Trying to return home after The Event, the journey back to Ponyville will be a test in more ways than one for Twilight Sparkle as she unravels the mystery and legend of the land she has found herself in.
Trying to return home after The Event, the journey back to Ponyville will be a test in more ways than one for Twilight Sparkle as she meets an interesting pegasus named Avery in a land distant from Equestria. And from there, our epic story begins...
Twilight's mind was the first thing to return to her. She could tell she was laying down, but that was it. She decided to go through some basics in her mind. She was alive. Check. She tried to bring some magic to her horn, but was not feeling anything flow through her. Magic, not working. Unfortunate, but check. She could feel a sharp pain in her front left leg. Wait a second, she was...alive? The last thing she remembered was saying goodbye to her friends as she turned her uncontrollable magic on herself to keep the ponies she loved safe. Twilight really thought that was the end, she wasn't prepared to wake up, she wasn't even sure if she wanted to after what she caused. She took another inhale, it certainly didn't smell like Ponyville, or anywhere she had been before for that matter. She decided it was time for a visual to confirm.
She readied her eyes, ready to embrace the bright blue Equestrian sky with some rogue clouds here or there, perhaps even see a bird or two fly overhead. She opened her eyes only to be met with another pair of eyes staring directly back down at her.
"Yo," the other being said to her as soon as she opened her eyes.
"Ahhh!" Twilight yelled out as the other set of eyes stepped backwards in surprise. Her eyes shot over to the pony that was standing over her seconds ago. In her quick glance, she could see it was a dark yellow pegasus with a golden mane, most likely a male judging by the tone of voice from his rude introduction. And a cutie mark consisting of a rusted golden coin, not of Equestrian currency. It was lacking any sort of recognizable markings on it at all, strange, she thought.
"Jeez settle down! I'm not going to hurt you or anything. Just curious to see why you're napping in this field."
Twilight wasn't really in the mood for conversation. Her mind was still in overheat and here was a strange pony asking how she ended up in this field. She didn't even know the answer to that question, how could she answer him? As he stared quizzically at Twilight, she took the moment to sit up and observe her surroundings.
She was sitting in the middle of a field. A large circle of burnt ground around her. After the burnt circle, there seemed to be some dying foliage indicating there hadn't been rain in some time. She then took a moment to glance up at the sky. No clouds. Well, at least it looked like there were no clouds. The entire sky was a dark green that had the light soaking through it, but never full beams of sunlight. It was unlike anything she had ever seen in Equestria before. She wondered exactly where she was, and for that she would need to talk to her only source of possible information.
"Well I wasn't exactly napping, it was more of a spontaneous thing Mr. ?"
"Oh right, name's Avery!" the golden pony said with a smile. "And let us just complete the introduction with your name Ms. ?"
"My name is Twilight Sparkle, I'm the head librarian of Ponyville," she said proudly. Her words were met only with a confused look on her companions face. "I'm the pupil of Princess Celestia. I've been studying magic under her for years, first in Canterlot, then just recently re-located to Ponyville to begin my study of friendship."
"Right, studying friendship? I've never heard of this Princess you speak of, so you'll have to excuse my confusion."
"You've never heard of Princess Celestia! How is that even possible!? Even the littlest of foals know who Princess Celestia is! She's the pony that raises the sun every morning and keeps peace through all of Equestria!"
Avery raises his eyebrow and shrugs, "Still not coming to me, sorry."
"So if you've never heard of Princess Celestia? I must be further from home than I thought," Twilight mumbled to herself, "So where exactly am I then?"
"What do you mean where are you? You brought yourself here, you should know."
"Well let's say I didn't bring myself here, what part of Equestria is this?"
"There's that Equestria word again, I'm guessing that's where you're from?"
"We're not even in Equestria!?! How did I get this far away to a place where a denizen has never even heard of Equestria!? I've never experienced this before!" Twilight's words were mixed with anger and worry. She had never been so far from home as to have somepony not know what Equestria is.
"Well," Avery said, "maybe we have some information on this 'Equestria' at the library. Maybe Ace there can -"
With the mention of a library, Twilight's eyes light up and her tone gains obvious excitement. "You have a library here!?"
"Well of course we-"
"You must take me there!" Twilight said in a stern tone as bolts upwards towards Avery. This request fulfilled many desires that Twilight had. Not only would she learn more about where she was, but at the same time be able to see a library from a foreign land! How exciting this could be! Twilight goes to get on all fours but quickly returns to the ground with a gasp and a yelp of pain.
"Oh wow," Avery said, "are you alright? Your leg looks pretty torn up. I've never seen wounds like that." he said as he leans in closer to inspect. He notes that it seems as if tiny needles had stabbed through her whole leg. Though most of the holes have healed up a bit, there's no doubt that this leg cannot be walked on. "Alright now Ms. Twilight Sparkle, I believe it's time you shared a bit of information about how you got here, cause this the strangest conversation I've had in my entire life"
Twilight lets out a sigh but decided it's best if she has someone here in this land that knows the whole story, or at least as much of it as she knows. She filled him in about Chrysalis' attack on her town, her magic going wild, and how she sacrificed herself to try to save her friends. Avery did his best to pay close attention but his mind drifted elsewhere amongst the sea of facts being launched at him. She left out some trivial details simply to save time at the notice of this. Though she did get around to mentioning the Mist as the source of all this trouble, at this, Avery shot a glance over to her.
"Well I'll say that is quite a tale there miss. Now that Mist you spoke of, that's something I may know a bit about, or rather I know some people that may know about that."
Twilight gasped, "You know about the Mist?!"
"Well I don't know too much about it honestly. But there are plenty of intelligent unicorns and earth ponies in my town nearby, I'm sure we can gather up some information for you there."
"What about pegasi? Are there any intelligent pegasi or do the pegasi not find their way to the library very often?" Twilight joked.
"I think you're looking at the only pegasus for quite a way! Guess you'll have to figure out for yourself if I'm intelligent." Avery said with a chuckle. "Pegasi are a very rare sight around here, I haven't seen another one myself in years!"
"Now why's that?" Twilight asked.
"Look up." Avery beckoned with a hoof pointing upward. "Not too many clouds around here suitable for living. Most pegasi are far more comfortable living on clouds than living on the ground. It's just something we feel more natural doing. I've adapted pretty well towards ground life though so I don't mind living around here."
"I see. It's funny that you mention that, I have a pegasus friend at home that lives on the ground." Twilight's heart began to ache as she bowed her head in sorrow. She started thinking about all of her friends still in Ponyville. They must be devastated over the events that took place. They probably believe that she is dead and never coming back, or would they think it to quick to jump to those conclusions? Either way, Twilight made a decree to herself right then that she would do whatever it takes to get back to Ponyville. She couldn't stand her friend's heart to burn one day more without knowing she was doing everything she could to get back to them.
"You okay?" Avery asked.
"Yeah sure," Twilight said with a sniff, "I guess I just miss home."
"I'm sorry to hear that, you'll have to tell me all about it while I get you to the doctor."
"But what about the library! I have so much I need to learn!"
"After we see the doctor, that's the first stop we'll make. Don't worry I know the town physician and she'll get ya fixed up. It's not too long of a walk either, so let's get moving Ms. Sparkle." Avery lends a hoof to Twilight and helps her on her feet. He stands to her right for her to lean on as he brings her injured leg over the back of his neck and they begin their slow walk towards the east.
"Thanks for helping me up, and it's just Twilight by the way, but wouldn't it be faster if you flew us there instead?"
"Ah well about that, I don't really like using my wings. I guess if just never felt really necessary to me. I'm more than comfortable on the ground. I'd rather just walk and it's not that far to town, I promise." Avery turned towards Twilight and smiled while Twilight let out an annoyed groan.
"Of course here I am stuck with the only pegasus that doesn't like to use their wings."
To this statement, Avery let out a laugh, "Well you know how the saying goes 'Wings that are swift to fly into mischief!'"
Twilight looked at him confused and slightly annoyed, "That doesn't even make sense."
Avery thought on it for a second, "Oh whatever it's just a saying," he said as he began to chuckle loudly. And with that, the two began their hobble towards civilization on the beginning of a journey Twilight Sparkle won't soon forget.
Twilight took her hoof off of Avery's back and stood to the side. The pain in her leg numbed, as a feeling of amazement washed over her. They stood on a small hill overlooking a town. Twilight could tell from one look that the buildings were rich in history. With architecture similar to the buildings found in Ponyville, the buildings had a unique look of aged knowledge washed over them. Twilight stood at the apex of the hill soaking in this majestic sight when the most incredible of the buildings finally caught her attention. In the center of the town stood a magnificent clock tower, the likes of which she had never seen before. The grey stone that made up the structure looked expertly crafted even from the distance that Twilight was observing it from. It was many moments before Twilight was able to fully process the grand sight before her and at last she turned to Avery.
"Avery this is beautiful!" Twilight said to him.
"Yeah I guess it really is. I rarely look at it from the outside in. It does have a certain touch doesn't it?"
"So this is where you live? It's absolutely amazing! What is the name of this town?" Twilight said with a trace of excitement as the smile on her face grew.
"No clue."
The smile on Twilight's face instantly deflated as she turned to glare at Avery. "WHAT?!"
Avery flinched backwards.
"How do you not know?! How CAN you not know the name of the town where you live?"
"Uhh, never really asked I guess? Settle down crazy mare, we can both learn together at the library."
Twilight's anger retreated at the mention of the library, however the pain in her leg made a full charge back into reality as a crippling pain found it's way back into the forefront of both of the ponies minds.
"That is, after a visit to the doctor of course," Avery said as Twilight let out a groan, "now lean on me again and let's get moving, we need to keep you off that leg."
They draw nearer and nearer to the town before finally being absorbed into the very light foot traffic of the town's paths. Twilight didn't dare blink, lest she miss any of the town's rustic beauty. The town's buildings reminded her of the stories she had read about villages of the past. Simple, easy to build, but magnificent in their efficiency. Though she did notice a lack of roads, the citizens seemed not to mind as they went about their business. Suddenly the pain in Twilight's leg magnified, as if making up for the pain she had been ignoring up to this point while observing the town so studiously. She tried to restrain her body from reacting to the pain, but she bowed her head and bit her lip to hold back from screaming. Her new friend caught this.
"Don't worry Twilight, we're here," Avery said with his best reassuring voice.
Twilight glanced up as they approach, her eyes resting on a simple one story building. The only one story building she had seen so far, Twilight noted as they walked through the door. The doctor's office looked simple enough. A few tables laid out with curtains available above them to cover the patient if necessary. All the tables in the office were empty Twilight observed, except one where the curtain was drawn, obscuring the cure to her curiosity as to what lay beyond.
Avery propped Twilight onto one of the tables and drew in a deep breath. "HEYYYY LUX! YOU HERE? I'VE GOT AN INTERESTING ONE FOR YOU!" Avery shouted. The volume of the introduction nearly shocked Twilight off the table.
"Yeah right Avery, probably just another pretty mare with a scraped knee." This voice also surprised Twilight. Although it was said in a calm matter, it seemingly came from thin air. Suddenly, from behind the one drawn curtain in the room emerged the source of the voice. Out stepped a unicorn with a white body whose mane was faintly pink. Her eyes were a stunning crimson unlike anything Twilight had ever seen. Her cutie mark was a vibrant heart symbol. Twilight could swear that when she looked at it hard enough, she could see the heart beat. This focus was broken nearly immediately when observing the unicorn as a whole. Twilight had never seen such beauty in as long as she could remember. She would swear that her beauty rivals that of Princess Celestia, though her heart twanged at the idea of saying such thoughts out loud.
This new pony casually walked up to Twilight while she was in her observational trance and before Twilight knew it, they were face to face. Twilight gulped as the unicorn glanced over Twilight's body before finally resting her stare on Twilight's leg.
"Well well Avery, you finally brought me something interesting. This leg has had almost all its nerve endings completely fried. It's nothing short of a miracle that you're able to walk on this at all miss."
Avery brushed his shoulder nonchalantly, "Well you know Lux, I just love helping everypony I ca-"
His bragging is cut short by a yelp of pain that escaped Twilight's mouth as Lux grabbed her foreleg.
"Don't be such a wimp," Lux said to Twilight, as she stared up into Twilight's eyes.
Twilight tried to defend herself, but found that the words aren't exactly rolling off her tongue. Lux backed up from her new patient and spoke once again to the two of them.
"Let me guess, your magic isn't working, correct?"
"How did you know that!?"
"This wound seems to be caused by magic. Whenever a wound like this shows up on a unicorn, it throws their magic out of whack. I'm guessing that won't be functioning for a week or two."
At hearing this, Twilight grew worried. She hadn't been without her magic since she was just a filly.
"As for your leg, you definitely can't be walking around on this unsupported anymore. As much as I'm sure you enjoy leaning on Avery to go everywhere, let's get an alternative solution going. Avery, go get her that medical crutch I gave you, it's the only one not in use right now. You still have it in your house right?" this is answered by a nod from Avery, "and for goodness sake can you just fly there and be back quickly?"
"I don't think the wings will be necessary," Avery said as he stomped the ground with his hooves, "but I'm no slowpony on the ground either! Be back in a flash!" and just like that he bolted out the front door.
"Ugh that featherbrain. Ponies around here would kill for wings," Lux explained.
"Why's that?" Twilight inquired.
"Besides the every day convenience that wings surely bring, the nearest town is a five day walk from here thanks to all the hills. Getting supplies is a real pain in the neck, but for a pegasus the trip would be incredibly short. Maybe just a few hours with the wind at their backs." Lux said as she starts fidgeting through her drawers.
"I see," Twilight said, "so how long have you known Av-"
"Here it is!" Lux interjected as she held up a syringe.
Great. More strange liquids and ridiculous cures. That's the last thing I need. Twilight thought to herself.
Apparently this worry translated to her face, enough so that Lux could see Twilight's worry.
"Don't worry about this ol thing here," Lux said as she tapped the syringe with her hoof, "once this baby gets in your bloodstream it should numb the pain from your leg and begin to repair the extensive nerve damage you have in your leg."
Hearing this reassured Twilight and her worry disappeared, but for a brief moment.
"One thing though, until this is fully absorbed in your bloodstream, it's gonna cause quite a bit of pain. Nothing too extreme. But it won't be a stroll through the park. I've tested it on myself and made it through just fine," she said with a triumphant tone, "so it shouldn't be an issue."
Lux turned her head to face Twilight, so that the lavender pony was looking directly into the warm redness of her eyes, "So, you ready?"
Twilight began measuring the pros and cons. She truly had had enough of all these crazy cures. She always felt uncomfortable with the unknown, even though she was completely surrounded with it at the time. Couldn't get much worse.
"Uh, I gue-"
Before she realized what was happening, Lux had jabbed the needle into Twilight's leg. Surprisingly, there was no initial pain from the insertion of the needle. Must be because of the nerve damage, Twilight thought to herself. She watched as the liquid in the syringe drained into her leg. Once it was all drained she looked back up into Lux's eyes. Lux gave off a sense of waiting, time ticked bye for a few seconds before Twilight finally was able to get some words out of her mouth.
"Well that wasn't too bad," Twilight said as Lux stared on.
"It hasn't started."
As if on cue, a stinging pain began to grow in Twilight's leg. Manageable at first, but rapidly increasing in sharpness. Twilight began to feel more and more nervous as the pain grows. Before she knows it, she closed her eyes as the pain reached unbearable levels. She began to sweat and bite down on her lip to hold back from screaming. She felt her pulse slowing down. Twilight knew this isn't normal. When a pony undergoes stress and panic, her heart rate should be increasing. Twilight began to squirm and jerk slightly as her limbs reacted to the pain. The fact that Lux could survive this pain and put on such a cool face when telling Twilight about it made her consider promoting Lux to alicorn status. She got down off of the table and stood on all fours while beginning to look around to Lux for reassurance, but her vision grew blurry. She won't be able to stand much longer as her legs started to shiver violently. She can no longer pretend to be the strongest pony in Equestria or wherever she is now, the pain won't allow it. She opens her mouth to scream...
A scream never escaped her mouth. Instead she was met with something warm. Twilight felt her lips being separated by another pair of lips. Twilight's eyes jerked open to see Lux bringing her foreleg around the back of Twilight's neck, forcing their lips to mesh with each other further. Twilight's brain immediately started to attempt process what was happening, but to no avail. She felt her body get warmer all over and her pulse began to skyrocket. Her brain finally settled on the fact that yes, she was indeed having her first kiss with some strange doctor in some strange land. Twilight was unable to distinguish much apart from that however as she was experienced a strange feeling inside of her that was completely new and impossible to describe, all she knew is that it felt good. Not good, great.
What seemed like an eternity to Twilight was more in the realm of about 10 seconds as their lips finally parted and Lux stepped back before going back to checking the syringe and heading over to the sink. This calm, cool, and way too collected attitude towards what just happened finally broke Twilight.
"What was THAT?!" She exclaimed.
Lux responded with a simple, "Hmm?"
"You know! That! What just happened! That kiss!"
"Oh right, that! Well I've learned that medicine can be pushed through the body faster with an accelerated heart rate. So, I accelerated yours," Lux said with a bright smile that caused a leap in Twilight's chest despite her best attempts to seem angry. "Are you not feeling better?" Lux said quizzingly.
Now that she mentioned it, Twilight noted that she did indeed feel scores better than she had just minutes ago. She is still sweating and her heart is still thundering in her chest, but her leg feels far better than before.
"Well, yeah I do actually," Twilight said with a smile creeping onto her face.
"Excellent! Now don't go trotting around town with that leg, it's still extremely fragile even if you can't feel how damaged it is. But with that crutch Avery should be back with, you'll be able to be self-mobile."
Twilight stood there for a couple minutes soaking in everything that just happened while Lux cleaned out the syringes and returned them to their proper drawers. Twilight heard Avery before she saw him.
Avery entered the room, out of breath, "Wooo! And in record time too! Who needs wings? Am I right?!"
"Yeah yeah, we are all impressed Avery," Lux said as she turned to face him, her face suddenly filled with rage, "WHAT ON EARTH DID YOU DO TO THAT?!"
Twilight turned around to see the source of her fury, the "crutch" looked now like nothing more than a straight stick with a curved stick on top of it.
"You're lucky I know how to set a broken leg Avery...BECAUSE I'M ABOUT TO BREAK YOURS!"
Avery yelped and stepped back, but Twilight got in-between the two of them.
"It's alright Lux, this will do for now. I think?" Twilight said calmly.
"For your sake, I hope so." She sighed, "Alright Avery, bring her to Ira later to see if she can fix it up or make you a new one or something. Well, if Ira is in a good mood that is. Anyway, your friend's leg here is fixed up, so my work is done."
"And such great work as always Lux! How are you feeling?" Avery said towards Twilight.
"Great!" said Twilight. For more reasons than she cared to share with Avery.
"Fantastic! Let's get heading out."
As they were heading towards the exit, Twilight turned to once again face Lux.
"By the way, the name is Twilight Sparkle. It was... really nice to meet you."
Lux smirked, "It was a real pleasure meeting you as well Twilight Sparkle."
Twilight turns back to face Avery and start heading back into the town. She quickly adjusted to walking with the crutch and after a few strides, got up to a slow walking pace, which Avery kindly matches.
"Alright then Twilight, let's head over to Ira's workshop to see if we can get you something more reliable to walk on. I feel pretty bad about bringing back such a piece of junk."
"Woah woah woah! I don't think so." Twilight said in a commanding tone, "You promised me we'd be going to the library immediately after visiting the doctor. And I'd very much like to do that now."
"You can't be serious. You'd rather walk across town on that thing just to get to the library a few hours sooner?" Avery said with a joking tone.
Which was met by the very un-joking face of Twilight's.
"Sheesh, fine then. You really are obsessed with this knowledge stuff huh?"
"You have no idea. By the way, how did you get to meet Lux? She's really... nice"
"Oh me and her? We go wayyyyy back. We both got to this town around the same time. She's a pretty nice girl, most of the time. I'm one of the few people that can stick around her for long though without her just tossing me out of her life, though there have been some close calls. She's always willing to help the sick or injured, but being her friend is something many ponies around here avoid."
"Now why would those ponies do that? She seemed awfully fine to me."
"Mostly just being superstitious I guess. They say she has a heart that devises wicked plots."
Twilight rolled her eyes, "Can't imagine why they'd say that..."
A smile couldn't help but find it's way on Twilight Sparkle's face as she walked down the paths inside the town. She followed closely behind Avery and quickly became proficient in her four legged hobble technique. Random bits of conversation would float between the two as time went bye, Twilight eagerly awaiting their arrival at the library. Avery asked questions about Twilight's past and her road to Ponyville, it wasn't long before Twilight returned the questions to him.
"So what brought you to this town anyway Avery? Family? Friends?"
"Neither. I guess I was kind of drawn here and eventually settled down. Unfortunately that's neither exciting nor interesting, but it's the truth."
Twilight was a bit frustrated by the lack of interesting facts in Avery's past, "So how long have you been here then? Where were you before? I'm just trying to get to know a bit about your past."
Avery shifted uncomfortably at this statement before finally opening his mouth, "Well would you look at that, we're here! What a shame! I guess I'll have to take a raincheck on those questions. Now let's get inside and learn stuff!"
The sarcasm didn't escape Twilight's ears, she sneered over towards Avery but held her tongue. There would be time in the future for asking those sorts of questions. But for now, her curiosity was overshadowed by her excitement to finally be somewhere familiar. In a place surrounded by books. The library looked far smaller on the outside than it did on the inside. The library was three stories tall and upon a quick glance, Twilight could see it was stocked with books both new and old. Very old even. Some of them seemed to out-date the books at the Canterlot Archives. The main room held a spiral staircase accessing the floors above. The entrance way led to the center of the library where it branched out into three sections, each of them lined wall to wall with books. At the end of each section, the wall was covered in what seemed to be maps and charts of all sorts. It was paradise for Twilight Sparkle as she inhaled the all-too-familiar smell of dusty books. She was in a state of nirvana. So much so, that she didn't even hear the sound of snoring coming from the couch in the center of the room.
"This is incredible Avery!"
"Thanks. It's taken many years to amass this collection," said a voice unfamiliar to her.
Twilight would have been surprised any other day. But she had been shocked one too many times today and showed almost no reaction to the new voice calling from the couch. The once sleeping pony opened his eyes to stare upon his guests.
"A fellow librarian perhaps?!" Twilight erupted out, "I'm so excited to be here!"
The old librarian let out a deep laugh, "Now that's something I don't get to hear very often. I'm Ace. It's refreshing to hear excitement in these old halls. Most ponies around here push old relics and history to the side. 'Not enough time to learn' they say."
"Learning history is more important than I could ever express in words. Actions and situations throughout history will always be repeated, no matter how major or minor the event. It's vital to be educated on the dealings of the past so to be well prepared for handling them in the future."
"Couldn't have said it better myself Ms.?"
"Twilight Sparkle, librarian of Ponyville."
"Well Ms. Sparkle, you're a new face to me. That must mean that the quest for knowledge brought you to this place. I assume you wish to know something?"
"Oh I wish to know many things, I'm hoping you can sate my brain for just a few of them."
"Heh, well let's see," Ace said as he started to rise from the couch. As he stood up, Twilight was able to observe the rest of his body. His coat was a deep black hue and his hair was grey like that of Mayor Mane's. His voice suggested that he was approaching his elderly years, though his posture was that of a young stallion. His cutie mark was disappointing to Twilight, she had hoped he would have something related to knowledge or perhaps to his profession as a librarian, but instead it was just 3 white Z's growing smaller as she read them from left to right. She thought it to be a confusing cutie mark for a librarian, that is until Ace let out an yawn of impressive magnitude. Well, that explains that.
After the yawn, Ace moved to speak, "So what is it you two desire to learn?"
Avery chimed in, "I'm actually neutral to this whole learning thing."
"Oh shut it," Twilight replied, "I was actually wondering if you knew the name of this town?"
Ace stared at her for a second, "Well of course I do. Do I look like some sort of idiot?" He said as he chuckled.
"You'd be surprised," Twilight murmured.
"This is Cirle. Established.....well a long time ago I guess." Ace said as he scratched his head.
Close enough. Twilight thought to herself.
"Great, that's all settled. Now I know. Let's get rolling Twilight." Avery quickly stated.
"Not so fast. What about this land Ace? What is this country called?" Twilight asked.
Ace sighed. "That, is a different story unfortunately. Every studious pony in this land knows that it has a name, we're just having trouble figuring that out. It's not as easy as just 'poof' naming it. Records show that the land was once called something, we are just searching for that name. Legend has it that the name of this land is connected to the founding of this very town." At the mention of this, Twilight's eyes widened out of curiosity, "We just simply cannot find the link though despite all of our best minds digging through records and physical evidence. It's quite frustrating honestly. But it's an amazing case of history to say the least. Not to mention it has led to many intelligent ponies settling down here to try and solve the mystery, so I guess we can't complain."
"That truly is incredible!" Twilight exclaimed, "Would you mind sharing the tale of this towns founding then?"
Avery's ears drooped, "Oh great, story time. Got anywhere I can take a quick nap during this?"
Twilight shot him another glare before turning back to Ace, signaling an answer to her question.
Ace smirked, "Hmph, youth. Normally I'd object to storytelling, it's such a bother. But for such a curious and intelligent young pony like yourself, I'll oblige."
Twilight's face lit up in glee.
"Now where did I leave that book... ASSISTANT!"
From behind the desk in the center of the room rose another earth pony. This one had a coat that was light tan and a freshly disheveled brown mane. Is that the only thing everypony does around here is sleep?
The assistant gave a quick yawn and let out a short, "Yeah?"
"Do me a favor and find the Legend of Cirle for me would you?"
"Yeah, whatever," the assistant said as he turned his back. Twilight could see his cutie mark was some sort of red claw thing. She didn't get it, but quickly dismissed it.
"Why is everyone always sleeping in here?" Twilight questioned.
"Well visitors aren't exactly commonplace, and the floor is just so comfy," Ace joked.
"I'll just take your word for it," Twilight joked in return.
"Let me go test that theory for you," Avery said as he started to walk over to the floor near the desk.
"Nope. You're staying right here so he can pound some knowledge into that dense pony skull of yours."
Avery responded, "Oooh you wanna see a pony skull?! I've got one at home!"
"I'm sure you do," responded Twilight.
"You got that book yet?!" Ace called out.
"Settle down you old cabbage," the assistant called back, "I got it right here."
He laid down the book on the table nearby and flipped the cover open while they walked over.
"Consider yourself lucky Miss, you're getting told a story that's in text instead of his usual ones," the assistant shared.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Twilight inquired.
"His other stories aren't so 'concrete'. He's a deceitful witness that uttereth lies."
"Enough of your jabber," Ace said back in a stern tone, "Now get back to sorting before I remind you how fast these hooves can strike."
This threat seemed to do the trick for the assistant as he grumbled off back to work. Or most likely back to sleep, Twilight thought.
"So," Ace began, "let's give you the abridged version. Don't wanna be here all night. A few millennia in the past, before this town or this country existed, this land was bathed in sunlight. Far too much sunlight. The sun shone it's brightest fury across the this land. So glorious was the sun's rays, that no life could bear to exist in the sweltering heat. Then, centuries ago, a shadow was banished from a far away land by ancient powers of good. This shadow was expelled a great distance and soared across many lands before finally landing in this one. Normally, a shadow such as this would be disastrous for any place to acquire, but not here. It brought something this land needed so desperately, shade. The darkness brought by this being blocked out the sun's terrible assault on the ground, enough so that clouds being blown from distant lands were no longer instantly evaporated in the harsh rays. Rain fell on this land for the first time. And with that, seeds brought here by the winds could finally dig their roots into the ground and begin to grow. Plant life began to thrive, and following the plants, came the ponies and other various animals. No such blessing is without a price however. A price that you have undoubtedly observed for yourself. No direct sunlight touches the ground here. Only enough to sustain plant life. That is the blessing and the curse that the ancient shadow has brought to this land."
Twilight's mind could explode from knowledge ecstasy. "That's an incredible story Ace!" Her mind then brought a question up that she felt necessary to bring up, "But what does it have to do with this town being in the center of the question regarding the name of the country?"
"Good question. Well, legend has it, that this very town is the spot where the shadow made its landing over 1500 years ago, and is its resting place ever since then."
Twilight could feel her eyes widening from excitement. "That is certainly a thrilling legend. I now see why so many curious ponies flock here to this town. If I didn't have so much going on, I would partake in the investigation myself!"
Twilight and Ace laughed at this statement as she glanced up towards the window near the top of the library for the first time since their arrival and noticed the hastily approaching nighttime.
"Unfortunately it seems like it's time for us to make our leave. Though someday I'll have to return and tell you the story of how my country and my hometown were founded. It's quite a tale!"
"I would very much like that Ms. Sparkle," Ace said with a smile.
"I'll be terribly busy that day," Avery interjected.
Twilight shot another venomous glare towards Avery before turning back to Ace to wrap up another case of business.
"By the way, can I check out that book that we were just reading? It was incredibly fascinating."
"Absolutely!" Ace replied.
"Also, bit of a long shot, but do you have a book about The Mist?"
At the mention of this, Ace's eyes shot open. It was the most awake Twilight had seen Ace since she arrived.
"Now why would you be interested in something like that?"
"Oh so you do know of it! Well, long story short, it's kind of the reason I'm here I suppose. I'd just like to get to know a bit more about it."
Ace recoiled a bit, "Yeah, sure, one second."
As he walked away, Twilight turned to Avery, "Bit of a touchy topic around here it seems?"
"Just consider yourself fortunate you didn't bring it up in front of Lux. She might have lobotomized you right on the spot to learn a bit more about it. The Mist is quite a rare gift, one with it can either bring great joy or great suffering."
"Uhh, right. I'll keep that in mind and try to be a little more tight lipped about it."
"It would seem like that's a good idea."
Ace returned and set down another book on top of Twilight's first request. It was too dusty to read the cover now, but Twilight would get around to it. "Here you go, now I'll be expecting these back you know! That Legends book is a first edition!"
"Oh I have a feeling you'll be seeing me again! I'll have these finished in no time and back for more. It's not easy to keep me away from books," Twilight said with a smile.
"She's right about that," Avery grumbled.
"Sounds good. Stay out of trouble Avery," he nods in reply, "and farewell to you too Ms. Sparkle."
They turn and head out the door into the dusk while Twilight hands the books to Avery. She's more accustomed to levitating the books, but that wasn't possible. And thanks to her crutch, tying them to her back would just be a nuisance. Avery didn't seem to mind holding them though. Twilight decided it would be a good time to remind Avery how valuable knowledge is.
"So, now you know Avery, Cirle."
"Yeah great, for the zero times I'll need to know that in the future."
They both enjoy a quick laugh, then a strange thought pops into Twilight's head.
"Oh right. I have noplace to sleep tonight. Is it okay if I sleep at your place for the near future?"
"Wow Twilight Sparkle! And I didn't even have to buy you dinner!" Avery said jokingly, but then turned to see Twilight giving him a look that said 'I'd vaporize you into oblivion if I could cast magic right now.'
"Woah woah! Kidding! I was kidding Twilight! Yeesh! Yeah sure you can crash at my place, though I gotta warn you, I'm a collector of sorts."
"Interesting, collector of what exactly?"
"Erm, everything."
"Of course." Twilight said as they walked into the night.
Lux had just finished up her routine of cleaning and sorting all the syringes before returning them to the proper drawers when her ears perked at the sound of her front door opening. She whipped her head around at incredible speed, throwing three syringes with her magic and one with her mouth towards the front door. What followed was the sound of two syringes embedding themselves in the nearby wall, and also the sound of two syringes finding their mark and satisfyingly squishing into flesh.
A deep voice filled the office. "You're losing your touch Lux." The voice said as it stepped into the light, revealing a black pony figure yanking the syringes out of his body with his teeth.
"Ace, you should know better than to sneak up on me like that. And I'm not losing my touch, I decided halfway through my throw that I didn't wish to kill my target, merely render him or her incapacitated." Lux said with a hint of annoyance. "So what brings your lethargic self so far from the library?"
"It's about Avery's new friend."
"Oh right, the unicorn, Twilight Sparkle, nice mare," Lux said as she turned to hide the playful grin on her face.
"Nice indeed. I have reason to believe that she is the pony we have been searching all these years for."
"Oh? And why's that?"
"She never brought it up to you?"
"Brought what up to me Ace? We were a bit... preoccupied."
"I have reason to believe she has experienced The Mist."
Lux's eyes bolted open after hearing those words. "Is that so? Well that certainly livens things up a bit for us now doesn't it?" She said as she turned back to face Ace before continuing, "Nimis returns tomorrow from the errand I sent him on. I suppose we should finally go and have that talk with Avery eh?"
"I suppose it is time for him to learn the truth. There wasn't really a reason to tell him up until now. What about the others? Do we tell them?"
"No. Let's keep this between us for now, it's better that way just in case it's a false alarm."
"Even though I doubt this to be a 'false alarm,' I agree with you," Ace said as he slouched onto a chair, "I just can't believe Avery doesn't know. We all knew right away. I'm not sure why he doesn't, but I guess he will soon. It must have been hard for him not to tell a single person he's ever met that he's-"
After another brief walk, Twilight and Avery arrived at the apartment. Avery's apartment is on the second floor, of course, so after a brief struggle, Twilight finally gets through the front door. She is greeted by the sight of hundreds of items scattered around. All sorts of trinkets and momentos line the walls, floors, dressers, and any other reachable surface. Twilight couldn't believe the sheer amount of stuff held within the space she was standing in.
"What is all this!?"
"I wasn't kidding Twilight. I collect stuff."
Some of the items looked like personal artifacts while others looked like simple every day items. A thought immediately popped into Twilight's head.
"Are any of these things stolen Avery?"
"Uhh, I may have grabbed a few of the less important trinkets from ponies other than myself."
"Avery! You can't just go around stealing stuff like that!"
"I know! I make sure that the item isn't TOO important to a pony. It's just a feeling I have when I look at something interesting. The irresistible feeling of desire. I want it. I'm pretty weak to this impulse, as you can see."
"Yes I can see that!" Twilight yelled back to him as she began to explore the apartment more. All the stuff seemed to be placed at whim, except one corner of the apartment. Twilight walked up to five pedestals against a back wall of the apartment. These items were seemingly important, important enough to keep the rest of the clutter away. These five items sat by themselves, each on a separate pedestal. Even more puzzling were the items themselves.
On the far left pedestal was a tribal drum. Twilight thought it looked like something she'd seen before, then she remembered she had indeed seen something like that. During her stay at Appleoosa, the buffalo had been causing trouble to the town. She could tell that the drum in front of her was undoubtedly a buffalo drum. Weird object to collect, where did he even get this thing? Are there even buffalo here?
Next, a pair of goggles. They looked pretty high tech, but simple in design. Goggles were something Twilight didn't have much experience with. They were usually only worn by pegasi ponies while flying fast or manipulating dangerous weather. Maybe they were Avery's personal goggles? But he doesn't fly... so why does he have them?
Following that, another puzzling item. What seemed to be a part of a large deer antler. This antler looked different to Twilight. Deer antler she had seen in the past weren't as thick as this one. She decided not to spend too much time reflecting on this one. She had a feeling there was no way she'd figure this one out so she moved on.
The next item sent a shiver down Twilight's spine. It turned out Avery wasn't kidding at all when he said he had a pony skull back at home, because Twilight was staring it right in the eyes, eye sockets actually. As disgusted as Twilight felt she should have been, she couldn't help but giggle at the empty skull. The giggle that escaped her mouth surprised Twilight and she quickly scooted over to examine the last pedestal.
She noticed that Avery had crept behind her, watching her as she studied his artifacts.
"You weren't kidding about the pony skull Avery. Why though?"
"Be careful around these, they are of extreme importance to me."
Twilight noted that this certainly must be true, all the other objects in his apartment were strewn around in random order, seemingly without care.
"I will be careful. Why are these items so important to you? They just seem so random."
"It's difficult to explain. I felt like I was drawn to each of those items in a way I cannot emulate. I feel a bond with them unlike anything I've experienced before."
"Well that's interesting," Twilight said as her eyes glanced over to the last pedestal, "Oh wow I know what that is!" On the final pedestal was a shining piece of golden armor. But that wasn't what caught Twilight's eyes, the object on top of the armor was familiar to her. "That's a phoenix feather! Those are extremely rare Avery! My teacher, the ruler of my country, has a pet phoenix."
"That's impressive. Phoenix are said to be nearly impossible to domesticate. They will only stay around someone they sense to be extremely loyal. They hold pretty high standards."
"Princess Celestia certainly is that kind of pony. However did you come to own such a rare item?"
"I found it together with the piece of armor. They are inseparable. I'm lead to believe that the phoenix which that feather came from was the pet of the armor wearer. Who knows though, just a theory."
Twilight was impressed with Avery's change in attitude when talking about his collection. He seemed to take a more formal and serious tone, it was a nice change from his usual lackadaisical way of conversing about things. Twilight continued to stare in awe and curiosity before finally the events of the day caught up to her. She was surprised at her own stamina, the day had been quite taxing on her body but she hadn't felt fatigued until just now. Just how long was I sleeping in that field...
"Avery, this is an interesting collection but my hooves are starting to feel really heavy. Where am I sleeping?"
"Oh right! This way."
Avery guided her through the path that was cut between the piles of stuff laying around before they finally reached the end room. Upon entering the room, Twilight immediately noticed only one bed.
"Uhhh, I don't think this is gonna work out Avery."
"Why's that? Is this bed not big enough for you?"
"I mean, you're a nice pony and all, but I don't know if I'm comfortable with this."
Avery looked at her with a questioning look before finally understanding what she was getting at. He burst into laughter.
"What's so funny?!"
"That's not where I sleep! It's just a guest bed."
"What do you mea-"
Avery leapt onto a dresser before gracefully jumping into the air and landing on a cot that was hanging from the ceiling.
Twilight grew a deep blush on her face, "Oh, didn't see that. Guess you can't stay too far from the sky huh?"
"Yeah I guess so. I should be mad at you Twilight Sparkle! To think you would consider me a pony to take advantage of a mare in need! Never in all my years!" Avery said with a joking tone.
"Oh yeah? And how many years is that old colt?" Twilight said with a laugh.
Avery flinched, "You know what I mean."
Twilight noticed the flinch, "You certainly don't like talking about your past do you?"
"My past is a bit different than what you'd expect. You wouldn't understand."
"I'm a learned pony, and I'm your friend. Lay it on me."
These words hit Avery pretty hard. He felt comfortable around Twilight, and though he was reluctant to admit, she was his friend too.
"You know what Twilight, you're right. However, this tale requires more time and more concentration than I could pull off right now. So how about tomorrow after we get the business with Ira out of the way."
"Alright. Pinkie promise?" Twilight said as she stuck her hoof in her eye.
"Uh sure, whatever that is." Avery said as he mimiced her strange move.
"Excellent! Looking forward to it," Twilight said as she tucked herself into bed.
"Me too Twilight. Night." Avery muttered as he turned to his side.
Twilight was just preparing to fall asleep when a thought entered her mind and gave her heart a leap. My dreams! I should be able to communicate with Luna in my dreams! I'll be able to tell her that I'm okay and trying my hardest to get home as soon as possible. Twilight decided to try to accelerate her approach to sleep. As her mind was getting a list of steps to falling asleep in her head, her exhaustion finally caught up and she drifted to sleep.
Twilight stirred back into consciousness frustrated. Her sleep brought no dreams. She desperately wished to contact Luna and her friends back home. With her last hope seemingly crushed, Twilight was almost brought to tears, the sorrow of the recent events finally compounding into one realization, she may never see her friends again. Just as the first tear was about to roll down her cheek, she felt a presence in the room unlike anything she had ever felt before.
"Don't cry Twilight Sparkle."
A ghastly voice called out to her. Twilight's heart immediately began to race from the fear of this phantom voice.
"Is anyone there?" Twilight called out in a whisper.
"Twilight Sparkle"
She heard yet again a voice call from the room. She shot upwards from her bed and glanced upwards only to see Avery peacefully asleep, half his body leaning out of his cot. It's definitely not him, Twilight thought.
"Yes? Who is this?"
"Your role in this country has not played out yet. You musn't return to Equestria. Your presence is paramount for the days ahead," the ghostly voice called out.
"What!" Twilight yelped in a still hushed voice, "But that's all I want to do! I need to return home to my friends, I miss them so much," Twilight said as another tear welled in her eye.
"I understand Twilight Sparkle. But this is more important than you could possibly imagine right now. This whole land will be doomed if you leave prematurely."
Twilight was struck by this line. Avery. Lux. She didn't want any harm to come to them, and this voice certainly seemed serious. She reached a decision,
"Fine. I'll do what I can to help. What do I need to do?"
"For now, stay safe. All will be made clear to you in due time."
"Seems simple enough. But how do you know all this? Who are you?"
At this, the ghostly voice started to cackle. Twilight was sure that this would stir Avery awake, she glanced upwards to see Avery still peacefully asleep. She then found a smile creep to her face as she continued listening to the voice's laughter.
"Let's just leave that as a surprise shall we?"
The voice burst out laughing again and slowly faded in volume before finally disappearing.
The next thing Twilight knew, she was greeted by sunlight pouring into the room and the smell of cooked hay reaching her nose. She thought about staying in bed and reflecting on the past night, but decided it best to get some food in her stomach. She rose up and started heading into the main room, finding Avery working hard over a stove that must have been hidden last night under piles of stuff.
"There you are Twilight! I'm no Gordon Ramshorsey, but I make some mean haybrowns."
The aroma of the food was hitting Twilight in full force now as her stomach led her to a chair to sit. The events of last night fresh in her mind, she decided to poke around.
"Did you hear anything last night Avery? Any voices at all?"
"Hmmm, nope! I'm a pretty light sleeper too, so I definitely would have been up if I had. Sometimes the wind wakes me up though, so you probably just heard that."
"Yeah, probably. Say, about this Ira person we're supposed to be seeing today, tell me a bit about her."
"Alright. I know her a bit more than Ace but a bit less than Lux. She's been around town for a while now. There have always been blacksmiths here, but she is certainly the best." Avery said as he laid down Twilight's breakfast in front of her. Twilight viciously attacked the haybrowns in front of her, manners would have to wait until a time where she was less starving. Avery also devoured his breakfast before helping Twilight get ready to head out for the day. They were making their way slowly downstairs when Twilight felt some input was necessary, "I hope she is as good as you say she is, I'm getting sick of this crutch slowing me down. I would just teleport downstairs, but of course my magic is still haywire as well. Certainly my most vulnerable moment in recent memory."
"No problem Twilight, happy to help. One word of advice though about Ira. She is extremely competitive. Try to avoid getting into any sort of competition or confrontation with her. You won't win. Other than that though, she's a pretty helpful person."
"So you really think she'll be able to fix this thing then huh? What's her line of specialty?"
"Weaponry."
A loud gulp echoed through the front entrance as they stepped out into the town of Cirle.
Twilight could hear that they had arrived before she saw Ira's shop. The sound of metal being slammed against an anvil rang through the air as they rounded the corner and the storefront came into view. Twilight noticed that they seemed to be alone in this section of town as the sound of grinding replaced the hitting sound of earlier. Twilight was astonished at the amount of sparks flying out of the storefront as she approached, expecting to see a pony fully suited up in protective clothing. She was further shocked to see a small, fit, earth pony standing there sharpening a sword. No clothing covered her body at all, Twilight immediately thought this pony to be insane. Those sparks could singe a pony's hair off and burn through her coat in seconds! The pony grinned widely as she stepped back and admired her handiwork. The pony in front of her was light tan in color with a reddish-brown mane. Her body was covered in tiny scars, most likely burn marks, Twilight thought. She immediately came to the conclusion that this mare was fearless. Her eyes were a bright red. They reminded Twilight of Lux's eyes, but they were different. Where Lux's eyes were inviting, Ira's eyes seared into the mind, glowing the same red as her furnaces. Just looking into her eyes made Twilight feel more brave, more strong, but at the same time a sense of aggression grew within her. She broke her stare and looked at her cutie mark, a large flame sat on her flank. I guess that's atleast more fitting than Ace's, Twilight thought.
Ira stared at Twilight, then turned her head to Avery, "Avery! Just the pony I wanted to see!" Her voice was rough, just like the grin that decorated her face.
Avery leaned towards Twilight, "That can't be good."
Ira must have heard this as she burst into a quick laugh, "So, what brings you here?"
"Well my friend Twilight here messed her leg up real bad. Lux's crutch isn't gonna cut it for much longer. I figured you might be able to give us a hand."
Ira rubbed her hoof on her chin, "Hmmm, I'm guessing your friend here doesn't have any money?" Avery answered with a nod, "and you of course, don't have any money either right?"
Avery sighed, "Correct."
"So, let's scratch each others backs," she looked at her hooves, "well, figuratively anyway. You get my point, you do one tiny favor for me, and I'll get that thing twenty years ahead of it's time for free."
Twilight interjected, "That would be great!"
Avery turned once again to Twilight, "Settle down Twilight, no favor for Ira is that easy. So Ira, what mountain do I have to scale, what great monster do I have to face this time?"
"No, no, nothing too ridiculous. I just need a partner to spar with real quick to test the hardness and edges on my new sword model I've been working on," she said wearing a grin as she pointed back to her store window . The swords didn't look any different than regular ones to Twilight, but she assumed that it must be something with the metal working that was different.
"Uh-oh, I don't know if that's a good idea Ira. You do remember what happened last time we sparred right?"
"It was just ONE measly building. It was coming down anyway! Don't wuss out on me, you're the best sparring partner I can find in this town." Apparently she wasn't waiting for an answer and immediately hurried back to the shop.
"Ugh," Avery groaned.
"Please Avery!" Twilight begged, "I want to see her technical prowess! And I'd really like to not have to rely on you to get me around everywhere too, of course."
"Right, of course," Avery said, "Don't let her get into your head Twilight. She has hooves that shed innocent blood. Just stand wayyyy back, trust me."
Twilight stepped about 20 paces backwards, safe enough, she hoped.
The shop door flew open and a glint of metal came soaring out from the shop. Twilight could barely see it before Avery caught the sword in his mouth. Twilight fell back to her flank in shock. Maybe this isn't far back enough...
Ira came out with her sword on her back. She was walking towards Avery when she shouted out, "It's over when the opponent surrenders! And not before then!" She then bucked forward and caught the sword in her mouth on its journey to the ground.
Twilight's eye was drawn to Ira, as the flame on her flank started to shimmer with intensity.
"Uh-oh," Avery muttered out.
Ira leapt forward at incredible speeds, bringing her sword down in a vertical arc. She covered the distance between herself and Avery so fast that Twilight had a hard time believing she wasn't dreaming. Twilight was about to let out a shout of fright when a loud clang filled the air. Avery parried Ira's swing and used her momentum to drive her sword towards the ground. Avery turned his neck and swung in a horizontal arc. Twilight noticed the force with which he swung, This is not a normal spar! These are not normal ponies! They are actually trying to kill each other! Ira followed through on her downward momentum and planted her sword in the ground. Avery's sword met hers in its horizontal swing and a quick burst of sparks filled the air.
Twilight had thought up until that moment that she was the lone observer to this barbaric match when another movement caught her eye. In between two of the buildings, watching the match from about fifty paces away, was a young filly. The filly had a grey body, vibrant green hair, but no cutie mark. Twilight then noticed the filly's eyes. They were an incredible shade of green, but that wasn't what surprised Twilight. Her eyes stared upon the match, not with a look of fear, but a distinct look of loathing.
Her focus on the filly was broken by a scream she noted as Ira's. Her eyes immediately darted back to the battle at hand. Ira was now charging towards Avery again, letting loose a flurry of strikes. She watched Ira swing her sword back and forth with incredible strength and speed. At first what seemed to be random, but Twilight was noticing the slight changes Ira was making to each swing, trying to make every individual swing harder to parry and leading Avery to defend against the next one. Avery blocked them all with great haste though, allowing a sigh of relief to escape Twilight's mouth.
Ira noticed that her speed was not going to best Avery, she went for power. She reared her neck back after an impressive flurry of strikes and swung her sword horizontally with titanic strength. Twilight instinctively closed her eyes, fearing the sight of Avery being cleaved in two, but another clang filled the air. She darted her eyes open to see Avery spun around from the force of Ira's last swing. Ira noticed her opened and thrusted forward to Avery's exposed flank. Avery spun the sword in his mouth and somehow managed to parry her thrust upward, dragging her head towards the sky with her sword. Avery saw this opening and bucked his hind legs backwards with all his strength. He landed a bone-crunching hit onto Ira's jaw, sending her reeling backwards. Twilight noticed that not a single grunt or scream left Ira's mouth.
Avery removed the sword from his mouth, "Good match Ira, that was intense," he said while wiping sweat away from his forehead.
Ira got up and slammed the ground in rage. She reared her head back and spit out a few teeth and some blood onto the ground next to her. "I'm not done with you yet!" She rushed over to her shop window and with one quick jab from her hoof, she shattered the front window and grabbed another sword. What's a new sword going to do? Twilight wondered. As Ira prepared to go again, it was made clear. She put one sword in her mouth, grabbed the other one with both of her hooves, and put that one in her mouth as well. Twilight could only gasp as she watched Ira's mouth clutch down on them with enough strength to snap bones.
"Oh horseapples," was all Avery had time to say before he put his sword back in his mouth and prepared for the next barrage.
Two swords?! How is she going to still use them skillfully?!
Twilight soon got her answer. Ira charged forward, cocking her head backwards. When she was halfway towards Avery, she shot her neck forward and launched one of the swords towards Avery. The sword was right on target, and moving so fast Twilight could only barely catch a glimpse of it before Avery brought his head upwards at just the right moment, launching the sword high into the air. By the time he finished that action, Ira was right in front of him swinging her sword across, directly at Avery's chest. Avery cocked his head and drove his sword into the ground, stopping her swing with a loud clang as sparks shot out in multiple directions. Avery and Ira stared into each others eyes for just a brief moment before a large grin grew on Ira's face. It took Avery only half a second longer to realize what was happening, but by then it was too late. Ira dropped the sword she held in her mouth and leaped into the air, grabbing the falling sword that Avery had parried earlier with her forelegs. Avery had no time to back up far enough to get out of her reach and his sword was still firmly in the ground. Twilight tried to keep her eyes open, but couldn't bare the sight of her friend being killed. She expected to hear the sound of flesh being parted, but was instead met with a stiff, blunt sound. Twilight opened her eyes, prepared for the worst, but was instead greeted with something even more surprising.
Avery had brought his wings up to block the blade in mid air. Ira's hind legs where now on the ground as her forelegs still supported the sword that had been stopped. Twilight stared on in awe as blood started to run down Avery's wings and onto the ground. She surely thought that the blow would have broken his wings, but other than a cut, he seemed to be okay.
She looked towards Ira's face and found she wasn't the only one wearing a surprised expression. Ira seemed genuinely shocked as well. "Well Avery, I didn't see that coming."
A slight grin appeared on Avery's face before Ira continued.
"Too bad it's put you out of position!"
It all happened so fast.
In one swift motion, Ira dropped the sword that was held by her forelegs. Riding the momentum downwards, she slammed the ground with her falling forelegs. This action did two things. Firstly, It threw Avery off his firm footing. Secondly, it sent the sword she dropped earlier jetting upwards. She caught the sword in her mouth and swung. Avery did his best to jet himself backwards to dodge, but only partially succeeded. Her slash found its target, slicing through Avery's left foreleg, removing it in one clean slash.
Twilight's eyes jerked open as she stood there in disbelief. She tried to scream, but her body wasn't responding. All she could do is stare as Avery fell backwards, leaving his dismembered leg on the ground. She looked towards Ira's face, expecting to see remorse, but only saw a victorious grin that send shivers down her spine.
Then her eyes turned towards her friend, he immediately started to get back up on three legs. He looked down at his former leg. Twilight expected to see a face of horror or shock, but instead, he looked nervous. What's with these ponies?! Do they have any idea what has happened?!
Avery turned to face Ira, "Ira you've gone too far! Look what you've done to me! You've permanently crippled me!"
Ira's grin grew on her face, "We both know that's not true Avery."
What does she mean by that! Of course he's crippled! He's just lost a leg for Celestia's sake! He's going to be suffering from major blood los-
That's when Twilight looked below where Avery's leg once was. No blood. That isn't possible! He should be bleeding profusely right now! She glanced upwards at his face once more, now he looked of shock.
"How...did you know?" He muttered.
Twilight's eyes were brought to the dismembered leg, she saw it gradually disappearing on the ground right in front of her eyes. She turned back to Avery to see the stump where his leg formally was, to start growing downwards. Twilight couldn't believe her eyes as, before long, Avery's leg had completely regenerated. There was her friend, standing on four legs again, where just a mere minute ago he had been standing with three.
Avery turned to Twilight, about to open his mouth, but Twilight was quicker.
Silence was all that filled the square. A sudden change from the uninterrupted chaos that had prior filled the air. Twilight was left to stare in awe at what just transpired. She had nothing but her thoughts.
So let's go over this. Avery had his leg cut off. Then it grew back in a matter of seconds. Impossible for magic, yet unexplainable otherwise. By the way Ira reacted, she knew that would happen. How could she? Avery acted as though noone would expect that, and rightfully so. So how much does Ira know? More than Avery thinks she knows, that's for certain. Twilight's mind went back to the previous evening and the voice that called out to her, Is this what the voice meant? Is this connected to the role I'm supposed to play?
In the short time Twilight was going over this in her head, Avery grew increasingly fidgety, while Ira stood with a satisfied smirk across her face.
Avery finally spoke, "Listen Twilight, I can explain. It's just that... I wanted to talk about..." His look of worry turned to panic as he turned and bolted away from the scene.
"Avery wait!" Twilight called out to him, yielding no response. Frustrated, she turned to Ira, "You knew that was going to happen, didn't you!?"
By now, Ira was casually strolling back into her shop, "Me? Nah. Oh yeah, about that crutch. You can come pick it up tomorrow." She said with a playful smirk, then disappeared inside.
Twilight was now left fuming with anger by herself in the square. She hated being left in the dark, not knowing. The feelings she experienced reminded her of her last days in Ponyville. The same crushing weight of the unknown that plagued her mind as she began to experience symptoms.
The anger on her face dissipated when she turned from the shop and saw the filly with vibrant green hair once again. Twilight began to step towards her, before she too turned from Twilight and ran. She was truly alone. Alone, but not without objective. She decided to focus on finding Avery and try to get some answers. She thought about where Avery would eventually end up. In a sudden moment of clarity, the answer came to her. Simple.
After an hour of hobbling through town, she was face to face with Avery once again.
"I'm not the best at hiding, am I?" Avery stated with a light smile.
"Usually, this would have been the last place I'd check. But I remembered what you said earlier about your connection with these artifacts, it was a pretty safe hunch."
"I should have figured you'd find me. You're the smartest pony I've ever met after all. These objects have always called to me during times like this."
"Times like what?"
"When I get worried about who, or what, I am."
His emphasis on the word "what" was concerning to Twilight, though she willed her face to not display this thought.
"Can we talk about it? I'm at a loss for explanations honestly. Let's take this moment to have you teach me something huh?" Twilight said, giving him a light nudge.
"I guess it would be nice to tell someone, after all these years."
"All these years?"
"Yeah. I'm a little over 1500 years old. Give or take..."
"WHAT?!"
She noticed Avery flinch.
"I mean, wow, that's something," She said, hoping she didn't scare him off the topic.
Avery sighed, "Well, I was never a filly. That I can remember anyway. I've always been exactly like this. I also can regenerate from any wound. I suppose I've never found it's absolute limit, but it's not really something I'm interested in exploring."
"That's incredible! Is it magic? Some sort of invulnerability spell? I don't see a horn on you, so that rules out you as an Alicorn..."
"I have no idea."
"Of course you don't. Still, 1500 years?! All the knowledge you must have gathered! All the things you must know! Have you been hiding your true intelligence all along?!"
"Nah, I just don't really bother to remember most things. Gathering knowledge isn't really something that interests me."
Twilight hung her head in complete defeat, "Of course," then gathering an even more defeated tone, "all those years...wasted."
"Oi. It's not that bad Twilight."
Twilight sighed, "any more you care to share?"
Avery rubbed his chin, "well I've been living in this town now for as long as I can remember. I've only left a few times in my life. To gather these items." He said as he directed his hoof at the pedestals. "I can't explain it Twilight, but they called to me. I always knew right where to look for them. Like I left them there in the first place."
Twilight continued to wrap her brain around the whole situation, "I think I understand Avery, but I have another question for you. Ira didn't seem too surprised when your leg grew back. Is there any chance she's like you as well?"
"Hmm, I don't think so. She's only been around for 50 years. Unless you want to go over there and chop one of her legs off, I'd be safe assuming that she isn't like me."
"50 years!? No way! She looks like she isn't a day older than 25. And she moves more like the most fit pony I've ever seen in my life!"
"I guess that's a point. But I specifically remember her moving in to town not long after the last blacksmith died. I guess she saw the opportunity and took it, or something like that. Never really thought about it."
"Right," Twilight said, "speaking of Ira, she said we could pick up the new crutch tomorrow."
"Is it okay if I leave that up to you? I'm not feeling up to having some idle chat with a pony that just sliced my leg off."
"That seems fair enough. I can handle that." What in Celestia's name am I going to say to her?
Twilight reached over to give Avery a friendly hoof around the neck when she noticed all the dried blood down the back of his mane and on his wings. "Are your wings okay Avery? That block was incredible! And your swordsmanship was unlike anything I've ever seen!"
Avery spread his wings to get a closer look. Twilight had never noticed before, but his wings were the most stunning gold color she had ever seen. The inside of his wings twinkled so finely, as if gold dust has been spread over his plumage. Avery caught onto her stare and quickly folded them back up. "They look fine to me! I'm sure I'd be in much worse shape if I wasn't... whatever I am."
"Avery, I promise to do whatever I can to help you find out more about yourself while I'm here. I'll do some research in the library with Ace and I'll try to get to the bottom of this."
"Thanks Twilight. I really do appreciate it. You're the first pony I've told any of this too, and it looks like I've made a good choice in that," Avery said with water gathered in his eyes.
"I'm honored Avery." Twilight responded, "one last question and that's it, I swear."
"Shoot."
"Earlier, when you were in your duel, I saw a filly watching closely from the side alley. She had a grey coat with a bright green mane."
"Oh, so you met Trist?"
"I would hardly call it a proper meeting. Trist is her name?"
"Yep. She is the only homeless filly I've ever seen in this town. No family or anything, sad stuff. She always flees when ponies approach her, myself included. I only know her name because Lux told me that she once treated a wound that Trist had gotten when she fell on the path. Strange filly."
"That is sad indeed."
Another silence filled the area, but only for a brief moment.
"Well, I'm gonna go on a walk," Avery said.
"Would you like some company?" Twilight said, forgetting about her damaged leg.
"Actually, I think I'll take this one solo. But thanks for listening Twilight. You're a great friend."
Twilight couldn't fight back the smile that crept up onto her face as Avery turned and left. It was well into the afternoon, and dusk was approaching. It was the first alone time Twilight has had since Avery found her. She began to think of her friends back in Ponyville. Fluttershy would do just about anything to try and help that poor filly. Pinkie would just want her to smile. Rainbow Dash would really have loved that sword fight. The familiar heartache returned to Twilight, and she could feel her heart sinking lower and lower.
"What did I say about crying, Twilight Sparkle?"
"I wasn't cryi- wait! That voice again! I'm not crazy!"
The voice echoed around the room.
"No, you're not. But I am! Just a little anyway!" The voice began to cackle and Twilight found herself unable to suppress the giggle that was building up inside of her. She started walking towards the kitchen, still wearing a smile.
"So who are you?"
"Ruining the Surprise already? Hmm, you're getting cold."
Twilight took another step towards the bedroom.
"Freezing cold!"
Twilight deadpanned, "really?"
"Where's your sense of FUN?!
Twilight sighed and slowly moved back towards the kitchen.
"Back on track."
She stepped towards the piles of junk lying around the floor.
"Warmer."
She inched towards the door.
The sound of teeth chattering filled the air, "Brrrrrr."
The only area left, was the pedestals. Twilight moved towards them.
"You're burning up!"
She moved in front of each one left to right. Carefully examining them, waiting for directions from the voice.
She at last reached the skull lying on top of the far right pedestal. She moved closer, until she was looking eye to eye socket with the lifeless relic.
SURPRISE!
The skulls lower jaw moved as it screamed directly into Twilight's face. The sheer volume sent Twilight reeling back into piles of junk, knocking down a large tower of trinkets on top of her body. The skull started an incredible volley of laughter, going on for quite some time before finally calming down. Just as Twilight regained her composure and swept the last of the dust off of her mane, the skull spoke again.
"Twilight Sparkle, the current Element of Magic. We need to talk."
