A stranger appears before Twilight and her life changes forever.
A strange Unicorn from a distant land appears before Twilight, turning her world upside down. After a forgotten evil reemerges, Twilight and the Unicorn must travel far across Equestria in order to stop this hidden enemy before he destroys everything the world holds dear.
...........kinda lost all inspiration to continue writing this... might try picking it up again in the near future.
Trees, endless waves of dark greens, brown and grey surrounded the area, an old forest that never seemed to end or shift with time or length. The bright sky above, barely a cloud in sight, only grew brighter as the sun rose to its peak. Small critters rushed through the undergrowth swaying the stems and plants, dancing in the sunlight with the animals help. The call of numerous birds and other flying creatures pierced the air. Music one should call it, nature’s endless musical, comprised of hundreds of performers and yet it was never the same song twice. While the sounds of the singers and the graceful movement of the dancers betrayed any sign of life, no creature could be seen, none expect one.
A lonely figure, hidden under a cloak of earth browns cloth and coal black trimming, walked between the trees. The soft dirt barely giving under its hooves, weary from the long trek, muffled their steps as they walked down the hill. The cloak brushing against their body gently from the warm spring breeze, the creature kept their steady pace through the entangling vines and mischievous roots that were slowly become far more numerous than before.
A sudden shutter of leaves above made the figure jump. A midnight blue creature landed on a branch not far from the ground. The lower branches and leaves, stretched out to their fullest to bask in the sunlight, offered the one on the ground only a small view of what ever landed above them.
"Huh, much to light to be a pony, but the color could mean something. What could it mean oh never mind, right let’s see." they said," oh feathers, a pegasus perhaps, no no much to small... definitely not a manticore even though I wouldn’t mind seeing one someday. No let’s see a jump to the left and a half hop to the rear, do a hundred and twenty three wait no four degree spin to the right and oh look a beak. Hey look at that it’s just a bird. Wow I just got that excited over a blue bird." They finished with a monotone voice.
The figure knelt down, all four legs curling underneath their body. A couple of shakes and something hit the ground with a soft pluff sound. Their hood fell down, revealing the head of a pony, a unicorn to be precise with brilliant blue eyes and a mane of white and turquoise. The stallion's fur, a light grey blue mix, glistened with sweat from the sun and the cloth cloak. Leaning back, he opened his saddlebags which were made of leather, old and cracked; a gift from his father.
"Now where is it, I know I packed it in here." He mumbled to himself, "unless, oh no. did I eat it already, No I couldn’t have I just started marching not too long ago. Ugh where is it?"
With frustration he threw the saddlebags away from him, the grass and vines flattened by the weight as it rolled a few feet from him, most of the contents falling out in the process. With a sigh the unicorn stood up, groaning a bit from his sore legs and limped over to his bags. The bag lay with the flap wide open; several of the items still partially in the bag but the rest were littered in a scattered line from where he had been sitting to the touchdown point. Snapped quills, cracked ink bottles, his torn map, and that accursed apple he was looking for was the least of his worries at the moment. A quick search of his bags confirmed his fear.
"My locket, where is my locket?" He whispered while shifting grass blades aside, hoping to spot a glimmer of light off of the dulling silver. "WHERE IS MY LOCKET!", the unicorn started shouting, his eyes growing wider and more desperate, " no no no no no no no no no no, where could it be?"
He searched the trunks and roots of the trees; ancient elms, sprouting pines, sagging birches, and fallen oaks surround the pony all around. The vines didn’t hide his locket either, even though there were far too many to search before dark. Their thorny hide lightly cutting through his fur, drawing small lines of blood. The ferns waved back and forth with the breeze, but they too came up empty. Finally exhausted from his mad search of the locket, the unicorn dropped to his stomach, tears slowly forming in his eyes, his legs spread in all directions. Giving one last look over the area his dropped his head into the grass.
"OW, what the hay." he exclaimed while rubbing his jaw. Looking down, beneath the livid green grass, an ever so small glimmer of light caught his eye. Parting the grass with his hooves, a small bit sized piece of metal laid there half covered in dirt. Grasping the chain with his mouth, he picked up the locket, tears of relief found their way into the corners of his eyes. Taking the oval locket into his hoof he wiped the dirt off of the silver casing, restoring a bit of the shine.
"I’m never letting you out of my sight again", he thought to himself as he slipped it into the bags.
With his treasure secure in his bag, the unicorn set about repacking everything that had be scattered by the throw and his frantic search had knocked other to the side as well. Walking the last few steps of the dirt trail he came to the last landmark before his destination would be in site. The river was wide but shallow, perfect for catching small frogs and crawfish for the birds that lived in vast numbers in the surrounding trees. Careful to avoid slipping into the water, he leapt from stone to stone. Fish swam underneath him, oblivious to his presence, while salamanders darted around the rocks and nooks in the roots of trees. Almost to the other side, just two more rocks lead to his goal and dryness. Crouching down, he pushed with his rear legs with all the strength he could muster.
SPLASH
"BUCK!!!"
Cold water rose up to his waist, the stallion's front legs grasping the rock. The current, weak but steady, pulled him like a filly would pull their parents hoof. A leaf fell from an oak that lived nearby the river, hanging its bows over the water. That leaf, covered with pollen, twisted and turned with the wind until it landed by chance on the stallion’s nose. With a forceful sneeze, he slipped off the rock and sank beneath the water. The cold liquid poured down his throat, his legs flailing madly, trying desperately to breach the surface of the water, but only to slip on the slimy weeds on the riverbed. With one last kick, the unicorn rose out of the water long enough to gasp a fresh breath of air. His bearings better than before, he twisted himself until he faced the shore.
"I am not going to die like this. I am not dying now", he thought.
That feeling of power, sealed deep within his heart, started to flow slowly throughout his body. The warmth spread through his veins, instantly warming the unicorn's body as he focused on the one spell he needed to cast. His horn glowed with an aura of white and green, his mind set on reversing gravity at a fixed point. The feeling, this power, seeped into his horn more as he willed it to do his bidding with increased concentration. With the last bit of breath he had managed to hold, the unicorn released the power.
Weightlessness filled his body now, floating up and out of the water effortless. He blasted through the surface, coughing out the small amount of water that managed to leak into his lungs but he was alive. Taking a deep breath, his heart pounding fast but slowing down, the stallion spied the shore he was originally heading to. Focusing his mind the aura surrounded his body pulled him over the bank, up the slope of grass, and finally to the crest of the hill. Coughing still but not as strong, the stallion opened his eye and looked around. Trees, massive trunks lifting into the sky with a canopy of lush greens on both sides of him and there it was
peeking out from behind the trees, his long sought after goal.
"SPIKE", a female unicorn shouted, "SPIKE WHERE ARE YOU?"
High above the mare, a small creature hung from the rafters. Purple and green in color with soft scales for now until it was fully mature. Its claws dug deep into the wood, their tail twisted around the dry rotted rafter with determination.
"SPIKE I SWEAR IF YOUR HIDING TO AVOID YOUR CHORES," she yelled
"WAIT WHOA WHAT NOOOOOOOOOOO!" the creature yelled as the rafter finally snapped.
"I got you," she said calmly as she leapt underneath Spike. The purple creature landed on her back with a groan. "Spike you may be a baby dragon but that is no reason to avoid your chores." she scolded him.
"I wasn’t avoiding them Twilight, I was cleaning the rafters like you told me to," he retorted, "but the ladder slipped and I got stuck up there."
"Uh huh," she replied, "and where is this ladder"
"It must have, I don’t know, um, um, vanished?" he said meekly.
"Spike, stop lying to me, one, I don’t even own a ladder," She stated,” Two, I didn’t tell you to clean the rafters; I told you that we need to get the rafters fixed. I’m mean look at them; they are falling apart faster than the parasprites ate Ponyville."
The young dragon grumbled as he hopped of her back and started cleaning up the mess from the fallen rafter. Wood dust and chips were flung across the floor in all direction. He grabbed his specially made broom and started sweeping up the mess.
"How did you even get up there?" She asked," That’s about twenty five hooves in the air"
"I um, climbed up there when I saw you coming back to the library," Spike said flashing his claws," I got scared because I’ve just been laying around eating ruby nachos all day and I hadn't finished my chores yet. I was up there for about seven minutes before you started calling for me."
“Spike," Twilight walked over to her friend and pulled him into a hug, “You don’t ever need to be scared of me." She looked all around before leaning in close to his ear and whispering, "Even I like to be lazy once in a while"
Spike just stood there in awe, her words left him speechless. She released her hold on him and walked over to one of the many bookshelves that lined her walls. Her horn released an aura of light orchard and bright raspberry, her eyes fixated on her bookshelves. With one graceful twist of her neck, all the books sprang into the air and crashed on the hardwood floor.
"TWILIGHT," the dragon exclaimed," WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"
"REORGANIZING THE WHOLE LIBRARY," she yelled with glee
DING, DING, DING
The library door opened wide as several mares walked into the building.
"Hiya Twi, we heard a ruckus outside, figured we'd come and check it out." the orange mare said
"OhmyCelestiaI, IwassoOOOexcited, ItoldRaritythatwehadtocomeseeyourightaway,” the pink pony gasped in one breathe"
"Pinkie darling, remember to breath while you talk," Rarity said, "Now Twilight what have you done to the place, it looks absolutely horrendous."
"Oh Rarity, I’m just reorganizing my books," Twilight said, still beaming with the prospect of the task at hoof," there’s no need to fret."
"No need to fret while yours truly is here," a blue pegasus exclaimed," I'll have those book on those shelves in no time." she dive-bombed the pile of books, grabbing them and shoving them on the shelves as fast as she could. A rainbow trail followed her every movement.
"Um Rainbow Dash, I don’t think that’s what twilight meant," the yellow pegasus peeped.
"Fluttershy, ahm two hoofs from ya and ah barely heard that. Ya gotta speak up Sugarcube," the orange earth pony said kindly.
"You're right Applejack; I need to be more assertive." Fluttershy almost whispered, “If you won’t hear my voice, I’ll give you no choice, “inhale," RAINBOW DASH STOP!" She shouted, “if you don’t mind" finishing once more as a whisper.
"Huh what did you say?" Rainbow Dash asked, "Can't you see I’m being awesome, check it out, all the books in organized by color." She beamed, “No need to thank me Twilight, now you can stop being an egghead for a minute and come hang with us."
Twilight stood there in shock, all of her glee gone in a prism of colors dashing over her house. Her books were organized but "Magical Cures for the Supernatural" shouldn't be next to "Running for Beginners" and "50 Shades of Hay" would never be caught next to " Dusk: Shattering Midnight" or "The Lost Years of Starswirl: The Seven Scripts of Magic" next to the "Sunbattles: The Mirrorpool Guards War"
With a heavy gasps, Twilight fell over shaking from the evil in front of her.
"Rainbow Dash, take all of my books down NOW!" she shouted.
Sigh "Fine"
In a whirl of colors all of the books lay on the floor in alphabetical order, stacked neatly and clearly in the same direction.
"Thank you, now I just...wait how did you do that?" Twilight asked
"What, I did graduate from Cloudsdale High, I can put stuff in alphabetical order, I’m not just a world class athlete, I’m also smart, BUT I’m not an egghead. You got that"
Twilight felt the same power in her since filly hood fill her whole body, it was almost second nature for her to summon the magic. Her mind focused on levitating the books, all of which lifted at once with ease. She trusted Rainbow Dash but she had to double check and triple check to make sure that the books were really in order. She brought every book inches from her muzzle, her eyes scanning the entire cover.
"A Beginners guide to Book Shelving, 0012.35" She thought, "A Beginners guide to Book shelving, 0012.36"
Each book was thoroughly inspected by title, date of publishing, even the Dewey decimal system until she was fully satisfied with the order the books were in. The gang of ponies; slumped against the wall, lying on a couch with red cushions, sitting against the walls or just sitting there looking nervous all had the same look on their faces, they were beyond bored.
"Ok girls, I’m done," Twilight said with overwhelming happiness, "What do you want to do?"
"So close yet so far." He thought, "I must make it before the sun sets or was it after, um oh I don’t know, ill just hope for the best. I hope she's in the mood for a guest this evening. Oh NO YOU DONT MIND, DONT YOU EVEN DARE GO THERE. BAD MIND BAD. Stay out of the gutter."
The unicorn jogged down the road, passing by house that were in a desperate need of a good paint job or some trim work, hoping to find the one house that he had been told about for many years. The house that took the shape of a tree and yet wasn’t. The tree, whose leaves never died or changed with the seasons, this was the tree he wanted to find.
"Um excuse me miss?" He asked a grey pegasus
"Ditzy, I’m called Ditzy although some ponies call me Derpy" she replied,” Wow you must be new; I’ve never seen you before."
"Ditzy?"
"Where did you come from, Are you a traveling pony? Oh my Celestia that is so amazing, I've always wanted to travel"
"Ditzy."
"But I can’t because I have to take care of my Little Muffin until she is a little older, plus my eyes make it hard to see straight."
"DITZY!"
"Um yes?"
"I need you to focus..."
"I’m focusing"
"For just minute or maybe just 56.8 seconds, but either way I need you to help me"
Ditzy just hung her head to the side, her bright yellow mane flowing down her neck; she wore a look of confusion. “Me help you? No one ever asks for my help."
She started to turn away but the stallion walked up to her and gently placed his hoof on her shoulder. The moment he rested his hoof against her soft fur she twisted around and tackled him to the ground in a hug that a bear wouldn’t have been able to escape. Dazed and a little confused, the unicorn tried to pry the vice grip loose but Ditzy only hugged tighter.
"Ditzy, ugh I need “gasp " you to let" GASP" go," he gasped in between short breaths.
With that she let him go and stood back, small tears forming in the corner of her eyes.
"I’m sorry, it’s just that nopony ever asks me for help." She happily said, " Most ponies think I’m an idiot or that I’m slow, but IM not. I was born with eyes like this."
"Ditzy, I’m sorry for the way they treated you but right now I really need to find a house that looks like a tree,"
"Oh you must mean the Library, it’s just around that corner, go three house down, turn left and it’s at the end of the street on your right" She proudly said.
"Ok so take a skip down the way, turn to that cloud, and follow it till you come to the living wood, got it," He said out loud,” Thanks Ditzy"
"Oh you got to go now, oh ok, bye mister," She said disappointed," STOP BY FOR MUFFINS SOMETIME!"
"She was kind of cute" He thought as he galloped down the road, his mind thinking of her long blond hair and gold eyes, "Yeah she was really cute."
The sun was starting to set, gold and blue hues stretching across the sky while the birds fluttered back to their nests to rest. The air becoming more humid as the clouds rolled over the sky. The voices started to ebb away with final farewells and goodbyes as the citizens headed home. Doors shut, curtains closed, and porch lights turned on. Peace and quiet fell upon the town with the exception of hoofbeats galloping down a street. Past the refurbished carousel and the fruit market, the sound echoed through the streets. The giant gingerbread house caused him no distraction as he continued his pace through the streets, now vacant of ponies except him.
"Even if I bump right into her, I still have no idea what she looks like. I have to warn her of the danger she is in. Great, why not just run around and find every mare and tell them hey you're in danger. I bet that would go over swell with the locals." He thought to himself.
Turning left the unicorn sighed with relief when he saw the tall oak tree, that Ditzy had said was the library, was only a few blocks down the road. Slowing his pace to allow his heart to stop racing, he noticed how quite the area was becoming. The door was shut to the library and the lights were extinguished. Not a sound was coming from inside. He walked up to the door and knocked several times, hoping that the owner wasn’t asleep. To his surprise the door swung open, revealing an empty room. Cautiously he pushed open the door and creped in. Looking around the place, it was clear that the place was well kept but the owner seemed to be out for the night.
"Okay, this will be easy. Get the target and get out before anypony sees me.
He took a deep breath and released it slowly. The power flowed through him instantly this time, his horn reacting faster than it had in the river.
"Focus, every living creature has water in them. Focus on the area where there is the highest concentration."
His horn started radiating a dim green and blue aura which pulsed slowly gently lighting the area around him. "Come on, it’s here. I can feel it. The silence here is too great for them to not be anywhere else but here. Just a bit more..."
SLAM
"ALRIGHT, WHO THE BUCK IS IN MY HOUSE!!!"
The stallion fell to the floor is shock. His concentration lost with the sudden explosion of noise. Hearing footsteps downstairs, he looked for an exit; a window, a balcony, even a crack in the baseboard where a mouse lived. Spying a window, he climbed up to it. His hoof stepped on something that felt much harder than stone and the realization of what it was sent a new surge of terror down his spine.
"IF YOU DONT SHOW YOURSELF I SWEAR I WILL CONVINCE THE PRINCESS TO BANISH YOU TO THE PRISM!!!" The mare’s voice bellowed through the library.
The unicorn was thrown to the floor by the thing he stepped on with a bone shattering crash. Grunting in pain, he rolled off the loft and fell to the floor.
"AAAAAAAAAAEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH WHO THE BUCK ARE YOU AND WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN MY HOUSE!!!" the mare screams as he fell behind her making her jump.
Standing up with the most pleasant smile he could muster with what felt like a bruised rib, the stallion saw that she, a unicorn with violet fur, was terrified.
"Hello there and may I ask what is your name?" He asked politely.
"Um, Twilight Sparkle."
"It's very nice to meet you Twilight Sparkle", He said with a smile, "You should run."
Twilight stood still, either frozen with terror or anger, her mouth just hung open in disbelief. The stallion didn’t wait for a response, summoning his magic; he lifted her off the floor. The door was embedded in the wall already so there was no need to open it. He smiled and with a great thrust of power, Twilight Sparkle was soaring through the air.
"HEY YOU CANT THROW ME FROM MY HOUSE," She screamed," WHO DO YOU THI...UMPH" she grunted as she crashed into a bale of hay while a pink pony joyfully bounced away from the spot.
Now that she was safe from harm, the stallion turned back to the thing upstairs. The void of noise, the darkness in the light, and the absence of water confirm his fears.
"No, not here. It’s not right but everything adds up to it. I hoped I would never have to fight another one."
Dropping his saddle bags and throwing his cloak off, he pulled a white and blue bladeless hilt off his hip. Holding it in his mouth, the unicorn focused on the humidity level outside. The tiny particles of water in the air weren’t enough yet. A crash upstairs caused him to lose his focus. Spinning around and out of the tree, he looked desperately for a larger source of water. The clouds overhead rolled silently above him as he saw the town water fountain. Turning towards it, he started to sprint...
CRACK......KABOOM
The world around him spun, burning wood chips seared his flesh, and his ears were deafened by the shriek of the thing in the darkness. His body was sent crashing into the nearby house, cracking the wood siding. The ground slammed into him that knocked the breath from his lungs. Gasping for air he stumbled to his hoofs, swaying his head left and right looking for his hilt. A leg, harder than stone and wider than a birch tree, kicked into his gut sending him into a pile of boxes across the street.
Blood ran from his mouth, wood pierced his hind leg, his ears rang viciously, and his vision blurred. He laughed painfully, his ribs bruised or broken, as he rolled over to look at his attacker but it was gone. Pushing the broken box frames off him he collapsed in pain. His head spinning from the pain, he felt a cross under his shoulder.
His hilt. Picking it up, he focused on the water fountain once more. Ripping the water from its restful state it flew over the roads, whipping and slashing the air around it. His horns aura shifted from green to white and the water circled around him before crashing into the center of the hilt, right where the blade would sit. The water hardened as the air shifted to a frigid chill. A shriek behind him caused him to push his magic harder. The water froze solid and the edges sharpened as the shriek came again, this time much closer than before. Lifting the sword in his mouth, he waited. The shriek came again making his fur stand, but it was almost right behind him.
He stood still with his ears shifting in all direction, trying to hear any betrayal of silence from the creature. A groan of wood to his right, a crack of thunder far to his left, the sound of a pebble being kicked directly behind him. Swinging his sword around as powerful as he could, the stallion felt the impact of ice against flesh. The creature howled in pain as its brown blood flowed from its severed limb. The buildings shuddered as the foul being collapsed onto its side.
"I can see you," He spoke with death, "I will make you suffer for what you have done. I will seek your whole species out and destroy them, slowly, carefully and when there is just one of you left I will savor the moment when I finally scourge your pathetic species from existence. YOU TOOK EVERYTHING FROM ME!"
The creature’s six legs thrashed around wildly as it tried to gain its footing. Howls of pain escaped its oozing mouth, its pincers clicking rapidly. Its wings, sharper than a honed blade, flapped madly through the air, limbs slicing into the building walls with ease. Brown blood poured out of the severed limb and on to the road, staining the old cobblestone. The thing’s black eyes, all four of them, focused on stallion approaching it slowly.
It started lightly at first, the rain, but soon the drops fell with gusto. He stood there looming over the creature that had attacked him, its shroud vanishing into dark mist. The rain washed over his body as he lifted his sword. With a mighty throw he hurled his sword at the creature. The blade piercing through its leg, while the other four flailing around madly, and into the wall behind it. The creature shrieked in fright as the unicorn advanced on it. His horn glowing bright, the aura spanning farther than usual, the rain started to slow as the air steadily dropped in temperature. The stallion grunted and the rain consolidated into dozens of thin spears, all hovering in the air above the combatants. The creature struggled madly to free itself but it was to no avail. With a satisfied smirk, the unicorn's eyes focused on the creature and he sent the spears to their destination. And they fell in waves.
The thing howled in agony as each spear pierced into its body, each one missing a vital organ on purpose. Again and again the ice spears cut through its shell and ripped into its flesh. The creature's mandibles clicked slowly as its life slowly drifted away.
"Oh no you don’t, you’re not allowed to die just yet." He snapped," I have a message for the rest of your kind. You see I know that you are part of a hive mind so that anything you see your queen sees. So let me just make this clear your royal piece of shit. Someday, I will find you, all of you, and I will laugh as I watch your rotting corpses be devoured by the maggots that you feast on. I will personally hunt you all down and bring your species to extinction."
Pulling his sword from the creature, he shook the blood off of the blade. Looking back at the thing, he drove his blade through one of its eyes. The organ burst open as the blade sank deep into the creature’s brain. It shrieked once more, flailing its head around before it fell to the ground, then silence.
Twilight shook herself free of the hay, the pieces falling off her body gently. Standing upright, she stared in horror at the sight of her Library. A massive portion of the trunk was ripped apart, as if blown out from the inside. Slabs of bark lay on the street, covering the cobblestone road like a hard blanket. Branches and leaves were scattered across the scene of destruction. Books torn to shreds littered the floor and a good part of the road around the old tree. Her telescope, a one of a kind and present from the princess, laid ruined in the street. Tears formed in Twilights eyes at the sight of her prized possession laying destroyed in the street, her many books, ancient knowledge and information that she had personally researched for the betterment of ponykind, ruined by that stallion that had broken into her home.
Taking slow, trembling steps towards the remains of her home, she searched for the one responsible for its destruction. Twilight’s horn glowed softly as she moved the debris away from the broken tree. Ruined books covered most of the ground along with parts of the old oak tree. Quills and jars of ink laid in ruin around her saddlebags, a gift from her mother the day she went to school, except that wasn’t her bags.
“Those must be from that stallion’s bag,” she thought, “He must have dropped them as he left my home. What was he doing here anyways?”
Walking over to the strangers bags, she lifted them off the ground with her magic. Laying it in front of her, she probed both sides for signs of dark magic, curses or traps. Layer by layer she weaved her magic through bags, between the threads and fabric, feeling for any trace of magic. Satisfied that they were safe, she knelt down and opened the bag with her mouth. Grabbing the bottom she dumped the contents onto the ground. Quills and cracked jars joined the others on the others on the ground, a map of Equestria with lands that she didn’t recognize, and a silver locket fell to the ground by her hooves. Picking up the oval shaped locket, it was heavier then it looked, Twilight studied the surfaces of the small metal object. Smooth but worn with constant wear, the surface shined with a dull light.
“Excuse me,” a voice from behind made her jump,” I believe that is mine.”
Turning around Twilight saw the same stallion that she had caught in her house not even an hour ago, except that he had a thick trail of blood flowing from his head and mouth. He stood there, leaning more on his right side, a crooked smile on his face. She stood there, kicking the ground nervously, Granted he did break into her home, but she had just snooped through his stuff. She just stood there, her lips partly open as she wracked her head for something to say. Her heart fluttered as she looked at him, an unusual feeling that she was not experienced with
“This pony broke into my house, utterly destroyed most of it and came back here covered in blood and limping,” She thought,” Why is my heart beating like this and why do I feel like a filly meeting their idol for the first time?”
“Um, excuse me, Miss Sparkle,” the stallion said kindly, “are you going to stand there all night just staring at me?”
Hearing his voice snapped her back into reality, a flood of new emotions surged through her. Anger being the strongest she felt right now. Stomping the ground with her leg, she opened her heart to the power that rested there. Usually she could just summon this power on a whim, unlike most unicorns that had to focus, but not this time. Her emotions were too unstable. Focusing on the stallion in front of her, she urged the space around him to become weightless, to defy the laws of gravity. Twilight felt the warmth flow through her veins as it traveled down to her hooves, back up to her heart and finally to the base of her horn. Magic as they called it, but the power was in reality nameless, this power had existed since the first unicorn had stepped into this world. The magic spiraled up her horn and finally seeped out. The stallion looked nervous or excited; she couldn't tell or care what he felt at the moment. She released her spell, aimed at the pony standing no more than a few hooves from her.
He felt his body become lighter almost instantly. The aura coming from her horn was more than he needed to know that she had just cast a spell at him. The stallion felt his hooves leave the ground, the feeling of weightlessness getting stronger.
“I can’t let her do this,” he thought,” but I can’t hurt her either.”
Thinking quickly, he knew that the only thing he could do was to interrupt the spell. Releasing his magic as fast as he could, the warmth flowed through him, but it went straight to his horn this time. The stallion imagined the base of her horn, feeling where the magic came to a focal point. He felt the positive magic at the base of the horn; forming an equal amount of negative magic, his eyes flashed black and green as he released his own power. A spark shined brightly right where her horn met her forehead.
A feeling of slight pain shot into her head. Suddenly she couldn’t control her magic and the aura faded into thin air. The stallion dropped like a rock to the ground, cracking the bark beneath him and sending several jars rolling away in crazy paths. Desperately, Twilight tried casting a simple solidify spell on the air mixed with a pressure change on the area to push him away from her, but nothing happen. The magic flowed as usual but it couldn’t pass into her horn, instead it just caused her a sharp pain causing her to yelp.
“Ma’am, please stop trying to cast, it’s only going to cause you further pain.”
Fear gripped her heart. Never had she been this scared of another pony. How could this pony block her ability to cast spells? Why was he just standing there smiling at her? Where did this stallion come from? All of these questions and more were racing through her head, all the while she was also trying to figure out how she could escape from him. Flicking her head side to side trying to see if there was a way she could get away from him, she saw a piece of bark stuck straight up in the air. Diving behind it she laid on the ground, shaking slightly.
“Twilight, there is really no reason to hide from me,” The stallion called from the other side of her cover, “I promise you that I will not harm you.”
“And why should I believe you!” Twilight yelled, “You destroyed my home, my books and all my work. You attacked me already and made it so that I can’t use my magic!”
A slight rumble came from the bark slab, a green and blue aura radiated around it and Twilights cover was lifted effortlessly into the air and landed gently near what was left of the front door. She got to her hooves and faced the stranger face to face. That same smile was still on his face, his eyes stared into hers and they were filled with kindness but there was a hint that he was older than he looked in them.
“See, I’m not going to hurt you. Just come over here and I’ll release the hold I have on your horn.” He said gently.
Cautiously Twilight took several steps towards him, the entire time ready to charge and impale if needed but the stallion just stood there waiting very patiently.
“What’s your name?” She finally asked
“I’ll tell you my name after I fix your problem with magic.” He responded, “Now stop being such a scarediepony and get over here. I’m not going to hurt you.”
Taking the last few steps Twilight stood next to him. He just smiled and leaned his head down so that his horn touched the base of hers. Twilight suppressed every urge to whip around and buck the fool out of him, but once she felt the magical blockage in her horn slowly vanish she relaxed and let him finish. Feeling much better, she focused on a book not too far from her. Summoning up a quick surge of magic, the book lifted into the air and floated over to her. Thrilled that she could use magic again, she hugged the book tightly. Never had she felt that helpless before and it was definitely not a pleasant feeling for her.
“Now will you tell me your name?” Twilight asked for the final time while her face was buried in the book’s cover.
“My name is Aphirion,” He said cheerfully as another thick stream of blood flowed down his face and over the cheek, “and I’ve been looking for you for quite some time now.”
She looked back at the stallion that was still just standing there among the pieces of her broken home, smiling like before and Twilight smiled back just a little bit.
Aphirion stretched his legs, releasing a few painful moans as he felt his sore muscles relax. Rubbing his side from where the creature had kicked him, he limped over to the violet unicorn. Sweat stung his eyes and a deep throbbing from the top of his head made the short journey harder than it should have been. Hopping on his front hoof, he made his way closer towards the mare. Not seeing the piece of a broken bookshelf, Aphirion stumbled over the wood and finally tripped but was stopped mid-fall.
“Oh buck me” he thought.
He could feel her soft lips pressed tightly against his. Her horn gently rubbed against his, send a deep sensation of pleasure throughout his body. His eyes, stinging from sweat, managed to open just a sliver only to see her face go from surprise to what could have been an equal feeling of pleasure or longing to a seething anger all in the span of a second. Two hoofs pushed him away fiercely, a whirl of violet and purple and another set of hooves, this time much more painful, slammed into his chest sending him flying over the rubble and landing with a loud thud on the cobblestone road. Pain erupted from the impact area and tears streamed down his face.
“Who’d have thought a Librarian could hit that hard.” He thought, “I think she just bruised a couple of my ribs.”
Lying on the ground, holding his chest, Aphirion rolled over to his less injured side. Coughing from his winded chest, he stood up with slight difficultly. Rubbing the tender ribs gently, he hobbled over to his bag. The young mare stood still, glaring at him with every step he took. Bending over, he grasped the bag with his mouth and opened the leather flap.
“Ok, first of all, what was that thing that you killed? What were you doing in my home? Why have you been looking for me AND why were you in my home?!?!” Twilight snapped, “Not to mention that kiss just now.”
Flicking his ears Aphirion continued to shuffle through his bag, his chest hurting less with every passing minute. Moving his map aside, Aphirion pulled a small box from the bottom of the bag. Setting it down gently, he opened it up to reveal a small bottle.
“Are you going to answer my questions or do I have to contact the guards?” Twilight asked.
“I promise I will answer everything you want to know Twilight,” Aphirion gasped, “and then some. But first let me heal my injuries. In the meanwhile, count the stars will you”
“Count the stars? Are you serious?”
“Yes, look I’ll give you a head start, look there’s one hundred and eighty two right there,” he said while pointing his hoof in the direction of the Orion constellation. Aphirion lifted the bottle with his magic, focusing on a simple antigravity spell; he uncorked the top and tipped the bottle back into his mouth. Tasting the sweet and tangy liquid slowly flow down his throat. The contents of the bottle grew warmer as it went down into his stomach. A surge of warmth coursed throughout his body, soothing his muscles and he could feel his broken rib snap back together.
A gasp of pain escaped his mouth, causing Twilight to take a caring step towards him but stopped once she remember that she was still pretty mad at him for everything he had done recently. Pawing at the ground, she looked up to the sky. Hundreds of stars shined brightly across the dark veil.
‘How could he expect me to count the stars? I doubt even Princess Luna knows how many stars are there.” She thought, “Should I actually listen to him or should I focus on him to make sure he doesn’t try anything funny. Oh Celestia, why do I have these feelings about him? I barely know him and yet it feels like we are more than just that. Ugh you’re being silly Twilight.”
“Ok, I’m finished, now what do you say about fixing your home?” Aphirion said cheerfully.
Startling Twilight back into her senses, she jumped a little before gathering herself.
“What do you mean fix my house? If you can’t tell it’s a giant tree. You can’t just fix it with a hammer. It’s a living thing.” Twilight retorted
“Yes it’s a living organism, you are correct, maybe a hammer could fix it but I prefer a more practical method.”
Oh and what’s that? Magic is great and can solve almost everything thing in the world but either there isn’t a spell that can mend a living thing or I don’t know it yet.”
“It’s a spell alright and I’m surprised you don’t know it. It’s simple enough.”
His comment stung Twilight deeply. How dare he criticize her ability in magic? For ponysake it was her special talent and a rare one that was only seen once every hundred years. She kicked the ground angrily, but kept her mouth shut. She watched the stallion stumble over the wreckage of her house -
“Not the most graceful of ponies now is he.” She mocked in her head.
- and towards the largest pieces of bark that surround the tree. He lifted the bulk of them effortlessly and sat them down like a giant puzzle. She walked around the area, pondering what he was doing. Obviously he was putting the exterior back together but how was he planning on fixing it.
“You know, if you told me what you were planning I could help you.”
“Oh yeah, I forgot. I apologize. You see those other large pieces; right over...well technically they are all around us. I need you to put them all together, I’ll do the rest.”
Twilight raised an eyebrow at his comment but rolled her eyes and trotted around lifting each piece. Setting down all of the pieces, Aphirion went about organizing the wood and bark into one large slab. She stood back, puzzling the stallion’s method but accepting that he must know what he was doing. Watching him twist the last piece of shredded wood into place, Twilight felt an immense surge of power crash through her. The force lifted her off the ground, sending her rolling across the bumpy road. Finally stopping her momentum, she looked up to see the stallion surrounded by a swirling vortex of water.
His horn radiating a bright blue aura, the stallion threw his head around and Twilight could feel the sheer power wash over her as she saw the water crash onto the slab of wood. But instead of a exploding over the wood, it flowed gently over the bark. Flowing along the crack and shredded wood, groans and pops erupted from the joints as they started merging back together. Several moments and a couple pops later, he stood back from his work. Twilight walked over to him, eyeing the single piece of wood. She stopped next to the stallion, hearing his slight panting from the spell.
“Well, I’m done, took a bit more than normal but this tree is much larger and older than what I’m use to working on.” Aphirion stated, “I’ll need your help to get this in place. The spell cost me more than I thought it would.”
Twilight stepped closer to the large bark slab and spread her legs into a sturdy stance. Her horn radiated a mixture of light orchard and bright raspberry as the magic surrounded the object. With a short grunt, Twilight pushed herself a bit more; the piece of tree lifted off the ground and pointed to the sky. She smiled to herself when she slid the piece neatly into the broken portion of her house. Spying the condescending stallion from the corner of her eye, Twilight could only gasp before being drenched with freezing cold water.
Aphirion urged the water to press harder into the trees damaged body. Willing the water to heal the area, he could feel his energy slowly draining at a steady rate. Drowsiness weighed his eye lids, his legs shook but Aphirion pushed on. Water seeped into the wood with hundreds of popping and cracking sounds. With a final grunt, Aphirion released a massive wave of power and the tree was whole once again.
Later that night, Aphirion lay near the fire place, the only part of the house that wasn’t made of wood or leaves. His eyes watched the fire flick into the air, the tongues licking the soot covered stone. Looking around the room, a lot easier task than his previous visit inside, he couldn’t help but notice how unique the library was. The entire place was round with all of the rooms varying in height from the floor and completely open to the main room. Books lined the entirety of the external wall, covering from the base of the floor to the ceiling. Aphirion noticed the statue of a unicorn bust, pondering on how out of place it was. A bronze plaque shined dully but was unreadable on the base of the bust. The fire felt warm against his body, a severe difference from the cold water needed to fix the tree and he basked in the pleasure of the warmth. The dull sound of hooves coming down the stairs caught his attention.
Twilight walked down the worn steps, eyeing the stallion lying near the fire the entire time. Her thoughts raced from the damage to her house, the stranger lying there in her house, that awful creature that had literally crashed through the solid tree and finally what was she going to do about all of this. Still not knowing anything about the pony, she made sure that a small array of blunt objects was within reach in case he blocked her magic again. How did he manage to do that anyway she thought. Coming to the base of the staircase, she turned towards the stranger but not before sitting down several hooves away from him. Wanting to talk but not sure how or where to start, Twilight sat there in silence, she shifted her gaze to the fire and back at him.
“Wonderful fire, isn’t it?” He said after a few minutes, “I may prefer water but I enjoy the warmth more than a cat does.”
Twilight smiled, what a silly comment she thought.
“Sitting by the fire and reading a good book is one of my favorite hobbies.” She replied.
“I can see why Twilight, but I prefer hoof on experience.” He stated with a smirk, “hey, um about that kiss. I’m very sorry. It was an accident, I stumbled over something and I fell into you. It wasn’t intentional.”
Even in the dim light, Aphirion could see her blush. She brushed her mane back before speaking.
“I know it wasn’t on purpose. I’m just not use to that kind of physical interaction and might have overreacted. Being a full time librarian and having other responsibilities I, huh, don’t get out much,” Twilight, “But I really don’t mind. I love reading and learning and where a better place than a library?”
“Very true, now I believe you had some questions, such as what was that creature.” He said, “It’s called a Felnidpod, a creature found in the forests of my home country. They are insect-like creatures that were created years ago by mistake. The story changes from village to village but it’s along the lines of that the White Order’s ruler was neglecting his son. Bored and angry, the colt found companionship with the insects in the grounds around the tower. Young and unable to control his power, the unicorn experienced a surge of power that affected the creatures he was playing with. The insects were torn apart at the cellular level and reconstructed into one new species. Fearing for the creature’s life the colt whisked the insect away to the Ice forest, an area that is impregnated with corrupted power from an event that was well before my great grandfather’s time. The colt died sometime later but the creature didn’t. It grew into a gigantic size, developed a hive mind and has been killing since it left the forest.” He finish as the fire snapped through a log.
“I noticed that it became hard to hear. Like there was a constant buzzing in my ears or an absence of noise. It was really strange, plus I didn’t even see it go through the wall or while it was attacking you until you managed to injure it.” Twilight responded with a slight concern in her voice. She had heard of several dangerous beings in her life but this one was so foreign that it worried her.
“It’s not a natural creature,” Aphirion replied solemnly, “It’s a being filled with corruption. The Felnidpod can release several pheromones that can hamper our senses. We rely on sight and sound more than the others and as such those are attacked first. When I entered your house, it was filled with darkness that even our magic would have had trouble seeing through. Once it was outside, I still couldn’t see it but I could hear.”
Twilight just sat there, listening to him as he explained this horrible creature as if he was discussing the weather. Rubbing her hooves against each other, she tried to think of what else she wanted to know but there were dozens of questions flowing around her mind. Where did he come from? Who was he? And why did he say he had been looking for me were just a few of the questions that she could think of. Breathing deeply she stared into the fireplace, trying to focus her mind.
“Focus Twilight, focus on the priorities. Who is he, why is he here, and where did he come from,” she said over and over in her head.
“Um, I apologize but what is your name again?” Twilight asked ashamed that she had forgotten.
“My name is Aphirion and no I do not have a second part to my name like the ponies in this land do.” He stated, “and I know what you are about to ask, I’m from Stiar. It’s far to the west of Equestria. We don’t have a monarchy like you do where one rules all. We have providences that separate the land into seven somewhat equal parts. Each one of the providences are ruled by a Grand Lord and his counsel. A trivial title that is more for show than anything else, it just sounded powerful with words like lord and grand.”
Twilight laughed at his comment, but managed to hide it meekly. She stretched her legs out and walked over to the pantry. Grabbing a small cloth bag and plate, she walked back over to Aphirion, dumping the contents onto the plate. A dozen or so cookies dropped onto the ceramic plate until there was no more in the bag. She folded the cloth neatly and laid it under the plate.
“Raisin oatmeal cookies, Pinkie baked them for me today. They’re my favorite but please help yourself and oh one moment,” she went over to the refrigerator and pulled a few jars of apple ciders out, “here’s something to drink.”
“You are too kind Twilight.” Aphirion said cheerfully as he accepted the jar, “now do you have any more questions for me?”
“Oh where do I begin? What’s it like in your home? Do you have a family? But I think the one that is really bugging me is, why are you here?”
“I don’t know honestly. I’m a soldier Twilight. I’m given orders and I execute them. My Lord came to me for a mission here. I was told to guard a unicorn that was important to the ruler of this land and after a few mishaps with a blacksmith, I’m here now.” He said as cheerful as ever, “As for a family, I’d rather not talk about them” he finished with a hint of sadness in his voice.
She just sat there in silence.
“Me, need a guard? I’m one of the most capable ponies in all of Equestria? Why do I need a guard? Does the Princess not believe in my abilities? Ugh, this is going to be horrible. Him following me around everywhere I go, watching my every move and everything I do.” She stared deep into his eyes, “at least he’s easy to look at.” She finished thinking with a smile, letting the mention of his family pass by without notice.
The two ponies talked throughout the night about magic, Twilights friends, the adventures she had with them. They talked into the early morning about Aphirion’s journey from Stiar to Equestria, his life as a soldier, but Twilight made sure to not ask about his family. Birds chirped beautifully, their voices creating a serenade as the sun rose over the tree tops. Muffled voices from outside showed signs that other ponies were starting to get out. Twilight, with slight bags under her eyes, finally took notice to the light pouring through the windows. She looked back at Aphirion who sat wide awake, something he attributed to his years in the Lord’s service, she stood up and made her way towards the stairs that lead to her bed.
“Well I’m going to bed Aphirion, I’m so glad that it’s Saturday, I don’t have to open the library today or tomorrow.” Twilight yawned, “I’m glad we got the chance to talk, I don’t have another bed but make yourself comfortable anywhere you want until we get you a place set up here. Good night, well actually good morning.” She giggled before going up the stairs.
Aphirion shook himself awake. Standing up, he could feel the tiredness pulling his eyes closed. He walked over, threw his bags over his back and started looking for a place to sleep. Spying the stairs that led into the basement, he swayed over to it and down went down. Opening the door, Aphirion again shook himself awake again. Looking over the lit room, he found the perfect spot. Flopping down on the pile of clothes, he kicked and rolled around until his makeshift bed conformed around his body.
Thinking about last night, the conversation he had with Twilight, his new ward, and how his mind kept returning back to her. The stories she told him, the friends she had, and the way she just seemed so easy to get along with. He could feel the sweet calls of sleep getting stronger, he thought of Twilight once more and that giggle she did right before going upstairs. His eyes drooping with each passing second, Aphirion could fight the coming rest no more and finally succumbed to sleep.
Twilight took shaking steps as she reached the top of the stairs, her eyes also having difficulty saying open. Stumbling over to the soft plush bed that sat near the window, she mustered her strength and dove onto the mattress. Shuffling under the blankets, feeling the cool sheets beneath, her thoughts drifted from the fact that Spike was still over Pinkie’s house to the mysterious Stallion that she had gotten to know over the course of the night. Twilight’s mind raced around him, trying to figure out why she felt this way about a pony that she had just met. Stretching her limbs, she felt the tugs of sleep finally win and she fell fast asleep.
The sun continued its accent into the sky, Celestia never failed to perform her duty. Birds, large and small, flew high in the sky, casting small shadows across those below. Ponies made their way to and from their homes. Hoof steps where muffled by the amount of voices that echoed in the market place, most being about the damage to the area.
Spike hobbled down the road from Pinkies house, his head still swirling around from the cider last night. Small purple legs swaying over the cobblestone road, making the small dragon walk in an irate path. Bumping into stalls and passing ponies Spike hastily apologized, focusing hard on getting into his warm bed. Seeing bricks and stones lying all around the tree he called home, Spike pushed all thoughts besides sleep out of his head.
Ponies gathered around the site, all of them chattering back and forth about what could have caused such damage over night. Stalls laid in ruin, shattered into splintered wood chips. Many buildings showed signs of damage, their shingles ripped off the siding. Several roofs had collapsed; fortunately no lives had been lost that night. The well was devoid of water but that was the least of their worries at the moment. There was no sign of the creature that had caused all of the damage, not even the stains where its blood had been spilt on the road. But Spike paid no attention to them.
Pushing the wooden door open, he continued his stumbling walk inside the tree before slamming the door closed rather rudely. A fury of rustling from the bedroom upstairs barely caught his attention, Spikes head throbbing horribly from the noise of the door closing. Groaning from his hangover, he made his way over to the closest thing that he could make out as a bed. Collapsing onto the soft red chair that Twilight had insisted on buying, he curled up into a tight ball and fell asleep.
Spike’s snores echoed softly through the tree, Twilight’s breathes could be heard from upstairs, but Aphirion could be heard quite clearly from the basement. The dragon’s eyes flickered open from the sound from the basement, not from annoyance but from fear. He bolted out of his temporary bed and sprinted as fast as his short legs would let him. Throwing open the doors to his hidden closet, he franticly searched for his bat. Spying it under a pile of his prized possessions, a secret he kept well from Twilight, Spike yanked on the handle with sharp jerking pulls. Being thrown back from the sudden and unexpected release of the bat from the pile, he jumped to his feet and began taking cautious steps towards the basement door.
Opening the door a crack, he peeped through the opening to see nothing. Pushing the door open all the way, Spike crept along the wall while keeping his eyes on the lower portion of the room. Hearing the snoring coming from between the unicorn’s strange machines, the dragon stepped down the stairs, holding the bat up high as he jumped out in front of what he expected to be a horrible, vile and evil monster. But only found a slightly larger than normal stallion lying quite ungracefully across a pile of old clothes and other fabrics. Sound asleep and snoring loudly, the pony laid oblivious to the small dragon standing in front of him with a wooden baseball bat. Rearing back, Spike brought the bat down with all his strength.
CRRRAAACCK
“OWWW, WHAT THE BUCK!!!!”
Twilight fell out of her bed from the shout, crashing onto the wooden floor.
“WHO ARE YOU!!!?”
“NEVER MIND WHO I AM, IM ABOUT TO KNOCK THE FOOL OUT OF YOU”
Twilight tumbled down the stairs, catching herself with magic before slamming into the bottom. Teleporting over to the basement door, she threw it open.
“GET OVER HERE YOU PUNY WYRM!”
“IM A DRAGON YOU IMBECILE!”
Rushing down the stairs, she saw Spike with a wooden bat running around her delicate instruments and Aphirion chasing after her number one assistant. Seeing Spike take a wild swing at the stallion, she made her move, but Aphirion leapt back before charging right at the dragon. Spike also spun around and started running straight at the charging stallion with his bat raised above his head. Twilight quickly forced a rush of power propel herself between the two combaters and willed her magic to condense the air around her into a shield. Her eyes closed but she heard the sound of heavy impacts against her protection spell. Within seconds she forced the air molecules within her shield to expand wildly, causing her shield to shatter and throwing the two fighters away.
Aphirion hit the ground rolling regaining his footing, faster than the dragon, but stopped when he saw Twilight standing between him and his target, glaring at him. Bowing, he stopped his attack in full and didn’t move. Spike, however, leapt back up and dove at the stallion, bat swinging madly. The soldier sidestepped the attacker with ease, a bored expression on his face as he leaned away from each attack.
POOF
Spike appeared on the other side of the room but continued his attack on the stallion.
POOF
Spike appeared again on the other side of the room but yet again jumped at Aphirion, who stepped out of the bats way.
POOF
“Darn it Spike, Stop attacking my friend!” Twilight snapped
The young dragon, again appearing on the other side of the room, stopped mid sprint, his mouth gasping for breath, and his eyes staring suspiciously at Aphirion. Dropping the bat down, he folded his arms across his chest.
“Who is this Twilight?” Spike asked, “And what is he doing in the basement?”
“He’s my friend Spike and that’s all you need to know for now.” Twilight said more harshly then she meant. Spike winced slightly from her tone but bounced back to his former self.
“Fine, but I’m keeping my eyes on him.” He stated before storming up the stairs and slamming the door shut. Watching Spike go through the door, Twilight sighed before turning on Aphirion. Glaring at him again, she did what she did best.
The basement door swung open slowly with Aphirion crawling along the floor. For what seemed like hours, Twilight had scolded him about responsibility and discipline. His head ached from the amount of large words she had used.
“I’m a simple soldier not a scholar. I haven’t got a clue about half of the words she just forced into my head. Ugh, I could use a hard cider right now.”
He stretched his back and legs with a small groan. Shaking the stiffness out of his limbs, he walked into the kitchen. Small but cozy and quite functional, he opened several of the cabinets and noticed that Twilight was running dangerously low on food. Closing all of the cabinet doors, Aphirion strolled over to the refrigerator. Swinging it open revealed that Twilight was in serious need to go grocery shopping.
Being his ward, it was partially his duty to make sure that she was taken care of in all aspects of life. Catching a glimpse of her tail and the sound of her hooves ascending the stairs to her bedroom loft, he turned towards his saddle bags, kicking the door closed gently and searched for his bit purse. Feeling the small bag, he scooped it up and dumped the small golden coins out on the floor. A small pile of money formed and he began counting.
“I could have sworn I had more than this,” he said puzzled, “then again I’ve never been good at keeping track of my money. Looks like I have eighty three bits. That should be more than enough to resupply her shelves and maybe keep me from getting another lecture” Aphirion shuddered from the thought of being berated like he had been earlier that morning again. He peeked up the stairs but only heard the soft, rhythmic breathing coming from the sleeping mare.
Gathering the small coins back into the bag, he tied it around his waist and proceeded towards the door. Suddenly he remembered a crucial detail about him being there, Twilight. He wasn’t suppose to leave her alone. Sighing, Aphirion leaned towards the doors frame and dug his horn into the wood. He dragged it across the wood, leaving a shallow ring scratched into it. Taking a deep breath, he released the power in his heart and felt the warmth travel through his body as it always did. Congregating beneath his horn Aphirion released the power down his horn and into the wood, carving a deeper set of shapes and symbols.
Finished with his work, he took a few steps back to analyze his work. Noticing that one of the shapes wasnt perfectly squared, he placed his horn into the groove and dragged it straight down. Looking upon his work, he felt satisfied and left the tree.Closing the door softly, so he would awaken Twilight or her aggravating dragon, Aphirion jogged down the road towards the market.
The town was alive with noise. Ponies talking, laughing, arguing and crying. Fillies and colts played in the streets, laughing and cheering as they raced around the adults. Stallions and mares huddled around the market stalls, formed long and short lines from various stores, or sat in the outdoor restaurants. Everywhere was filled with noise and Aphirion felt electrified. Traveling for weeks by himself through barren lands and lush forests had left him with a longing for companionship.
Moving from pony to pony he greeted them all with gusto, being thrilled to just be able to talk to new ponies. Most responded back to him with kind words while others were a bit blunter with telling him off. None the less, Aphirion continued his self proclaimed task to gather his ward food. And then it dawned on him. He had no idea what Twilight liked to eat besides raisin oatmeal cookies. His head throbbed painfully from the hit he took early.
“I swear I’ll get that dragon back somehow, but until then I have to find some food for Twilight before she wakes up and sees I’m gone.” Spying a bakery not too far down the road, he shook his head free from the pain and started his way to the building.
“OH NO! LOOK OUT BELOW, IM COMING THROUGH!”
Looking up in slight confusion, Aphirion only got a glimpse of a grey pegasus with a yellow mane come crashing down hard into him. The wind knocked out of his lungs, he gasped for breath as the pegasus tried their best to roll off of him. Flailing legs and shifting bodies made the simple task more arduous then need. With a sudden knee striking between his hind legs, Aphirion cried in pain and pushed the pegasus off of him with a forceful blast of magic. Tears formed in his eyes as he felt the painful sensation twist around in his gut, his legs quivering from the blow, Aphirion managed to take several deep breathes before gaining control of himself and saw the pony that he had hurled into the sky twist around several times before recovering and gliding back down to the ground, landing inches from him.
“I’m so sorry I’m so sorry I’m so sorry I’m so sorry,” the pegasus, mare from the voice, said over and over, “where did I hit you, was it here” she said while pointing towards his groin, “ Here let me rub it better” she said while moving her hoof towards the spot
“NOOOOOO,” Aphirion said while rolling away from her approaching hoof, “ no no no no no no no, I’ll, it’ll be just fine.” He finished and managing to stand up, “Just be a lot more careful when you’re flying, you could have hit a youngling.”
The pegasus bowed her head in shame and began to cry. Sobbing, she fell to her knees and pounded the ground with her front hooves.
“Why can’t I do anything right?” She cried, “I’m always messing things up and hurting others.”
Aphirion breathed out deeply and nudged her head with his until she was looking into his face. Seeing her golden eyes looking in different direction, he immediately recognized the pegasus that crashed into him.
“Ditzy, come on, let’s get you out of here and find somewhere nicer.” He said as kindly as he could, “The street isn’t the place you want to be at right now.” Moving next to her he placed his neck under hers, tears falling onto him and helped lift her onto her hooves. Trembling, Ditzy managed to walk to the park which was empty besides a few fillies playing across the field. Sitting on a picnic table Ditzy turned her face away from Aphirion, crying like before. Aphirion sat next to the pegasus and brushed his hoof across her soft cheek. She looked up to him, her eyes turning red and puffy from the tears, and managed a flat smile. Flailing her arms out, Ditzy threw her arms around him and hugged the unicorn tightly, but not as tightly as the first time they met.
“I’m sorry I crashed into you Mister” she whimpered, “I swear I didn’t mean to do it, it was an accident”
“It’s okay Ditzy, It’s not the first time I’ve been crashed into and if you keep doing it, I hope it’s not the last time either.”
The grey pegasus giggled but fell back into her sadness.
“I can’t keep messing up like this; I’m going to lose my job, my house, and worse of all I’ll lose my Little Muffin.” She cried into his shoulder.
“Why would you lose her? You seem like a great mother?” Aphirion asked
“Some ponies think I’m not fit to take care of a filly, they say that I’m stupid, clumsy, retarded. But I’m not, I swear. It’s just my eyes. They make it hard to see some times but it doesn’t matter to them. A couple years ago I had a cold and accidentally wrecked the Town Hall. The medicine they gave me made me...well... kinda derpy and that name just stuck with me. The mayor had me investigated and they threatened to take Dinky away from me. I can’t rely on the Doctor because he comes and goes so I got the only job that’d hire me and now I’m about to lose that one too.” She cried even harder in Aphirion’s shoulder.
Stroking her mane slowly, Aphirion reached into his coin purse with his free hoof.
“Ditzy, you’re a great mother. I don’t even have to see that to know it’s true,” grabbing a hoof full of bits from the bag, “and you’re not going to lose your job. No one will ever take Dinky from you and all three of you are going to live a wonderful life.” He pressed the bits into her hoof “Now chin up, smile and let the tears stop flowing because there is nothing to cry about now.”
Ditzy ran her hoof through her mane before looking into his eyes. She could feel the bits in her other hoof but was too enthralled by the unicorn to stare at them. A smile spread across her face and she hugged him again.
“Oh mister,” she said while getting off the seat, “thank you so much for making me feel better.” She gave him a small kiss on the cheek, “I better get back to my mail route. I don’t want to lose my job after all.”
Crouching on her hind legs, Ditzy leapt high into the air with her wings flapping. Circling around the area, she glided over him.
“By the way, what.....”
“DITZY LOOK OUT!!!”
CRASH, CRACK, CRACK, POMF.
“Oops, my bad.” Ditzy groaned while hanging from a lower branch.
“You okay?” Aphirion asked.
“Yeah I’m fine,” she replied as she pulled herself onto the branch, “Let’s give that another try.”
Jumping off the branch, she spread her wings and flapped, gaining height with every thrust of her feathery wings. Flying higher, Ditzy suddenly tucked her wings into her side and dived towards the ground. Opening them up a dozen or so hooves above the ground, she reached out and grabbed a pair of sacks from the ground as she rose through the air. Throwing them onto her back, she vanished into a cloud. Aphirion shook his head as he left the park. Finding the bakery once again, he pushed open the door and almost immediately regretted it.
“I take it you’re the baker?” Aphirion responded in a monotone voice.
“Why oh why did the baker have to be this sugar induced pink pony with confetti cannons going off in my face. What happen to the old fashion bakers who just made bread?” He thought.
“YES SIRIE I AM A BAKER OF DELICIOUS CAKE, CUPCAKES AND ANYTHING ELSE THAT IS PARTY RELATED,” the sugar fueled pony cried out in glee, “SAY, when am I going to throw you a party? How bout right now!”
Pulling several ropes at once, hundreds of balloons fell from nowhere and hidden banners rolled down from between the rafters. Confetti filled the room thicker than there was air; Party hats seemed to appear out of thin air as well. Multicolor cupcakes and large triple layered cakes littered the tables and shelves of the bakery. But what really set off the environment was the large, blue tinted, cannon that was being wielded by a pink, smiling ear to ear, laughing pony. Slamming her hoof down on the wick, the cannon exploded with dozens of globs of cake mixture.
“OOPS I DID IT AGAIN, I put the confetti in the oven and the mixture in my PARTY CANNON. Vinyl’s cannon got nothing on mine. Like there was this one time were she like totally said hers was better but seriously how can wubs beat confetti? I mean is she loco?”
“Oh, my gosh. When will she ever stop?”
“And then Octavia just had to get involved and then out of nowhere, Vinyl blasted her with her bass cannon. I don’t think she was able to hear for over a full month. But Twilight always says to use hearing protection whenever I go to her concerts but I usually just stuff cupcakes in my ears, I mean who doesn’t love the sound of cupcakes. HUUUUUUUUUH WE SHOULD TOTALLY MAKE CUPCAKES. THAT SOUNDS LIKE SO MUCH FUN!!”
“If there is a divine being, please make me go deaf or smash my head in so I can escape this thing”
“Do you like to do fun things? I can think of a load of fun things we can do, we can go swimming, running, hiking, mountain climbing, sword fighting, flying, zip lining, canoeing, baking, cooking, drawing, writing, painting, sculpting, building, destroying, jumping, falling, skydiving, parachuting,.......”
“MAKE IT STOP, OH MAKE IT STOP!!!”
“Hey, you’re being really quiet and why are you covered in cake batter. Oh yeah that rights. My bad.... so um I’m guessing that you want me to bake you something” she finally asked.
Silence filled the room, sweet lustful silence. Aphirion wiped the mixture from his ears and eyes before talking. A lot of self restraint was being exerted from him at the moment and he really didn’t want to snap on such a cheerful pony.
“Yes I would like four loaves of bread, two of them sweet bread, one white, and the other one wheat.” He said through grinding teeth, “how long do you think that will take to bake.”
“Oh silly, they’re already baked. Right here in this oven. I just had a feeling that this might happen today so I’ve been baking lots and lots of bread and guess what. You show up and you want fresh bread, well mister you’re about to get the most freshest bread in all of Equestria. TAAAADAAAA BEHOLD PINKIE PIE’S MASTER- BREAD-PIECE!!!!!!”
Pulling the oven door down, she swiped four loaves of bread out of the oven and placed them on the table. Aphirion stared at the bread, seeing that they had just been baked but were already sliced. He figured it was better not to ask. The crust did look delicious. A light golden brown with a glaze spread evenly across the top. He was about to ask how much the food cost but he realized that this crazy, sugar fuel, beyond hyper pony knew Twilight.
“Excuse me, you mentioned Twilight, Twilight Sparkle yes? Do you know her?” He asked.
“Well duh. She like my bestest friend in the whole world. Why do you ask?”
“This may sound crazy but I was wondering what she liked to eat...”
“OOOOOHHHHHHH you thinking of asking her out on a date are you, well Pinkie Pie here can help you two love birds.”
“Did she just say date? No I’m not asking her out on a date. What madness is this?”
“...Daisy sandwiches, dandelion subs, white and red rose pasta. Apple pie, apple fritter, Carmel apple, raisin oatmeal cookies, No-Bake-Cookies, vanilla cake but chocolate cupcakes. I will never understand that girl. Oh and if you really want to get to her heart, she loves Picotee Begonia’s.” Pinkie said with an obvious and slow wink.
“Thanks, Pinkie was it?” Aphirion said, “How much for the bread?”
“Two bits for the future happy couple.”
Reaching into his coin purse, Aphirion pulled out the two bits. Placing them on the counter, Pinkie tossed the bread loaves into a bag and threw it onto the unicorn. Giving her a thankful nod, Aphirion exited the building before she could throw more confetti on him.
Marching down the street, covered in cake batter, he continued his search for food. He found bustles of flowers at several of the stalls, grabbed multiple boxes of pasta noodles with dandelion butter sauce, a bag of apples from a sweet orange mare with a strange accent from what he was use to, and finally he bought various vegetables and fruits from the last market stall.
His back slouching from the weight of all the food, he started heading back towards the library. The sun was barely past its pinnacle so he knew that twilight might still be asleep. Picking up his pace to a quick jog, Aphirion saw a flower stand in front of an old greenhouse. His mind thinking of Twilight, he turned around and went over to the stand. A beautiful mare with a violet mane, peach fur and emerald eyes was tending to the vast garden behind the stall. Humming blissfully to herself, she picked small weeds around the flowers stems and threw them into a pail bucket.
“Oh my, I apologize. I didn’t see you there.” She said in a sweet airy voice, “is there anything you were looking for in particular?”
“Yes, I was hoping you had Picotee Begonia’s or a flower similar?”
The mare blushed and turned away from him.
“That’s a very beautiful flower; stallions usually only look for those when they are ready to settle down. So may I ask who the lucky mare is?”
“I’m not settling down yet Miss, I just want to do something special for a friend of mine.”
“Oh well isn’t that sweet of you. I just happen to have a few in the back. One moment and I’ll bring it out to you.”
Aphirion flexed his shoulders, trying to shift some of the weight higher up his back. The mare had disappeared for a few minutes and he was left there blushing deeply, not knowing why. He was just buying flowers for a mare he was charged to protect, nothing wrong with that. It wasn’t like he had feelings for her, but in the back of his mind he knew that that was wrong. There was something there that he couldn’t place or figure out. Why, after all of the females that he had met in his life, why did she affect his heart so much? Besides last night’s talk, he really didn’t know anything about the violet unicorn except that she had exceptional power, was the star student of the Sun Princess, and incredibly beautiful.
“No, No, I can’t fall for her. It’s unprofessional of me. Then why do I want to be next to her so much? I don’t even want to do anything. I just want to be near her.”
“Excuse me, Sir?”
Aphirion snapped back into reality and saw that the gardener was waving her hoof in front of his face.
“I’m here Ma’am; I hope that you were able to find the flower alright.” He responded to her waves.
“Yes I was and while I’m saddened to part with a flower like this, I know that it will bring happiness to another.” She stifled a tear.
“Don’t worry, you’ll find your special pony someday. We all do.” He said while putting a sympathetic hoof on her shoulder.
Twilight stretched as she woke up. Not even mid day meant that there was plenty of time to continue that amazing book that she had started reading about “Ancient Lines, Focus Points, and the Sub-Neither Tuning Crystals.” Clapping her hooves together gleefully, she rolled over and lifted the leather bound book into her lap. Flicking through the pages until she came upon her bookmark, she shuffled under her blanket until she was comfortable.
“Great lines of power or energy, known now as Major Ley lines or Mana lines and Lesser Lines of power, known as Minor ley lines or Mana Lines lay across the land of Equestria in an intricate web pattern. These lines of magic are often summoned for mighty purposes, from the creation of the Elements of Harmony; really I never knew that,” Twilight said aloud, “I thought the princesses created the Elements, huh oh well, to the creation of the Crystal Empire. Ley or Mana lines exist all over Equestria and are known to come to a single point in three separate locations. Under the Grand City of Canterlot, under the Palace of the Crystal Empire, and under the Castle of the Elder Lords, huh never heard of that place in any of my books. Aphirion mentioned that he’s ruled by somepony called a Lord. Maybe I can ask him more about it later. That’s all that here for this chapter, not very long but definitely educational. On to the next chapter, Focus points are the single point where multiple Ley lines converge, then are concentrated into a single highly charged Tuning Crystal (see chapter 3-9) Currently, there are three focus points found in Equestria, under the City of Canterlot, under the Palace of the Crystal Empire, and under the Castle of the Elder Lords. The Focus Point under the Crystal Empire is recorded to have upwards of seventy-four major Ley lines and two hundred forty three minor Ley lines. The City of Canterlot has been recorded as having no less than one hundred and thirty six major ley lines and over four hundred and fifty two minor lines. The Castle of the Elder Lords is recorded to have no less than eighteen hundred major Ley lines and at least three thousand Minor Ley lines, however, the amount of Major and Minor Lines have never been full recorded due to the static discharges from the Focus Point.”
“TWILGHT!” a voice yelled from the front door, “Are you home?” several pounds on the door came shortly after.
Groaning with annoyance Twilight shoved her marker into the book, slammed the cover closed and threw off her soft blanket. Trampling over her bedding she made her way down the stairs, the pounding on the door continuing its constant banging against the wood. Grumbling under her breath, Twilight took a moment to gather herself and opened the door with a wide smile upon her face.
“Hi girls, how nice of you for coming to visit me.” She said sweetly, “especially on my day off”
“Oh it wasn’t a problem at all darling, we just knew how bored you would be on a weekend and we just simply couldn’t allow that.” Rarity said, throwing her mane so that it flourished, “So we decided to come spend some quality time with you today.”
“Yes ma’am, you spend so much time with these here dusty books. It’s about time you got outside for once.” Applejack added.
“That’s very thoughtful of you of you both but honestly I enjoy being inside as much as spending time outdoors. Unfortunately I am very very busy right now, you know, reorganizing the books again.”
“But you just did that the other day?”
“Well yes, but a lot of people don’t put books back in their proper place. So it comes down to me.” Twilight laughed nervously, “and as you see, “a sudden flash of light “ive already taken all the books off the shelves.”
Applejack and Rarity gave each other confused stares before nodding in sync. Without warning, both ponies pounced onto Twilight, pinning her to the ground. Applejack, without fail, whipped her rope out. Years of experience guiding her hooves, she tied the violet unicorn into a tight ball in a matter of a few seconds. Rarity on the other hoof, had used her magic to temporary subdue the struggling pony until the final knot was tied.
“Wait, what are you doing!” Twilight yelled, “STOP IT!”
“It’s for your own good sugar cube; those books aren’t going anywhere no time soon.” Applejack joked, “Now you’re coming with us and enjoying the nice weather.” Lifting Twilight up onto her back, she centered her squarely between her shoulders and headed for the door.
“NOOOOOOOOOO” Twilight screamed.
Across the town, Aphirion made his way back from the market. Passing beneath the wide canopy of the oaks that lined several of the roads, he started to hum a cadence he had learned a long time ago. Birds chirped here and there, sitting on the branches above the streets. With the library in view he slowed his pace, feeling slightly fatigued from carrying the groceries all the way from the market to her house. Pushing the door open with his head, he entered the library and was relieved to see that his mark hadn’t been set off.
“Well she’s safe for another day at least.” He said to himself. Setting the half dozen bags down on the kitchen floor, Aphirion started the tedious chore of putting the food away.
“Hey Spike, is Twilight home or did she leave?” he called throughout the house.
“If you count being tied up and carried out by her friends, after leaving me the chore of picking up all the books off the floor, leaving then yeah, she’s not here.” Spike called from somewhere, “Why do you want to know.” He added suspiciously.
“Just curious.” He responded, “Tied up and forced out, sounds like a good time.” He whispered.
“Anyways,” Spike said as he walked into the kitchen, “I’m heading out myself. Some of the guys are having a weight lifting contest and I wana try my claw at it.” He said confidently, kissing his small biceps.
Aphirion stifled a laugh, but managed to say, “Best of luck”, Snickering as the small purple dragon left the house, and he went back to putting the food away. Sliding the last bushel of broccoli into the pantry, he wiped away a bead of sweat from his brow.
“Man, when was the last time I took a shower. I can’t even remember. Well, Twilight isnt home so this is probably the best time to take one.”
Deciding now would be the best time, he hurried into the bathroom. Grabbing a towel from the closet and quickly browsing through her selection a soaps, grabbing the least girly looking jar he leapt into the shower. Jiggling with the small levers, he felt the water switch from cold to hot over and over until he found the right spot, a perfect balance of heat and chill. Feeling the warmth run across his body, his thoughts returned to Twilight.
“Why, why do I constantly have this urge to be near her? Why am I also catching myself drifting towards her in my mind? It’s not even the right time of the year and yet all I want to do is just be around her.”
Opening the jar, he poured some of the thick gel into his hoof. Lathering it around in his mane, he continued to think of Twilight more and more. His mind slipping into a sensual area, Aphirion didn’t take notice to a certain part of his body. His mind blocking out all other senses to the point where he didn’t even hear the door open.
Twilight struggled against the tight rope the entire time Applejack carried her from her beloved books to the park. Rarity and Applejack chatted the entire walk, talking about various topics and usually ending up in small arguments but worked themselves out with the two ponies laughing. Twilight, in the mean time, seriously debated about just teleporting back to her house. But even while she was deeply annoyed with her friends, she didn’t want to be rude. Sighing in defeat, she just laid on Applejacks back waiting for them to get to their destination, listening to them talk.
“So as I was discussing with Sweetie belle and her friends the other day, the best way to style your mane is with long, lush strokes of the brush. At minimum of one hundred strokes in the morning and once again right before you apply your mask for the night. You know dear, I would enjoy the challenge of untangling your mane.”
“Um no thanks Rarity ah like it the way it is, but that would explain Apple Blooms obsession with the number one hundred. Why just earlier today she said she would buck one hundred apple trees. Ah swear that filly is taking after the family business just like ah did growing up.”
“Oh that’s just wonderful dearie. I’m glad that at least one of them is making progress. I worry about Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo. Sweetie tries her best but in all the wrong areas. I saw her trying to climb a very tall tree, yelling something along the line of crusader pet rescuers, shortly before the animal made her fall. Luckily I was there to catch her or she may have been serious hurt.
“Ah agree with you there Rarity. Apple Bloom fixed up that club house that used to be mine in almost no time, yet she’s so stubborn and won’t listen to us when we tell her.”
“And poor Scootaloo, I’m not sure if she has an unhealthy idolization with Rainbow Dash or if she’s actually in love with the mare, but it’s just not right for her to always be talking about her like that. I’m worried she may do something extremely dangerous to get Rainbow’s attention.”
“Ah shucks, Ah don’t think it’ll come to that. She just wants an older sibling, seeing as how her Papa's in the Guard. She doesn’t get to see him that often. Ah wouldn’t worry about her too much.”
“Well enough about them, how are you doing. I noticed that you’ve been socializing quite a bit with a particular mustang in the market for the past few days.” Rarity eyes piercing into Applejack.
“What, um no ah wasn’t, um that wasn’t me, um most of been some other pony you saw.” Her face scrunching as she spoke.
“Oh you have been,” Rarity’s eyes beaming, “you simply must tell me everything about him”
“Oh for Celestia’s sake,” both ponies looked back at the unicorn, “are we there yet?” Twilight asked.
“Actually, funny you should ask. We’ve been here for awhile now. But we just decided to keep walking while you rode on my back.” Applejack replied.
That was the last straw. Twilight drew the power out from her heart and felt it instantly rush up her horn. Feeling her very essence dissolve into the air around her, she willed her magic to assemble herself just hooves away from them. The rope grew slack as Twilight vanished body reappeared on the other side of Applejack. Her horn still glowing brightly, Twilight stared hard at her friends.
“Listen, I enjoy spending time with you two just as much as anypony does, but my entire evening as been spent laying on your back while you walked around the park. I’m sorry girls, but I’m going home.
With that, the unicorn stormed off back towards her home leaving the two ponies standing there looking shocked. Marching past the shops and stalls, Twilight didn’t even bother to look through the windows. Her mind still deeply annoyed with her friends.
“I told them i didnt want to leave my house, why cant any pony seem to respect my wishes around here” She thought to herself, “I love spending time with the girls but i really really want to read my books right now and a drink” She thought smugly.
Looking around at the shops, she spied a place she knew had the brew she thoroughly enjoyed. Pushing open the brown door, she was enveloped in the glorious smell of cider. The room was dimly light but she felt no fear. The owner had been nothing but kind to her in the past and had insisted that the low lighting made his drinks better. Twilight never bothered to study on this particular fashion of brewing so she just took his word.
“Hello Mr. Applecrate, I’d like to order my regular, extra hard this time.” Twilight said as she climbed up onto the barstool
“Ah Miss Sparkle, hows ya been, I’s not seen you in several days.” A dark green stallion beamed as he came out from the back, juggling a cloth in one hoof and a dirty mug in the other.
I’ve been fine sir, just having one of those days. Again.” She said with a playful frown.
“Wells you’re in luck you are, I’s happen to have one mug left. Let me’s get it for you and then you can tell me all about what’s botherin” BOOM BOOM BOOM “ARRGH CURSE THAT PINK NUICANCE. EVEY TIME A NEW PONY SHOWS UP SHE GOES AROUND BLASTING THAT CONFOUNDED CANNON OF HERS!” He roared in fury, “Breaking all my windows and mugs, how’s a bar-pony to make a livin if all my’s stuff keeps getting bombarded with cake mush?”
“Oh I’m so sorry Mr. Applecrate, Pinkies a friend of mine. Maybe I can convince her to put a silencer on her cannon.” She finished with a grin.
“HA HA HA, Oh Miss Sparkle. You can always put a grin on this face of mine’s. Bless you. Now where’s that good mug ats. Is knew Is left its ‘round here someplace.” Applecrate said while leaning under the bar, “Ahs there it is lass. Here, tis on the house.”
“You’re too kind.”
“Oh I’s know it Miss Sparkle. I know its. Now what seems to be troubling you, come on now open up, I’m all ears.” He said as he grabbed a dirty mug and started wiping it clean.
“Oh where do I start? Do I start with the new assignment the Princess has given me? The fact that I never get to see my friends because we’re all working? And what about my guardian and the fact that every time I see him I get this weird feeling all over me. Nothing in my books has described the feelings that I’m experiencing.”
The older stallion just chuckled. “Miss Sparkle, I's think somepony be in love.”
“WHAT I CANT BE IN LOVE!” She yelled, “I’m not old enough yet.”
“And how old ares you Miss Sparkle?”
“I’m, I’m twenty-two.”
“Seems plenty old to be falling in love to me lass. You shouldn’t fight these feelings. If he’s even half as good a pony that I's am, wells I's says got yourself a keeper there.”
Twilight just smiled, sipping tenderly on her drink. “You really think so?”
“I's knows so lass. Go, finish up yours cider and give the young stallion a good’ol hug.” He said with a tender touch on her shoulder, “I’m not quite sure about your friends, but that sort of thing tends to happen. But I's know you’ll figure it out. You always do lass.”
Twilight downed the rest of her drink, a graceful burp escaping her lips in the process. Grinning, she leaned over the bar and gave the stallion a hug before hopping off her stool and leaving the bar. Her head spinning slightly she managed to find her way home, stumbling only slightly along the way. Pushing open the oak door, Twilight heard the shower running and splashes of water slapping the porcelain tub.
“Oh Spike, taking another one of your seven hour bubble baths again. Well I better make sure you didn’t pass out while bathing.”
Walking over to the bathroom door, she pushed it wide open.
“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH OH MY GOSH OH MY GOSH OH MY GOSH OH MY GOSH IM SO SORRY” Twilight screamed.
Aphirion slipped on the ceramic tub, crashing his head hard on the faucet. Groaning from the pain, he managed to stand up. His eyes blurred from the pain and he couldn’t find where Twilight was but he knew she had just walked in. Looking down while wiping the tears away, he saw that he was hanging out. Scrambling in embarrassment, he ripped the curtain off the rod and quickly wrapped it around his waist.
“TWILIGHT! I didn’t hear you come in. I’m sorry. I hope you didn’t see anything,” He gasped.
“Of course she saw everything, for Celestia’s sake i was fully out there. Jeez I need to keep my head in control. I can’t lose control like that again; I’m a professional, a soldier.” He shouted silently in his head.
“No, it’s alright. I should have knocked before coming in,” She replied, blushing furiously, “Besides, I’ve studied stallion anatomy before, it’s not like I haven’t seen one before.
“Heh, sorry about the curtain, I’ll fix it as soon as I can.” Aphirion said meekly.
“Please don’t worry about it. Just, um, worry about your problem you got going on. I’m, um going to leave. I have a lot of books to read” She said, blushing a deeper red before hurrying out of the bathroom, the door slamming shut behind her.
Aphirion quickly finished rinsing out his mane, blushing furiously. His mind replaying the event that had just taken place over and over, causing him to feel more embarrassed then he had moments ago. Twisting the handle shut, the water receded in its downpour, allowing him to run the green towel over his fur, drying him enough to not leave a puddle on the polished wood. Checking to make sure he wasn’t hanging out, he opened the door.
“Twilight, you there?” he called nervously while looking around the room. Taking a step through the door, he looked back towards the tub and quickly fixed the curtain. Satisfied with the quick job, he trotted around the room looking for her.
“Twilight?” he called again.
“I’m up in my room, you’re more than welcome to come up as long” she called from above, “just make sure your problem is taken care off please.”
“I’ll be right up,” Aphirion responded. Peeking up the stairs to make sure she wasn’t coming down, he walked into the kitchen and lifted the flowers he bought for her. Hiding the bouquet behind him, he made his way up the stairs.
Twilight was lying on her bed, her head resting on her hooves as her eyes swept back and forth through the book that was in front of her, her tail moving slightly behind her as she turned the page. Seeing her like that brought a smile to Aphirion’s lips.
“So, what are you reading there?” he asked
“It’s a very interesting book the princess sent me the other day. She said that it would be a boon to me if I read it and well I can’t say no to read a book like this.” She said without looking away from the leather bound book. “Its about Ley lines.”
“Ley lines, you mean those things that congregate under the castle?”
“You know about ley lines.” She asked before the realization dawned on her, “YOU KNOW ABOUT THE CASTLE OF THE ELDER LORDS!” she shouted, causing Aphirion to rear back in shock.
“Yes i know about it. My father use to tell me about it and the history that took place. I personally have never been there before but it doesnt matter because no one knows where it is suppose to be located at. The castle might be on top of a mountain or at the bottom of a lake. From what my dad use to say was that the Ley lines the converged on that spot made it very difficult to find and that all of the magical energy that escaped from there did something to those that lived in the castle. He never really told me everything but from doing my own research i found that they become extremely powerful, some even becoming immortal.”
“Immortal? You mean like the princess’”? She asked
“Some were yes, but others had a different means of coming back. The book was very vague about it so I can’t really tell you more.” Aphirion stated, “Oh, I huh got you something.” He finished while bringing the flowers from behind his back. The white flowers with petals with magenta tips fell into the suns light from the window, causing them to illuminate.
Twilight’s eyes grew wide as she saw the bouquet. Her lips parted open which brought her hooves up, covering her mouth.
“Do you know how much this means to me?” she said from behind her hooves.
“I know they are your favorite flower.” Aphirion said.
“I cant believe this, its like he’s proposing to me. Its only been a few days and yet he’s already proposing to me.” Twilight thought, “I cant wait to tell the girls!”
Chapter 13: An Unexpected and Terrifying Realization.
“Wow, Twilight really liked those flowers,” Aphirion said as he came up from the basement and saw how the whole place had changed in the course of a single night. In fact it looked like a completely new place besides the thousands of books that lined the walls. The library was spotless and the smell of something cooking, sweet by the smell of it. He closed the door behind him before making his way to the front door; his mark still scratched into the wood was still there. Smiling that it was holding, he browsed the wall near him, searching for a book to read. Finding one on the aspects of magic, he plopped down onto the sofa. His ears flicked from the snoring dragon upstairs
“At least the wyrm is home and I didn’t get a bat to the head.” He said more to himself than out loud. A pleasant melody from the kitchen caught his attention. Setting the book down, he slid off the sofa and saw twilight dusting the cabinets, humming a song to herself.
“That’s a beautiful song you sing.” Aphirion said.
“Thank you, my mother taught it to me when I was a filly,” she said as she turned towards him. She wore a smile upon her face and her eyes seemed to shine, “I hope to teach it to my daughter someday.”
“You’re going to make a great mother someday Twilight. Is there anything you need help with?”
“No, I’m fine. You should go back to reading your book.” She said, “Oh should I call him something? Sweetie, sweetheart, darling, baby? HANDSOME. I’ll call him handsome” she thought quickly. “Handsome.”
Aphirion tilted his head slightly, “did she really just say that or am I hearing things” he thought “and you’re look beautiful as well” he said to her. She just smiled wider and went back to dusting the kitchen, humming her song as she went from shelf to shelf.
Aphirion turned back towards the sofa where his book laid on the leg rest. As he sat down on the cushion, he heard footsteps coming down the stairs. Looking behind him he saw Spike yawn, forcing him to stifle a yawn himself. Not wishing to be bothered by the pest, he opened his book and began reading.
“Well you’re in an unusually good mood this morning” Spike said.
Deeply annoyed, Aphirion looked up and looked at the baby dragon but was relieved to see he wasn’t speaking to him, but to Twilight.
“What happen, did you receive a new box of books or something” the dragon continued.
“Spike you will never guess what happen yesterday. Aphirion asked me..……”
But he could hear nothing more coming from the kitchen. Aphirion’s eyes opened wide in realization. Sound was getting quieter all around him and not just him but in the entire library. Tossing the book aside, Aphirion leapt over the sofa and barreled his way through the basement door, causing a few looks of confusion from the mare and dragon. The room, which was usually lit brightly and full of noise from her machines during the day, was instead devoid of noise. The lights grew dimmer with each passing second until they were snuffed out.
Aphirion could feel the dread that came with the darkness. As fast as his hooves would take him, he raced down the steps, doing his best to not stumble. Feeling the power flowing from his heart, he urged the remaining particles of light to illuminate brighter. The room lit up briefly, only to succumb to the growing darkness again, but it was enough. Aphirion urged the air behind his bag to solidify and come to him. The bag soared through the air and with a practiced jump, it landed squarely on his back. With his belongings secured, the unicorn blasted a wave of light in front of him, lighting the way out of the basement. The door ajar, he saw the light that peeked around it slowly start to fade.
Focusing hard, he felt his body being pulled by the magic spell he casted. Suddenly he appeared on the other side of the door. Shaking his head to regain his bearings, Aphirion jumped at the door handle and slammed it shut.
“We have to go NOW.” He yelled to his companions, “GET OUT OF THE TREE.”
Fear spread across both of their faces as the dragon and pony ran out of the kitchen, Spike reaching the front door first flung it open and fled out into the street with Twilight close behind him. Aphirion fumbled through his bag, searching for his hilt until the basement door exploded. Shards of wood pelted against his body with enough force to send him tumbling into the street causing several ponies to gasp in shock.
“TWILIGHT, SPIKE RUN. GET AWAY FROM HERE.” He yelled as he rolled onto his hooves, his hilt suspended in the air next to him.
“No I want to help you!” Twilight screamed as she galloped over to him.
“Twilight you don’t know how to fight this thing. It’s not something that is just going to come to their senses and find friendship like the others you have faced. These things only know one thing and that’s killing their targets. Now go.” He demanded.
Twilight glared at him but turned to leave. “Nothing had better happen to you, do you hear me Aphirion. Nothing.”
He nodded before she started running, he saw a tear run down her cheek but she didn’t stop. Aphirion saw dozens of ponies standing there, watching the event take place in their quiet town. Ignoring their stares, he saw the well from the fight before. Summoning the liquid to him, he forged his blade upon the hilt, forcing the ice to harden beyond steels strength. The edges shaved off till they were razor sharp. This time, the tree did not explode, instead the darkness rolled out from every window, door and crevasse that the library possessed like a deadly mist.
The ponies screamed in fright as the dark mist started to erupt from the tree like a raging volcano. They screamed, shouted, and wept as they sprinted away from the great oak tree. The darkness turned towards the defiant light grey unicorn. Splashing down in front of the pony, it laughed a deep, empty laugh. Aphirion felt his fur start to rise as he saw the mist start to take form in front of his eyes. Clawed feet with barbs formed on the stone street. Four legs and two arms condensed over the claws, merging as one part each. The body came next, three parts forming a plated thorax and a tail erupted out from behind, the two pronged tip glistened in the sun. Finally the head took shape. Mandibles, six in total, spread from the spike covered throat, three eyes blinked open and horns rolled from the top of the forehead. With the last bit of mist formed, the horrific creature leaned up and released an ear shattering roar.
Aphirion covered his ears but refused to look away. Running straight towards the creature, he slashed at its legs, spurting brown blood from each wound. Raising the sword high he brought it down, but was interrupted by a clawed fist punching him out from beneath the creature. Rolling across the unforgiving cobblestones, he stopped his momentum by digging the sword into the ground, grabbing the hilt in the process and flipping onto his hooves. The monster roared as it crashed through the street, wrecking the houses on either side, determined to end the pony’s life. Aphirion rolled left and right as the creature slammed its arms onto the ground. Looking up, he saw a raised claw coming his way. Jumping out of the way, the monster roared again as its claw became stuck in the ground. Quickly, the unicorn thrust his sword deep into ensnared limb with his magic. Sprinting, he grasped the hilt in his mouth and flipped over the arm, severing the limb in two.
The monster shrieked in agony as it slammed its remaining arm against the buildings, sending debris across the street. The unicorn renewed his assault against it, slashing and stabbing at every body part he within reach. A claw pounded mere inches away from the pony, causing him to lose his balance for a moment, but it was enough time for the creature to slam his hand against the unicorn, pinning him against the ground and shattering the blade of ice. Clenching the unicorn tightly, it lifted him to its eye level. A hearty laugh escaped from its throat, but what caused Aphirion to truly be afraid was what happened next.