Britannia and the Quest for the Crystal Shard

By Harry Drummond

There was a mare with coat as white as snow,
And mane as red as fiery afterglow.
Brave-hearted, strong, undaunted by the dark,
But sadly still without her cutie mark.
She was the last of all her friends who still
Had not unleashed her super-special skill.
She bore the taunts and jeers with humble pride,
She knew her talents lay on the inside.
And so she set to join the Royal Guard,
A task which, as you know, is very hard,
For each new applicant must show their worth,
And any fears will surely be unearthed.
She undertook her training with her peers,
And poured her soul, her blood and sweat and tears
Into her work, and soon she above the rest
She’d risen high to be the very best.
And so at last the final day arrived,
Though still of cutie mark she was deprived.
Now, each new Royal Guard is set a task
To show their bravery is not a mask.
The Princess of the Sun spoke to our mare
And said, “Hard working, sweet Britannia fair,
Your task is great, for so is your potential,
And what I ask of you is quite essential.
There was an empire made of crystal glass,
You won’t have learned about it in a class.
There is a relic left of this great state,
A crystal shard which didn’t share its fate.
It holds a mighty power, and you must
Return it to me. You with this I trust.”
Britannia bowed her head and took her leave,
Put on her helmet, and her armoured greaves,
And drew her cloak around her, tight and warm,
For cold, harsh nights ahead would surely form.
She set out on her quest that very night,
And braved the darkness all without a fright.
As she was walking down the winding road,
She heard a noise ahead, and shouting flowed.
She hurried forth to find what was the matter,
And soon she saw a group of ponies batter
An old earth pony at the roadside down,
And stomp and kick him all without a frown.
Maddened by this, she cried her battle-call,
And launched against the brutal bullies all
The anger, righteous fury, she could give,
A wonder then that any of them lived!
She beat them down and chased them all away,
And they ran crying from the dreadful fray.
She helped the old colt up, he thanked her dearly,
The bandits, thanks to her, had only merely
Scratched and scraped his skin, no serious pain.
She bid farewell to him, set off again.
She reached the boundary of her destination,
And felt some fear at last, and trepidation,
The place she had to go inside, you see,
Was the dark and mighty Forest Everfree.
That was where Celestia said to look,
And so she stepped inside although she shook.
The darkness closed around her like a cape,
And strange and frightening lights were forming shapes
In shadows thrown against the trunks of trees,
She even felt some evil in the breeze.
She pressed on forwards, trembling as she went,
Then from ahead she smelled an awful scent.
It smelled like rotting wood, and leaves, and dirt,
And instantly it put her on alert.
As she moved forwards more she heard a sound,
The crying of a filly on the ground.
The little pony’s tears of fear were streaming,
As timber-wolves closed in around, teeth gleaming.
The awful stench Britannia smelled their breath,
She would not let them cause this filly’s death!
She charged them, shooting fire at the pack,
Igniting one and forcing others back.
She kicked the head from one and splintered wood,
Was scratched and bitten, but the pain withstood.
She broke the pack and sent them howling scared,
To face her down again none of them dared.
The filly was unhurt, but very wary,
For what she’d been through had been rather scary!
Britannia comforted and gave her cape,
And said to her she really should escape,
“Go back the way you came, you’re quite safe now.”
And so she did, Britannia kept her vow
And guarded on the road the filly went,
Until the girl was out and safe, content
That she had done her duty, she continued.
The crystal shard, her quest, she now renewed.
Upon a pedestal it sat now, gleaming,
Deep in the misty forest’s depths, and seeming
Impenetrable to our brave young mare,
But slowly and with monumental care
Britannia did approach this ancient piece,
And when she finally saw it she released
A gasp, relieved her quest was done at last.
She reached out for the incandescent glass,
But as she touched it, traps began to spring,
And she was forced to jump and duck and swing
Avoiding arrows fired from holes in walls
And spiked pits opening up to make her fall.
She dodged and dived, and made it out of there,
Although it had wreaked havoc on her hair!
She came back home to Canterlot in haste,
For time was one thing that she didn’t waste.
As she was let inside the Royal hall,
She saw that standing in amongst them all
Were the old colt she’d helped, the filly too,
Celestia smiled to them, and right on cue,
Britannia reached the front, held out the shard,
And all around applauded their new guard.
Celestia spoke, “Britannia, brave and true,
I knew with all my heart I trusted you.
You have succeeded in your mighty quest,
And not just that, you’ve passed a different test.
You helped and guarded citizens of mine,
And now your cutie mark begins to shine.
A royal orb, which shows that you protect
And serve my citizens with all respect.”
Britannia looked, and saw upon her flank,
Exactly that, it was no longer blank.
Her cutie mark had finally appeared,
And with the others she joined in and cheered.
And from that day she’s guarded all of us,
Worked hard and true, and never made a fuss.