The Crystal Empire
Big MacIntosh saw them off early the next morning.
Scootaloo slumped into the train seat, still not entirely awake, even after showering. Apple Bloom took the seat beside her, while Spike and Sweetie Belle took the seats in front of them. Other than the four of them, the train was near empty.
“Now, remember to tell everypony in town about what we told you,” Apple Bloom said to her brother through the open window. “Have them come up with code words with their familes in case there’s changelings around, and stay away from the forest. Things are just gonna get worse in there.”
“Eeyup,” Big MacIntosh answered.
“Hey, Big Mac?” Scootaloo said. He turned his attention toward her. “Could you tell everypony one other thing, too?” He nodded. She hesitated, taking an extra moment to figure out how to say what she wanted. “Tell everypony we’re going to fix this. I don’t know how, just yet, but we’re going to figure it out. And when we do, everypony should be ready.”
“Ready?” Spike asked. “Ready for what?”
“I haven’t gotten that far yet,” Scootaloo said, glancing away with a sheepish smile. “But when we free the princesses and beat Nocturne, there’s still going to be changelings and whatever else to deal with. Ponies are going to need to be ready to deal with them, once their queens are taken out.”
Big MacIntosh nodded. “I’ll tell them.”
There was a shrill whistle and the seats beneath them shuddered. Apple Bloom leaned over as the train started moving to wave goodbye to her brother once again, only dropping back into her own seat once he’d disappeared from view.
The flat land around Ponyville became hills as the tracks curved widely around Canterlot mountain. Scootaloo spent the morning with a cheek resting against the cool glass of the train window, lost in thought.
The Crystal Heart was powerful enough to protect an entire country. Maybe it could be helpful to them, but she wasn’t going to count on it. She’d learned the hard way with the fragment of harmony that just having one plan might not be enough.
The Crystal Empire had more than just Princess Cadence. Twilight Sparkle had a student there, last Scootaloo had heard. One that was good with magic. And Shining Armor would have returned to his family by now.
Just after noon, Sweetie Belle and Spike stood from their seats and started down the aisle. Scootaloo looked up at them and then to Apple Bloom curiously. “Sorry, I was thinking. Where did they say they were going?”
“They’re going to the dining cart for lunch,” Apple Bloom said. “You hungry?”
“Not yet. Maybe in a bit.” Scootaloo looked back out the window.
“Okay,” Apple Bloom said. She paused, almost seeming hesitant. Scootaloo glanced at her. Apple Bloom seemed lost in thought, but then a mischievous smile spread across her face. “So, Ah was wondering something.”
“Yeah?”
“That letter ya wrote to Thistleroot. Ya didn’t let any of us read it before Spike sent it.”
“That’s not a question.”
“Okay, whhhhyyy didn’t you let anypony read it before Spike sent it?”
Scootaloo shrugged. “Nopony asked. I was just telling him where to meet us.”
“Uhuh. And it took you three tries?” Apple Bloom smirked. “Were ya writing a love letter?”
Scootaloo rolled her eyes. “No, it wasn’t a love letter. It was something else.”
“Oh, really?” Apple Bloom said, still smirking.
Scootaloo sighed. She should have known Apple Bloom wouldn’t give up on it that easily. “I told you at the gala, we’re not like that.”
“Yeah, okay,” Apple Bloom said, a little more genuinely. “The gala. Ya know, we never did talk about that.”
“That?” Scootaloo asked, thinking back. “Oh, right.” Her stomach knotted and she shifted in her seat. Their kiss.
“Ah’m sorry,” Apple Bloom said.
Scootaloo blinked. “Oh. Uh, apology accepted. Let’s go meet up with Spike and Sweetie Belle for lunch.”
Apple Bloom chuckled. “Well, I did have a bit more to say, but if ya really want to leave it at that, Ah won’t force anything. Ah mean, that was kind of the problem, after all.”
Scootaloo wanted nothing more than to end this conversation on a more or less positive note and move on with her life.
She looked at her friend. Almost. She wanted almost nothing more than to end this conversation. But she’d decided already that her friendship with Apple Bloom was more important than avoiding uncomfortable topics.
“You’d been drinking,” Scootaloo said.
“That’s just an excuse. As much as I’d love to hide behind it, we both know it’d be a lie. Ah already wanted to kiss you, the drinks just helped me along. And it was wrong of me. Ah already knew how ya felt, and Ah shouldn’t have pushed it, so Ah really am sorry.”
“I know you are,” Scootaloo said. “And I’m sorry too. For how I reacted.” She thought about it and hastily added, “I mean the first time, back in Ponyville. The time at the gala I really didn’t have time to react, what with all the screaming.”
“True,” Apple Bloom said. She shook her head. “Ya know, for being Applejack’s sister, ya’d think it’d take less than two years for me to accept the truth.”
Scootaloo chuckled. “I guess you could say the apple fell far from the tree?”
Apple Bloom gave her a level look and swatted her on the shoulder.
“I’m just kidding,” Scootaloo said, swatting her back. “Seriously though, I understand. You’re just a little, uh...”
“Overbearing?”
“I was going to say forthright,” Scootaloo said. “Or blunt. I hadn’t decided yet.”
“Uhuh,” Apple Bloom said, grinning. “When did you learn so many words. That’s more Twilight stuff.”
“Hey, I was a teacher for like, two months. You pick up on these things,” Scootaloo said, trying to keep a straight face and failing. She cracked up and Apple Bloom giggled alongside her. She looked back out the window. “You know it’s not you, right?”
Apple Bloom chuckled again. “It’s not you, it’s me? Really?”
Scootaloo rolled her eyes. “It’s the truth. I just...” She trailed off with a sigh.
“Ah won’t make ya talk about it if ya don’t want to.”
“No, it’s okay,” Scootaloo said. “I think I want to, just to get it off my chest.” She considered her next words. “It’s just, I’m scared, you know? I spent the past ten years trying to pretend that my cutie mark didn’t mean anything, but I couldn’t stop believing that my special talent was betraying ponies and driving them away.
“I was afraid of being too close to anypony. So, when you told me about how you feel, and I thought about what it would mean, I panicked.”
“Do ya still think that’s what your cutie mark means?”
Scootaloo considered the question for a moment, wondering if Apple Bloom was considering future possibilities, but her friend seemed genuinely curious. “I don’t know. Princess Celestia told me a story about her own cutie mark a few weeks ago, and I’ve been trying to keep my mind open, but I haven’t thought of anything else it could mean yet. I’m still thinking, though.”
Apple Bloom nodded. “Ah guess that’s all ya can do.” She fell silent for a few minutes before hopping out of the seat. “Lunch then?”
“Sure.” Scootaloo stood and followed Apple Bloom down the aisle in the same direction Spike and Sweetie Belle had gone. “Apple Bloom?”
“Yeah?”
“Thanks.”
Apple Bloom turned to give her a small smile and together they continued walking.
*****
Shining Armor was waiting for them at the train station. He waved as they stepped off the train and started toward them.
“I guess you got my letter?” Spike said.
Shining Armor nodded. “We were glad to hear that you’re still okay.” He gave Spike a quick, one legged hug. “How have you been holding up?”
“I’m doing okay,” Spike said, returning the hug. “We have a bunch to tell you.”
Shining Armor nodded and turned. “I’m sure, but it can wait until we get back to the palace. No point in going over it twice.”
“Yeah, I guess,” Spike said, walking after him. Scootaloo, Apple Bloom, and Sweetie Belle followed. “Twilight’s still okay. I mean, she’s still stone, but we found out she’s still... okay. Just thought you’d want to know that part.”
Shining Armor nodded again. “Yeah. Thanks, that’s good to hear.”
They made their way out of the train station and into an empty street. Scootaloo flinched as they stepped through the double doors and into the cold afternoon air. She heard Apple Bloom gasp beside her. “Is it always this cold up here?”
“No,” Shining Armor said, expression grim. “We should move quickly. It’s only going to get colder when the sun sets, and we’ve got a ways to go.”
Scootaloo exchanged a confused glance with Spike and they all started walking again. Shining Armor led them across the street to a waiting carriage. It was a typical looking carriage for the empire, made of purple crystal and bearing the snowflake emblem from the empire’s flag. The things pulling it, however, weren’t the normal Royal Guards Scootaloo would have expected. They were four legged, heavy built, and made entirely of dark stone. Not like the crystal ponies, but rough stone carvings in the general shape of a pony.
“They’re magical constructs,” Shining Armor said. “Sunburst designed them after the Crystal Heart was briefly destroyed a while back, so we’d have things that can work in the cold.”
They climbed into the carriage, closing the door against the breeze, and it lurched to a start.
“Ya said we have a ways to go?” Apple Bloom said. “What does that mean?”
“There’s something Cadence wanted you all to see before we went to the palace,” Shining Armor said.
The carriage turned onto a main street, heading toward the center of the city. Scootaloo peeked between the slats over the windows. She could make out lights glowing in the windows of passing buildings, but not a single pony was outside.
They traveled in silence for the better part of an hour, circling around the crystal palace and continuing toward the Northern side of the city. Scootaloo and her friends asked a few questions, but for most of them Shining Armor simply said that they’d understand better if they saw it for themselves.
The buildings grew shorter as they neared the edge of the city. The carriage finally rolled to a stop and Shining Armor wordlessly opened the door and stepped out. Scootaloo followed.
It was even colder than before, and there weren’t any large buildings to block the heavy winds that cut through her fur like it wasn’t there. Scootaloo found herself shivering even before she came to a stop beside Shining Armor and pulled her wings closer to her body. They had left behind the center of the city. Before them was an unobstructed view of the Northern sky.
Storm clouds rolled toward them like the black waves of an ocean, threatening to wash over the Crystal Empire. Lightning danced across the clouds, illuminating patches for just a brief moment before they faded to darkness once more. Scootaloo turned around to look at the city. Sunlight streamed over the skyline, reassuring her that it was still day. She turned again to the storm.
“Those clouds look like they’re moving fast,” Apple Bloom shouted over the sound of the wind. “Maybe we should get inside and let it pass.”
“That storm has lasted almost a week now,” Shining Armor said.
Scootaloo turned her attention lower, watching the rolling movement of the clouds against the furthest buildings. “They’re not getting any closer. Something’s pushing them back.” Shining Armor nodded. Scootaloo sighed, understanding. “It’s the Crystal Heart, isn’t it?” Another nod.
“Even when everything is peaceful, the Crystal Heart is the only thing keeping the Crystal Empire from becoming a frozen wasteland like the rest of the North. We want to help, but with that storm we can’t risk removing the heart for even a few minutes.” Shining Armor sounded tired. “Even with the heart in place, the storm’s making progress. If it keeps up, it’ll reach us in a few more days. Now, listen.” He waved a hoof toward the storm.
Scootaloo looked back at the clouds, but didn’t hear anything other than the wind howling. She closed her eyes to focus. She could hear her teeth beginning to chatter, and her legs were shaking. She tried to ignore them as well, to focus just on what she heard.
There was nothing but the wind. But, something was off. It didn’t sound like normal wind. She couldn’t place what was wrong with it right away. It almost sounded like something was... screaming? As though the howling of the wind was being joined by the howling of a wild animal. More than one, now that she could make it out. Dozens of voices, dozens of enraged animals.
Spike was the first to understand. “Windigos.”
Shining Armor nodded again. “We’ve had a few ponies confirm it. Every home beyond this point has been evacuated.” He shook his head. “Honestly, before now I always thought they were just a legend. Nopony’s seen one in decades.
“Like I said, we want to do what we can to help, but we have our own problems up here to deal with. The timing just couldn’t be worse.”
“It’s not a coincidence,” Scootaloo said.
Shining Armor turned toward her. “What do you mean?”
“It’s Nocturne. The thing that was freed from Canterlot Mountain a few weeks ago. She’s not just the changeling queen, she made the windigos too. I bet she’s the one stirring them up.”
Shining Armor pondered that a moment before turning toward the carriage. “Alright, let’s get moving again, before we all freeze to death.” There was a chorus of agreement and they started piling back into the carriage. Scootaloo took one look back at the storm.
She had a feeling it was only going to get worse. It was in the best interest of the Crystal Empire to do whatever it could to help them defeat Nocturne. She climbed into the carriage and shut the door.
Now if only she could convince them of that.
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The more I read, the more I think Discord may not only be their best option, but their only option.
and pulled her wings closer to her body..
1. Extra fullstop.
Ah
8908044
Agreed. It'd be a great reformation arc for the guy.