As the group continues their quest, they come to know each other better.
Twilight Sparkle, Fluttershy, Akaitora and Nikolas continue to make their way across Equestria in search of the components that will save Nik's life, and all of Equestria in the process. From an active volcano to the bottom of a lake, they'll have to deal with all the challenges of cutting across the country in a stolen prison transport vehicle while being chased by an army of soldiers that are trying to kill them.
All the while, large chunks of Equestria are disappearing as the world rips itself apart. All hope now rests with a human, a convicted terrorist, the mare he loves, and a scholar.
Nikolas Jameson, an average human male working as a line cook suddenly found himself with a group of assassins after him. Just as he's about to die, he falls into a portal into Equestria. He is captured and held in a cage by a zookeeper, who takes him to Fluttershy to identify him and make sure he's in good health.
Things were going well until the guards showed up to arrest them both, tossing them into a cell in the castle dungeon. However, their stay wasn't long, as they were freed by a band of thieves shortly after arrival. The leader even told them where they could find more information on what was happening. What's more, the unicorn he directs them to is one Fluttershy knows and has been looking for.
With Twilight joining them, they set off for the town of San Palomino, where Kai is supposed to be waiting for them. When they arrive, however, the innkeeper gives them the wrong room and leads them into a trap. It is at this point that they're rescued, not by Kai, but by one of his compatriots. He takes them out of town, and to the place where Kai actually is; a massive library inside of a pocket dimension.
Kai explains what's going on quickly and carries them across the first step. After a magic duel, in which Kai is the victor, he is given a small orb, which he promptly gives to Nik. He tells him that there are ten they need to collect in order to protect Equestria. As he's about to explain the rest, though, they're attacked by the same ponies in cloaks from the inn. Our main party manages to escape, but the library is destroyed in the process. Kai is the only known survivor.
Joining up with the group, Kai takes them to the Grove of Dreams, and Nik is made to relive his greatest nightmare. After coming to grips with why he hates Kai, they agree to remain civil.
Their next stop is an underground arena. Twilight and Fluttershy keep watch at the entrance while Kai and Nik go underground to find the third mark. Kai goes into combat with a giant creature with four arms and is promptly beaten. However, he'd done enough damage to qualify for being impressive, so they give him the prize, anyway.
They return to the surface and the group makes their way to another graveyard. Fluttershy and Twilight decide to let Kai rest, and take his place going after the fourth token. They see many things that may happen, and they are made to see their own deaths. Fluttershy takes a deep breath and steps forward, accepting that she may die, but knowing that she has to keep trying no matter the cost. The whole world is counting on her. Seeing that, death itself gives her his blessing, and she returns to Kai with the fourth orb.
With four tokens down and six remaining, the group continues their trek across Equestria.
"Here's a good spot," said Kai, pulling the cart out of the field and next to a big pile of rocks. After anchoring the wheels to the ground, he rapped on the back door to alert the others. While he waited for them to file out, he prepped the camp. He was really good at doing so by now, and by the time Fluttershy and Twilight came back with their vegetation, he'd already started the fire and set up all the tents. They were just waiting for Nik to come back with his fish when Twilight looked up from her sorting.
"So, there was something I wanted to ask you, Kai."
"Ask away."
Twilight took a deep breath. "Your magic seems to be incredibly robust. At the same time, however, it seems that you're using more energy than is necessary."
Kai looked up from the fire. "Was there a question in there?"
"Why is that?"
Kai turned back to the fire. "My formal education on magic was probably about the same as yours was, at first. We're about the same age, so I can't imagine that it changed that much between the time we went to magic kindergarten. The difference is, that's where my education ended. I learned to read and cast basic spells, then I had to leave. That's just the way it was for me. You probably had a few more lessons in magic than I did, with teachers who actually wanted you to learn the subject. Not so much for me."
Twilight shifted in place. "My parents were really supportive about me learning magic. They helped me gain entry into the best magic school Equestria had to offer. I learned from Celestia herself."
"Was Celestia a good teacher?" asked Nik, sitting down with his fish. "I don't like being on her bad side, but you've seen her good side."
"I liked having her teach me," smiled Twilight. "I was a bit scared when she sent me to Ponyville for independent study, but it worked out in the end. That's actually how I met Fluttershy."
Fluttershy shrunk down and blushed. "I was very timid and shy back then."
"You still are," chuckled Kai, "but that's one of the reasons we love you."
The blush on Fluttershy's face grew in intensity as she looked away.
"So, who taught you magic after you left the public system?" asked Twilight, trying to keep the conversation on topic. "Surely you must have learned from somepony."
"I had a few teachers, yes, but I couldn't really ask any questions of them. It's not as though they'd answer me."
Twilight scowled. "That's rude of them."
Kai looked up. "They were long since dead, or otherwise unavailable. I had to read the information that they wrote down, and if there wasn't any other information written down, I'd have to either try out the method myself small scale, or find a different method. The former is mostly what I do now because I can do it easily."
"So you just make up spells as you go along?" asked Nik. "What happens when you make the wrong spell?"
"I live long enough to regret it," answered Kai. "I try not to rely on spells entirely, though. You never know when your horn's just going to fail out of nowhere."
"I've never heard of that," said Twilight, shaking her head. "Your horn can just fail?"
"It's happened to me a few dozen times," admitted Kai. "One second, you can repel wolves, bears and badgers, the next, you can't so much as lift a rock. It's the weirdest thing, and the worst part is, I can't find any other documented cases. I can't even investigate it myself, because I can't use magic to find out why my magic isn't working."
Twilight conjured up a pencil and notebook and started writing. She had to know more about this. She'd spent enough time around Kai by this point that she felt as though they were friends. That meant she would do what she could to help him if she had the chance. Furthermore, she didn't want it happening to her. "How often does this happen?"
"Usually coinciding with other injuries. Not with all of them. I broke my leg once, horn still worked. Fell off a castle wall, still fine. Hit by falling tree branch, now there's a problem."
"How hard were you hit by the tree branch?"
"Pretty hard." Kai shone a light on his back "It's that third scar on the left, right above the shoulder blade."
Twilight pressed her hoof against it. "This one?" Kai nodded in response. "That must have hurt pretty bad. Did you have to go to a hospital?"
Kai shook his head. "I was living alone, and I had no money at the time. It righted itself the next day."
Twilight pulled her hoof back. "I see. I'm sure your parents must have been very worried."
Kai shoot his head. "They didn't know anything about it. My mother's been lobotomized and my father threw me out on my arse when I was seven."
A deafening silence followed. Kai looked up from the embers and found that Twilight was staring at him uncomfortably. Nik was also rather surprised to hear that. Fluttershy looked away. She knew about Kai's parents, but couldn't warn him in time to stop him from saying anything.
"I see I've said something wrong," nodded Kai. "Let's move on. How would your parents have treated such an injury?"
"I... I don't know," said Twilight, still visibly uncomfortable. "I guess they'd take me to a doctor right away. That's what parents do, right?"
Kai simply shrugged. His experience was atypical. When more silence followed, he just accepted that the conversation was over. Grabbing a bit of greenery from their stock, he climbed out of the dip they'd parked in up onto the rocks. His view was better up here, so he could see if they were being followed.
Or rather, that was the reason he would give if asked why he'd done it. He simply didn't want to be judged for his parents' decisions. Or rather, his father's decisions, as his mother hadn't chosen to be the way she was. He sat up there for a good ten minutes, eating his greens before he felt something drop into his lap.
"I found some oxeye. I thought you might enjoy some." Fluttershy sat down next to him and smiled.
Kai looked back to the camp, then returned his gaze to the moon. "I'm sorry I made things awkward," he said quietly. "I didn't mean to upset everyone."
Fluttershy shook her head. "You don't need to apologize. Not everypony has a good childhood. Just because she did doesn't mean you had to."
Kai picked up the daisy and bit off the head. "I suppose we all have our demons..."
Fluttershy woke up the following morning in her tent, tucked under Kai's cloak atop her bedroll. This wasn't where or how she'd fallen asleep, so she was a little bit miffed, but at the same time, she knew that Nik would be very upset with them if she and Kai were to sleep next to each other, whether that be in a tent or under the stars.
She came out to see that Twilight had made breakfast while Nik had packed away both his own tent and Twilight's. Kai was still asleep; understandable, considering how late he and Fluttershy had stayed up the night prior. She packed her own tent back into the cart and woke Kai so they could eat together. She was hoping for a bit more conversation, but the way Twilight and Nik were looking at Kai, she thought that might be a bad idea. It may not have been the nicest meal, but at least they were all together and safe.
When they were all packed up, Kai harnessed himself to the front and everyone else piled into the back. Nik couldn't risk being seen, even out here in the middle of nowhere. Twilight was often rereading through Sky's notes, trying to understand the 'harmonic frequencies' that she'd been studying. While Fluttershy could have helped to pull the cart, she wanted to repair some of the damage from the night prior, and the best way to do that was to talk to Twilight.
"He's not a freak, you know."
Twilight was already deep into her research notes, and she hadn't heard Fluttershy. It wasn't until she received a soft kick from Nik that she looked up.
"Kai's not as bad as you may think, Twilight," stated Fluttershy.
"I never said he was," Twilight said, shaking her head. "I haven't seen him do anything particularly bad in years."
"Last night, you looked at him like he was some kind of weirdo."
Twilight set her notes aside. "Fluttershy, you can't be trying to convince me that he's not weird."
"He is pretty weird," agreed Nik. "I'm not exactly sure what counts as common around here, but of all the ponies I've seen, he's the only one with metal wings. I'd say it's a safe bet to say that's at least a bit strange."
Fluttershy took a deep breath. "Okay, so he's a bit odd, but that's not a bad thing. He's not crazy, he's not bad, he's just misunderstood because he didn't grow up the same way we did. He didn't have friends like us."
"I realize that," said Twilight. "I was just shocked at the way his parents treated him. His father especially. Knowing that, it's no wonder he has trouble with communicating."
Fluttershy nodded. "He never gave me their names, so I can't look into his parents personally, but I believe him. I saw the way he lived before he came to Ponyville. He's not as awful as he may seem at first. If you talk to him again tonight, I want you to understand that his experience differs from yours and temper your words accordingly. He wouldn't say it to your face, but you hurt his feelings last night."
Twilight took a deep breath. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset him. I'll make things right tonight, I promise."
Fluttershy smiled and hugged her friend. "Thanks, Twilight. I know he can be hard to read, but he's still a pony, just like us."
Fluttershy spent the rest of the day stitching together clothing modeled after the clothing Nik was already wearing. He wanted to wear clothes, but he didn't yet have any spare outfits. She was almost done, having spent a few days already on this, almost a week now, in fact. It was almost time to give it to him, preferably at the next chance they had to bathe. They all smelled pretty bad by now, but they weren't really in a position where they could just walk into an inn and have a shower. A large group of cloaked ponies were chasing them, and even if they weren't, they had a human among them. That didn't exactly stoke ponies' sense of hospitality.
They took a few short stops every few hours or so to relieve themselves and to let Kai have a break. After the third one, the cart began to wobble a lot more, and more violently. There had been some patches where they were going through rough ground, but nothing quite this bad. It was late in the afternoon, almost time to stop for the day, so Fluttershy took it upon herself to step outside and ask why the path had become so bumpy. She barely had to open the door to find her answer. The ground was completely covered by large rocks. Furthermore, the vegetation looked to be a bit more scarce, and the temperature was beginning to climb. They must have been approaching Mount Ignus. It was an active volcano, after all.
They soon found a place to stop, right at the foot of the mountain. Even if the plants were a bit sparse around here, they still managed to cobble together a decent meal. Twilight worked together to put up a small protective field in case the mountain tried to dispose of them in the middle of the night. It was a possibility, and one that neither of them wanted to risk. They couldn't take the cart any further up the mountain, either, so they'd have to walk to their destination tomorrow. Luckily, Kai assured them that it wasn't very far, so at least they probably wouldn't be spending too much time here.
As Kai sat down to eat, Twilight placed a hoof on his shoulder. "I want to apologize for my behaviour yesterday. I realize that my actions may have upset you, but I'm sorry. I should have considered your feelings."
Kai swallowed his mouthful. "It's alright. I've come to live with my past. It wasn't great, but it made me who I am. I can't change how others treat me, but I can control the way I treat others. At least I can go to bed at night, thinking that I've done my best for the ponies around me, whether I care for them or not."
Twilight cocked her head to the side. "A bit odd that you do nice things for ponies you don't like."
Kai shook his head. "I learned it from Fluttershy."
They both turned to look at Fluttershy, whose face had suddenly turned red.
It was exceptionally hot the following morning. A magma vent had popped out of the ground overnight, and there was molten rock draining down along the side of the force field. Kai and Twilight shared a knowing smile, glad they'd seen this as a possible outcome. If they hadn't, Twilight's tent, as well as their wooden cart, would have been up in flames in the middle of the night.
"Somepony should stay behind and make sure our equipment stays safe," said Twilight. "I would say either Kai or myself, as we're the only unicorns. I volunteer, because I believe Kai would more likely know what he's doing in regards to the challenge."
"I doubt those are all of your reasons, but I agree," nodded Kai. "You should stay behind for this one. I don't know if you've ever dealt with a dragon before, but they--"
"Dragons!?" squeaked Fluttershy. "There are d-dragons up there?"
Kai thought for a moment. "I think just one the last I heard, but my information may be outdated."
Fluttershy shook her head and retreated into her tent. "No, no, no. No dragons for me, thanks."
Kai poked his head into her tent. "You don't like dragons? I thought you had a love for all creatures."
"Dragons are the exception!"
Kai nodded. "Okay. You can stay here and keep Twilight company. I'll go deal with the dragon."
"What, you're just going to leave me behind?" asked Nik.
Kai looked up. "That's not what I said. Did you want to go with me?"
It's not that he wanted to go, per se, but rather a combination of feeling that he should go mixed with a desire to not be stuck inside the wagon all day again. He'd been across the Equestrian countryside, but he'd barely seen any of it. He wanted to spend some time not sitting in a wooden box. Plus, he'd never seen a real dragon. Much like unicorns and pegasi, they were fictional creatures where he'd come from. "Of course I want to go. Let's be on our way, already."
After about half an hour of climbing, neither Kai nor Nik could see the camp anymore. It wasn't a steep climb, only reaching about a thirty degree grade at the most intense, but there were some rather large rocks to either scale or walk around. For the first stretch, there was no conversation, but as soon as they were sure nopony else could hear them, it began.
"Did you know that Fluttershy was afraid of dragons?"
Kai shook his head. "This is the first I'm hearing of it."
"That's a lousy excuse," scoffed Nik. "I thought you liked her."
"Was your boss allergic to lingonberries, Nik?"
"How would I know that?"
"I thought you were friends?" smirked Kai. "If it doesn't come up in conversation, how does anypony know anything about anypony else? This is the first time she and I talked about dragons, so this is the first I'm being made aware of her phobia. And now I can proceed with that knowledge."
"Still, I feel it's a sign of a good relationship if you can tell each other what you're afraid of. That way you can protect them from it."
Kai stopped and turned around. "And what are you afraid of, Nikolas?"
Nik had to stop and think for a minute. He considered answering honestly, but then he shook his head. "I don't think you and I should be sleeping together. Not exactly the best relationship between us."
Kai let out a deep laugh as he continued up the mountain. "I don't think you're my type, no."
It didn't take particularly long for them to find what they were looking for: a hole carved into the side of the mountain by a small explosion. The main reason they knew it was the right place was because there were hoofprints leading into it. Somepony was living here, in an active volcano. Clearly, this was the right place.
A short walk in led them to a carved stone archway. As soon as they stepped through, Kai pushed Nik back, just in time to avoid a flying piece of ceramic that shattered against the wall. "What do you think you're doing here!?" barked a very angry-looking earth pony. "Leave, now!"
He was immediately tackled by a young pegasus mare. "Found you!" she called out, pinning him to the ground and planting her lips on his.
From a nearby lava pit, a scaly head popped out and rested on the rocks. "What did I tell you about playing around when I'm trying to sleep?" asked a grumpy-looking dragon. "Don't you have any respect for--" As he suddenly realized there were two other beings in his presence, he turned to face them. "Who are you?"
Kai cleared his throat and stepped forward. "We don't want to take up too much of your time. We just want to pass your trial and collect your token."
As Nik nodded, the dragon looked at the other two, still wrestling amongst themselves. "I suppose it's up to me, then." As he clawed his way out of his pool, molten stone dripped off of him, popping as it hit the ground until he kicked it back into the pool of molten stone. "Come on, let's go."
He led them out of the cave and further up the mountain, dragging his tail in the dirt, making it easy to follow his trail. Neither Kai nor Nik had ever directly interacted with a dragon before, so there was understandably a bit of fear in both of them, brought on by the inexperience of not having spent any time interacting with dragons.
When they reached the peak, the dragon turned around and faced them. "Okay. Your challenge is a simple one." he pointed to a pile of bright red rocks. "Heat shoots out through a vent underneath those stones. Cook me a meal."
Kai and Nik looked at each other confusedly, then back to the dragon. "Are you serious?" asked Kai, an incredulous look on his face. "That's it?"
"Look, all the tenets say is that you have to prove that you have some amount of mastery over fire," explained the dragon. "This way, I can go back to my nap. Use whatever ingredients you can conjure up, but keep in mind that I'm allergic to shellfish." He yawned and laid down. "Wake me when you're done."
As the dragon began to snore, Kai and Nik huddled together. "What does a dragon like to eat?" asked Nik. "They don't exist where I'm from."
"I'm not well-versed in dragon diets," replied Kai. "Today is the first time I've ever spoken to one. I've always kept my distance from them for safety reasons. You've seen their teeth, their claws, and in case you weren't aware, they breathe fire."
Nik rolled his eyes. "I might have guessed. So, how do we go about this?"
Kai looked back to the sleeping dragon. "Judging by his teeth, I'd guess they're probably either carnivorous, or omnivorous with a preference for meat. Think wolf. Do you have wolves where you're from, Nik?"
"We do. Not local to where I was, but we did have coyotes."
"That's close enough," nodded Kai. "We need to think what one of those might eat, then adjust for the size of our recipient."
Nik took a deep breath. "I think that means we need to start by hunting something decently large. I would wager three salmon for his size."
Kai looked back. "That sounds about right, but this isn't exactly a place where we can find salmon. A deer, perhaps?"
Nik slowly nodded. I can butcher and cook a deer. I know how to do that much, at lea--"
Kai grabbed Nik by the collar and pulled him down to his eye level. "Not a word of this goes back to Fluttershy. Do I make myself clear?"
Nik smirked. "What's it worth to you?"
Kai's grip tightened. "She means the world to me. If you tell her anything about this, it will hurt her. She can ignore the fish, but deer are another story entirely. Do not tell her we killed a deer and then cooked it for a dragon."
"Okay," chuckled Nik. "But you owe me for this."
Kai let go of Nik and made his way to the rim of the crater, looking around for a heavily forested area nearby where he might find something. "I'll go find one and bring it back. I'll be quicker on my own. You stay nearby and find some herbs or something to season it." With a flap of his wings, he was coasting down the mountain at an absurd speed in comparison to the speed with which they'd ascended.
Nik took the time to look around. He'd had the opportunity to review safe herbs with Fluttershy and Twilight while they were all in the back of the cart, so he knew a few things about wild herbs. He was looking for one in particular: poor man's pepper. He wasn't great at identifying rocks, so he avoided trying to determine which ones might be salt, as they might be something else. Something dangerous. If he killed the dragon, there might be a chance that he couldn't ever earn that orb he needed. That would lead to him being stuck here in Equestria until he died. And considering he was being hunted, that day might come sooner than anticipated.
Kai came back two hours later with a dead buck. While Kai took a moment to rest, Nik borrowed a few of his knives to skin and carve up the deer. As he'd said, he was rather skilled with a blade. Being a line cook hadn't afforded him the best experience when it came to butchering, but it had given him some experience in taking animals apart. With very little thought, he could easily remove the meat from the bone and separate it into easy to cook and eat sections.
After chopping the herbs and rubbing them all over the meat, Nik just slapped it right onto the hot rocks. They were glowing red, so they were certainly hot enough to cook it all the way through. The meat immediately began to sizzle. There was a bit of concern in Nik's mind as to whether or not the fumes from this volcanic vent was going to keep the meat safe to eat, but then he thought back to what the dragon had said. If he had been afraid of the vent poisoning him, he might have told them as such. If it was hazardous to him, that might have been something to bring up along with his allergy to shellfish.
It took most of the day to cook up the dragon's meal. Just as Nik was arranging it on a large flat rock that had been sanitized in the fiery blaze, the dragon yawned and awoke from his nap. "What am I doing up here?" he asked groggily.
"You had us prepare you a meal," answered Kai. "To demonstrate our ability to command fire?"
"Oh, right," yawned the dragon. "For the orb, correct?"
"That's right," smiled Nick, presenting his spread. "We have cooked all of this for you, using volcanic heat from the vent."
Picking himself up, the dragon dragged himself over to the pile of cooked meat and picked up a brisket. "Looks good. Feels medium rare." He took a large bite. "Minimal seasoning, pretty much just salt and peppergrass. A little heavy on the salt, though."
Nik furrowed his brow. "I didn't have any salt."
The dragon pointed to the vent. "Those rocks are all salt deposits. It automatically adds to the flavour."
After having a good meal, the dragon was much more amenable. Reaching behind his back, he pulled out a small stone, completely clear save for a few orange markings on the inside. "Congratulations, boys, you now know how to harness fire or some such. Good luck on the rest of your quest, and don't come back." Patting them both on the shoulder and dropping the orb into Nik's hand, he flew off to enjoy the cool evening air.
"I suppose that means we're done here," said Kai, watching him disappear over the rim. "Come on, let's rejoin the others." It was growing darker, so Kai lit up his horn to ensure that they had enough light to see where they were going. It was well after sunset when they regrouped with the others.
Fluttershy immediately threw her arms around Kai's neck. "You're safe!" she cried out. After an awkward moment, she backed away sheepishly. "D-did you run int-to the dragon?"
"We did," smiled Nik, showing her the orb. "He gave us this. We're halfway done already."
"So what kind of trial did you have to go through?" asked Twilight.
Kai looked to Nik and then back to Twilight. "We had to show how well we understood how fire works. Since we both cook, it was easy."
Celestia nodded as she listened to the chairman of the Whinnyapolis branch of the Equestrian Farm Bureau make his case against the representative of the West Equestria Shipping Company. Apparently, a very large shipment of edible goods had been lost somewhere on the road, and it had cost an exorbitant amount of money to the farmer who had grown and sold it. They were unable to ethically collect the money from the buyer because the buyer had received none of the goods they'd paid for. The Equestrian Farm Bureau had kept the farmer afloat through this, but they were seeking damages from the source. The West Equestria Shipping Company, on the other hoof, claimed that they had contracted the work to a subsidiary of theirs, and that the damages were due to a faulty train car that had been certified for use by the Equestrian Farm Bureau. It was a complicated case, if a bit boring, and since the outcome would decide whether or not her citizens would be able to feed themselves, Celestia needed to be at least partially involved in it.
"The specifications set by the Farm Bureau are to ensure that the walls are insulated properly and that there are plenty of securing rails to ensure that our cargo stays cool and fresh, doesn't bounce out of their shipping crates, and stays inside the train car until it is ready to be unloaded at its destination," said the representative of the Equestrian Farm Bureau. "It is no more our responsibility to ensure that the latching mechanism is properly attached to the next car than it is to ensure that the rails are free of weeds and debris. We cannot be held responsible if the pony who bolted the cars together noticed that the bolt was bent and decided to use it anyway. When they noticed a problem, they should have fixed it right away by replacing the bolt with an undamaged one."
"The young stallion who saw the damaged bolt reported it to the client," responded the representative of the West Equestria Shipping Company, pushing forward a collated stack of papers. "We have the records here, indicating that the mare who brought the goods to our shipping office said she was made aware of the problem, and that she opted to send the car out anyway, rather than wait an undisclosed amount of time for our employees to find a functioning bolt."
"How long do you think it might have taken to find a new bolt?" asked Celestia.
"An hour at most," responded the representative. "There were several cars waiting at the station that could have donated their bolt while we requisitioned a new one."
"Did you requisition a new one?"
Before the representative could respond, the door flew open and a very panicked guard rushed to the throne, looking ragged and gasping for breath. He held out a sealed scroll, which Celestia promptly opened and read.
"I'm sorry, gentlecolts, but I'm afraid we must reschedule this hearing for another day. Something very urgent has just come up that needs my immediate attention."
While both parties were rather upset that they'd have to report back that nothing had been settled today, there was nothing they could do. They would have to petition for a new time to have their case heard, because the matter was so urgent that Celestia hadn't set a date for their reconvening before stepping out of the room with the interrupting guard in tow.
Celestia didn't say a word until she and the guard were in her chariot. After directing her escorts to fly her to the Everfree forest's northeast edge, she turned to the guard, who had just caught his breath. "What does this mean, 'gone?' how can a large swath of forest just disappear?"
"I don't know, Princess," replied the guard. "I was out on patrol, with my partner beside me. The forest was just fine, then in the middle of his sentence, he just stopped talking. I turned to look, and he was gone, and the forest along with him. I'd never run so fast in my entire life. As I was coming back with my commanding officer, we saw that the trees had been replaced by other trees. There's a very clear delineation between which trees belong there and which ones don't."
Celestia sighed. "I suppose I'll see when we arrive."
It wasn't too far from Canterlot to the effected area. A few minutes after they left, she saw exactly what the guard had meant. The line was very clear, with several trees having been bisected along the line. The new trees were taller, with a deep red colour running up their core. These were cedar trees, and they weren't common in this area. Further south, they were all over the place, but they looked rather strange against the birch that surrounded them. What's worse, these cedars were infected. A cursory glance revealed large orange polyps all over some of them.
As they landed, she immediately found the stallion in charge. "How far has it spread?"
"We haven't seen any movement since it showed up," he answered. "Some of the boys think it may be an isolated incident, but I'm not comfortable making that call yet."
"Are there any orchards within the next five kilometres?"
"One. It's just over four that way," he said, pointing northwest. "Do you think they might have something to do with this?"
Celestia shook her head. "That orange fungus on the tree will destroy any apple or hawthorn trees in that area. I want you to send somepony to warn them against cedar apple rust."
"Right away, ma'am," he said, scrawling a quick note and giving it to a soldier. "We must do everything we can to keep the citizens safe. However, I lost four soldiers when the land disappeared. I'm afraid they may be lost to us forever."
Celestia looked at the ground. Even the grass was a different colour, and for fear of disappearing themselves or causing the rift to spread, none of the soldiers went anywhere near it. "Let us hope that you're wrong, and that we find a solution soon. If your men are still alive, what procedure would they be following?"
"Standard procedure when lost is to stay close to where you were separated from your group, and if you cannot rejoin your group, you are to set up a temporary shelter and take good stock of your surroundings, until such time that the area is unsafe. Then you do what you must to survive, all the while trying to return."
Celestia took a deep breath. "Keep everypony away from this as best you can, and keep me informed if anything changes. I want to know the very minute you discover anything." She stepped back onto her chariot and took off back to Canterlot with her escorts. She was planning to do some discovery of her own.
The group was very happy to be away from the volcano, especially when the ground smoothed and the cart stopped jostling. Fluttershy had helped pull the cart today, partially because she wanted to put as much distance as possible between herself and the dragon, and partially because she wanted to spend some time alone with Kai.
"Thanks for not dragging me up the mountain," she said as they stepped out of the crags into open prairie. "I really didn't want to see that dragon."
"Think nothing of it," said Kai, nuzzling her. "If it were me, I'm sure you would have done the same. In fact, you have."
Fluttershy blushed. "That was different. I wanted to do something nice for you."
"And I wanted to do something nice for you. That's why I didn't make you go."
Fluttershy smiled. "You're sweet." Thinking back on how they'd first met, she'd have never imagined that she'd be having a civil conversation with him, much less having a romantic interest in him. She wished they could explore further, but this was good enough for now.
They made a goodly amount of progress today, coming to rest at the edge of a forest. With camp fully set up, Fluttershy reached into the back of the cart and pulled out the washboard and basin. While Kai and Nik had been busy on the mountaintop, she'd finished making new clothes for Nik, and it was time to wash them for him. Just as she was ducking behind a tent to fill up the basin from a nearby pond, she noticed Kai's cloak draped over the wagon's yoke. Having slept underneath it a few times, she knew it was in need of a good cleaning. With a quick swipe, she added it to the laundry. She thought it would be nice to surprise him with a nice, clean cloak.
Twilight sat down next to Kai in front of the fire. "Hey, Kai, do you know what Sky was talking about with this wavelength amplification? I can't make heads or tails of it."
"It's a way to use spells of higher power without changing their resonant frequency."
"How does that work?"
Kai tossed another log on the fire. "I'll show you. Cast a light spell, and I'll amplify it for you."
Twilight put on her light as directed. It illuminated the local area, just extending beyond the edge of the camp. A low rumble came from Kai's chest, increasing in volume as he opened his mouth. As his pitch shifted slightly, Twilight's horn began to grow brighter until the light reached the trees. Thinking he might be able to increase it even further, Nik tried to match the frequency Kai was putting out with his own voice. He was a little off, but he managed to increase the range a meter or so regardless. As the sound faded away, so did the light.
"Wow," said Twilight, looking back at the documents. "How do you know what note you're supposed to hit in order to increase the efficacy of the spell?"
Kai returned to preparing their dinner. "Some of it comes from experience. If you work with it often enough, you learn to feel it. That said, it's a lot easier if you can feel the flow of magical energy."
"And how do you do that?"
Kai looked up and blinked a few times. "You know, I've never tried to put it into words before. I always just sort of... felt it."
"Not all unicorns can just 'feel it,'" grumbled Twilight. "In fact, I'd wager that most unicorns can't feel it, otherwise, there'd be more literature on the subject."
Kai nodded. He'd only recently begun to read more current books, but only rarely did they mention feeling the magic flowing through you. Most of his training in doing so came from Sky, in fact. "Give me a moment," he said, standing up. "I'll be right back."
After a few moments, he came back, a flat, oval stone disk in his grasp. He sat down next to Twilight and started mucking with the rock. "What's that for?" asked Twilight.
"Magical ley lines run all throughout Equestria," explained Kai. "They're far enough underground that by the time they emanate their magic up to the surface, it's all been spread out and diluted to the point where most ponies can't tell where the highest concentrations are, or the lowest. To them, it just seems that they can cast their spells wherever and whenever." Having chiseled a hole into the center of the stone, Kai held it up to his eye, then draped it over his horn, pumping a bit of magic through it. "Given the right training, anypony can learn to feel the flow, not just unicorns." With another look through the hole in the stone, he passed it to Twilight.
Twilight was suspicious about what she'd see through the stone. Still, she was curious. She held it up and looked through. Within a meter, there was nothing, but outside of that range, she could see little pink threads wafting up from the ground. Half of them went in one direction, the other went in another, crossing each other as they went. There was a very faint glow in the distance, far underground. Several thousands of the tiny threads emanated in all directions away from it. "What exactly is this?" she asked.
Rather than answer right away, Kai took a few steps away and cast a simple levitation spell. Several threads clustered together, crossing at his horn and at the pan he was holding, a bright white stream connecting the two knots. "What you're seeing is the flow of magical energy." He waved his hoof through the stream of magic, and it danced around him. "Between my horn and the pan are countless tiny threads, right? They're all vibrating at the same rate. If you were to vibrate your vocal chords at the same frequency, you could potentially double the amount of energy flowing through it, making all of my movements much more powerful."
Twilight was in awe as Kai hung the pan back on the rack. She thought herself smart, but she had to remind herself that even the wisest ponies could not know everything. Still, having learned something new today was a good step forward.
Fluttershy, done with the laundry, flapped her way over the tents. "Hey, guys. Are you having a nice conversation?"
Twilight's jaw dropped when Fluttershy came into view. The pink threads twisting into white knots indicating the use of magic were flowing through her wings with every flap.
Nik was glad no one he knew was around to see him. While he was happy to have new clothes that were clean, the design was far more flamboyant than he would like. He had a distinctive style, and he liked it. A grey pocket tee with carpenter pants was a very utilitarian choice, as it was loaded with storage capacity. He could keep all of his daily carried objects, plus many more. Not so much with his new outfit.
He wore a puffy white blouse that was sure to stain yellow right away with his sweat, tucked into a pair of tan breeches, which were themselves tucked into a large pair of black cloth boots. A black cloth belt kept his pants up. The clothes fit nicely, and he imagined that he looked dashing in them, and if he had a mirror to look into, he was pretty sure he'd compare himself to a polo player, despite knowing nothing of the sport. Still, he'd thanked Fluttershy for hoof-crafting them, as doing so hadn't been easy or quick, and it was an appreciated gesture from her.
Kai was much happier. Not only had Fluttershy cleaned his cloak, she'd accurately returned everything to the correct pockets. He'd waited until Nik had climbed into the cart, then asked her to help him with the yoke. When they'd pulled it up, he leaned in and kissed her cheek, thanking her for doing this for him. She'd insisted that it was no big deal, and that she'd do it again if he asked. With a hug and a blush, she climbed into the back. Twilight wanted to help pull today, so she could find out a bit more about how Kai did magic.
For several hours, she rattled off question after question, and Kai's jaw was sore from all the answering he'd done by the time midday rolled around. It had been ages since last he talked so long. He was about to go into the subtle intricacies of how earth ponies performed their magic, but at that moment, they reached the top of a hill, and could see their destination.
"I think this is as good a place as any to stop for a moment," he said, applying the parking brakes. As he opened the door to let the others out for a chance to stretch their legs, Twilight looked in awe at the dense cluster of incredibly tall and girthy trees in front of them. Every single leaf was vibrant and verdant, with branches stretching out taller than Twilight had ever seen. When Fluttershy saw it, her eyes went wide and her hooves began to shake. To her, seeing a forest so strong and healthy was beautiful; so much so, she couldn't put it into words.
When it was time to resume, she opted to let the back door hang open. As they made their way through the forest, she wanted to see the foliage up close. On their way through the thick trees, she had to have Nik's hand on her shoulder to keep from bolting out to look at the trees and becoming left behind and lost. He also helped to steady her, as the tree roots protruding from the ground made for a bumpy ride.
It wasn't just the flora that made this forest so captivating for Fluttershy. The fauna scattered around them were exceptionally healthy, too. With a quick call from her, a striped ground squirrel with a brilliant red coat jumped aboard the cart to sniff at her. It stayed with her, crawling around her torso and receiving pets for half an hour or so before jumping off and scurrying back toward its home. In that time, a few birds had come to perch on her forelegs, and one was taking a small rest in her mane. These weren't big birds by any stretch, but they were clearly very strong and well-fed. This place was a paradise for ponies like her.
When it came time to stop for the night, they didn't set up camp as usual, under orders from Kai. "This isn't going to be an easy night for us," he said, moving things around inside the cart. "We can't have a campfire tonight, so that means no meat for Nik and no cooked vegetables for anypony. We'll have to subsist on what we can eat as it currently is. This is in part because there is no dead wood around here, and partially because the ground cover is too thick and the web of roots flowing beneath us catching fire means the whole forest goes up in flames. Horn lights only."
"What if we don't have a horn?" asked Nik.
"Fluttershy, you go with Twilight," Kai said. "You know what to bring back." As they left, Kai turned to Nik. "You and I are going to find some water. We're not as close as I'd like to be to a river, and we may not have to put out a fire tonight, but I'm parched, and my canteen ran out hours ago."
Nik climbed out of the wagon into the light of Kai's horn, grabbing a bucket in which to carry the water. He was a bit upset that he wouldn't be allowed to eat any meat tonight, but he could deal with that if he had to. Not that he wanted to hunt in this forest, anyway. The trees were so dense he could barely see even a few metres away. Plus, the canopy was so thick that without Kai's light, he might not even be able to see in the dark. Trudging through the tall grass, he followed Kai, hoping he knew what he was doing.
Kai had a spell for finding fresh water. He'd found it in an ancient guide to exploring strange lands that was intended for soldiers in the wild thousands of years ago. He wished he still had a copy of the book, as it had kept him alive in his youth, and a lot of the information contained within applied to what they were doing. He remembered a lot of it, but he couldn't help but think that he was forgetting a few things.
They found a stream and filled up the bucket. Before heading back, Kai drank his fill of river water. He felt refreshed. "Oh, and we'll all be inside the cart tonight for safety reasons. Twilight probably already told Fluttershy."
Kai wiped his mouth. "You've seen the forest. Everything in here is healthy, stronger than normal, and even breathing the air in here fills me with vitality. If you were to hunt and cook an animal around here, you'd find virtually no fat, and lots of muscle."
"And?"
"We saw three bears on the way in. I'd rather not tangle with a stronger-than-average creature of that calibre."
The group managed to survive the night with only some minor jostling. Kai ended up sleeping on the floor next to Nik, and neither of them was really happy about that arrangement. What was nice for Kai was that Fluttershy had draped her hoof down off the bench, allowing him to hold it throughout the night. It wasn't the best scenario, but it was better than nothing.
They still had a fair amount of food from the night before, so they woke up to a bit of breakfast. While Kai was a little stiff, he secured himself to the yoke and began to pull. While Twilight wanted to hear more magic talk, Fluttershy rushed to walk alongside Kai today, and he was quick to decide that she would be the one to accompany him. The excuse he gave was to show her what the forest had to offer, but that was only part of his reason.
"So, what do you think of the forest in daylight?" he asked, an hour into their walk. "I bet it looks better than your view from the back door."
"It's beautiful," Fluttershy responded, though she didn't need to say anything. It was very clear by the expression on her face that she was enjoying herself. "Everything's so colourful and healthy, I can't believe nopony wants to live near here. This place is great!"
"Ponies have tried to move in around the forest before, but the forest as a whole has a mind of its own, and has removed the towns from existence. Usually, the ponies made it out okay, but the more belligerent ones that tried to push into the forest essentially destroyed themselves. Only if your house could exist in complete harmony with the forest can you live here. You may be one of the few ponies that could possibly do it."
Fluttershy blushed. "Do you really think I could?"
Kai shook his head. "Ponies are social creatures. You could live here, but you'd be pretty much alone. I don't think you're ready to leave all of your friends behind."
Fluttershy thought for a moment before nodding. "I suppose they can't really visit me out here. If there aren't any towns nearby, and no means of transport, I suppose it would be a real hassle for them to come and see me." She huffed and leaned over onto his shoulder. "But I wouldn't mind visiting again, given the chance."
Kai gently nuzzled her in response. "I hope you have the chance. You seem to really be in your element around here."
Around noon, they came to a clearing. It wasn't a large number of branches that blocked out the sun, rather that a very large tree in the center had a canopy so wide that the only plants that could thrive in the area were those that could rely entirely on nutrients brought in through the tree's root system. The trunk was wider than most ponies' houses, and there was a large hole in the middle that the bark had grown around, rather than sealing it up, more than large enough for a pony to come through. Nik and Twilight were glad that the jostling had stopped.
As Kai and Fluttershy untethered themselves from the cart, three beings exited through the hole in the tree and began walking their way down an elevated root. They weren't quite ponies, but they weren't not ponies, either. They had the bodies and heads of regular stallions, and the same went for their mane and tail. But their necks and legs were long, making their height rival that of Celestia herself. They wore flowers around their necks, draping long vines down their backs like cloaks. Their coats were thick and wiry, and shimmered in the light that filtered down through the leaves. Atop their heads were large, almost circular antlers, like velvet crowns. They walked in a line until they reached ground level, then side by side as they approached. When they stopped, they looked down at the group, as Nik was the only one taller than they were. There was something haunting about their eyes, all of them being bright blue orbs that seemed to glow. It was hard to tell where they were looking, as there was no sclera, and no pupil. The only indicator they had was the direction their noses pointed.
"Travellers," said the first.
"Welcome to our grove," said the second, the instant the first stopped talking.
"We hope the forest has been kind to you," said the third.
"What is it you hope to find here?" they all asked in unison.
Nik was impressed that they could speak in such perfect synchronicity. Either they rehearsed this over and over again, or they all shared one brain. He quickly convinced himself that the latter was true because he wanted to believe it, because he thought that would be a cool explanation.
"We're here because we need the blessing of Kroghmm," Kai answered. "We are prepared to do what must be done in order to earn it."
"Patience," said the third, raising his hoof.
"The earth moves slowly, gently, and deliberately," added the second.
"In order to earn its favour, you must do the same," finished the first.
"Calmly and softly," nodded Fluttershy. "I absolutely agree with that sentiment in most scenarios. After all, small animals are spooked by erratic movement, and plants take a long time to grow. If you do it right, it will take a lot of time, but the bonds will be strong."
"That is correct," nodded the first.
"I see we are in the presence of a well-learned mare," smiled the second.
"It is good to know that there are ponies still around who appreciate all of the beauty that nature brings," chuckled the third.
"However," added Fluttershy, "nature must sometimes be swift. While it takes time to expand a burrow, darting under brambles to escape a hawk is something that any bunny can do quickly. All predators must be fast enough to catch their prey, and all prey want to be fast enough to escape their predators. Patience is good, but it must be tempered, and we are currently being hunted. It is imperative that we complete your task quickly, or this whole forest will be one big target."
Kai was not very happy with the change in wagon. While he was glad he didn't have to pull a wagon with a pony and a human inside, he now had a heavier wagon that was going to become even heavier. To make matters worse, the three guardians of the forest had taken away his magic, as well as Twilight's. Kai had originally planned to let some of his magic make the job easier, but no such luck.
He didn't like the task at hoof, either. The wagon behind him was almost watertight, but intentionally had a leak at the bottom. They were supposed to fill the whole thing up with water from the river, bring it back without too much leaking out, and water the big tree. That would be difficult enough on its own, but the method they had for filling it was to use clay jars that had greedy cup siphons on them. They had to fill it, by hoof, slowly, and then make their way back to the tree with enough water to saturate the ground, slowly, through the hole in the bottom of the wagon. They could try as many times as they wanted, but Kai really didn't want to make multiple trips.
When they came to the river, Kai unhitched himself and rotated his shoulder a few times to loosen it. It was growing more and more sore the longer this journey was, and with him constantly pulling the wagon, it wasn't likely to turn any better anytime soon.
Nik kneeled down in front of the river and filled his jar up to the brim. As he lifted it out of the water, all of the liquid was suddenly sucked out of the bottom, soaking his shoes. By the time he'd reached the cart, there wasn't very much left. To make matters worse, there were multiple siphon releases at the bottom, so it would be foolish to try plugging them all up.
"This has to be done slowly," Fluttershy instructed. "We have to do this calmly, gently, and deliberately. Like so." Reaching down, she filled her jar just over halfway, carried it back to the wagon, and poured it in. Immediately, a tiny trickle began dripping from the bottom. "If you come at it too strong, we'll be here forever."
Kai limped over to the river and did as Fluttershy directed. Once it was over halfway, he rushed it to the wagon. He made it about halfway before the jar began to siphon. In his rush, he'd jostled the inside enough to activate the seal, causing the water to come flowing out.
"You have to walk slowly, too," scolded Fluttershy. If you shake it too much, it won't want to stay. You have to treat it like you would a bunny."
After fifteen minutes of testing, Twilight had figured out exactly where she could fill her jar for every speed at which she could walk, and calculated the fastest and most efficient method for carrying the water. Of course, that didn't stop the cart from leaking , but she was doing her fair share of filling it up.
By the time the cart was filled up to the brim, it was sitting in a pool of mud. Kai was glad for the thick grass keeping it from sinking, but that didn't make it any easier to move. The foliage was so wet and slick that he was thankful he could move the cart at all. It was really heavy, but with all four of them working together, it was moving. Unfortunately, they weren't really moving fast enough. As more and more water drained out, it was becoming easier to pull and push, but the ones moving it were fast becoming exhausted.
About a third of the way back, and with a quarter of their water saturating the road behind them, Kai looked to his right. He hadn't felt anything, nopony had pointed anything out, he'd just turned his head to the right. When he did, he saw something that unsettled him, and a chill ran down his spine. Watching them from the trees were a trio of bears. Big, strong, adult bears. Kai was tired, he was sore, he had no magic, and he had no weapon. The bardiche he'd received from Bone, as well as all of his knives, had been left behind as part of the challenge. He'd not felt so helpless in over a decade.
Fluttershy glanced at Kai, and followed his gaze to the bears. With only a "Wait right here," for her compatriots, she walked up to them before Kai could unharness himself. He managed to let out a squeak before Twilight grabbed his shoulder and shook her head.
"Fluttershy has this handled," she said, patting his shoulder. "Trust me, she knows what she's doing." Kai swallowed hard and nodded, glad he was already out of breath and sweaty.
It took about a minute for Fluttershy to convince the bears to come help them push the wagon back to the clearing. They made the whole process much faster, and with their help, the tree was fully watered in a single trip.
"Very ingenious," said the first guardian.
"It is wise to use the benefits that nature gives to you," concurred the second.
"It is, however, odd that you chose bears to assist in your task," said the third, scratching his chin.
"One wonders how you came to tame them," nodded the first.
"Especially without the use of your magic," agreed the second.
The third leaned forward. "How did you manage to do it?"
"It was Fluttershy," answered Kai. "She just walked up to them, said something, then they just decided to help. I have no idea how she spoke to them, or what she said. She just did it somehow, and I'm not going to complain about it."
"It wasn't hard," explained Fluttershy. "I told them that if they helped us, I'd help them. Simple as that."
"What'd you promise to help them with?" asked Nik.
"Don't worry about it," smiled Fluttershy, waving her hoof. "It's simple, really."
"At any rate, you've completed your task," confirmed the third guardian.
"For that," added the second, "You are worthy of receiving our master's favour."
The first produced an orb with green markings inside it. "Take it, and with it, rid the world of the calamity you have brought with you."
Nik took the orb and placed it with the others. As he did, the three spoke in unison again. "You are welcome to rest here for the night."
As Kai and Twilight's magic returned, the guardians slowly retreated into their tree hollow. Kai took a deep breath and let out a sigh of relief. There was still an hour or so of light left, and he hadn't wanted to pull the wagon again today. After a quick talk with Fluttershy, he could breathe even easier, as they could set up the tents. Kai wouldn't have to worry about being attacked during the night, because Fluttershy assured him that the bears were going to keep them safe all night from anything that tried to take them down. She seemed confident that she was correct, and Twilight agreed with her. He wasn't so sure, but he was willing to give her the benefit of the doubt, since they were both in agreement.
Celestia stepped out of her chariot and grabbed the major by the shoulder. "Tell me what's happened," she demanded.
"I don't know," he responded, shaking his head. "One of my scouts comes in and reports seeing an anomaly, I came to check it out, and... Well, see for yourself."
Another large chunk of Equestria had disappeared, and been replaced with terrain that didn't belong there. This one was a section of forest, like the first, but with a few bits of structure littered about. Most notably, a small platform in a tree, perhaps the beginnings of a treehouse, but it was only big enough for one adult pony. Even then, there wasn't much room. What space was there was taken up mostly by a simple metal chair.
"You said in your report that there was some strange creature that you managed to capture?"
The major nodded. "It did something to four of my soldiers. They're in the infirmary, but I don't know if they'll recover from this. Their injuries are pretty bad. I have the weapon locked in a trunk at the moment so it can't be used."
Celestia nodded. "I'd like to start with the injured soldiers, if that's alright with you."
"Of course, Princess. Right this way."
They made their way to the infirmary, which was essentially just a big tent with wounded ponies and medics in it. The ground was covered in grass mats to simulate some kind of floor, and the medical beds were just cots with a water-sealed mattress on top. "This was the best we could do on such short notice," admitted the major. "We plan to escort them out of here and to a real hospital as soon as we're sure they'll survive the trip."
Celestia approached the only soldier who was awake, as the others were still anesthetized. His abdomen was wrapped snugly in gauze. "Are you lucid enough to speak?" she asked.
The stallion saluted and nodded. "Yes, majesty."
"This isn't a formal event, you don't have to salute me in your current condition."
"I'm sorry, I just... I thought..." The machine next to him beeped, indicating a rise in blood pressure.
"At ease," said Celestia, in her most calming tone. "You're not in any kind of trouble, I just want to know what happened to you."
The stallion nodded, but everypony could tell that he was still very nervous. "Right, we were called out to investigate the shift in terrain, and we saw the creature up in its perch. We called out to it, and then we heard a loud bang, and saw something come from the creature's claw. The next thing we knew, PFC Sweet Heart was on the ground and bleeding. I pulled him behind a rock with PFC Dew Drop, and while he was applying first aid, the rest of us coordinated our plan to take the creature down from its perch before somepony else was hurt. I made it past the tree line, and then I felt like I was hit in the gut with a huge stick. I didn't see any stick, but it must have been big, and it must have been sharp, because it pierced right into my gut. It was also accompanied by a loud bang. I managed to stay with my senses for long enough to see my fellow soldiers take the creature out of its perch, and the next thing I knew, I woke up here."
A nurse approached. "When we were inspecting the wound, we found this." He held up a small surgical tray, and among the bloody bandages was s small four-pronged claw, made of what looked to be copper, only 9 millimetres at the point where it all joined together. "We're not sure what it is, exactly, but one of our soldiers brought this back, and we think it might be related somehow." He held up a brass tube of about the same diameter, pressing the two together to show how they thought it fit. The other end of the tube was sealed off, but stamped into the metal were a few Characters.
Celestia held the tube up and looked at the stamped end closely. "Nine M M plus P. Any idea what that means?" Everypony shook their heads. "We'll have to find out." She gave the tube back to the nurse and walked out of the tent. "Show me this weapon you found."
The major escorted Celestia to his tent, where he had stored it. After opening three locks, he lifted the lid and stood back. "Be careful, Princess. We don't know how it works yet."
Celestia was very gentle as she lifted the device out of the chest. It was a very strange looking weapon, but she had seen something similar to it in the past. "Do you happen to know anypony in the kingdom of Course, major?"
"I'm sorry, princess, but I do not. Do you think they might be behind this?"
Celestia shook her head. "While it's a possibility, I'm not sure about it. I'm only asking because this looks similar to a weapon I saw over there on a recent visit. I think they called it a bow cross, or something like that. Supposedly, it's a bow that's always ready to fire, and it hits harder than normal arrows."
"If you wish for me to find out, I can be on the next boat to Course," said the major, saluting.
"That won't be necessary," responded Celestia. "I'll just send them a message, and have them come here. Their bow cross was also made of metal and wood joined together, but it wasn't quite like this. It had a big bar across the front, and both sides were bound by a flax weave. Furthermore, the munitions used by the bow cross were these short wooden sticks. Not as short as that metal claw, but shorter than a common arrow."
She had to admit, the wooden piece at the end looked very similar to a crossbow stock, and that lead her to believe that the forward facing claw where the trigger mechanism would have been on a crossbow was the trigger mechanism for this device, as well. That all lead her to believe she knew where the most dangerous part of this weapon was.
She pointed to the open end of the metal tube protruding from the end opposite the stock. "Keep away from this end," she said, placing it back in the chest. "I believe that's the part that causes injuries. I want this sent directly to the castle, and that's where we will look into it."
"Of course, princess," nodded the major, closing the box and locking it. "We'll have it to you as quick as we can."
"Safely, though. No unnecessary damages."
"Of course, Princess."
"Now, I think it's time I saw this creature."
The major escorted Celestia to her next location, another tent. Inside were four heavily armed, fully armored ponies and one large ape-like creature with its wrists and ankles bound, and a cloth gag in its mouth. "We had to gag it because it wouldn't stop screaming," said the major. "It bit the soldier that was trying to feed it this morning, and then started screaming again. We're not sure what it is exactly, so we called in an expert. She's supposed to be here later today."
Celestia took off the gag and draped it around the creature's neck. "I'm going to ask you some questions. If you can, I'd like you to--" She was interrupted by the creature spitting in her face.
"I got rights!" he yelled accusingly at her. "If you think I'm gonna talk, you can bend on over and suck m--" He was interrupted by having the gag replaced in his mouth.
"I'll leave it to the expert, then," said Celestia, wiping the saliva from her cheek. "Hopefully, they'll have more luck than I did."
Fluttershy was exhausted. What she'd offered the bears was a back and shoulder massages in exchange for their work and protection. Kai had watched for the first several minutes, partially out of concern for her safety, but once he was sure she'd be fine, he dropped off to sleep and had a particularly deep slumber. Now it was morning, and the bears felt wonderful as they went back to their homes in the forest. Fluttershy had been up all night, and just as she was lying down next to Kai, the sun was rising, and that meant that it was time to go.
Luckily, Nik was very understanding of her sacrifice for the group, and he opted to let her sleep all morning long while Twilight helped Kai take them out of the forest. He wasn't going to make her stay awake. When they sat down together in the back of the wagon, she very soon slumped over and fell asleep against his shoulder. He thought it might be bad for her neck, sleeping in such a contorted manner, so he moved over slightly so she could rest her head on his lap. He let her sleep there for a good six hours before they stopped for a break.
After they resumed their journey, Twilight, on a whim, decided to look through the stone Kai had given her, to see if they were anywhere near a ley line. What she saw was very confusing, and flew in the face of what she thought she knew about them. "Hey Kai?" she asked, furrowing her brow. "What does it mean if a ley line is moving?"
"They shouldn't be moving," replied Kai. "They should mark the straight lines between all manner of magic-based landmarks."
"Well, one of them is moving," replied Twilight, offering the stone to Kai. He held it up to his eye and saw the ley line moving under the ground. "I didn't know that they could move."
Kai was flummoxed. He'd never heard of a ley line moving like this. They weren't subject to change. They were anchored to multiple points all over the globe. If the ley line was moving, that meant that the anchor point was moving. He had no idea what was happening.
"I don't know what's going on with it," admitted Kai. "There are some things about magic that even I don't underst-- Hold on. It just changed directions." He returned the lens to Twilight. "Check this out."
Twilight held the lens up to her face and looked through it. "That's weird. That's weird, right?"
"Very strange," agreed Kai. "Keep an eye on it for me, would you please?"
"As long as I can," nodded Twilight. As the realization hit her, she squealed in delight. "I love field research! This is so cool! Do you think we can name the effect after me? I've always wanted to discover something so big that they let me name it!"
Kai chuckled. "If we don't find any record of a ley line moving, and we happen to find out why, and it doesn't already have a name, I'd be more than happy to have your name attached to the findings."
"Well, you can be attached, too," smiled Twilight. "I don't mind sharing the credit. A big scientific discovery like this would be a huge feather in your cap."
"No feathers for me, thanks. I'm not in it for the glory, the recognition nor the respect of my peers. Any research findings I publish are for the good of the scholars who read them, and for the good of anypony they teach. I just want Equestria to be a better place."
Twilight raised an eyebrow. "You're not at least trying to attract a little bit of attention for your contributions?"
Kai was silent for a moment. He took a deep breath before responding. "You know how I feel about Fluttershy. I want her to look at me and think that I'm somepony worth her time. In the past, I've done some terrible things to her that I can never undo or make up for. You know I have. And in return, she's only ever been kind to me. I very much want her to like me, but when she smiles, I just... I feel like I'm some kind of monster. I see it when I look in the mirror, Nik sees it written all over my face, and it's fallacious to think that nopony else can see it. I'm a coward, I'm cruel, and all I want is to change that; to be worthy of her affection."
Twilight hadn't intended for her probe to cut so deep. She'd just been intending some light teasing to make him blush, but now he looked like he was about to cry. If she didn't need it for walking, she'd have put a hoof on his shoulder. "If it makes you feel any better, I don't see you as monstrous. At every turn, whether I've agreed with your methods or not, your intentions have always been good. It's very clear that you care very much for Fluttershy, that you want her to be happy and safe. From how she's acted every time you sent her a letter, I think it's safe to guess that she's forgiven a lot of your actions. I think it would be a good idea if you two had some time alone to discuss your feelings with each other, rather than keep assuming. I can't really say that I want the two of you to be together, but if it makes you both happy, I'd hate to be the one standing in your way."
Kai slowly nodded, but his head was down. He'd just poured his heart out to Twilight, and hearing it aloud had made him realize that it was all true. Deep down, he really did think of himself as some sort of foul creature, clawing his way up toward the only light he knew. In his mind, he could see Fluttershy, smiling down at him and offering her hoof, and he wanted to take it, but he couldn't reach it. She was so high up, and he was sinking further and further into despair.
By midafternoon, they reached the edge of the forest. Kai was still staring at the ground with a sour look on his face, and Twilight wanted to fix it. She pointed to the sky. "Kai, do you see that?"
Kai looked up, but other than a few clouds, he couldn't see anything. "What am I looking for?"
"The sky," answered Twilight. "See how blue it is? As we move forward, we'll be just fine. 'Blue skies ahead' is a common saying, meaning 'everything's going to be alright.' I see blue skies ahead. I see no storms, no hardships, and no problems that need to be immediately addressed. What do you see?"
Kai looked ahead of them. While the sky was indeed very blue, as was common for good weather, on the horizon, he saw some dark clouds looming. The wind was pushing them out of the way, but there they were, moving north. "It's a blue sky," he sighed, "with a bunch of clouds scattered about. There is a storm on the horizon, but it's not headed our way, and by the time we..." He trailed off. A realization suddenly hit him. "Twilight, what direction is that ley line moving?"
Twilight looked through the stone. "North. Why?"
A smile crept across Kai's face. "Because I just figured out why it's moving. Change of plans, we're following that ley line. Which way, captain Twilight?"
After stopping for the night, Twilight opted to have Fluttershy pull today. Given the way her conversation with Kai had gone the day before, she wanted to give them the opportunity to make their feelings known to each other. She wanted to investigate the wandering ley line, but more important to her was being a good friend to Fluttershy, and to Kai.
Kai had guessed Twilight's intent, but he still didn't feel as if he had earned the right of asking for Fluttershy's forgiveness. Still, he would have been a fool if he wasted this opportunity. Swallowing his fear, he cleared his throat. "So, did Twilight say anything to you last night?"
"Only that you wanted to talk to me about something," she replied. In fact, Fluttershy had been the one to ask Twilight if there was something wrong with Kai last night. He seemed more down than usual, and she wondered if perhaps it was something she'd done. "Is something bothering you?"
Kai nodded. "Yeah, I uh... While talking to Twilight yesterday, I let down my guard and I told her what I really thought of myself. It wasn't a pretty sight."
Fluttershy took a deep breath. "Okay. It's good that you can let your feelings out. It's healthy to talk through them." She kept her eyes forward. She'd been holding back a few of her own feelings, and her statement was just as much for herself as it was for Kai. "What do you really think of yourself?"
Kai took a moment before answering. "You know how I grew up. You know what my life was like before you became a part of it. You saw the way I acted when you became a part of my life. After one week living with me, what did you think of me, really?"
"I thought you were a very misunderstood pony," she said, and it was the truth. "I mean, after the first day, I thought you were this cruel, insensitive beast of a pony, but after taking some time to know you better, I found that to be just a bad first impression."
"I don't see it that way," said Kai, shaking his head. "Every time I look at you, I remember all the horrible things I've done to you, and the memories make me sick to my stomach. For the life of me, I can't remember ever doing anything to make up for any of those horrible things I did. I want to be better, but every time I look at myself, all I see is a wild animal that doesn't care who he hurts."
Fluttershy gently rubbed his shoulder with her wing. "I can, without a doubt, assure you that your perception of yourself is wrong. In fact, you've just contradicted yourself. If you didn't care who you hurt, then why would you feel awful when you think of wrongs you've done in the past? If you didn't care who you hurt, why would you put effort into being better? As for you being a wild animal..." she leaned over and nuzzled his cheek. "I happen to like animals."
"I'm glad you see me that way, but I can't help but think of myself as some kind of monster."
"I've seen monsters. I've contended with them in the past. If you were a monster before, you're not one now, and that's what really matters."
Kai nodded, accepting her opinion of him. It didn't change his opinion of himself, but it did make him feel a little better. "That's very kind of you to say. I hope to one day see myself through such a lens, but for now, I suppose I'm doing the best I can."
"That's all anyone can ask of you, really," smiled Fluttershy. "Do you at least feel a little better?"
"I do," smiled Kai, and he did. "This was very kind of you to listen to me. If ever there's something you want to talk about, I would hope you could discuss it with me. I will do my best to listen, and to help you if you need it."
Fluttershy retracted her wing and looked down at the ground. "Well, actually, there was something I wanted to say, as well. I was sort of hoping to wait until this journey was over, so we could discuss it in the privacy of my home. I was going to have you over for tea and sandwiches, maybe a few cookies, and we'd sit on the couch and talk things over." She let out a nervous chuckle. "At the very least, I was hoping to have bathed recently."
Kai nodded. "Would you be more comfortable waiting? I'd like to hear your concerns, but not if it makes you uncomfortable."
"No, no, this is fine," smiled Fluttershy. "I was hoping for better conditions, but it may be better if I took this burden off my shoulders now, so I didn't have to carry it with me." She took another deep breath. "When we were in Whinnyapolis... When you cut that explosive device out of my stomach, I really and truly trusted you. And you came through for me. I believed that you would save me, and my belief was well-placed. You came to save me, you protected me, and then you went to rescue your own brother. In that moment, I was over the moon about you. I couldn't picture you doing anything bad. And then... Well, you know."
Kai nodded. "I know. I shouldn't have done what I did next."
"No, you should have," said Fluttershy. "I know I said at the time that what you did was horrible, but really, I was just scared. I saw that monster die. I lay there with a broken hip, watching the life leave his eyes as he collapsed on top of me. I was mortified. I woke up in a cold sweat every night for three months. But then, after I talked it over with Rarity, I realized that what you did to him was the right course of action. You kept me alive. You loved me in that moment. You did everything you could to keep him from hurting me. And while you hurt me in the process, your heart was in the right place. I wanted you to know that I forgive you for doing what you did. It was a necessary measure, and I hope that such a statement will never be true again."
Kai closed his eyes for a moment. "I never wanted to hurt you. Even at my worst, I never wanted to cause you pain. And yet, through my actions, you've experienced hardships. That was never my intent, and for that, I apologize. I want what's best for you, and that's the truth. I want you to be happy and healthy, even if it means I'm out of the picture."
Fluttershy smiled. "What would make me happy is to have you in the picture. If nothing else, I'd like to at least be friends."
Kai smiled back. "I'd like it if we stayed in contact with each other after all this is over. On friendly terms, no need to hurt each other, just a happy, healthy relationship. That would be all I could ever ask from you."
It was the middle of the afternoon when they reached the moving anchor point connecting the ley lines. Fluttershy had been looking through the stone lens and steering them in the right direction during her conversation with Kai. They'd made good progress, as they now found themselves at an anchor point.
"So, I'm not a practitioner of magic," Fluttershy said, unaware that she actually was. "Why were we looking for this nexus again? Is it related to one of the places we need to go for those little marbles we've been picking up?"
Kai nodded. "All of these anchors are supposed to be attached to a certain permanent structure. Usually a landmark that doesn't move around. However, this one does move around, because the building it's attached to also moves around."
Fluttershy looked around. They were in an open prairie with a number of small hills. There were no buildings in sight. "How can a landmark move around? Doesn't that make it no longer a landmark?"
"That is true," nodded Kai. "With real landmarks, you can always head the same direction away from them and reach the same point. However, in rare cases, you can find structures that move around that are of great importance. Cloudsdale, for example. Their weather factory goes everywhere."
Fluttershy nodded in understanding. "I grew up in Cloudsdale, you know. Plenty of times, I've heard of pegasi going down to the surface level and becoming intoxicated, then telling the guards that somepony ran off with their house." She snickered at her own joke.
"Well, did you know that there used to be a part of Cloudsdale that broke off and flew in a different direction?"
"Sure, it happens all the time."
"Well, this was a big building. This was long before either of us was even born."
Fluttershy raised her eyebrow. "Are you so sure I wasn't born yet?"
Kai smiled. "I suppose you're right. You look great, by the way. Your sixties have been very kind to you."
They both shared a laugh as Twilight climbed out of the back. "What's going on?" she asked. "Why did we stop?"
"We're here," answered Kai. "Welcome to the Nomadic Tower of the Winds."
Twilight looked around. "Where is it?"
Kai pointed straight up into the air. "Right there." Looking up, they saw a rather large cloud structure. It was about the size of Rainbow Dash's home. "It is there that we will find our next component."
"So... do we pull it down?"
Kai shook his head and took back the stone lens from Fluttershy. "Unfortunately, it's restricted to flying creatures. Pegasi, changelings, breezies, gryphons and the like. Fluttershy and I will deal with it, because we don't really have much else in the way of options." He returned the lens to Twilight. "Stay somewhat close. This may take awhile."
"Should I set up camp?"
"I think you should start preparing for it," nodded Fluttershy. "We'll be back as soon as we can, okay?"
With a nod from Twilight, she watched as Kai and Fluttershy took off into the air. She'd seen the magic connections when Fluttershy flew, but it occurred to her that Kai's method may be different. As she peered through the stone, she saw that his wings were functionally the same as hers. All of the magic flowing through them was being used to propel them upward. The only difference was that Fluttershy's was more controlled, coming down in straight lines, and Kai's seemed to fan out everywhere.
Fluttershy landed first at the doorway. Kai seemed a little worse for wear on arrival a few seconds later. This wasn't a long flight, and yet he felt winded. Chalking it up to a case of simple exhaustion from being on the road for too long, he shook himself before knocking on the door. After a few seconds, it swung open and a pegasus leaped out, tackling Kai "I knew you'd come back!" she shouted, kissing him repeatedly.
"What do you think you're doing!?" shouted Kai, pushing the mare off of him. "This is my first time here!"
"Whoops," giggled the mare, helping Kai back to his feet. "I thought you were somepony else."
"Clearly," grumbled Kai, wiping his face.
The mare giggled coquettishly. "Oh, don't mind me." She rapped her hoof against the top of her skull. "There's nothing in there. That's why they all call me an airhead."
"Uh huh..." grumbled Kai, causing a chuckle from Fluttershy. "We're looking for--"
"But you know who's really good at keeping track of stuff?"
"Who?" asked Fluttershy.
"Miss Bubbles!" called the mare, bouncing back inside. "Some ponies at the door asked for you by name!"
Kai and Fluttershy exchanged a discomforted look, then cautiously followed the bouncing mare. " Who is this 'Miss Bubbles?'" asked Kai. "Is she colleague of yours?"
The mare stopped on the stairs and gasped. "The nerve! I'm goin to tell him that you called him a 'she.' He's going to be so mad at you!" She continued bouncing up the stairs. "Miss Bubbles! One of your guests thinks you're a girl!"
Feeling very confused, Kai opted to keep his mouth shut, hoping it would be easier to just talk to this 'Miss Bubbles' personally, and not let this mare misconstrue any more of his words.
She bounced into a hallway and down to one of the walls, opening a hole. "Here he is!" she giggled.
Kai looked through the hole. A young-looking gryphon lounged on a cloud, lazily plucking away at a shamisen with what looked to be a paint scraper. He didn't really move that much, he mostly just sat there.
Kai stepped into the room. "Am I to believe that you are Miss Bubbles?" he asked.
The gryphon's head lolled to the side. "Do I look like a 'Miss Bubbles' to you? Do I even look like a female?"
Kai shook his head. "I don't mean to offend you, that's just the name I was given to address you by."
"Gal."
Kai cocked his head to the side. "Excuse me?"
"You may call me Gal. What is the purpose of your visit to my lounge?"
"We're after a tiny clear ball," answered Fluttershy. "And it should have some kind of shape inside it."
Gal reached into a satchel next to his swing and pulled out a bag made of netting. It was full of cat eye marbles. "Take your pick, I have plenty."
"Not the ones we wanted," scowled Kai. "We seek the favour of Hwouk."
Gal nodded. "Very well. First, a challenge."
The mare bounced and clapped. "You mean like a game!?"
Kai scratched his scalp and looked at the six boards in front of him. "Is that for bingo, Battleship or checkers?"
Prize thought for a moment before shouting "All of them!"
Fluttershy shook her head. "You don't have any pieces that can move to that space in checkers, and you already called that number in Bingo. As for Battleship, you sank our heavy cruiser." Kai wasn't very good at board games, a result of his growing up completely alone. Without Fluttershy teaming up and looking over his shoulder, it was unlikely he would have made it this far.
Prize had opted to play six games at once, adding to Kai's stress as they went on. This was supposed to make things faster, but all it had done was muddy the waters and make it more difficult to make good decisions. Aside from the three games that had a space named B8, they were also playing Clue, Risk and Candy Land. Fluttershy actually was involved in Risk and Clue, as they required three players, but otherwise, she was helping Kai as best she could.
It was Kai's turn to make a move, so he picked up three red dice and nudged two white ones to Prize. "Prepare yourself," he said, "for soon, I shall take back the lands stolen from me." He scooted his pieces on the Risk board into the southern section of Belicos and tossed his dice forward. By the end of his turn, he'd claimed nearly a third of the world map.
Now it was Fluttershy's turn. With a flick of the dice, she moved Missus Peacock eight spaces into the conservatory. "I'd like to make a suggestion. Was it perhaps Missus White with the candlestick?"
Prize pulled a single card out of her personal collection and showed it to Fluttershy. "Afraid not. Guess you wasted your suggestion." As she put her cards away, she drew from the Candy Land deck and moved to the nearest yellow space.
While Kai was doing particularly well at Risk, Fluttershy has been asking the correct questions in Clue, and with a little bit of deduction, he was now almost certain he knew the answer. "I know who killed the master of the house," he said, moving his figure into one of the rooms and reaching for the envelope on the stairs. "It was Colonel Mustard, in the kitchen, with a knife."
"Are you sure?" warned Fluttershy, grabbing his wrist. "If you're wrong, you lose the game."
Kai took a deep breath. "I know." Opening the envelope, he sifted through the cards. First to come up was the knife. That was correct. Next, he saw the kitchen. However, when it came to the character, it was the eight of clubs. "I'm pretty sure this doesn't belong here," he grumbled, furrowing his brow.
Gal looked over at them for the first time since the games had begun. "Hold that thought." He stood up, pulled out a deck of common playing cards, and rifled through them. "You said Colonel Mustard, right?"
Kai nodded and exchanged the cards. He had been correct. "My accusation was spot-on," he smiled. "That's a game won for us."
Prize furrowed her brow. "Is it really winning if you admit that your character was the murderer? You're going to jail, so I hardly think you should be happy about this."
"The goal was to find the killer, location and weapon," smiled Kai, "and I did just that."
"If finding out that he was the killer would bar him from winning, then there would be no way for him to win," added Fluttershy. "Unless, of course, both you and I wasted our accusations. He played by the rules and won. There's no need to be sore about it."
Prize folded her hooves. "Fine. It's your move."
Fluttershy rolled the bingo cage until a little white ball came out. "G fifty-four."
Prize let out a loud squeak of excitement as she slammed down her marker. "Double Bingo!! Yes! That's two wins for me, and two losses for you!"
"Not so fast," said Kai, holding up his card. "You see, I have a diagonal, here. One of mine cancels out one of yours. It's only one win for you."
Gal was about to interject, and say that a double bingo only counts as a single win, but by Kai's logic, it was still a fair game. It was one win for Prize, and a loss for their guests.
The games continued much the same way as they had. Kai swept the board on Risk, then Prize won checkers and Candy Land, and the final win came when Kai sank Prize's airship carrier.
"Six games down, and it's a tie," said Gal, shaking his head. "How did I see this coming?"
"So, how do we solve this?" asked Kai. "If it's a tie, then shouldn't we claim to be evenly matched, and you call us fine challengers?"
Prize shook her head. "One more game, and it's a tricky one." She slammed a box on the table, pulling it away to reveal a tower of small wooden blocks. "The name of the game is Jenga."
After explaining the rules, Kai went first. He took a piece from the bottom row and placed it on top. It was quite the first move, but he was at least willing to try. Seven sets of turns followed, with Kai taking end pieces from the bottom and Prize taking center pieces from the top. All in all, it was a very unstable tower.
Kai placed his piece on top, and slowly drew his hoof away. "This isn't going to last much longer," he smiled, folding his hooves. "Only a few safe moves left. Can you guess what they are?"
"Of course," chuckled Prize. She actually had the winning strategy at this point. If they kept going the way they were, she had more moves remaining than Kai did. She began to push the block of her choice out of the tower, when suddenly, the wind outside shifted directions. This sort of thing happened all the time, and it just meant a slight bump as everything adjusted to its new trajectory. Unfortunately, this meant that Prize was touching the tower as it crumbled into Kai's lap.
"That's the game," smiled Gal, holding up the orb they'd come for. "Take it and go, you've been keeping me from my dinner, and I would very much like to eat." Standing up, he put down his shamisen before slipping through the floor.
Kai picked up the wooden blocks and placed them on the table, next to a pouting Prize. "I can't really say that this was fun, but I did enjoy some of it."
Without a word, Prize pushed the rest of the blocks to the floor and folded her arms in a huff. Kai and Fluttershy took that to mean that they were no longer welcome, and they left the way they'd come in.
Luna was looking more disheveled by the day. Between spending her nights looking for Twilight and spending her days dealing with the panicking citizens, she was unable to find any time for herself lately. She knew it wouldn't last forever, but dealing with a crisis like this was more than she could bear on her own.
To make matters worse, Celestia was no longer returning to the castle. The least she could have done was to tell her face to face, but all Luna received was a letter. She understood the reason Celestia wasn't returning, but it would have been nice to part with at least a hug.
She rolled out of bed and quickly brushed her mane and tail, until it could be tied down. Whatever she could throw together to look presentable was best. While it wasn't the most fashionable 'do, it would suffice, and it was more important to be available for her citizens than it was to radiate the serene beauty of the night.
After a very quick breakfast that she ate while walking, she stopped in at the library to check on Spike. He'd gone through thousands of books, with thousands of pages in them, looking for something she didn't know about, but knew it was related to the disappearing patches of land all throughout Equestria. She wished she had the time to help him, to look into this and better understand it, but all she could do was make sure he rested well. She picked up the book he'd fallen asleep on and bookmarked his page, placing it on the table where he was keeping his notes. There were quite a few, so she organized them into a neat stack, rather than a random pile. She then brought him over to the bed he'd been using during his time here in Canterlot and tucked him in. The world was counting on his research returning results.
With Spike tucked away and snoring peacefully, she made her way to the throne room, where Several ponies were already lined up to talk to her, but she walked right past them to the guard at the front of the line. "Talk to me."
The guard saluted. "Princess Luna. According to most recent reports, three new rashes have appeared since yesterday. Two of them were out in the open, but one cropped up just outside of Manehattan. Tens of ponies have been marked as missing, but as the number keeps going up with new reports coming in, I can only say for certain that the number exceeds forty-seven." A scroll materialized in front of him, and he read it quickly. "Make that fifty. Fifty confirmed reports of missing ponies."
Luna shook her head. "We're doing all we can to stop this. We have multiple scholars looking into the cause of these rashes, and we hope to have answers soon. Any news from the Crystal Empire?"
"Nothing yet, Majesty. The patches seem to have moved right past them. They're surrounded, but nothing has appeared there as of yet. Some of my subordinates think that it might be safer there, but I think it's only a matter of time before they run into this problem, too."
Luna nodded. "Hopefully, we'll have a solution by then. Have you encountered any other of those ape-like creatures Celestia found?"
"A whole hive of them in the Manehattan patch. Six buildings that look very similar to ours, but taller. Apparently, they're larger than us."
Luna furrowed her brow. "Is the hive contained?"
"As best we can. We still don't know everything about them, but these ones are either unarmed, or simply better at following our orders to stay inside. The captain in charge has apparently talked to one of them, meaning they can hold a conversation. I'm waiting to hear back on his results."
Luna nodded. "That's good. Opening a line of communication with these creatures would be most beneficial. Anything else?"
"Just one more thing. Princess Celestia sent out for a weapons expert from Course to examine the weapon we found with the first ape creature. She arrived last night. I told her to report to you directly when she woke up."
"Excellent," nodded Luna. "Do we still have the weapon in the vault?"
"I'll send somepony to check, Majesty."
"While you're doing that, I want reports on the soldiers it injured. All four of them."
The guard saluted. "Yes, Majesty."
"Dismissed." Luna gave the guard a half-hearted salute as he ran off to attend to his orders. Luna, on the other hoof, made her way to the throne and sat down to hear the complaints of the common citizen. With the crisis going on, she'd made several announcements to try to calm them, but they still came forward with questions. Oftentimes, they came with questions she'd already answered in the recent press releases, but sometimes they asked good questions. Sometimes the questions were so good that Luna didn't have an answer, as she was left wondering, herself.
After a few hours of answering questions she'd already spoken of, a guard brought in a mare in Coursican formalwear. Luna quickly dispensed with her current citizen, telling them to come back again if they had more to say. While they were quite miffed at being told they had to wait, Luna had more important matters to attend to.
"You are the Coursican weapons expert, are you not?"
"I am," smiled the mare. "I hear you've been having problems with rifts opening up here in Equestria, as well. I'm told that you found something in one of them that bears a resemblance to one of our weapon prototypes."
"Yes, I was hoping you might be willing to have a look?"
"That's why I'm here."
"Good. Follow me."
Luna led the mare down to the vault where they were keeping the weapon. On arrival, one of the guards was sent inside to collect the chest. As Luna opened the box, the mare looked inside.
"It does look familiar," she said. "May I examine it closely?"
Luna nodded. "Of course."
Gripping it as one would grip a crossbow, the mare gave it a thorough examination, examining all the parts she could. When she was satisfied, she placed it back in the box. "If I understood how it worked, I might be willing to say that it's a good amalgamation between a crossbow and a small cannon. If it is not too much trouble, I would like to set up a small workshop in the dungeon to study this further. Four thick stone walls, with a big hay cushion against the furthest from the door. I may be able to figure this whole thing out."
Luna nodded. "I'll have it set up for you right away. I just need to know how best to defend my soldiers if another one of these comes through."
Kai was feeling pretty good about their chances now. Seven of the ten tokens they needed were in their possession, and only three remained. Things were progressing very nicely, which was doing very well for his confidence. He felt so good that he barely noticed his shoulder pain. If things kept progressing like this, he'd be off the road and ready to tend to it in no time.
Today, he was walking with Twilight. She and Nik had set up the camp very effectively last night, and had even gathered enough plant matter to allow them to have a hearty breakfast this morning. She'd more than earned the opportunity to ask Kai more about his knowledge of magic. Besides, he wasn't really hiding that information. If it helped her to understand what she was doing better, then he was more than happy to help. After all, she was unlikely to abuse that experience.
"So, whet happens to an earth pony's magic if they lose the function of one of their hooves? I know if a unicorn loses the use of their horn, it stops their magic, and any pegasus would have trouble flying on one wing."
Kai nodded. "It's very true that any pegasus would have trouble on just one wing, especially me, with my unorthodox method of flight. However, earth ponies are lucky enough that, unless their hoof is outright missing, they can work their magic. Even without their magic, they're still a force to be reckoned with, as some of the boons they received through their magic take a long time to wear off. The increased strength and bone density will remain, so long as they weren't wholly dependent on their magic for that."
"What about prosthetics? If we gave them a wooden leg, would their magic return?"
Kai smiled. "Not quite. I'm actually personally experienced with this." He flapped his wings to accentuate his claim. "You need a unicorn's magic in order to connect the wooden leg to the main body with magic, but it can be done. If you're lucky, it'll work, but it will sap some of your magic away from the other three hooves. Essentially, you'll be able to use your magic, but it'll be of a lesser quality and efficiency. Your best bet would be to not lose the limb in the first place."
Twilight laughed at the joke and they continued onward, enjoying each other's company. Today's trek wasn't nearly as far as some of the others had been. One of the boons to having come across the nomadic tower on the way to their next destination was that they were already almost where they were heading.
"Is there anything you can tell me about the next destination?" asked Twilight. "I don't want to arrive just to find that I have to wait outside again."
"Don't worry," smiled Kai. "Everyone can come in this time. It'll be easier if you know any spells that can make you breathe underwater. Do you have such a spell?"
Twilight furrowed her brow. "Not one that I know particularly well. I don't use it often enough to have it memorized."
Kai shook his head. "That's alright. I'll figure something out."
"Excuse me? Figure it out?"
"Yeah," chuckled Kai. "Custom spells, you know? I make my own when necessary."
"And you think you can make a reliable spell by the time we arrive?"
"I'm already working on it," he answered.
Twilight really wanted to see the end result. New spells were always a treat, and she liked to see how they worked. She opted to give him plenty of time and silence, to ensure he had everything he needed to make it work.
On arrival at the large lake, Kai and Twilight tucked the wagon away, hiding it behind some very large bushes before bringing Fluttershy and Nikolas out into the open.
Nik looked out across the lake. "There's a city just on the other side of the water. Wouldn't any pony with binoculars be able to see us?"
Kai nodded. "That's why we need to work quickly." He scrawled a string of characters in the sand that only he and Twilight could recognize. "You ready to try this spell, Twilight?"
Twilight looked over his shoulder. The spell was rudimentary, but she could find no reason that it wouldn't work. "You're sure about this? I don't want to try to breathe and end up with a lung full of water."
Kai walked to the water's edge and as he stepped into the lake, his horn glowed. As his face approached the water's surface, an orb of gasses stayed around his head. He spent about thirty seconds underwater, and as he came back up, despite the fact that his body and tail were soaked, his mane and face were still dry, and also pretty dusty.
"It's not breathing water, it's breathing underwater," he explained. "This will last about half an hour before needing to be recast. That's how long we have to make it to the bottom of the lake and into the dome down there."
Twilight followed the spell, casting it on herself and then Nik while Kai made sure Fluttershy was properly protected. With no further delay, Kai led them into the water, using his horn light to guide them. There was some attempt to communicate through speech, but the water made that very difficult. Twilight carried the rear, her own horn lighting up every member of their party to make sure they didn't lose each other. They had to stay together, just in case Kai's spell didn't work as well as he thought.
Fluttershy was amazed by what she saw. As much as she loved fuzzy little critters, one of her biggest regrets was being unable to communicate with fish as well as she would like. Sure, there were turtles to help her, but being able to see them a little closer was just wonderful. She spent a lot of the journey talking with a large carp.
After twenty minutes or so, Kai put a lot more power into his light. Right in front of them was a large, subaquatic structure comprised of multiple domes. Not far from where they were was a stairwell leading up into the smallest dome. It had one connection, that being the largest dome. That was the entrance.
One by one, they made their way inside. The moment they found themselves inside the air that filled the dome, they were met immediately with a horrid smell. Everyone covered their mouths and noses, wondering what was causing it. As they stepped into the main chamber, they saw what it was. Several bodies were strewn about. Three of them were lying next to the altar, arms folded and eyes closed. Others were lying haphazardly as they had fallen. This place had been attacked, and all of the attendants, known for their kindness, caring and healing abilities, were dead. There was nopony to issue them any challenge, meaning they had no way to claim the next token.
Kai trod across the floor to the bodies that were laid out neatly. They were dressed in fine clothing, and now that he was closer, they smelled less like dead bodies. There was still a stench, but they certainly smelled better. It was as if they had been coated with a deodourizer and a perfume
A door swung open on the north side of the room. A young-looking mare carried a lifeless body on her back, all dressed up fancy, like the ones Kai was standing next to. She trudged toward him through the shallow water that covered the floor, stopping before she reached him. A cursory examination showed that, while she was a unicorn, her horn was broken, leaving a jagged nub on her forehead. She was completely blind, feeling around with her hooves as she moved. She was also missing a hefty chunk of her left ear. She placed the body on the floor next to the others, arranging it in the same manner as those fallen.
As she turned and made her way to one of the other bodies, Twilight took a few steps toward her. Since the opening of the door, the only sound and movement had come from the mare, but with Twilight about to offer her aid, the mare jumped backward. "You're back!" Splashing some water on her face, the mare surrounded herself in a spheroid of water, with multiple tendrils emanating from it. "I won't hold back this time!"
Twilight only narrowly missed being impaled by ice spikes being flung from one of the many waving tentacles. "Wait! we're not--" She had to jump out of the way as another tentacle almost came down on top of her.
Fluttershy flew up to the mare. "We don't want to fight! We just wa--" She ducked out of the way as a tentacle came for her face, but as it flew past, it hit her mane and wrapped around it, flinging the poor pegasus around until Kai flew up and severed the tentacle. As the tendril rained back to the floor, it turned back into ordinary water.
"Looks like we don't have much choice," grumbled Nik, picking up a spear that had been embedded in one of the dead bodies. As soon as he did, a tendril wrapped around his ankle and pulled him into the air.
Fluttershy returned to the mare. "Please, stop fighting us!" She dodged out of the way of a tentacle. "We don't want to hurt you, in fact, the opposite!"
Kai slipped through the air, slashing the tentacle that had claimed Nik's leg, and catching the falling human and righting him before lowering him to the ground. "Keep on your feet, Nik."
Twilight had shifted to a quite clever tactic, deftly dodging away from the tentacles, having multiple after her at once, and teleporting short distances whenever she was surrounded. It was great for keeping the tentacles distracted.
Every time a tentacle would be dealt with, the mare in the center made a new one to replace it. Kai was on top of lopping them off, and also fairly swift at batting away the shards of ice raining down around everypony. He'd taken a few minor glances from them as well as having been hit multiple times by the tentacles. He was doing a decent job of keeping the others from being hit, but it wasn't doing any favours for his own body.
"We really just want to talk," insisted Fluttershy. "Maybe help you give your friends a more timely sendoff, or at least give them some kind of memorial service?"
"And then finish the job you started on me!?" growled the mare, punching Fluttershy in the gut, not with a tentacle, but with her own hoof. "You may have blinded me, but I see you for what you are! You murdered my family!" As her rage boiled over, the ice chunks turned to blasts of hot steam.
Kai changed up his strategy from hitting away the ice to blowing away the steam with his wings. It was less effective, but he didn't have much in the way of options.
Twilight was also less able to counter this. She had multiple welts and scalding burns from being hit with a blast of steam, and the moisture in the air was making it more difficult to breathe.
"We're not the villains you think we are," pleaded Fluttershy. "I beg that you let us explain ourselves. If you'd only listen to us fo--" she was cut off as a rod of ice connected with her wing, knocking her aside and temporarily ceasing the function of said wing.
Seeing Fluttershy fall toward the floor with no way to stop her impact sent Kai into a panic. The world around him seemed to slow as he changed direction faster than he ever had and propelled himself toward her. As he passed the mare in the water orb, his own wing hit her with such force that it knocked her out of the bubble and onto the floor, but he barely noticed. He was too busy turning upside down and wrapping his arms around Fluttershy's chest in an attempt to cushion the blow.
As their bodies touched down, the pain in Kai's shoulder suddenly shot up to the highest level it had been through this entire trip. He hadn't considered his own landing, he just wanted to be sure Fluttershy wasn't injured any further. This thoughtlessness had led to him landing squarely on that very shoulder, and the loud snap that followed echoed throughout the entire dome.
All was quiet as Twilight ran up to the mare and pinned her up against the wall, away from the water. "We didn't come to fight you; we don't mean any harm. But we don't want you to hurt us, either. It's very obvious that you've just had a traumatic incident befall you, and we'd like to do what we can to make it easier for you. Will you let us help you?"
The mare had shocked her diaphragm upon landing, and her breath has been taken away. She was gasping for air and had trouble standing on her own. The fact that she was helpless, and the ponies that had been just moments ago trying to stop the fighting were offering to aid her, in stark contrast to killing her while she was easy prey, led her to believe that she was in the wrong, here.
"Okay," she wheezed. "I think I'm ready to believe you, now..."
With Kai and Fluttershy assisting, cleaning up the dead bodies was much easier and faster. Even though Kai was only on three legs, he used his magic for most things. While Fluttershy was a bit upset that he was still trying to help with a broken shoulder, she didn't try to stop him. In truth, she felt a bit guilty. Her landing on his arm was the final act that broke it, but he insisted on helping, regardless. At the very least, he wasn't carrying the bodies, just dressing them up in clean, respectable outfits.
Once they were all dressed up, Twilight took the mare up to a podium, where she spoke at length about each of her fallen sisters. The travelling quartet didn't know much about the mares, so they didn't have anything to really say, but they listened intently.
She talked for about an hour, and as she finished, Twilight moved the bodies out into the lake for an aquatic burial, complete with a ring of flowers gathered from the seafloor. While it would have been easier to just tell the mare she had sent them off with flowers, Twilight had more integrity than that.
Kai approached the mare. "Now, I know you're probably not in the best state because of what happened to your family, but we still need the blessings of Crysoosuna. You wouldn't happen to know of any ritual or challenge we have to meet to receive it, do you?"
The mare took a deep breath and tried to put her hoof on his shoulder, but ended up much closer to the break in his arm. As he grunted in pain, she realized what was wrong. "It feels like your arm is broken."
"It is," he seethed.
The mare steeled her expression. "Come with me, right away." Drawing water to her horn stump, she used the tentacles to more quickly feel her way down two separate hallways, stopping when she came to a small room. "Are you still behind me?"
"We all are," answered Fluttershy, who was helping Kai walk. "We want to know what you plan to do with him."
"I'm going to try to fix his broken leg," she answered. "We were mostly made up of healers. I may not be the best we had, but I can fix a broken bone much faster than time alone."
Kai hobbled into the room and sat down. "I'll be fine. In the meantime, why don't you all go rest in the main chamber?"
"Nonsense," interrupted the mare. "We have bedrooms. If they were still alive, I know my sisters would have wanted you to rest comfortably, to the point where they would offer you their beds for the night. Go to the residential dome and pick any room, except the one labeled 'Seafoam.' That one's mine, and I can't prepare it for you while I'm in here."
With a hesitant nod, the group, sans Kai, made their way to the bedrooms. They were spacious, lovely, and had a magnificent view of the seafloor. The beds were even large enough for Nik to sleep in. As he sat down on one, it jiggled beneath him, and a smile crept across his face. "It's a water bed."
Fluttershy and Twilight found their own rooms, which were equally grandiose. The biggest issue they had were with the personal belongings of the mares that used to sleep in those rooms. The mare who lived in Twilight's room had countless framed photographs on the walls and tables of herself, a stallion and three children. Twilight guessed that they were the mare's family, and after reading the back of one of the photographs, she made a mental note to find her husband and tell him of her demise. In Fluttershy's room, there were several trophies and medals, all for swimming competitions. She was particularly drawn to one of the photographs. One of the mares they'd sent off was standing with a large trophy and a banner behind her was lauding a well-known charity that raised money to pay for medical procedures for disabled children. All of this wasn't what drew her in, though. In the background, waving a flag and cheering, was a young Rainbow Dash.
While it was just after sunset, none of them could sleep. When Kai and Seafoam made their way up the hall after his treatment, they all jumped out of bed and rushed to the hallway. Kai was up on all four legs again. Fluttershy wanted to run up and hug him, but she didn't know if he'd healed enough for that, or if she could hug so tight that his arm would break all over again, so she stood in the doorframe and smiled sheepishly at him.
"Seafoam was just telling me about the communal baths," said Kai. "I think we could all do with a nice cleaning right about now, so why don't we take a dip? Nik and I will take one, you two can take the other."
"You won't be joining us?" asked Twilight, directing her question at Seafoam.
"The second half of Kai's healing needs to be in these baths," answered Seafoam. "I have to be with him for that."
They all made their way to the bath dome and prepared for their baths. Nik was the only one wearing clothes, but it was common courtesy to clean yourself in the shower before taking a communal bath.
Nik lowered his body into the water and let out a sigh of relief. If only he could shave off his itchy beard and stop the ponies hunting him, this would feel amazing. The water was just the right temperature, and he could feel the tension in his back just melting away. It even smelled nice.
The door opened, and Kai walked in. With a bit of help from Seafoam, he, too, slipped into the rippling water. As seafoam began to run her hooves along Kai's shoulder, Nik scooted away to add a bit of distance between himself and Kai.
"I had hoped you would have warmed up to me by now," sighed Kai. "I'm not going to hurt you at all. Just the opposite, in fact. Is there something about that you don't understand?"
"Different reason this time," said Nik, making sure to cross his legs. "Communal baths are really weird when there's someone else in there with you."
"That's the point of them being communal," Kai chuckled. "You bathe with others. It's not that bad, honestly. Unless, of course, there's something on your body that you want to hide."
"Isn't there something on your body that you don't want to advertise?" asked Nik. "There's a reason we all wear clothes all the time. We call it common decency."
Kai let out a laugh. "I don't know if you've noticed, but we ponies don't always wear clothes. I don't have any body parts that you haven't seen before."
"Not if I don't go looking for them."
"If it makes you feel any better, I can keep my eyes closed if you exit the tub before me. No size comparisons, no complaining about how much bigger you are than me, nothing."
Nik said nothing. Kai's proposal was quite agreeable, and he didn't have a snappy comeback. More importantly, though, he was content to hear that Kai was smaller than he was. He wasn't about to check, but he felt more comfortable thinking that he was the biggest in that tub. After a moment of silence, a smile crept across Kai's face as he leaned back. While his arm still hurt, he was feeling just great in the bubbling bath.
Twilight sank gently into the warm water. "If we make it back home, I'm scheduling a spa day."
"I've missed several appointments with Rarity," Fluttershy said. "It'll be really nice to catch up with her again."
"I imagine so. I bet you'd have quite a bit to tell her after all of this."
Fluttershy leaned back. "Do you know what the cherry on top is? We're not even done yet. I have so much to talk to her about, and it just keeps piling up. I'm worried that I might forget all about an important event on this journey."
"I can go with you," offered Twilight. "I'll be there in case you forget anything."
"Thanks, Twilight. I can always count on you." There was a pause. "Do you think Kai's mad at me?"
"What do you mean? Why would he be mad at you?"
"Because I broke his arm. Wouldn't you be mad at me if I broke your arm?"
Twilight placed a hoof on Fluttershy's shoulder. "That was an accident. I know you didn't mean to hurt him, he knows you didn't mean to hurt him, Anypony who saw what happened would know that you didn't mean to hurt him. Unless you tell him that you broke his arm on purpose, I'm sure he'll forgive you."
Fluttershy sniffled. "I didn't mean to. It all just happened so fast."
Twilight waded a little closer and wrapped her arms around Fluttershy's shoulders, gently shushing her and rubbing her back. "It'll be okay. If you apologize to him, I'm sure he'll forgive you."
Fluttershy returned the hug. "Thanks, Twilight. You're a good friend."
"Besides, he's a big stallion. I'm sure he'll be fine."
"He is pretty big," admitted Fluttershy. "But he's very gentle."
"You see? I'm sure that however you choose to apologize, he'll love it. Any plans on how you want to go about it?"
Fluttershy lowered her nose to the water's surface in an attempt to hide her blush. "W-well, I did h-have one idea..."
Twilight pulled her head back. "Not what I had in mind..."
"Maybe not, but I think he deserves it. Especially if we don't make it back home in one piece. In that mausoleum, where we saw our funerals, I saw his, too. I don't want any of those to become a reality. I want to be with him, Twilight."
Twilight leaned back. "I don't want to be the one who stands in the way of your happiness. You mean a lot to me. But that's why I worry about you. I think you're too caught up in your guilt and emotions that you aren't thinking as clearly as you should be." She sighed. "Look, if this is really what you want, I'll support you. But I want you to think long and hard about whether or not you really want this, and if you decide you're going to go through with the apology you've planned, I want you to be safe. Nothing too big, okay?"
Fluttershy paused for a moment and took a deep breath. "I will do what I think is the right choice. You can count on me, Twilight."
Twilight breathed a sigh of relief. She cared very much for Fluttershy, and she didn't want her to have any regrets. She didn't want her friend to be lost in the heat of the moment and end up forced to stay with somepony she didn't like. Kai was a fine pony, but there were better choices out there. Plenty of stallions with no criminal records populated Equestria. Twilight was sure that at least one of them could emulate all of Kai's good qualities.
After their bath, Twilight went back to her room and lay down for some much-needed sleep. Fluttershy, on the other hoof, hesitated at the door. She knew she needed sleep, but she was lost in thought. Just as she was about to go ask Twilight for more advice, she heard voices approaching, and she jumped into her room, leaving the door lightly cracked. She watched as Kai, Nik and Seafoam walked back down the hall, chatting amongst themselves. The first to leave was Nik, disappearing into his room, then Seafoam into her own. Kai backtracked a bit before finding his own room for the night and stepping inside.
Fluttershy steeled herself and gathered all the courage she had. Stepping back out into the hall, she approached Kai's door, and after a deep breath, rapped on it thrice with her hoof.
"Come in," called Kai from the other side. "It's unlocked."
Fluttershy gently turned the handle and stepped inside. "Hey. How's your arm?"
Kai flexed a few times. "It's fixed, for now. Seafoam says I should have a real doctor look at it, just in case she messed something up, but it feels fine. Better than it has in weeks, actually."
"Oh, good, good." Fluttershy hadn't moved from the doorway. "I'm really sorry about what happened."
Kai looked over to her. "Don't blame yourself. If anything, it was my fault. It's been bothering me for quite some time, and I didn't say anything about it."
"But it never would have happened if I hadn't needed saving. Nor would it have happened if I had landed anywhere else aside from on your arm."
Kai stood up and walked over to her, placing his hoof on her shoulder. "I don't blame you for this. You were trying to stop a fight, you were struck, and I opted to stop you from being further injured. You literally did everything right. The fact that I was hurt was just an accident. Even better, it doesn't matter anymore, because the injury is cured." He took her hoof and pressed it to his bicep. "It's all fine. You don't have to beat yourself up over this."
Fluttershy's heart skipped a beat as she felt the muscles in Kai's arm moving around. It really felt like a healthy arm. She could hardly tell that there was ever a broken bone in it. There was hardly any fat, and the veins were pushing their way to the surface. She could actually feel his heart beating through them. "I-it really is healed... I can't believe it."
"See? Nothing to worry about."
Fluttershy nodded. "Can I... That is, can we talk? I want to know something, and... I can't wait anymore."
Kai nodded and gestured to the bed. "Come, sit down. What's on your mind?"
Fluttershy closed and locked the door behind her and sat down on the water bed. "It's this journey. I'm thinking about what happens when it's over. If we succeed, what happens to us?"
Kai lay down on his back and tucked his hooves behind his head. "I imagine that you and Twilight would go back to Ponyville. As for Nik, I don't know if he'll stay in this world or go back to his own. That's not my decision to make."
"But what about you? What will you do?"
Kai shook his head. "I don't know. I'll probably try to find Sky and Terra, if they're still alive. It'll be ages before the library rebuilds itself. I do plan to come see you in Ponyville, if I'm still welcome."
"Of course you're welcome," smiled Fluttershy, placing a hoof on his chest. "I wouldn't dream of barring you from Ponyville."
Kai smiled as he stared at the glass ceiling. "After that, who knows? I'll probably try to work my way back into society somehow. After this journey with you, a part of me is scared of being all alone again. At least if you're around, if something bad happens to me, I'll have somepony around who cares about me enough to insist that I seek medical attention." He chuckled. "Where can I find somepony like you?"
Fluttershy leaned down, rubbed his chest, and kissed his lips. "You can find me right here. I don't ever want to see you hurt again. If ever you are, I will immediately take you somewhere where somepony can tend to your wounds. After this is over, I want you to come live with me in Ponyville. I love you, Kai."
Kai looked into Fluttershy's eyes. He'd loved her for years now, and to hear that she felt the same made him feel as if his insides had melted. He couldn't move for several seconds, stunned into shocked silence. When he could move again, he said nothing. He simply leaned up, wrapped his hooves around her chest and kissed her. He'd not felt this kind of joy since the first time he flew over the Everfree Forest. He wanted to stay like this forever.
Luna sighed as she ate her lunch. This whole situation was tiring, and she didn't like essentially doing it on her own. She already wished this problem was solved, or that she had somepony to help her. It wasn't fun. She was so busy, only showering every three days, she ate between meetings and hearings, often while walking, and she hadn't slept well in over a week.
As she rounded a corner, she collided with something she hadn't seen, and her sandwich fell to the floor, landing next to a large binder full of notes. "Oh my gosh!" squeaked Spike, scurrying to pick her up. "I'm so sorry, Princess Luna, I didn't mean--"
"Calm yourself, Spike," said Luna, tossing the splattered remains of her lunch into a waste bin and wiping the mustard off her coat with a napkin. "This was just as much my fault. Now, what were you doing rushing around in such a hurry?"
Spike picked up the binder and opened the front cover. "I've cracked the code! I know all the places Twilight is going to visit, and I can guess the order in which she'll go. Look." He pointed to a map. "She was headed here when she left, and the only sightings we've had of her were here, here, and here. That's following this trail exactly, at about the pace of a pony travelling with a cart. If my guess is right, she should be on her way to this lake."
Luna looked at the map. Spike was right, the progression of events lined up nicely. "What makes you think this lake?"
Spike flipped several dozen pages ahead. "The last time these rifts opened, it was solved by ten different creatures coming together. It nearly ripped Equestria apart. They failed at the last minute, but it somehow worked out okay. I'm not sure how, but everything went back to normal. I think Twilight went to research more about this, because this first location she went to was next to some big, ancient library. She probably found all of her information there."
"That doesn't answer my question."
Spike turned a few more pages. "One of the champions came from that lake. There's allegedly some kind of building down there, underneath the water."
Luna examined Spike's notes. "It would seem the rumours of seaponies in the area were perhaps not as far-fetched as we had initially thought." She took a deep breath. "Let's say you're right. Where would she go before and after this lake-bottom building?"
Spike flipped back to the map. "Well, one of the places tends to move around. It's not marked on this map, because it's impossible to know exactly where it is. It's like Cloudsdale, but less populated. As for the more permanent points, before this, she would have made her way through the Lifewood Forest, and her next destination would be the Hidden Haven."
Luna furrowed her brow. "I know of the Hidden Haven, actually. Ages ago, they asked me to join them in the shadows. I opted out, as it was a bit more dark than I would like. I never knew its location, and in fact, we'd thought it lost to the ages. We've seen neither hide nor hair of them since I was sent to the moon. Celestia is still invited to the Sun Temple sometimes, but she can't stand them. All of them are fanatics who will let small imperfections rip them apart. We learned long ago that the only way to attain peace was to meet in the middle."
"Right, ummm..." Spike shook his head. "Anyway, if she's going to either the Hidden Haven or the Sun Temple, she'll be going to Belicos, and the last place we can catch her in Equestria is at this little border town." He pointed to a tiny speck on a more recent map. "It used to be a military checkpoint, but when Belicos fell apart with the civil war, it became a safe space for refugees. A lot of them started families here in Equestria and the vast majority are legally considered citizens. I, uh... I actually knew that from an earlier research project."
Luna scratched her chin. "Then the best chance we have of finding her is to set up an ambush in that town."
"You don't mean to hurt her, do you?" Spike looked worried.
"Not at all," Luna said, shaking her head. "However, we've been unable to contact her by any means. I'm going to have to have some guards bring her in if I'm going to have any amount of civil conversation with her to find out what her plan is."
"There's more," said Spike, grabbing her shoulder as she turned to leave. He flipped to the back few pages. "The ponies chasing the champions back then look just like the ponies that invaded Ponyville. They killed some of the champions, and I think they mean to kill Twilight and Fluttershy, too. After visiting all of the locations, there's one more place they have to go, and they'll need all the protection we can give her, or the whole world will fall apart. We have to protect that zone if we're going to keep them safe."
Luna sighed and nodded. "You can tell me more on the way." She lifted Spike onto her shoulders and took off down the hall.
Spike clung to her neck tightly. "Where are we going!?"
Luna's chariot landed hard in the middle of the military camp, a fact she didn't mind at all because she has grabbed Spike and jumped off before it touched the ground. She rushed around until she found the pony she was looking for. "Sister!"
Celestia looked up from her conversation, scowled, and dismissed the officer she was talking to before turning to Luna. "What are you doing here? You know it's too dangerous for us to be together right now. What if this area were to disappear?"
"It's good to see you, too," smirked Luna. "I won't be long. I'm just here to give you your new orders. Or rather, I'll leave it to your new commanding officer." Picking up a mildly airsick Spike off of her back, she scooted him and his binder forward. "He will save all of Equestria and beyond, he just needs the right support. That's where you come in." She turned and waved as she left. "I'll see you on the battlefield!"
As Luna took off, Celestia turned to Spike and raised an eyebrow. He chuckled nervously under her gaze. "I uh... I guess I should tell you what I found..."
