Alca Forte's Backstory

I threw myself off the train before it reached the final stop in Canterlot.

Ever since Cloudsdale had been destroyed from the war, most of the pegasi were housed here. But one would never actually see them flying about unless he or she looked to the east for the camps and training fields. Including where I trained as well.

The reason why? To the west, was a dragon.

The dragon was not a major problem; it usually left the town undisturbed.

Until Celestia decided to have it slain.

There were many reasons to slay a dragon. Pegasi were stubborn and cocky; a dragon’s death would only add more to boast about. Its slayer was said to receive the title of Solar Guardian, always to stand beside Celestia within her court as her personal. I never really heard of what the supposed “guardian” would, but the honor of slaying a dragon and this “prestigious” title attracted many. The matter of pride was enough to motivate the pegasi, but Celestia herself did not care for that. It was the potential wealth. Dragons collect wealth from their victims, taking bits and baubles as their treasures. Money, for perhaps the royal treasury, used in the war? Aside from the immediate treasure, there was also the matter of Blue Silver. Upon its death, the dragon releases a certain magic, or something, that creates this valuable mineral underneath its corpse. Within the cave, another mine would be established to harvest the ground. The cerulean stone would be eventually refined and forged into the golden armor used for Celestia’s elite troops.

If the dragon’s death would have brought so much, why was it still alive? I have my own musings for this. Perhaps the gryphons were also keeping watch here; any large-scale advance would be noticed and would instead cause a battle; just throw in a dragon roasting both sides. Perhaps pegasi would object to a large group killing the dragon; who is to claim the honor then? Perhaps Celestia was hesitant to send troops for some reason, like leaving an opening for attacks?

Uhm. I should really stop all this rambling...

When I arrived at the mountain where the dragon slept, I found a few tents set up a good distance from the den. I made sure not to alert the lookouts, but I did snag a single shield for my plan.

A dragon’s treasure is his trophy.
And if you even tried to come near it, he would see it as you trampling on his honor.
There have been stories where dragons razed entire villages and towns, merely because of a foal accidentally stumbling onto the treasure. Truly a beast to be feared.

No pony could get near to the dragon’s treasure without being promptly roasted to a crisp. So, I did not get close at all. Or rather, I had no reason to. With the small bag of bits I had taken from that guard, I made a small trail leading towards the camp. And with my telekinesis, I snagged a few bits and a brilliant gem from the treasure hoard, tossing it in the camp’s general direction. The dragon awoke to the sight and sound of its prizes rolling away, and promptly stepped outside, where I hid myself with the adult-sized shield.

I assume his gaze followed the path of coins from the resounding roar. The dragon slowly rose up into the sky, preparing to incinerate the camp. I could make out the distant chime of the castle bells, as well as the outlines of approaching pegasus warriors. The dragon made quick work of the camp, as he headed off to confront the city of Canterlot.

I stepped past the burnt remains of the forest, stopping to check on Canterlot every so often, working my way towards my father’s workshop. The blazing lights from the Canterlot buildings were enough to illuminate my way, outlining the abandoned tower in the east.

Like I mentioned before, Scild Forte, or my deceased father had a fondness for 'lesser ponies.' His kindness had made him somewhat of an outcast of society, but he still maintained influence with his inventions. However, when he first attempted to involve Earth Ponies and Unicorns in the war, he was immediately met with anger and rejection. And so, he immediately had this built.

I was surprised to find that it wasn’t covered with massive vines or something similar. For an abandoned tower on the outskirts of the town, you would imagine that it would be messy for quite some time. It seemed the same as it always did whenever I had free time.

How long had it been since my last visit? Perhaps a year? Yes, I believe that was how long ago he had finished his massive project. I had always snuck here whenever I had free time for the trip back and forth. Which to say, not many days at all. Perhaps a day each month? And when the projected had finished... I never returned back.

Well, I suppose that does not matter now...

The ground floor was unsurprisingly cluttered with paper scrolls and small machine components. Some of the wooden tables were flipped over onto their side and the spiral staircase seemed to have taken some damage from a blunt object. I would not be surprised if somepony was sent here to snoop around.

The second floor were my father’s living quarters. He would always pace back and forth within this floor, unless he actually had an idea. For a member of one of the most prestigious families, or at least what used to be, he did not enjoy extravagance as much as other ponies. Quite plain.

And then the third floor. I had never entered through this door and from the looks of it, nopony ever did. In fact, what was this door doing here? This was not here before...

The door appeared to be completely made of Blue Silver and also had visible marks of attempts to break it and remove it. My father must of really wanted to keep somepony out of here. Beside the golden door, there appeared to be a place where one would place their face in. Below the slot, there was a small wooden sign which read “Retina Scanner.” When did my father even invent this or even get this door? In any case, retina refers to... some part of the eye, so I gave the scanner a shot.

A click rung out from the door as it slowly swung open.

The third floor was empty if one ignored the lone chest in the middle. Perhaps something that could be of use to me here?

I threw open the chest’s cover.

At the bottom laid two weapons. One appeared to be a prototype for some firearm. The only strange thing is that it did not seem to be usable by ponies at all. I did not see any external way of triggering a shot, except for this one part but it was impossible to push it with hooves. The other weapon appeared to be a crossbow-like object made of wood and blue silver. A red gem was embedded into the area where string met the bow.

Laying above the arms was my father’s black top hat with its red satin ribbon. I always wanted to don it myself, seeing my father always playing around with it every time he was brainstorming. I even remember once when I asked him to let me try it on. He looked down at me and plopped the hat onto my head, but I was so small at the time that it completely blinded me. I ran around panicking at how everything turned dark, eventually smashing into something. Interestingly enough, that gave him an idea and after snatching back his hat, he pushed me outside and shut the door, saying that he had to work.

In any case, I put it on. In fact, it lays at rest on top of my head as I write this. It has been a while since I took it, so it is quite worn. I try to keep it intact usually.

Besides the weaponry, there was only one item left: a single notebook with ‘Journal’ on the cover. I flipped to the first page, revealing the messy products of his thoughts. Perhaps I could of used these, but at the time I did not make much of them. I kept turning the pages until I found something that interested me, which was at the very last page. I tore that page out and have it here.

To my son.
I hope you’re reading this.
I tried to make this world a better place. And assuming you’re reading this, I must of failed.
I’m sorry. There’s only one thing I can do for you now. If this place won’t change for the better, I’ll get you to a world that already has. Look above you.

Above the chest, there was a small red button on the ceiling. I was too small to reach it at the time, so I got it in my mind to toss the rest of my father’s diary at it.

I don’t remember much at this point either. The room suddenly filled with some gas and...

Here I was.