Chapter 7 - In Love and War
Chapter 7 – In Love and War
Canterlot Castle, the crown jewel of Equestria placed upon the very brow of its luxurious mountain capital. It serves as a beacon of power and culture, and is the seat of power for the country's government in all respects. With the Day and Night courts held within the throne room itself; while the elected officials of Equestrias Parliament took up the entire East Wing. With their Chambers and offices being located there since the founding of Canterlot itself.
At any time a visitor would see a myriad of different government bodies and foreign delegations striding down the various halls and into meeting rooms, and even more so during the past few weeks as the strange U.F.O ran amok. Meetings upon meetings had been held attempting to figure out the objects origin, function and threat level. Now yet another meeting of VIP’s gathered to discuss the newest developments as reported by Princess Twilight and the Bearers of Harmony.
The room was comfortable and pleasantly decorated as any other board room within the marble halls of Canterlot Castle. A large cherry wood table, accented with intricate carvings along its legs and upon its lip depicted scenes of equestrians frolicking and playing with small gold leaf Filigree details all on the corners and top portion of the table itself. In the center was carved the Symbol of The Two Sisters.
The walls were equally intricate, with great paintings by old masters of the arts hanging on each wall, with rich cobalt curtains accenting them. The borders around the room were likewise detailed in sparkling gold. The floor held a grand carpet, also a deep rich cobalt upon which the meeting table and chairs sat, while golden chandeliers provided light in the large vaulted ceilings.
On the northernmost wall however was nothing, as it was used to display maps, documents and other important information via an arcane projection crystal. There were no windows, since this room was deeper within the castle and only played host to the Princesses and their most trusted officials and friends. Ancient arcane spell matrices ensured no prying eyes or noesy maids would ever know what happened in this, not that they would think too given the Diarchs almost always used hidden passages to reach it from their studies, hidden from view of the castle staff and visitors alike.
In this room the defense of Equestria was formed and set into motion, it had been host to the formulation of Celestia’s Gamble, as it was often called nowadays, not but a few short years ago regarding the Elements and Nightmare Moon’s return. It was here that The Princesses had decided to give their power to Twilight during Tireks rampage. Now they are here once more, to deal with the ramifications of the last few weeks and the revelations they had brought.
Twilight and her fellow Bearers sat together on one side of the long table, while Celestia and Luna sat together at it’s head. Across from them sat Cadence and Shining Armor and the highest members of Equestria’s government, Captain Stalwart Defense and Chancellor Legal Accord each representing their respective branches. The former was a dark grey unicorn stallion, wearing a dark blue military uniform, his rank insignia proudly placed upon his chest alongside a Medal of Valor earned during the Invasion of Canterlot. His greyish purple mane was cut short, with the matching tail like was in a standard military crop, he had a pair of sunglasses in his chest pocket that normally would hide his cyan eyes. Legal Accord was an aged earth pony stallion, a rarity in Canterlot. He was dressed in an old fashioned brown tweed jacket and white dress shirt. His coat looked to have once been a deep forest green, though time and stress had dulled it. His mane was light grey, with a matching chevron moustache on his muzzle. His golden eyes however held just as much fire as any plucky up and coming politician. The meeting had just begun, with Twilight and the bearers retelling their encounter with the creature, Cyrell and his strange machine companion Selene.
Captain Stalwart was first to respond once they had finished, “So this creature not only managed to slay two adult cragodiles, but also came back to life with all it’s armour fully repaired? “ He began, “Did you see what form of magic the familiar used? I’d hate to think our greatest heroines were almost at the mercy of a dark mage, or Harmony forbid, a Necromancer''. He watched as Twilight cleared her throat, before replying.
“Yes and… no. I can confirm that it wasn't Dark Magic or Necromancy, but I still haven’t found any school or arcane ritual that matches how it felt.” Twilight said, her face morphing as she began to recall how it felt being so close to the “ghost” resurrecting its charge. It didn’t have the corrupted taint of dark magic or the perversion of necromancy, but neither had it been similar to average tribal magic common amongst ponydom. “I think it’s either something unique to his familiar or maybe something ancient and long forgotten. At Least that’s my current hypothesis, '' Twilight said.
“Yeah, Twi’s right. We all had a taste of Dark magic and Chaos magic when that no good Sombra was still struttin’ around the Crystal Empire. Wasn’t nothin’ like either of’em best as we could tell” Applejack chimed in, the rest of her friends adding their own confirmations.
It was Fluttershy surprisingly who spoke next, ‘‘I, uh, remember when we first used the Elements, and while it was similar to that it also was kind of, um, different’’. She smiled as she recalled the feeling of the Elements removing the Nightmare and restoring Luna to her old self. It had been like a comforting embrace from a mother or grandparent. “If I had to describe it, I’d say it was, uh, like a being by a warm fire or in a bright meadow” she added.
As the others gave their affirmations, Stalwart relaxed himself. He held a great deal of respect for these mares, they were heroes afterall, and he liked to think his guards were just as brave as them. Still he worried they were too quick to rush into danger. As capable as they are I hope they don’t keep this habit up if we face a more dire threat, he thought to himself.
Shining and Cadence shared a look as this went on, with the former glancing over at Stalwart with a knowing grin. He’d felt much the same as Stalwart when he heard about the Nightmare moon Incident, but time had proven his worrying to be misplaced. He always hoped his sister was safe, but knew now that there might be little she and her friends couldn’t handle. I mean, they took care of Discord and Tirek! Can’t get much more dangerous than those two!
“Relax Captain, I know they aren’t trained guards but if the likes of Discord or the armies of Chrysalis couldn’t beat them, I don’t think a biped and its floating familiar would either” he said, grinning as Stalwart Defense rolled his eyes. Same old Shining Armor as ever, typical. Stalwart chuckled to himself. “Yes, yes or course. How could I forget!” he replied, though the thought did comfort him a little.
Legal Accord and the Diarchs watched on, all three watching and listening as the discussions turned to theories on what type of magic was being used and what the relationship between the two was. Decades of service had taught Legal that he needn’t worry too much about all the magical shenanigans that so often came up around Equestria. For him this was all just another Tuesday. Still appearance needed to be maintained and he had some questions he’d like answered as well.
Legal cleared his throat, speaking once he had gained the group's attention. “While I agree that learning what kind and type of magic our new guest uses is important, I’d much rather know who and what we are dealing with in greater detail, why they are here and where they came from in the first place” he said, earning nods from the group. “We have yet to explore beyond our own planet and this is a chance to make new friends and allies with beings that have far more experience doing so. I am more than hopeful that we can all benefit from a bit of friendship with these new species, so long as we understand who they are and what they value” he finished.
Pinkie Pie quickly took center stage, “Oh wow! Do you think he has lots of friends who also have their own little floaty eye friends that race in weird metal ships or have tea parties on comets or maybe-” her outburst was cut off as Rainbow Dash’s cyan hoof covered her muzzle, muffling the silly mare as she continued her rambling.
“Are you suggesting that we may be establishing contact with not just a whole new species but country as well” Rarity exclaimed, her mind already buzzing with anticipation for what an all new species culture must be like. Sure the fashion was certainly a big part of it, but imagine the art, the plays, the romance novels! It was enough to make her giddy.
The other bearers likewise seemed to find the idea equal parts exciting, wondering about what aspects of this strange bipedal peoples culture may be like theirs and how it may differ.
Cadence for her part had been content up until the. To simply watch and listen, her main concern being for Twilight and her friends and what changes this strange new guest may bring. She understood their excitement, and the initial meeting certainly seemed to be a positive mark for this Cyrell. But she still felt wary about trusting him completely at this moment. At least until she and her Aunts had a moment to truly judge his character in pony.
Clearing her throat Cadence spoke, addressing the group firmly as their musings slowly began to quiet, “I know it’s exciting to imagine all the ways our potential new friends culture may be from ours, but we can’t forget that we still know very little about both him and his current goals in Equestria. While I trust you girls and your judgement, I think it’s only fair that Cyrell and his companion meet with all of us just to be safe”.
Twilight had often been subject to ‘Serious Caddy’ as a foal but this was much different, this wasn’t a foalsitter managing a rowdy goal but a Princess in command of a nation. She watched as both Celestia and Luna nodded, the latter speaking up.
“I would not say we know much about his homeland and people, but I have seen both his dreams and nightmares… and it paints a worrisome picture for its current state, or at least from what I have seen” Luna said, her mind returning to the destruction she had witnessed and the sprawling city teeming with life. As the group eagerly leaned in to hear her findings with the previous aloof net being replaced with a tinge of worry. Luna steadied herself, and used her horn to begin projecting illusions on the table as she told of her time observing Cyrell’s dream and nightmare. She left no detail out, each terrible aspect of the event was showcased before the gathered ponies.
As the retelling progressed, leading up towards the nightmares climax, she heard a soft gasp as Fluttershy watched Cyrell wailing to the heavens, Selene dead in his hands. The group had been deadly quiet since the tale began, allowing them to just barely hear the shy mare whisper, “How awful...” the others wouldn’t speak, but in their hearts they agreed. Each bearer had seen just how close the two strange beings were, a friendship that was strong and true much like the one they shared. To see his deepest fears of losing that friend moved each of them to the brink of tears.
Stalwart for his part felt a great pang of sympathy, he too had often worried about the safety of not just his friends and family, but Equestria as a whole. He recognized this as the fear of a soldier in desperate straights, and he saw Cyrell now less as a potential threat and more like a strange mirror of himself. Hopefully he would be able to meet this strange warrior and maybe learn more about his own battles, I’d be nice to have another military pal like Shining Armor or his other guards pony friends.
Legal Accord became even more worried, while he understood that dreams and nightmares were not necessarily always the most concrete way to learn about somepony, at least not second hoof anyway, he did understand fearing for one's home and fellow pony. The changeling invasion had given Parliament and all within it a wake up call that had been long over do.
Cadence, who felt tears threatening to flow as freely as the Neighagra Falls itself, watched it all as grief and sympathy overtook her.Her empathetic nature, magnified due to her ascension, could tell even from this secondhoof account all the pain and anguish that Cyrell had been feeling in that moment. While most ponies only ever thought of Love as a romantic feeling, she had been fortunate to learn just how diverse it truly was. Be it love for a pet, for a country or even for a friend, and she had just witnessed a broken hearted creature suffer the loss of all those he loved. She composed herself as best she could, making sure to save her final judgement until after she met him herself, but she certainly now held Cyrell in greater sympathy than before.
Luna quickly decided now was a good time to relieve the tension, and the full majesty of the strange city exploded into the table, with Luna describing what they saw in greater detail. “I believe both the nightmare and this dream are the same place, of his home” she said, altering the illusion to show the humongous city and its towering walls. The group blanched at its size, and especially at the large floating pure white sphere above its center.
For the first time since the meeting had begun Celestia spoke, in a soft voice “It’s amazing, but what is that floating object? Surely we would know if something so large was on Eques” she pondered, glancing at Luna out of the corner of her eyes. Her sister was quick to respond, “As Chancellor Legal said earlier, we have yet to fully explore our entire planet. Afterall it is, as the sting goes, ‘a great big world’ we live on” she smiled at Celestia.
Celestia returned her eyes to the city, so vast and spectacular that it made even their most modern cities look like ponyville in comparison. Just how much did these strange bipeds have to teach them? Could they possibly teach them in return? As her mind raced she too began to feel the same excitement that had clearly returned to the younger mares sitting at the table. Their conversation had quickly returned in full force as they bore witness to the massive cityscape and its looming spherical ornament. Questions and theories were shared between Twilight and Rarity about the city’s architecture and layout, while Fluttershy and Applejack spoke in hushed tones, pointing towards the large green splotches that dotted the city in different places. Rainbow and Pinkie however gushed on and on about just how much they couldn’t wait to see if the real thing was just as spectacular in pony!
The collected ponies slowly began to wind down their awe filled inquiries, as Cadence once again drew their attention with a small cough.
“I think it is apparent that we need to find out more about Cyrell and the state of his home, and as swiftly as possible” she said, turning to her aunts as they met her gaze. They offered subtle nods, and she continued “Twilight I think it would be paramount that I go with you during the next meeting, and after that we can decide when he should meet Au- Princess Celestia and Princess Luna” she fumbled a bit when addressing her aunts but quickly recovered, the group turning to the aforementioned alicorn sitting across from her.
Twilight had her face screwed up in the same familiar way she did as a filly, her eyes narrowed and a hoof to her chin as she considered Cadence’s ‘request’. She briefly eyed her friends, each the group having a mix of emotions over the new development. Applejack and Fluttershy had tensed at the Love Princesses request, no doubt worried about how Cyrell would react to an unknown pony showing up with them, while Rainbow Dash and Pinkie simply looked to her for guidance. Rarity seemed the most conflicted, as she refused to meet her eyes. Twilight guessed she was unsure about having another Princess going with them when so much was still up in the air. A few silent moments passed as she weighed all this in her mind, before she looked Cadence directly in the eye to respond.
“I’m not sure how Cyrell will respond to an unknown pony joining us, but if that’s what it takes to move forward then I suppose it shouldn’t be an issue” she said, glancing to Celestia for a moment before returning her attention to Cadence. Twilight knew why she wanted to go, as an empath Cadence could understand what another creature was feeling and had over the centuries learned to interpret those feelings to discern not only what their intent might be, but also when they may be trying to hide something as well. If Cyrell was going to try and hide anything from them, then Cadence would be able to tell.
The assembled ponies began to discuss the swiftly approaching meeting in detail, before eventually bringing the emergency meeting to an end. The Diarchs retreated to their secret pathways while the rest filed out into the castle hallways. Each pony now wondering what new revelations they would uncover in the near future. For now, the seven mares went to prepare for their meeting in the White Tail Woods.
Cyrell leaned against a large birch tree as the sun slowly drifted above him. It was a warm cloudless day, the wind providing just enough of its cool breeze to counter the sun's bright rays, and he couldn’t help but feel at peace in this bright lit grove. It reminded him of the City's many large gardens. He would often walk through them after he had been away on long missions or to catch up with friends, both Lightless and Guardian alike. He briefly turned his attention ahead of him where Selene was floating nearby, scanning different floral samples and the occasional woodland creature for later review.
He watched as the woodland creatures all scurried around the tranquil woodland without fear or issue.He had never seen so many different kinds of creatures all in one place. There were even some species Selene believed had once existed on earth, like squirrels and beavers and even foxes! While some of Earth's natural fauna had survived the collapse, more had perished in the Dark Age due to over hunting or the loss of their habitat by the remnants of Humanity struggling to survive. He wondered if maybe he should consider taking some back, to try and repopulate the planet in a way, though that thought was quickly put to rest when he considered how unprepared he was to move living cargo. No matter how small and fluffy it was.
He gazed around lazily at his lush surroundings, it was so different from the dark and twisted forest not but a few meters away. Where there was a constant miasma of dread hanging over everything in what he now learned was the Everfree Forest, here his heart and mind felt a peace they hadn’t for… quite some time. Perhaps since Oryx fell, or no, it was probably after the SIVA Crisis was ended. Those Devil Splicers had been a pain to find and take out, to say nothing of Aksis himself.But no, this was not like any of that. This… was like the peace that he had felt when the Traveler reawoke, or when it repaired itself. Whenever the Light was strong and surrounded him.
Cyrell thought about it his life up to then, and he noticed just how busy and stressful things had been since he was brought back in the Cosmodrome all those years ago. Sure he had rested after each raid or strike had been carried out, but it seemed like every day some new horror appeared in Sol to finish what the Darkness had started all those centuries ago.
While he was lost in his musings, Selene continued to scan and document as much of the native plant and animal life as she could. After all, maybe the cryptarchs or some other organization in the Last City would pay good glimmer for this data! As she continued to flit and hover around to conduct her scans, she caught something approaching on her sensors. Blinking her cyan eye, she began tuning her audio sensors to listen for whatever creature was stalking around. To her surprise she heard not the growls of a hungry beast, but the candid conversation of some recently met acquaintances!
“So I know we told you about how he looks and all, but wait until you see how tall he is! It’s like if two Big Macs stood one on another but with less limbs, and not as red and-“ she heard, no doubt that was the aptly named Pinkie Pie. Though Selene was curious who she was talking to. From the sound of it, they had someone her and Cyrell had yet to meet. Not that it mattered, the two of them had never requested only their group attend this little get together, so a new face or two wasn’t a deal breaker.
She quickly flew back to Cyrell and nudged his helmeted head in their direction. Breaking him out of his thoughts, Cyrell watched as the retinue of familiar bright colored ponies entered into his new grove away from home. Though he could have sworn there had only been one of them and been pink... And only one with wings and a horn as well.
This is gonna be interesting, best try and be as polite as possible just in case. I am representing The Vanguard more or less after all. He thought to himself. He was glad he decided to put on his Luxe Armor, it was the closest thing a Titan like him had to formal wear when out on patrol. He’d even gotten a monochrome shader to spruce it up before leaving the City.
He stopped leaning his back on the firm birch tree and placed his hands behind his back, shoulders squared yet slightly relaxed, just like he had seen Zavala do during his own meetings. The assembled ponies swiftly began calling out greetings to the pair as they neared, as Selene took up her spot floating just above Cyrell’s right shoulder. A synchronized nod from them served as the only response.
He began to study them, trying to remember the names and which colors he had associated them with. It went well at first, Orange Hat pony was Applejack, Rainbow maned pegasus was Rainbow Dash and so on. But when he got to the two pink mares he was briefly confused. He had always been a bit bad at recalling names after being revived. But now he had to figure out if Pinkie Pie had wings and a horn, or neither. At least until the curly maned pony suddenly raced up and wrapped him in a huh that would have crumpled even Lord Shaxx! As he heard his bones crunching and his lungs losing air he could just make out her speaking as fast as Cayde did when looking for his loot caches. In fact I think she said something about… alligators and gum? Whatever, worry about that later, regain bodily functions now!
“H-hello Pinkie… gasp… good to s-see you again…” he somehow managed to croak out as the tiny mare ground his skeleton into bright dust. Thankfully he was soon freed of the eccentric pony’s affection and once more turned to face the new pink but not Pinkie Pink (™️) pony.Cyrell quickly noticed that not only did the new addition have both wings and a horn like Twilight, but a modest golden crown that almost resembled the ancient Earth symbol he had heard of called a Fleur De Lis.
Perhaps a sister or close ally? And are the winged unicorns the only ones allowed to rule? He pondered, his head tilting just slightly towards his left. Selene nudged his head, before pointing her shell towards the approaching royals.
Cyrell caught on, giving a polite bow as the two princesses led the group towards him. “Hello again Princess Twilight. I see you’ve brought a new face with you?” He said as the group of ponies formed a semicircle around his cobbled together meeting site. It wasn’t immaculate but he had enough places for all to sit at least. A small cozy fire burned in the center of the arranged log seats. Off to the side was a large rock he had moved to serve as a table for the wild bounty he and Selene had foraged for.
Cadence and Twilight returned the gesture with bows of their own, after all he was technically a representative for the time being. Cadence stood up first, “I am Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, but please just call me Princess Cadence. I rule over the Crystal Empire with my husband Shining Armor and am here to help Twilight with her, ah, interview”. Cyrell wondered just how she intended to help, he’d save his questions for later though. Giving a terse nod, he waved his hand towards the seats, taking his own seat after they had all gotten comfy.
“Well I did promise answers, and I am a man of my word. And your friends also helped me out of a tight spot, it’s the least I could do”, He said. Taking a stick and coaxing the fire a bit, the flames dancing across the logs and leaves he had used as kindling. He wanted it to be ready for when he eventually made his next meal, after his herbivore company had departed of course.
Twilight swiftly dug into a pair of saddlebags she had fastened on and pulled out a large stack of parchment with her hooves. The gathered ponies couldn’t see it, but Cyrell’s eyebrows had nearly rocketed off his face when he saw the thick stack of papers. Reminds me of some Warlocks I know… he thought, dread rising as the apex creation of magical equine bureaucracy and questionnaires he was about to be subjected to was levitated in front of Twilight, her horn now covered in a lavender aura that seemed to twist around it like water.
Twilight was none the wiser to the Titans' fear, as she cleared her throat before glancing down at the first page, Cadence smiling a little wider at her sister-in-law. Some things never changed l, and Twilight's love for properly formed and worded legal documents was one such thing.
“Well let’s start off with the basics! From what Selene told us prior to you, uh, rejoining us.” She began, though she seemed uncomfortable as she recalled Cyrell’s death and sudden resurrection. He noted that Princess Cadence also seemed to stare at him a more intensely, this was going to be interesting alright.
“Anyway” Twilight continued, “she mentioned you are what’s called a, uh, hoomun, and that she was your ghost. Could you tell us what the relationship between ghosts and hoomuns is and how it formed?” She asked, looking up from the page, as she levitated a quill and blank page to take notes.
Cyrell and Selene slowly looked to one another, then back to her, then back to one another again. This was gonna be a long and complicated conversation. “Best get comfy, that’s gonna take some time to explain” he said, dropping his stick and giving the group his undivided attention.
The two began telling the story of the Golden Age and how Humanity met the Traveller, answering additional questions throughout such as where they came from and what other planets were in the Sol system. After that Selene had gone on to talk about how ghosts choose their Guardians so they can defend Humanity, and what most use as requirements for resurrection.
Once the mention of reviving him came up again, Rainbow Dash cut in “So what, you were dead before she found you or something?” She asked, tilting her head slightly as she nicked on some berries. Applejack and Twilight glared at her for a second, before turning back to Cyrell expectantly.
Cyrell thought it was kinda cute, the grumpy little things all scrunched up and serious. He cleared his throat before answering, “Yes, most likely for a very long time in fact. I was in an old Cosmodrome actually when Selene found my remains” he said, as the mare's eyes widened and their mouths hung open.
“So like, you're a super ancient dead guy that can make huge fire hammers and punch through rocks ‘n stuff, and there are others just like you who are the same?” Rainbow questioned.
Again Cyrell simply nodded, taking a moment to adjust himself before continuing. “There are three types of Guardians: Titans like myself are physically strong and often follow what we call Codes. Warlocks are more gifted in the ways of understanding paracauality and research, and form Orders to learn about just about anything pertaining to the Light. Then you have the Hunters, who prefer to be free and explore the universe, they often work alone but have what they call Ways that are taught by some of the older Guardians to help New Lights” he stretched his arms a bit, he wasn’t used to sitting this long on a log.
Twilight and Cadence looked to each other briefly before the former asked, “you keep talking about the Light, what exactly do you mean by that?” Her notes prepped and ready to transcribe his every word.
“Cyrell smiled to himself, before summoning a solar hammer into his hand. A loud CLANG echoed around the grove as the Solar infused hammer appeared in his hand. “The Light is what we call paracausal energy, energy that can change the universe to its wielder's desire without having to adhere to the Laws of the universe” he said, tossing his weapon up into the air and catching it as it returned. “The Traveler used the Light to terraform multiple planets. Mercury is the closest planet to our sun and was little more than roasted rock, but the Traveler's Light transformed it into a garden world” he continued flipping the hammer before using the light to change its shape, resembling a mace now, though it’s flames remained as bright as ever.
The group had been watching in awe as he explained it, their eyes following the solar weapon the entire time. Applejack soon narrowed her eyes at it.
“So Ya’ll can do whatever ya want with this Light? Seems like that’d cause a lot of trouble in the wrong hooves” she commented, eyeing the Titan as she waited for his response.
“Well yes and no,” said Selene as she hovered closer to the farmmare. “Guardians are chosen based on their ability to wield the Light as a weapon to defend Humanity and the Traveler! They can still alter it in some ways, but not to the same extent as the Traveler. At Least not without a way to channel or direct it in some way.” She explained, her shell gesturing the entire time as she spoke. Applejack hummed tk herself before nodding and relaxing in her seat, satisfied with the answer.
Soon the other ponies began asking questions as well, from what animals Earth was home to and what sports Humanity played down to how fashion as an industry operated. Some asked for other examples of the Light and so Cyrell and Selene explained the three major elements that the Light can be channeled into. Cyrell for his part was glad to say he had his most aesthetic armor on for this occasion. His full set of Luxe armor, crafted by the City's finest designers for Guardians looking for a little more flair, was expertly kept and had done a great deal to lessen his intimidating presence to the small equines.
Rarity had spoken up as well, “I must say you have quite the stunning ensemble today! I’d love to see what else your culture has for fashion and jewelry!” She said As she jotted down some notes of her own. Cyrell chuckled at the strange fashion loving unicorns comments, it reminded him of a few odd designers back home he had worked with on other armor sets he owned.
Eventually they exhausted all they could about the Golden Age, with the group taking a small break to drink and have some snacks. Cyrell and Selene had collected berries for their guests, while Pinkie shared a tray of cupcakes she had brought for just this situation! She even had one for Cyrell, promptly thanking her.
“That’s very kind of you, I’ll eat it later though if you don't mind. I already ate before you all came” he gestured to Selene and she promptly sent it via transmat to the ships onboard small food storage.
The mares were startled for a second, while seeing him send things away like that wasn’t new it was still interesting. Twilight was especially curious, asking him “So how did you do that? I didn’t sense any magic or spells, was it the Light?!” As she stared at where the cupcake had once been.
“Oh that?” Cyrell said, “it’s just Selene tranmating it to the ship. She’s connected to the ship's onboard systems and can use it to send objects or people to it in an instant to and from the gold or cockpit” motioning to Selene as she spun her shell and closed her eye. Cyrell imagined she was trying to puff out her non-existent chest like she had seen other Guardians do after a good Crucible match.
Twilight was writing furiously, she had so many more questions now about how these ‘systems’ worked. As she was still working on a series of new questions and theories, Cadence decided it was time for her to learn a bit more about Cyrell and his home.
“So where do you personally come from? You mentioned multiple countries so which was home for you?” She asked, tilting her head slightly. She hoped getting him to open up would help them understand more about his home, and perhaps why he left it.
Cyrell had been discussing animals with Fluttershy some more, before turning to Cadence. He tilted his head slightly towards Selene, who simply nodded at him, a language only true friends could understand Cadence thought to herself.
“Well… that’s a bit complicated…” Cyrell began, Selen drifted down toward the flame, her eye and shall begin to glow as beams of light shot out from her. The assembled ponies nearly fell out of their seats as an image was formed of the same city that Luna had showed them before. Cyrell slowly stood, walking closer to the projection’s edge and staring at it for a moment. The group watched him, his hands clenching as he looked at his home.
“We told you about the Golden Age, but we still haven’t talked about The Collapse. Or the Dark Age that followed it.” Was all he said, his helmet locked onto the image of the Last Safe City.
Cadence glanced towards Twilight, a grimace firmly planted on her muzzle. Twilight looked towards all her friends as well, seeing their own frowns. With names like the Collapse and Dark Age, this story was about to get a lot less pleasant than it had been before.
All whispered conversations and snacking ceased, with all eyes and ears directed toward the lone biped and his floating companion. A few tense moments passed before he began to speak. He spoke about what he knew of The Darkness and its attack on Humanity. From the destruction it brought, to its part in forming the Awoken as well. He talked about how the planets once teeming with life became tombs and of the bear extinction of his species. A small glimmer of hope seemed to return when he mentioned the Travellers last act, and the creation of the ghosts. But the following explanation of the Dark Age quickly overshadowed it.
He told stories of Warlords and Iron Lords, of the struggling remnants of Humanity as they were made to face off against not only the Light wielding tyrants, but also alien pirates, warmongers, and monsters. As he finished detailing the last of the major events leading up to the City Age, he looked to the group once more.
Gone was any semblance of joy or light-hearted banter, replaced by chilling fear and sorrow. Fluttershy and Applejack both had been moved to tears as he told them of his people’s suffering, while Rainbow Dash was completely still, her eyes dilated and her breath short. She had seen her fair share of evil, but this was something else entirely. Twilight felt a heavy weight resting on her heart, she couldn’t help but choke back a few sons at the thought of so many innocent beings faced with such brutality.
The worst was Cadence, whose elevated nature allowed her to feel every shred of sorrow, rage and fear Cyrell’s story had brought back to his mind. She locked her eyes on his helmet, eyes wide as she fought to reign in the swirling storm of emotions. She had heard stories from her Aunts of wars and of loss, she remembered the sorrow they had felt when speaking about the Wendigos during the Great Freeze, but she had hoped to never experience it in any form ever again. As the typhoon of emotions slowly returned to normal, she lightly shook her head, before addressing the Titan once more.
“Your people have been through a great deal Cyrell, is that why you came here? To find somewhere safe to call home?” She asked, sniffing and batting away tears that had once again begun to flow.
Cyrell shook his head, “No, we could never abandon Earth. In fact, this City…” he said motioning back towards the still present projection, before continuing.
“We call it The Last City for that reason. Here the majority of my people now live and work to survive against all the threats we face day after day. Myself and other arisen, now called Guardians, fight to keep its walls secure and its citizens safe from all danger. We’ve faced the Fallen and their Houses in deadly combat such as during the Battle of Six Fronts. We suffered further when attempting to retake our moon from the Hive, who slaughtered countless Guardians thanks to their ‘god’ Crota”. He looked towards her, and she felt something… change. Where before there had been only negative emotions, all of a sudden she felt a warmth. Like hope, or happiness but somehow different as well.
Cyrell squared his shoulders and rose to his full height. “But in recent years we have been able to halt those advances. We defeated Crota on the moon, before slaying him in his throne world. When his father Oryx came for revenge we did the same to him. We defeated Atheon in the Vault of Glass, we prevented Seviks from gaining control of SIVA, shattered the Fallen Houses and so much more. Every threat that has come we faced head on and beat back. Which is why I need to get back home as soon as possible.” He said, a hint of fear and sadness returning as he mentioned returning home.
“What threatens you now?” Cadence asked, the rest of the bearers hanging on every word the pair had been saying.
Cyrell looked to Selene, gave a nod and watched as his ghost stopped showing the City, and instead displayed the Black Fleet. Cyrell looked each mare in the eye, ensuring they were all lying close attention before speaking.
“The Darkness has returned, and it's only a matter of time before it either decides to finish what it started. We have to get back before it’s too late” he said with grim finality.
Cadence looked to Twilight once more, this time with an intensity she hadn’t before. She had been monitoring Cyrell and Selene carefully through each question, joke and story. Checking for any underlying emotions or possible secrets just to be safe. But Cyrell had been rather forthright with them, even when discussing the events of this Dark Age his people had gone though and the horrors that occurred during that time. Few creatures were ever this transparent unless they were either confident, or desperate. As she looked into Twilight's violet eyes, Cadence gave her silent judgement on Cyrell and her findings over the course of the meeting.
We can trust him, and he needs our help.
Twilight could hear it as if Cadence had spoken aloud. It was a special language that the two understood, as close friends and family do. She quickly nodded to Cadence and each of her friends before turning her attention to Cyrell. The other mares all locked eyes on the strange dark shape, a strange wave of dread setting over them. Twilight, ever ready to help a friend in need had only one thing to say.
“How can we help?” Was all she said.
Stats
Page generated in 0.026 seconds
Total duration
997 users online
1,926,847 hits today, 2,244,100 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
Nice Chapter 👍
Thank you for writing this enjoyeable crossover.
I am eager for more.
10693492
Thank you! I’m glad you’re enjoying it so far, it’s only gonna get better from here!
Much dangerous? Oh... it will...
Belive me it will...
Us, who literally slayed 2 Hive Gods, 2 Fallen that archived godhood, dozens os Cabal commanders and his robotic version of its emperor, and much, much more: Are you, really, really sure about that?
Yeah, Oryx and Aksis where a pain to do, buuut they have great music.
Wait... Praksis... in the Vault of Glass...? Isn't Praksis part of Eramis council?
Ok, i finish it and I loved this chapter, keep it up buddy!
And... how's season of the chosen going uh?
10703664
10703667
Oh it’s not Cyrell they ought to be worried about... it’s what might have followed him...
10703696
... ah crap that’s supposed to be Atheon. Knew I’d get someone’s name wrong! 😓
10703699
Thanks for reading! So far Season 13 has been a blast
for me, been knocking out the weekly challenges and even completed a Master run of Presage yesterday for the Deadman’s Tale catalyst. Looking forward to more!
10704252
Oh... an F for Equestria then.
If the Darkness followed Cyrell to Equs, then goodbye cuz that planet is gonna have the same fate as Mercury, Mars, Io and Titan xD
10705059
You’ll just have to wait and see~
I just realized your guardian has the same name as the ghost hunter in the ghost stories lorebook
https://www.destinypedia.com/Cyrell
10759053
Yup! When looking for possible names I happened to read that bit of lore. It was a cool name and I had thought about possibly leading this Cyrell down a similar path, though not anymore.
This story being technically an AU would allow him to be an alternate timeline version of Cyrell (Like how the Stranger talks about the Player characters previous self in the Dark Timeline). Though that’s probably never going to be mentioned in the story. Good eye though, was wondering when someone might figure that out!
This story has been great up to this point! i will patiently raise a toast for new chapters to come :)
10763352
I’m glad to hear that! Hopefully I’ll have the next one done soon. I’ve been dealing with a lot of stuff this month so it’s been pushed back a little bit, so keep an eye on the blog for updates and feel free to let me know what you think or theorize with other readers!
Honestly I feel that destiny could use a new species of villain. The universe is massive and it's just "Oh the cabal are back? Oh the hive is back again? Oh the -" so on and so forth. Pretty stale eh?
11439951
I’d be inclined to agree, but you also have to think about such an entity’s/species staying power when this saga ends. We still don’t know what exactly that means and what changes it might bring after, and most current enemies have sufficient explanations for why they persist and can still be found versus, say, anything devoted to the Darkness/Witness once that “war” is over still being around for some reason besides just “well I guess we didn’t kill them all huh?” That’s my thought at least. It would be more interesting but it could also be very short lived depending on how Final Shape concludes.