but you’ll get there. Took me a few months to get there with Luna, so I’m not expecting you to do it immediately.”

She nodded. One of the guards returned, and with him were four gold-trimmed-purple-robed unicorns of varying colors, who all saluted Master Nova Shine when they saw him. He just nodded at them, and they started patiently waiting. A few minutes later, Captain Armor came in with the other guard, and the two resumed their post. Gleam told Captain Armor and the anti-mages what they had found, and although they wanted to go looking immediately, Gleam and Nova both convinced them to wait on Princess Twilight and Princess Cadance.

They didn’t have to wait long. Princess Cadance and Princess Twilight strolled in with Princess Twilight looking uneasy as they trotted in. Princess Cadance had an unreadable expression on her face.

The moment they did, Flurry suddenly cried out in excitement.

“Mama! Antee Tai!”

“Cadey,” Captain Armor trotted over and gave her a quick hug. “There’s a problem. Apprentice Gleam seems to have found more Dark Magic to dispel over by where Sergeant Sentry was attacked.”

Princess Cadance’s unreadable expression turned into one of disbelief. “I thought we dispelled all of them already. How many more are there?”

“We’ll have to keep searching, ma’am,” one of the anti-mages replied in a gruff voice. Some of his nexuses are so small, it’s nearly impossible to detect them. Perhaps knowing what to look for will expedite the process. There have been several other nexuses of energy that took us some time to find.”

“Just how full of these things is this place?” Princess Cadance moaned, massaging her temple with a hoof. “It’s been four years and they’re still cropping up! These can’t be safe to have around Flurry!”

“Speaking of,” Master Nova Shine interrupted, rotating to indicate the princess sitting on his back and currently buzzing her wings excitedly, “someone’s going to have to watch the little one while we see what’s up with this nexus of Dark Magic.”

“I can,” Princess Twilight offered, sidling beside Master Nova Shine, just close enough for Flurry to climb off of his back and onto hers. “She’ll be safe with me.”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Master Nova Shine shook his head. “We’ll want as many experienced and powerful mages nearby as possible when we do this.”

“What about Gleam?” asked Captain Armor. Gleam shifted uncomfortably. She kinda needed to point out where this nexus of energy was, didn’t she? “As soon as she’s shown it to us, that is.” Oh. Duh.

“No,” her master shook his head again. “She needs to stay with us. If she’s alone, she’s a prime target for Envy. I can’t let that happen.”

“I’ll do it,” came a voice Gleam did not expect to hear that evening. All of them turned toward one of the doors that led further into the ground floor, but away from the wing Gleam was going to take them to.

The guard from yesterday was trotting out. He looked a bit nervous, but he didn’t look like he belonged in the infirmary. On the contrary, he had donned his armor again and looked just like a normal soldier.

“Shouldn’t you be in the infirmary, sergeant?” Master Nova Shine asked. Gleam had expected no shortage of frostiness in his voice after last night, but…

...he sounded perfectly normal. As if he were just talking to any other pony.

“They just released me, but they agreed with you that I needed to go see a psych,” Sentry dipped his head. “Anyway, I’ve been cleared for duty again. Whatever you did yesterday seemed to have been the last bit needed.”

Master Nova Shine nodded, and oh, there it was. There was a certain tension in the way he nodded, as though he didn’t want to, but also didn’t want to not want to.

Master must feel very guilty about last night, she reasoned.

...regret…

“Are you… sure?” Princess Twilight asked, glancing nervously at Princess Cadance, who was watching Master Nova Shine with a barely-contained scowl.

“Positive, ma’am,” Sentry nodded, snapping to attention. “Ready to serve as ordered.”

“Sergeant,” Captain Armor stepped up, “I am placing Flurry under your charge. Go and find several other guards, and make absolutely sure she is under someone’s direct watch at all times until we relieve you. If you believe you are overwhelmed, send for help. Do you understand?”

“Sir!” Sentry saluted.

Captain Armor nodded, and with a quick glow of pink, Flurry Heart was lifted off of Princess Twilight’s shoulders and onto Flash Sentry’s, who trotted off as soon as she was secure.

When he was gone, Gleam didn’t miss the sharp exhale of air from Master Nova Shine’s nose as he went.

“Well,” she stepped forward, “follow me then, I guess?”

“By your lead,” Master Nova Shine gestured with a hoof. Gleam sucked in a breath, and slowly let it out.

Voice, could you maybe please actually lead me there again? I kinda forgot the way.

No need.

She led them into the Hall Of Identical Hallways, or whatever its real name was, and tried to remember exactly where she was when she’d probed that horrifying… thing.

Captain Armor seemed to know where to go, though. He marched right past her, and led them past a bunch of identical hallways, and then turned and headed down another set of identical hallways. It didn’t take long for them to arrive at the spot. Gleam could see the smudge in the light. It was faint, but it was there. Just being near the thing made her queasy.

“So where is it?” Master Nova Shine asked.

“Th-there,” she squeaked, pointing at the smudge. “It’s there.”

Captain Armor frowned at the smudge, as did Master Nova Shine. Both of them stepped forward, both of their horns glowed, one pink and one blue, and as one, both of them recoiled in disgust. Captain Armor seemed to have gotten the worst of it, as he reacted how Gleam felt merely recalling the feeling from only a few minutes ago. Master Nova Shine, however, shuddered slightly, but strode forward, shut his eyes, and placed a hoof on the smudge.

“Don’t--!” Gleam reached out for him, but Princess Twilight caught her hoof.

“He’ll be alright,” she assured Gleam. “He’s trying to read the spell to see what it does.”

“Read it?” Gleam tilted her head. “I don’t understand.”

“Nova’s told you about his energy sensing, right?” Gleam nodded. “Well, through his energy-sensing, he learned how to read spells, and to alter or otherwise manipulate them as a result. He’s always been able to do it as long as I’ve known him, but he’s gotten much better in his training as the archmage. So he’s trying to figure out what the nexus you found is set up to do.”

“Why?” Gleam asked, getting a sick feeling from the thought of even being near this thing for this long.

“To make sure it’s nothing dangerous. And trust me,” Princess Twilight smiled, “no one’s as good at reading spells as Nova. Well, no unicorn, anyway.” she added with a sheepish grin.

“Does that mean you’re better than him?”

“Hah! Not a chance,” Princess Twilight admitted with a sheepish grin. “Sure, I’m more powerful than him overall, and I’m smarter than him-- no offense,” she glanced over at Master Nova Shine.

“None taken, it’s true,” Master Nova Shine grunted.

“But he’s just got this way with the language of magic that’s… well,” she searched for a way to really describe it, “let me put it this way. The number of non-alicorn ponies who could read, comprehend, and cast Star Swirl the Bearded’s Time Stasis spell without help, who have existed since the spell was written, is twelve ponies total. Only three lived in the last four hundred years. Two of them live right now. Nova is, by far, the better of the two.”

Gleam felt her eyebrows shoot into her mane and her mouth fall open.

“Like,” Twilight glanced up at the ceiling thoughtfully, “On her best day, Starlight could metaphorically read and write the language of magic. Maybe she could compose something original. On his worst day, Nova can sing in magic.”

“I… I don’t…”

Gleam felt weak. Was her master really even stronger than she thought of him?

“It’s hard to visualize, I get it,” Princess Twilight patted her on the shoulder, “but… well, on rare occasions, it feels like Equish is Nova’s second language, and it’s through magic that he can really express himself.”

“Oh, that’s just beautiful,” Master Nova Shine suddenly muttered, a smile spreading across his face, though he shuddered all the same. “Got it,” he raised his voice, before reaching up and tapping on the smudge. “I think I’m reading it right, but there’s an altered Teleport Trigger spell here. Assuming Dark Magic follows the same spell composition laws as normal magic, anyway. But considering how it was put together, there wasn’t much else it could have been. It was crafted specifically to be almost entirely undetectable due to the enchantments around it, no doubt to ensure that if Star Swirl ever came calling, he likely would never find what it’s linked to.”

“A Teleportation Trigger?” Captain Armor’s eyebrows knit together. “So if it’s hit, it will teleport the caster someplace?”

“Precisely,” Master Nova Shine dipped his head. “But like I said, it’s an altered version, so it behaves differently, and it’s also keyed so that only Dark Magic will trigger it. Watch,” he added, before firing a beam of light that splashed harmlessly against the crystal.

Princess Twilight had remained stock still, but Captain Armor, Cadance, and the anti-mages had all flinched when he’d done it. Gleam had also, somehow, not flinched. Deep down, she must have figured her master knew what he was doing, a sentiment seemingly shared by Princess Twilight. Everyone else, however…

“Now, when Twilight uses the Dark Magic to trigger the spell, it will--”

“I thought we were removing it,” Captain Armor cut in, frowning.

“Yeah, we are,” Master Nova Shine nodded. “After we explore the hidden lab this leads to.”

“H-hidden… lab?” Cadance asked, sounding weak. “We… we thought we’d found all of them years ago!”

“I’m sorry, back up,” Princess Twilight cut in. “Why do I have to be the one to use the Dark Magic?”

“Because you’re the one of us who keeps their emotions in check the best,” Master Nova Shine admitted, and Gleam didn’t miss the way he seemed to almost imperceptibly sort of look away from her. Like, he hadn’t been looking at her before, but now it seemed deliberate this time, like he was staring at the smudge on the wall on purpose.

Princess Twilight opened her mouth, closed it, opened it again, and then just let it stand, shaking her head and turning to face the smudge. Gleam also didn’t miss how Cadance’s gaze seemed to nervously shift between the two of them at that.

“So… what am I doing, exactly?” Princess Twilight asked, motioning everyone to step back from her.

“Just a normal beam spell will work. Everyone in about a two-meter radius will be transported to the hidden lab, so backing up is a little out of the question.

Princess Twilight trotted forward and she made sure to press quite firmly into his side, the same way she did when she was feeling particularly affectionate, but considering the previous night, she could only wonder how Princess Twilight could seem to so easily forgive him.

“I guess… gather round?” Master Nova Shine said, and she could hear a slightly more emotional tone than before. Cadance seemed to let out a visible exhale at this as well, and Captain Armor...

He looked surprised. That was the only thing she could gather.

“We should all be able to fit,” her master said, motioning for the anti-mages to squeeze in. “Whenever you’re ready, Twi.”

Twilight’s horn pulsed with energy, and her eyes began to glow a bright sickly green and trail purple energy.. Gleam shuddered as a repulsive sound issued from Twilight Sparkle’s horn, a zapping, not unlike the sound of something squealing in pain. A beam of black energy with purple auras sparking off of it blasted out of her horn, striking the smudge precisely where Gleam had felt the spell.

The world seemed to flip. As if the ground on which they were standing remained solid, but it was flipped over one hundred eighty degrees. They seemed to pass through the floor, before there was a bright flash of light, a sort of poofing noise, and before Gleam knew it, everything was done.

They were now standing in a massive dark, cold room. Like the castle, it was also cut from crystal. There was no light but for the many auras emanating from everyone’s horns. Master Nova Shine’s, Cadance’s, and Princess Twilight’s glowed brighter than everyone else’s, but the anti-mages’ magics were no slouches.

“I… hate doing that,” Princess Twilight rubbed at her face. “It feels wrong.” She straightened up. “So, where are we?”

“We’re about forty meters underground,” Master Nova Shine informed them, a ball of blue light separating from his horn and flying up to the center of the room, where it illuminated their surroundings.

There were bookshelves everywhere, stuffed to the brim with all sorts of tomes. Several diagrams and charts dotted the walls as well. Crude metal machinery, small enough to be operated by one pony, was also scattered about. But sitting in the center of the room, however, was a large slab of black stone, with what looked like a gift box sitting on top of it, not unlike a Hearth’s Warming present.

“I’m blind,” Master Nova said, shaking his head vigorously. “I think the teleportation spell was designed to blind energy sensors. Can anyone sense anything?”

“No sir,” one of the anti-mages replied, “I’m blind too.”

“Looks like we have no good way to make sure there’s nothing dangerous here,” Princess Twilight sighed.

“Can’t we just wait for your energy sensing to come back?” asked Gleam.

“I don’t know how long that can take,” Captain Armor shook his head. “Could be anywhere from several minutes, to hours at the most.”

“I don’t suppose any of you have any inmanipulon implements we can use?” Master Nova Shine asked the anti-mages.

One of them shook his head. “Not in our armory, I’m afraid, sir. Stone’s too expensive, so only the high-ranking anti-mages get them.”

“Damn,” Master Nova scowled slightly. “Alright. Spread out. Let’s see what we find. And do not touch that gift box.”

“Why not?” asked Gleam, who had been edging over to take a look at it.

“I think I already know who it’s from,” he replied, frowning over at it. “Which means it’s dangerous.”

Gleam shuddered as she remembered that mare’s red eyes and the murderous intent behind them.

“Be careful what you touch, and what you pick up,” Captain Armor ordered.

Everyone spread out around the room. Gleam found herself drawn to a peculiar chart, which was positioned front and center on the back wall. It depicted a simple black crown, with a tall prominent spike in the center, and two much shorter spikes flanking it. There appeared to be sockets cut into the crown below each spike. Separate from the crown, however, were three stylized glowing orbs.

One of them, with a line indicating the socket under the central spike, was colored a bright red. Another, a line indicating the socket to the red one‘s left relative to the crown’s wearer, was blue. The last, the final socket on the right, was green.

Two of the gems were also contained in some kind of casing. The red one appeared to be in some kind of stylized alicorn shape, with wings flanking the gem and a unicorn’s head rising above it. The blue gem appeared to be in a simple round pendant. The green gem, however, had no casing like the other two did. Nothing on this chart was labeled. But why wouldn’t it be labeled if it were so important? What were all of these?

“Find anything?”

Gleam jumped. Her master had trotted up behind her, and she hadn’t realized it.

“Just… this,” she gestured at the diagram. “I have no idea what it is.”

Master Nova Shine frowned as he studied the diagram. Gleam watched his eyes, and when they widened as he looked over the red gem’s alicorn thingy, she had a feeling she’d stumbled on something important.

“I don’t know what this is,” Master Nova Shine whispered, “but if this is something Sombra was trying to create, then we need to take extra note of it And why Envy would be interested in one of its components.”

The diagram was taken down and stored away with a flash of blue. There were other diagrams on the walls as well, though. Some depicted mundane things as the planets in the Celestian System, others seemed to list dates that were over a thousand years ago, and all sorts of other things.

Gleam didn’t want to know what this room was for, but there was certainly curiosity. Just what was Sombra doing here?

One diagram that she could understand caught her eye. A map, by the look of things. It seemed to depict the Crystal Empire and Equestria’s northern borders, but it also included Yakyakistan and the lands even beyond that.

Gleam had never seen maps with details about the lands north of Yakyakistan. Everyone knew there was a mountain range that formed Yakyakistan’s northern border, but no one knew what lay beyond. This map, however, depicted a frozen plain, a complete sheet of ice, and then a single red X, with a single word next to it.

Elysium.

“What’s this, master?” she tapped Master Nova Shine on the arm.

He looked over, frowned a bit as he studied it some, and then shrugged. “I’ve never heard of it. I guess it’s what it says it is.”

“Why would he want to know what’s north of Yakyakistan?”

“Who knows?” he shrugged again. “It’s so cold and the air’s so thin that none of our zeppelins have ever been able to climb high enough to pass the mountains, and the water is frozen entirely solid, so thick that not even icebreaker ships can break through. No one that I know of has ever passed those mountains either. I guess when you’re a shadow being, things like height don’t mean much.”

He turned his attention back to the present on the table, took a deep breath, and approached it.

“Magi, over here please,” he raised his voice, and the five purple-robed ponies cantered over.

“Yes sir?” their leader asked.

“I’m going to open this box and see what’s inside,” he said, staring at it like he was trying to sense its energy, which of course he couldn’t.

“What do you need us to do?”

“Be prepared in case something foul comes out of it, or anything like that,” he said, before his frown deepened. “But I think I may already know what’s inside.”

“Shouldn’t we take it back with us to the castle?” Gleam asked. “We can wait on your energy sensing to come back there.”

“Under normal circumstances, that would be the smart decision, yeah,” Master Nova Shine nodded. “But we don’t know what Envy’s done to this thing. It could have some kind of evil curse or something on it, and if we take it back, we’re putting too many more ponies at risk. Better down here, in this isolated lab, where it can’t spread if we fail to control it.”

That made sense. But was there really anything Master Nova Shine couldn’t handle?

Cautiously, he picked up the box. It was lidded, and wrapped in green paper, with a maroon bow on it, the same shades as that Envy mare’s coat and mane. Attached to the bow was a tag, which would normally be a to-from tag, but all it had this time was a heart.

Gleam felt a chill creep up her spine. Just what was this mare to her master?

Master Nova Shine hit the lit off with his hoof, flicking it as though he were afraid to touch it any longer than necessary, which she supposed he probably was. With the lid off, Master Nova Shine knocked the box over, sending what was inside of it sliding out onto the table.

The same amulet she had seen on the diagram slid out. It was made of darkened metal that gleamed in the light, and it had a large, glowing red gem set in the center. Unlike Envy’s ruby pendant, which seemed to give off a subtle glow, this pendant was glowing brightly and eerily, and almost illuminated the room on its own.

Princess Twilight came trotting over at that, having been dissecting the books on the shelves with Cadance and Captain Armor for information. “What’s going on?” she asked. Then she saw the source of the light, and she gasped. “Is that…?”

Master Nova Shine nodded, his eyes still firmly fixed on the amulet. Now everyone was gathered around, and Captain Armor looked like he was sick to his stomach.

“How long…” he said weakly. “How long has this been under us?”

“A few days tops,” Master Nova Shine replied. “This needs to be taken someplace where it can be safely contained.”

His horn glowed blue. He didn’t want to touch it with his hooves.

There was a split second, and Gleam knew something was wrong.

“Wait, don’t!” she cried out, reaching out and trying to get her master’s attention by gripping his shoulder and pulling him back.

There was a strange lurching sensation, and everything around them went black.

“Nova!” Twilight shouted, as she watched Gleam and Nova suddenly vanish into thin air. What was that!? The amulet hadn’t done that last time! How had a spell triggered whatever enchantment was within it!? How was it possible to store an enchantment inside an artifact that powerful to begin with!? Certain metals leaked magical energy and weren't the most efficient sources to bind enchantments to, either.

“Where did they go!?” she turned around, looking desperately to Cadance and Shining, or to the anti-mages. “We need to find them! Where could they have gone!?”

The anti-mages were already examining the scene, having leapt into action almost immediately. Their spells scanned the area, particularly the epicenter of the spell, but Cadance and Shining just looked stunned where they stood.

“What sort of plots have we been pulled into?” Cadance asked, her voice barely above a whisper. “How are we going to protect Flurry when all of… of this,” she gestured at everything around her, “is going on here!?”

But as Twilight and the rest of their company panicked over where Nova and Gleam had disappeared to, they were completely unaware of another figure, bearded and wearing a traveling cloak and pointed wizard’s hat, appearing within the room in a burst of white light.

---

Gleam was unceremoniously dumped into a heap on a cold, hard floor, falling right on top of a warm body she could only assume was her master. The change in scenery wasn’t as obvious as it had been a few minutes ago, but there was still a very apparent shift in the atmosphere around them. Where the laboratory they had originally been in had felt off from the moment they’d entered it, this room, whatever it was, felt positively wrong.

She stood up, noticing that they were in a large round room, which was only faintly illuminated by the dark crystal beneath her hooves, which gave off a slight glow of purple light.

The far end of this room, which appeared to be made entirely of crystal, with a high ceiling several yards above them, was shrouded in darkness, but for whatever reason, the feeling of wrongness seemed to be emanating from that shrouded side

Master Nova Shine got to his own hooves behind her, and when she glanced back, he seemed to be warily looking around in every direction. The amulet was still clutched in his hoof.

“What was that?” she asked, whispering in case something unwanted was nearby.

“Teleportation Trap,” he grunted, now studying the amulet. “Keyed to go off when I used magic on this. She had me pegged,” he glowered. “Knew I’d probe it before I touched it.”

“I know you so well,” came a sultry purr, and a shadow rose up from the ground, resolving itself into the shape of a green-coated mare, with a maroon mane and tail, an orange flower on her flank, bright red eyes, and a gleaming ruby pendant around her neck.

Master Nova Shine’s eyes bulged, and instantly, he slapped the amulet to his neck, a thick cord bound the amulet to him. Gleam could have sworn she heard a sizzling sound as he did so, but Master Nova Shine showed no reaction if it really was happening.

The mare, Envy, rolled her eyes at the sight of his little action.

“You bonehead,” she guffawed. “The thing already triggered a Teleportation Trap, and the first thing you do when I turn up is slap that thing on, not even caring if there’s anything else bound to it? You really are as stupid as they come.”

“It’s better than letting you have it,” he snarled, stepping forward, between Envy and her.

Envy’s eyes fell to her, and the satisfied grin she had, was replaced by angry disbelief instantly.

“You..” she hissed, “you… brought her along!?”

Gleam recoiled, completely unprepared for the sudden hostility. Really though, what else should she have expected? That her master’s mortal enemy would be all nice and kind and invite her for tea and crumpets?

“I specifically asked you to keep her out of trouble!” she growled, shoving her snout right into Nova’s, with perhaps the angriest expression Gleam had ever seen on anyone before, and that included her father when she’d accidentally broken his limited edition autographed Jeff Letrotski collector’s plate and blamed it on her neighbor.

Not important, Gleam!

Master Nova Shine said nothing to her, which she didn’t really know how to take, especially since she was the one who had stumbled her way into being involved in the first place. Why had Envy demanded she be kept out of trouble? She’d tried to strike her with lightning only a few short days ago, so why had she suddenly grown a conscience?

“Can’t trust you for anything!” Envy dragged a hoof down her face. “It wasn’t even an hour ago!”

“If you do anything...” Master Nova Shine growled, stepping between them both.

“At this point,” Envy replied, her voice deathly quiet, “it’s not up to me.”

With that, she dissolved into shadow and sank into the floor, forming a dark cloud beneath the surface of the floor. The shadow slithered back toward the dark end of the room, and Nova tentatively followed it. After a few moments, Gleam followed suit as well.

As they drew nearer to the other end of the room, a great crystal appeared out of the darkness, affixed to the wall behind it.

And within the crystal, was a pony. It was hard to tell what they looked like due to the darkness and the tint of it, but it was clear that they had a dark coat, and that it was a stallion. He also seemed to have some kind of metal barding and hoof fixtures on as well, a great shaggy black mane, and black stubble under his jaw.

Master Nova Shine’s eyes widened, she could hear a sharp intake of breath, and at once, he thrust a hoof out behind him to shove her back.

“Gleam,” he said in a low, desperate voice, “we need to go. Now!”

Gleam felt a chill go up her spine at his tone. She had never heard her master sound so afraid before. Who was this pony?

“It’s already too late,” Envy said, her voice emotionless and flat, a far cry from her usual sultry self. “Just by being here, you’ve triggered it.”

“Triggered what?” Nova asked, a blue shield surrounding both of them as he backed away.

Envy said nothing, her face falling into one of resolve. With a bright blast of Dark Magic from her horn, she blasted the crystal, causing the energy to spiral around it, before sinking in and bathing the entire room in a sickly green and purple glow.

Master Nova Shine screamed.

Gleam barely had time to register what was happening. One moment they were safe behind her master’s shields, but the next minute, the shield had vanished, he had doubled over, and he seemed to be vomiting shadow!

Gleam felt sick to her stomach. What was happening!?

Master Nova Shine spasmed and twitched on the ground, the shadowy energy continuing to force itself out of him through every orifice it could. Mouth, nostrils, ears, everything. Once the shadow was free, it would slink its way over to the crystal with the stallion in it,

As the shadow sank into the crystal, the glow of the crystal grew brighter and brighter, until, after several heart-stopping seconds, the shadow stopped issuing forth from her master, and the glow faded.

Mater Nova Shine continued to twitch on the ground, but he tried to stagger to his feet despite the ordeal, five orbs of light flickering into existence, though they seemed far more faded than they had in the forest. He was heaving for breath, still trying to stay between her and Envy, who was just watching the crystal with a strange, nervous bearing.

Gleam had a feeling that the pony within the crystal was about to come out.

There was the sound like glass shattering, and with an explosion of crystal fragments, it blew apart, and the stallion within rose to his hooves. His mane began to billow and took on a smoky appearance. His curved horn that ended in a red tip shone the same sickly dark green and purple, and a simple metal spiked crown appeared on his head, and a fur-trimmed red cape fluttered onto his back.

Then he opened his eyes.

Trails of the same shadowy energy began to issue from the corners of his eyes at once, and they colored the sclera green. His irises were red, and his pupils were somewhere between a cat-like slit and a normal pony circle.

Gleam had never met him before, but she knew exactly who it was.

“King Sombra,” she whispered.

Sombra surveyed the retreating pair. Gleam felt her gaze drawn to those horrible eyes, but they were more directed at her master, who was trying to re-conjure the shield around them. After a long moment, he turned his gaze to Envy, who hadn’t looked at him once. She had instead been staring at the broken incubation crystal, looking conflicted.

“I do not recognize your current form,” Sombra said in a deep rumble.

“Been mainly wearing her guise for the last several centuries,” Envy replied, her voice just as flat and emotionless as before. Shadow obscured her, and when it faded, she was now a young shapely-yet-thin mare, with a matte silver coat, shining silver mane and tail, a crystal for a cutie mark, and a haughty bearing. “Is this more acceptable?”

Sombra smiled.

“How good it is to see you once again,” he strode over to her, which got her attention. “It’s been so very long, apprentice mine.”

“Wha--” Nova Shine mouthed, looking like he had just been punched in the gut.

“Behold King Sombra’s Envy, Nova Shine,” Sombra turned to face the two of them again, with a calm, satisfied smile on his muzzle. Like a cat that had its prey cornered. “My faithful servant, and apprentice too.”

“Ap...pren...tice?” Master Nova Shine whispered, sounding as though he were struggling to piece together the meaning of the word. “I don’t…”

“It truly is a sordid little tale,” Sombra looked over where Envy was still staring at the ground, looking conflicted. “Her avaricious father threw her out when she was merely still a growing child. He thought of her as nothing more than waste, a filly costing money, food, and care, until the blackguard had her tossed aside.”

He had to be lying… right? Why tell Master Nova Shine this story?

“She stowed away while searching for a home, sought refuge, food, and shelter in this land, and nearly froze to death upon the ice.”

A curious expression crossed Envy’s face. It looked like… regret? Gleam couldn’t tell, but for whatever reason, she had the distinct impression that being his apprentice wasn’t a matter of choice, or it was one she desperately wanted to walk back.

“And then along came I to save her life,” Sombra’s smile widened. “She served me well in thanks for all I’d done. She’s served me, loyal even past my deaths. And now, through you, she’s brought me back to life.”

His horn pulsed with energy, and Master Nova Shine reflexively took a step back.

“Take off the gem, and give it up to me,” Sombra ordered, holding out a hoof. “If you do not, you will regret your choice.”

“Go fuck yourself,” Master Nova Shine spat, his horn shining blue, and he seemed to stand taller at that. Gleam had to admire her master’s nerve. To stare down an enemy he was terrified of, and still mouth off to him?

Sombra, however, seemed to smirk.

“You know, I had expected cheek from you,” he mused, seeming to also admire her master’s nerve. “But even so, not quite to this degree.”

He frowned, his horn pulsed with magic, and that same squealing sound blasted into her ears as he shot a beam of energy at Master Nova Shine, who tried too late to throw up a shield, and was struck directly.

He screamed as the energy seemed to shock him, pulsing over him from head to hoof. Master Nova Shine convulsed and twisted and writhed on the ground, yelling out from whatever it was that he felt, all while Sombra continued to blast him with that spell, the squealing sound somehow louder than her master’s cries.

Next to Sombra, Gleam could see Envy still looking conflicted, but when she saw Gleam watching her, her expression hardened. A bolt of red lightning blasted out of her horn and struck Nova Shine as well, adding to the torment.

“That’s quite enough my Envy, let him stand,” Sombra ordered coolly, smirking down at Master Nova Shine.

Master Nova Shine didn’t move for several seconds after Envy and Sombra ceased their assaults, his body literally smoking from the magic, but after a time he still attempted to stand, his legs wobbling and nearly giving way. He stood tall, but she could see the quiver, and she could hear his ragged breath.

“Take off the gem, and give it up to me,” Sombra repeated as his sparked dangerously. “The pain continues if you do not yield.”

“Never,” Master Nova Shine snarled, his horn glowing blue. Envy yelped and leapt to the side as a raw yet powerful blast of magic shot from his horn, but Sombra calmly raised an ironclad hoof and batted it aside.

“Disappointing,” Sombra sniffed, before he slammed his hooves into the ground, causing spikes of black crystal to erupt from the floor. Master Nova Shine backed away, dodging the spikes as they went, but was then struck by another blast of red lightning which sent him crumpling to the floor and convulsing again.

“Am I to understand that this is it?” Sombra asked, with a look of disgust on his face. “You’ve had four years to train and grow, and yet… you cannot even muster up a fight? You truly are a let-down, Nova Shine.”

He stalked forward, Envy trotting beside him, still scowling down at Master Nova Shine as he tried to get to his hooves again.

This time, however, he let out a surprise blast of energy, catching Sombra by surprise, but it barely pushed him back a few inches. Envy leapt forward, a shot of lightning blasting out of her horn again, but this time Nova got a shield in the way.

Undeterred, Envy simply shot another blast at the ground, and it seemed to reflect against the crystal and past his shield, where it once again caused him to howl and writhe in pain as it struck.

Sombra let out a long breath, with no shortage of disappointment in it.

“I always thought that you would be a match,” he kicked Master Nova Shine across the room with a powerful front-legged buck. “But life, it seems, must disappoint me now.” A clear punch to the face to send Master Nova Shine back down as he was trying to stagger to his feet.

Nova tried once more to get to his hooves, but Sombra reared back, and brought a hoof slamming down on the back of her master’s head, sending him crashing to the ground, where he did not move.

“Master!” Gleam cried out.

Sombra looked down on the fallen Master Nova Shine with contempt.

“And here I thought the Archmage wasn’t weak,” he commented, with a note of derision. His horn pulsed with darkness, and Master Nova Shine was lifted by his mane, where he hung limply, his chest heaving and looking completely, utterly defeated despite not having a single scratch on him. “That I would find a challenge facing you. How foolish I was, thinking it were so.”

Sombra stared him right in the eyes, his cool and assured gaze standing in stark contrast to Master Nova Shine’s defeated one.

“Now I will ask you only one more time. Give me the amulet and you may live.”

“Never,” her master grunted out, spitting out blood. “I’ll never give it to you.”

Sombra smirked, and his horn began to spark once more.

“We don’t have to kill him. There’s… there’s another way,” Envy cut in. She sounded disgusted at the thought of it, but there was almost a note of having to bring up whatever her possibility was.

“Hm?” Sombra gave his apprentice a cool but inquisitive look.

“He has to take it off himself, right?” she asked, staring at the amulet around Nova’s neck. “Well, we can’t bully him into doing it directly, but…”

Her eyes fell onto Gleam, and a chill ran up Gleam’s spine.

No… no, she wouldn’t…

Now Sombra was staring at her, with an evil smile creeping across his muzzle. “The many years have changed your way of thought,” he mused. “I never thought that you’d suggest this deed.”

“This idiot brought her into it after I specifically asked him not to,” she snapped, glaring at Nova in fury and… disappointment? “Let’s not mince words, Master, you were going to suggest it.”

Sombra nodded, the sickening grin widening. “Indeed it’s true, I would have brought it up.”

He began to step toward her, dropping Master Nova Shine, who at once started crawling after them, a desperate look on his face. His horn sparked, but no magic came out.

Gleam felt herself take a step back, and then another, and then one more. The voice in her head wasn’t telling her anything. What could she do?

“Run, Gleam…” Master Nova Shine met her eyes, and she could see the pure and total terror in them, not unlike the look she had seen in his eyes when he had realized she was there in the forest.

Sombra’s horn pulsed with energy, and with the twisted zapping sound, a beam of dark energy shot from his horn. Gleam tensed, reflexively drawing the cloak around herself, and felt the punch of the magic as it impacted. Unfortunately, because she had simply taken the brunt of the attack, it blasted her backward, where she skidded to a halt with a yelp of pain.

Instinct took over as she staggered to her hooves as quickly as she could and tried to huddle behind the cloak once again. But before she could, a hoof yanked the cloak from her grasp. Gleam cried out, her eyes meeting Sombra's as he held her cloak away, his horn pulsing with energy. Desperately, she threw up her hooves, knowing there was no way she could block the incoming attack--

There was an explosion of light, and Gleam felt the very air around her thrum with energy. Sombra's hooves let go and she heard him be thrown backwards. Hesitantly, she lowered her hooves, and found herself staring at a tall grey unicorn stallion, wearing a long blue cape decorated with stars, and a tall pointed blue hat. His mane and tail were long and white, and he had a thick beard as well. He stood tall, glaring at the Shadow King, who seemed to falter at the sight of the new intruder. Envy looked stricken at the sight of him, and Nova let out an audible sigh of relief.

It was Star Swirl the Bearded. Gleam felt relief wash over her at the very sight of him. They were saved!

She tried to get to her hooves, but the elderly wizard’s horn glowed white, and before she could do anything, the air around her seemed to twist and shift, before a glowing white line appeared on the ground, encircling her.

“Do not step beyond that line, Apprentice Bright Gleam,” he ordered in a quiet, furious voice. His voice sounded different to how he had sounded at the Ascendancy. There was a faint note of a Trottish accent in his voice, which seemed to add to his menace. “Within that space, you are fully protected.”

“Y-yes sir,” she nodded.

“Archmage, stand tall,” Star Swirl ordered, his horn glowing white again, and Nova Shine being bathed in Star Swirl’s white energy. As the magic washed over him, Nova was able to stagger to his feet, and his horn began to glow a bright and dangerous blue. With a flash of light, he disappeared from behind Sombra and Envy, the former of whom was staggering to his own hooves, and appeared next to Star Swirl, his horn still glowing and the five orbs of light appearing around him yet again and spinning dangerously.

“I will handle the Shadow King,” Star Swirl growled, which elicited a scowl from Sombra. “It is, after all, a master’s duty to discipline his student. Keep his own apprentice occupied, but be prepared to intervene. If I tell you to cast a certain spell, do it without question, and without any additives. And whatever you do, do not tap into the amulet around your neck. Do you understand?”

“Perfectly,” her master nodded. “Thank-you, Lord Star Swirl.”

“Don’t thank me yet,” Star Swirl replied.

Sombra snarled, and launched a beam of pulsing dark energy at Star Swirl. Gleam expected Star Swirl to simply teleport away or deflect it, but he did something else entirely. The air in front of Star Swirl, where the beam was traveling toward, shifted. All of a sudden, the beam slowed to a snail’s pace!

Star Swirl charged, the white of his horn seeming to increase in intensity. Sombra visibly flinched and failed to react as a whip of light extended from Star Swirl’s horn and ensnared Sombra by one of his hooves. Gleam could only watch in awe as Star Swirl threw Sombra across the room, smashing him into the wall. As the whip came free, it broke apart into seven individual rigid white beams, which began to orbit Star Swirl like her master’s own little orbs.

Sombra let out a roar of fury, tendrils of shadow extending from his body and flying toward Star Swirl, who seemed not to notice, or even care as they approached his hooves. The shadows began to wrap themselves around Star Swirl’s legs and--

The beam that Star Swirl had slowed to a crawl moments ago suddenly sped up again, and Gleam flinched, throwing the Night Master cape around herself to deflect the blow…

...but it never came.

Gleam lowered the cape in confusion. The beam was gone. Star Swirl had repelled the shadowy tendrils and was still keeping Sombra on the defensive beneath an onslaught of beams, that whip, and all manner of things she couldn’t comprehend. Star Swirl seemed to be compressing the air itself onto Sombra, who was trying to fight his way out of it while slowly backing away. Master Nova Shine had engaged Envy, and now that he only had to focus on one pony, he, too, was pushing her back underneath a constant barrage of everything he could think of. Currently, he was letting loose with a torrent of boiling water, which she was deflecting, but the droplets would coalesce and freeze into spikes of ice that would rain down on her.

But where did the beam from before go?

On a whim, she glanced behind herself and found a singe mark in the wall behind her that was still smoking. Had it gone through her little space?

It had. A moment later, a crackling red bolt of lightning errantly fired by Envy lanced her way, but the moment it crossed that line, it seemed to just skip the space she was in, reappearing on the other side and striking the wall.

Star Swirl had done something to the space around her that rendered her untouchable. She really was protected.

“To hear Celestia and Luna tell it,” Star Swirl began conversationally, “this is the third time you have attempted a return after death, Luxius. How many more times must we destroy you before you will stay defeated?”

Sombra coldly laughed. “Perhaps I only continue to return specifically because you refuse to use the name I chose, Lord Star Swirl, as opposed to the weakling of a prince’s name.”

Star Swirl let out a tiny chuckle, but sent the seven beams of light pelting at Sombra, who was forced to dissolve into shadow to avoid them. The beams, however, surrounded Sombra at odd angles, and emitted waves of light that forced the king back into solid shape.

“It’s insulting of you to think that I haven’t considered ways of countering your intangibility, my student,” Star Swirl gave Sombra an annoyed look.

Several blasts of red light grabbed Gleam’s attention, and she looked over to the side in time to see Master Nova Shine dance his way through the space between him and his opponent, using the cape to swat and bat away bolts of red lightning sent his way. He spun, ducked, and weaved his way between the blasts, angling the lightning off of his back and into the walls around him, all while he closed the distance as quickly as he could, despite her backpedaling. It was like watching a graceful dancer, a beautiful symphony of movement and magic.

Every weave was garnished with a flourish of the cape, every dodge punctuated with a beam that forced Envy to avoid it, every block countered with a riposte of energy. If magic were music, then Master Nova Shine was a jazz musician, mixing classic sorcery with his own brand of unique twists and even physical strikes whenever he was in range.

“On his worst day, Nova can sing in magic.”

Finally after one too many hits, Envy simply turned tail and galloped away to create space.

At this, Master Nova Shine leapt into the air. One of the orbs of light soared under him, and he planted his hooves and pushed off of it, rising ever higher and higher into the air while he repeated the process. Once he reached a sufficient height somewhere near the ceiling above, he allowed himself to drop to the ground, surrounding himself in magical energy as he shot toward the crystal floor.

However, he was aiming not at Envy, but at Sombra. Sombra noticed him, snarled, and ducked out of the way, but as Master Nova Shine landed, the energy he had surrounded himself with blasted outward, catching the Shadow King mid-dodge and blasting him into the wall.

“Excellent improvisation,” praised Star Swirl. “Duck.”

Master Nova Shine ducked immediately, just as a streak of silver sliced across where his head had been. Envy had slashed at his neck with the knife of hers from afar. Master Nova Shine turned his attention back to her and began reflecting beams off of the ground toward her, just as she had done to him earlier, though as expected, Envy seemed to find this easier to handle as she seemed much more comfortable deflecting these away.

Sombra, meanwhile, had gotten back to his hooves, and he approached Star Swirl with a cold grin.

“I have been looking forward to a duel with you for centuries, Lord Star Swirl. And you do not disappoint. It also seems that on even hoofing, this fool of an Archmage is no weakling either.” The cold grin broadened. “I shan’t underestimate him again, you can be assured of that.”

“He really is something to watch when he gets going, isn’t he?” Star Swirl looked over to where Master Nova Shine was now keeping Envy completely pinned down under a gale of wind from his horn as he stepped toward her. “Still plenty of room for improvement, though. As for me, well…” he shrugged, “I do try. Though I must admit, I never look forward to a day when I must do battle, not even against a skilled opponent.”

“I would expect no less from you, Master,” Sombra grinned wolfishly. “You who chose to cower and hide behind the tails of Celestia and Luna. You have grown afraid in your old age.”

Star Swirl laughed, as though he had simply heard a joke told by a friend. “Oh, I know I’m old, and I can’t jump around like I used to,” a dangerous gleam appeared in his eyes, “but never mistake my pacifism for weakness, my former apprentice.”

At this, his horn shone white, and the entire room seemed to lurch. Envy and Master Nova Shine, currently rolling around in a tangle of limbs while they both pummeled each other physically, were bounced into the air, where Envy fell into a heap, but Master Nova Shine was able to land gracefully on his hooves, as though he had expected it all along.

Sombra was knocked off-balance, and the whip of light reformed out of the individual lines of light, which Star Swirl flung at Sombra, catching him right on the face. Sombra hissed, but Star Swirl pressed his advantage, slamming a hoof into the ground and making a spike of crystal erupt from the ground, impaling Sombra while he recoiled from the whip attack. Now trapped on the spike, Star Swirl fired with a beam of light so pure and white that it even emitted a clear musical tone as it shot forward. It struck the king dead on, and Sombra let out the first real roar of pain since his resurrection.

There was a blast of red light from the other battle, and Gleam felt her stomach clench as she heard her master let out a surprised yelp.

She turned her attention to Master Nova Shine and Envy. To her horror, Envy was straddling him and was trying her damnedest to ram her knife down into him wherever she could see flesh, but he continued to squirm and try to fire off a blast of magic to knock her off of him.

The knife was inching ever closer...

Call the magic and will it forward, child!

Gleam summoned her magic. All she wanted to do was knock the mare off of him, but she had no idea how to do it. However, as though her magic could sense her desire, a beam of green light rocketed from her horn and caught Envy on the side, catching her completely unawares and sending her skidding into the wall.

At once, Master Nova Shine turned the tide, binding her to the ground, and sticking his horn close to her temple, before it shone blue and he shut his eyes.

Envy’s however, bulged as she realized what he was doing. Before she could do anything, however, both of them froze, just like when he had entered Flash Sentry’s mind. They both must have been focused on each others’ minds.

For several seconds, they stood stock-still, minus the occasional twitch. Sombra more than once attempted to interrupt Master Nova Shine, but Star Swirl was always quick to ensure that whatever Master Nova Shine was doing was undisturbed, keeping the Shadow King cut off from his apprentice.

Suddenly, Envy’s struggles renewed.

“GET OUT OF MY HEAD!” she screeched, and let out a raw blast of power that sent Master Nova Shine skidding back. He was able to conjure a magic slope that caught him, redirected him, and sent him galloping right back after her, where he renewed the attack, using those white orbs to keep her moving and dodging, and occasionally sending them over to aid Star Swirl in his battle with Sombra.

After only a few more tense seconds, Gleam could sense a shift in the battle. Envy had been on the defensive almost the entire time, but that brief moment where she was trying to run him through seemed to have galvanized Master Nova Shine to not slip up again. However, the bulk of his attacks seemed to be focused on Sombra now, while he merely paid Envy a paltry amount of attention despite her repeated attacks.

“Nova Shine,” barked Star Swirl, who was now on the defensive as Sombra had begun countering with a barrage of shadow spells. “Cast Steelshod’s variation toward me.”

“On it,” Master Nova Shine replied, catching an attempted stab from Envy with his cloak, wrapping it around her hoof, and then tossing her away.

When he had space, he shot a stream of stars into the air toward Sombra and Star Swirl. Star Swirl immediately began to fire the tiniest beams she had ever seen from his horn. Each one impacted one of the glimmering stars Master Nova Shine had fired, and he began to direct each one into a position that surrounded Sombra.

As each star touched the ground or walls, it exploded into a bubble of light about 12 inches across, which didn’t seem to fade like normal magic did. In short order, Sombra had been surrounded by several white bubbles of light on the ground, with even a couple of them freezing in place midair. Master Nova Shine must have understood whatever Star Swirl had done to those lights, because he grabbed the cloak that was still wrapped around Envy’s hoof and used it to launch her toward one of the bubbles. Envy tried to shift into a shadow form, but a wave of light from Star Swirl forced her to remain solid.

The moment she landed, a few inches shy of one of the bubbles, Master Nova Shine blasted her with his magic before she had a chance to respond, blowing her directly into one of them. The moment she made contact with one of the bubbles, she seemed to completely freeze in midair, her expression stuck in one of surprise.

The bubble had trapped her in stasis.

Now, with both Star Swirl and Master Nova Shine bearing down on him, Sombra let out an impatient breath from his nose and his eyes narrowed.

“Well played, my lord Star Swirl,” he inclined his head. “I hate to end our duel so early on, but it is quite apparent I’m outmatched. As well, it seems there is yet hope for him,” he smirked at Master Nova Shine. “I shall retreat today, but do be warned. I am not used to this new form quite yet. You’ll find me more prepared to fight next time. And thus, I take my leave. But first…”

His shadow magic struck the bubble Envy was in, dissipating it and catching her before she flew into another one. Before Master Nova Shine and Star Swirl could react, however, strands of shadow flew at them, ensnaring them both to prevent them from interfering. As both of them fought to extricate themselves, a swirl of energy wrapped itself around Sombra and Envy, and when it vanished, so had they.

A quick burst of light from each horn caused the shadows binding them to be disintegrated, but their opponents were already gone.

Master Nova Shine didn’t seem to think so, as he whirled around, looking every which way as though he expected an attack to come from somewhere.

“Calm yourself, Nova Shine,” Star Swirl said softly. His horn shone, and the white bubbles on the ground disappeared. “They have gone.”

“How do you know?” her master asked, still glancing around warily.

Star Swirl smiled, despite the battle that had just ended mere seconds ago. “Your energy sense is quite attuned, but I have had time to develop mine to the point where I can sense even the tiniest things at a distance that you would not believe. They are nowhere that I can sense, and that means that they are nowhere in this city.”

With Lord Star Swirl’s confirmation, Master Nova Shine let out a shaky breath, and he slid into a sitting position on the floor.

“I do wish we had met under less troubling circumstances,” Star Swirl said, now trotting over to her again. The white line surrounding her vanished as the air seemed to un-twist. “I have been wanting to meet you ever since you stood up in front of everyone at the Ascendancy.”

“Uhh… hi?” she squeaked, partly amazed that SHE WAS TALKING TO STAR SWIRL, but also thoroughly perplexed at the idea that, not ten seconds after chasing Sombra away, Star Swirl was introducing himself to her as if it were a perfectly ordinary place to meet someone.

Well, in fairness, he did think it was fashionable to add bells to his ceremonial hat and cape, neither of which he brought with him today; only practical wizard wear was being worn this time.

“Can we do this someplace else?” Master Nova Shine mumbled, wiping his brow and flicking the sweat away. “My fiancee is probably worried sick and I want to leave this wretched place.”

“Perhaps that would be best. They are all quite alarmed,” Star Swirl concurred, but he motioned with his hoof for them both to return to his side, away from the crystal apparatus that had rebirthed Sombra. “We shouldn’t keep them in suspense any longer. Come to me, both of you.”

Master Nova Shine got to his hooves. Gleam wrinkled her nose at the sight of the sweat stain he left on the ground. He looked to be in stark contrast to Star Swirl, who looked as though he had barely ruffled his lengthy beard.

With them both standing beside him, Lord Star Swirl’s horn shone white again, and with a burst of light, they reappeared in the castle throne room, where Gleam had a brief moment to process that everyone was gathered.

There was about half a second of surprise from everyone as they simply appeared out of nowhere, before a blur of purple shot past her and tackled Master Nova Shine to the ground, and she found herself watching Princess Twilight holding on as though she were afraid to let him go, mumbling something that seemed to be on the lines of “I’m so sorry!” and “Please don’t do that again!” all while Master Nova Shine didn’t even seem to be registering it himself. On the contrary, his eyes were hazy, probably from the taxing effort of the battle, and even though he did hold her tight from his spot on the ground, he still didn’t seem to be mentally in the room with them.

“What happened?” asked Cadance, dashing over to the three of them, followed closely by Captain Armor. “Where did you go? Are you alright?”

“Unfortunately,” Star Swirl frowned, a grave look on his face, “I have some urgent work to do here before I return to Canterlot to inform the princesses of what happened here. Prince-Consort, Princess, I regret to inform you that King Sombra has returned once again, and he has escaped.”

Captain Armor’s breath hitched, and Cadance covered her face with a wing, but not before Gleam could see her clench her eyes shut. Princess Twilight looked stricken.

“He’s… he’s back again?”

Star Swirl nodded solemnly. “The Archmage and I were more than a match for him and his apprentice--”

“Apprentice?” Princess Twilight asked, glancing down at her fiancee, who was still staring past all of them, eyes glazed over. “Who--?”

“Shimmer,” her master replied softly, his eyes narrowing a fraction. “Shimmer’s been his apprentice since before I ever met her. But it’s… complicated. I saw something, Twilight. Something… awful.”

Princess Twilight stared up at him, who was still staring at the wall fear ahead. Gleam felt a prickle in her neck. Was this whatever he had seen in her head?

“Let’s get you checked out and make sure everything’s alright,” Princess Twilight said, draping a wing over his hack.

“Before you go,” Star Swirl held out a hoof, “give me the amulet. I’ll keep it protected as I return to Canterlot.”

Without hesitating, Master Nova Shine reached up and pulled it off, and shortly before his fur covered it up, Gleam was startled to see burned skin where the amulet’s chain had bound itself to him. What is that thing!?

Star Swirl’s magic shone, and the amulet vanished. With that, he gave them all one last nod, and with a swish of his cloak, he turned and marched away.

“Let’s go,” Master Nova Shine said hoarsely.

As they trotted away, Gleam could only feel the fear of what was to come settle in. Her master had been so effortlessly beaten when it was two versus one, and she had been completely unable to help him. Sure, when it had been a fair fight, he had looked every bit as powerful as she had always believed, but they were lucky that he had been there to begin with. If he hadn’t been…

One thing was for certain, though. Sombra would be stronger next time, and she had no way of knowing if he would be significantly stronger.

Today’s skirmish was only a taste. The real battle was yet to come.

---

High on a mountainside overlooking the Imperial City, Shimmer stared down at the tiny city far beneath her, sprawled in all directions but patterned after a snowflake, with the ant-sized imperial citizens going about their business.

“Allowing him to take the amulet was a poor decision,” rumbled the voice of her master from somewhere behind her on this cliffside. She said nothing. Surely he had to know what her reasoning was. He always knew. Always saw, always heard, always kept her under his thrall.

And now Nova Shine had seen it with his own eyes, during his brief intrusion into her head.

The look on his face would haunt her for years. The horror, the revulsion, and even the pity.

“Why did you give him the amulet?”

“You already know the answer to that,” she snapped, glaring back at the only other pony on the mountainside with her.

“Hmm…” the king studied her, to the point where even she felt awkward about it. “It has been centuries since you spent regular time in my presence. I fear my understanding of you has waned in that span. And you are aware of just what that amulet is, so I shall ask again.”

Shadows tickled her hooves as they started to wind their way up them threateningly. Laughable, really. As if she couldn’t just shadow her way out of them herself.

“It was the only way to get him moving,” she answered, gritting her teeth. “Had to break the news to him.”

“You gave him the amulet so that he would find out my grand design?” the king’s voice lowered.

“Yes, and you know that!” she turned around and met his gaze with a glare of her own. “Stop asking me questions you already know the answer to. I know you know my reasons for it.”

Sombra’s eyes narrowed, and pain spread through her body. She cried out reflexively, falling into the snow and writhing as crackling bolts of twisted green and purple energy coursed through her. She didn’t scream, though. She never screamed when he disciplined her. Grunts and moans and the occasional surprised yelp were all she would give him. Show no weakness.

“It would seem your many years separate from me have let quite the insubordinate attitude fester within you,” the king’s lip curled. “I would hear it from you with my own ears, my Envy. Why did you allow Nova Shine to take the amulet?”

The pain ceased, leaving her a gasping mess on the ground.

“Because if we didn’t," she breathlessly snapped, "and we just took the amulet, they’d hunker down. Hole themselves up and do nothing.”

“And that is not preferable to them knowing our plans and acting against them how, exactly?” Sombra’s horn crackled with energy, and Shimmer tensed, but she controlled her face like she always did.

“Because now that they know your plan,” she explained, staggering back to her hooves and turning back to the city, “and especially now that Star Swirl the Bearded’s seen it with his own eyes, you just know they’re gonna go after the other two to stop us from taking them ourselves.”

The King’s eyes widened as he realized what she was getting at now.

“They shall recover the Gems of Being for us, and because there are so few places secure enough to hold such powerful artifacts, the locations in which they will be kept once they find them all will be predictable,” he finished, a satisfied smile spreading across his face. “I apologize, my Envy. It would seem that I underestimated your foresight.”

Shimmer let out the breath she had been holding. No more pain today, it seemed.

She’d expected to be punished for throwing the fight with Nova Shine up until he had tried to break into her mind, but it seemed the king was in a forgiving mood today. Normally, he never tolerated failure. He never killed ponies for it-- that was just a waste of good personnel and it was difficult and time-consuming to replace trained staff-- but he always made sure that the punishment for failure made someone never want to fail him again.

Was today always supposed to be a defeat?

“If we are going to allow them to collect and hoard the Gems of Being for us, then one of us will have to make sure they are making progress,” Sombra stepped up behind her, making sure to lean right behind her ear so that it was impossible to mistake his meaning. “One of us is going to have to make sure they are constantly working toward that goal, and not on other… unnecessary pursuits.”

“I get it,” she growled, stepping forward, almost to the edge of the cliff. “Keep an eye on them, keep them moving toward getting the gems. Should I leave now, or wait until later when things calm down in the city?”

“Oh, not just yet,” the king shook his head, a small smile on his face. “Tomorrow, they shall journey to the Shrine of Black and White. It is unlikely that Star Swirl will accompany them, but even if he is there, I would still like to test Princess Sparkle.”

“More fighting,” she rolled her eyes. “You know if Star Swirl’s there--”

“If he is there,” the king interrupted. “then I shall ensure he is properly distracted. We won’t be truly intervening personally, you see. You still remember your summoning lessons, I understand.”

“Oh, goody," she sighed. "More of those things.”

“Three should suffice tomorrow.”

He looked down at the city, before turning his gaze northward, toward Yakyakistan, and even beyond, to the Frozen Maw and the mysterious empty city that lay beyond.

“After tomorrow,” he said in a soft voice, “the real work begins.”

Author's Note:

Chapter art done by Nevel Yashgi.

Thank-you for reading thus far. Lemme know what I can get better at in the comments.

Rytex out. Have a good day!

Comments

[Sunny_and_Auri_23]

I think this story's been going great! I'm really glad there was some closure with Twilight and Nova after the last chapter. I was wondering why Twilight would give away Clover's cloak to the museum, but it makes sense now, because of the way she feels about Clover.
Flurry's just adorable, but I'm curious as to how Shimmer managed to play with Flurry without her parents or even the guard finding out about it. And especially since Flurry seems to be fond of her.
Oh no. In TATSATC, I felt no sympathy for Shimmer or even Summer. Now I feel bad for them both. I'm scared to find out what Nova found out in Shimmer's mind.
Also, since Sombra's here, are you doing something else to do with the predictions Sombra made in TATSATC, like in EIOW? I know the "Forgotten World" ,um I can't seem to remember the exact name, but it's not happening since that was in EIOW, but what about the other predictions?
Gleam was great in this, and I wonder if the voice in her head has something to do with the alicorn in Nova's head.
Anyway, I loved this chapter, and I can't wait for the next one!
-Sunny

[RTStephens]

Ah, young love. More like dumb love.

Guess who's back. Back again. Sombra's back. Tell a friend!

Seems Gleam's going to get involved no matter what happens. That's destiny and fate for ya. Don't give a crap 'bout your schedule.

So many head games that it's tough keeping track who's in whats head and vice versa. Need a diagram to sort it all out.

Till next time!

[Rytex]

10280227

When I get around to rewriting Chapter 15 in TATSATC, which shouldn't be too much longer considering I'm about 25% of the way through C14, I am going to change the prediction. The World Without Memory was EIOW, the Neverending Fantasy was going to be Story 3 in which Nova was trapped in an idyllic dream of everything he ever wanted, and Story 4 was going to see a similar situation here, with Sombra using Nova to try and return (except he was going to fail... and then come back again anyway in Story 5 because of shenanigans).

As for Shimmer being sympathetic, well... you ain't seen nothing yet. I'm trying to toe the line between her being evil enough to make things difficult, but also being not evil enough to maintain sympathy. And on that note, I still haven't shown everyone just what it was Nova saw in her head yet, but it's coming. For her playing with Flurry, I implied she just kinda snuck into Flurry's room from time to time with shadow magic since the alarms didn't detect shadow form or something. I dunno, sometimes you gotta paint the center of the canvas but leave the edges there for the reader to fill in. Not everything needs to be explained away, and sometimes things are best left to the reader's imagination. Explaining too much leads to the Star Wars problem.

Glad you're enjoying it, dude. Hopefully it lives up to all expectations.

10283391

Yeah, I left it open that Nova was not over Clover at the end of TATSATC, and it's having long-reaching effects here. Neurotic and jealous Twilight overthinks Nova's lingering feelings for a mare that looks exactly like her and acts out in the most irrational way, whereas aloof Nova Shine, who tries to hide away when he thinks he's done wrong, just buries all of his bad feelings and guilt about it in the name of trying to keep things working, and naturally, it starts eating away at things the moment the wrong things happen. The good news is, semi-spoiler but also no, they will patch things up and come out stronger. But there's work to do and certain bacon-maned thought-seers to talk to first (there's my big tease of what's to come).

For Gleam, what's the phrase? "One often meets their destiny on the road they take to avoid it"? When you have a magic voice in your head telling you what to do, you're already involved in the game, and all your attempts to get out of it won't do diddly squat.

I love complex webs of stories. My favorites are those ones with slow build-ups, shifting alliances, and plenty of character interactions that lead to a massive payoff when everything comes together. Think Brandon Sanderson, George R R Martin, etc. TATSATC was mostly simple. TALB won't be as simple. The characters on the cover art are just the most-involved characters.

Also glad you're enjoying things. Loving the feedback.

[Sunny_and_Auri_23]

Oooh I have a question, is Neighton a ponified version of Beighton in England?
I was just curious

[Rytex]

10391570

It's kinda just a typical town. Could also be a pun of Dayton OH, for instance. In the audio drama, it has qn English feel to it in the art, so if you think of it that way, that's perfectly in line.