Prologue
Casa di Aquila
*Scratch. Scratch. Scratch.*
Quill moved across parchment as letters formed into words, words into sentences, then finally sentences into paragraphs. The movements of the writer’s hand were slow and deliberate, careful consideration going into the thoughts and feelings that willed the instrument to move. Pain, Regret, and Love. In this case, none of them were important on their own; Only when they came together did Aquila realize that they made his writing have clarity.
Clarity. This was something that he had prayed would come in his final moments. Clarity, and a restful sleep. Three weeks he had gone without knowing a comfortable bed, and he had feared that it would get the better of him before tonight. He wished above all that he had received respite from his waking nightmares. They haunted him even now, as he could tell by the ghosts that continually berated him with idle threats and statements of how he had failed them in their final moments of life.
Alas, they will follow me to my grave. I am not angry that they will not rest, but I am...sad. Sad that they would choose to hound me instead of following whatever beliefs they hold and pass on.
He nearly smiled as the last words filled the bottom of the page. His name and title that he held after what seemed like so long ago. He doubted most would even remember it, even smaller the number that would hold it in such high regard. After all, I did fail an entire kingdom...no, an entire race of beings. He would take everything to his death, and the ghosts of that terrible past would never let him forget.
“Well, perhaps not everything”, Aquila said as he rolled the parchment and tied a red ribbon around it to keep it secure.
“And for the seal...”
The doomed writer took a ring out of his desk drawer and slipped it on. He then pulled a candle that had been burning and dipped the ring into it, then placed the ring onto the ribbon, sealing it in place on the aged parchment. The wax rapidly solidified into the shape of a sun and moon. This wasn't his crest to be sure, but it would serve it's purpose in the end.
That should do.
Aquila looked around at his study again, but was searching for something in particular. More like someone. “Razor, to me!”
A white and black bird poked her head out of the stacks of papers and books and flew rapidly over to her human friend. The Osprey landed smoothly onto his hand and rubbed her head into it as the human smiled at his only friend on Earth. Aquila took the scroll and tied it to the bird’s leg with a length of string. His friend shuddered at his touch on her legs and stared up at him.
“Razor, I need you to deliver this to Equuleus. I trust you know where to fly. Oh and one last thing”, Aquila placed his free hand on her chest as his words failed him for a moment before he regained his composure. “I...I forbid you to return to this place. You must live your own life now. You are free, my oldest friend.”
The Osprey made no obvious move to indicate that she understood, but simply stared back at him. This time however, she stared into his eyes, something that Aquila had never seen her do before. The writer nodded his understanding and placed his lips in a kiss upon her avian head. “Fly now Razor, fly!”
The bird flapped her wings once, twice, then finally took off out of the open window, and into the night sky without a sound. They had been together for more than twenty-two years, longer than is average for an Osprey, but he was thankful for every day he spent with her. They had met in Equestria not long after he had first arrived there, and before tonight, had become inseparable. Though he suspected that what had just occurred had hurt her deeply, as Osprey generally “mate” for life, Aquila didn’t have the heart to doom her to share his tomb with him in his final moments. He got up slowly from his chair and walked to the open window where the moon’s glow shown brightly upon him.
“Fly away, and live well.”
He knew that she would do her best, just as she had always done. Aquila laughed heartily as a tear began to form in his one good eye. Just one thing left to do before the end.
PART I: Arrival
Chapter One
Of the Earth
“Did I ever tell you how you got your name?”
The older gentleman repositioned himself so that his son was sitting in his lap; Their eyes tracking the stars of the night sky. “See that group of stars right there? Can you tell me what the name of that constellation is?”
The boy looked to his father with a smile when he recognized the group of stars, “Pegasus!”
“Good job! That’s right!” A sly grin suddenly formed over the father’s face, “Can you tell me what that little group of stars are that are right above it’s head?”
The boy’s smile disappeared as his heart started to beat a little faster when he couldn’t remember what the answer to the question was.
The father looked down at the boy and chuckled at his son as he saw the look of worry plastered on his face, “Don’t worry son, I’ll tell you.”
The child’s smile instantly returned as his father prepared to give him the answer. His dad knew everything, and he always enjoyed listening to his stories from before he was born. Hearing about his mother was always a treat...and learning about different animals always kept him up at night, both from fear, and from wonder.
“The name of that constellation is Equuleus. Do you know what that word means?”
The boy shook his head. The word sounded odd to him, but he let his father continue, eagerly anticipating what he knew would be another good story.
“Equuleus means Colt. If it sounds weird to you, that is because Equuleus is a word from a language that nopo- uh, nobody uses anymore but us. Your mother and I used that language to name you right after you were born because Colt seemed to be an odd name to have when we were around her friends and family.
The older male’s brows furrowed as he remembered something from somewhere in the past. The boy continued to stare at him, before he noticed and quickly put on a smile for his son. “Plus, Equuleus just sounds cool, am I right?”
“That’s right!” the child laughed.
Equuleus let his father’s arms wrap around him in a hug as the continued watching the stars together. He wondered if his mom watched the stars too...
*Thud*
Colt’s head bashed against the grimy window of the work truck as it barreled down the seemingly muddy trail. He appreciated the cold weather, as he preferred the snow to the sun, but this was just getting ridiculous. He looked over to the driver and chuckled as he rolled down the window a crack so that a sliver of atmosphere could make its way inside. The cold wind whipping about inside his area of the cabin woke him further from his daydream.
“Mind slowin’ down a little, Frank?
The pudgy driver looked over incredulously, “Now why would I do something like that? You’re wearing a seatbelt right?”
Colt nodded, “Yeah, but that doesn’t mean that you have to floor it every time we’re out of earshot of the Boss.”
Frank let out a hearty laugh as they hit yet another hole in the trail, “Now where is the fun in that huh? Come on man, just because you might be afraid of a little adventure, doesn’t mean you have to be a kill joy.”
The disgruntled passenger decided not to reply to that as they moved along through the open field. Adventure was indeed the farthest thing on his mind, but it wasn’t from being afraid of it. In fact, the truth of it was that he was tired of adventure. His father almost took a fanatical glee in putting the younger male through all manner of awkward and difficult situations when he was growing up, and he hated that he never knew what any of it was for...
*Thud*
“God Damn it, Frank!”
All he received was another laugh from his friend in the driver’s seat. Colt thought about punching his shoulder in response, but thought better of it. Instead, he decided to roll down his window fully so that the inconsiderate driver might enjoy his preferred temperature. His friend didn’t say anything for the longest while, but eventually relented when his shivering began to become uncontrollable.
“Alright, alright, I’ll slow down you pansy, just roll that window up! I don’t know how you can stand the cold, seeing as that we were in it all day.”
“Hah, we ain’t done yet.”
“True, but seriously, are you like a descendant of Jack Frost or something?”
Colt just shrugged his shoulders then used his hand to crank the window shut. He loved his friend like a brother, but he realized a long time ago that whining was one of his specialties, much to his chagrin. They have worked together on the ranch for over two years, but the amount of complaints never seemed to cease. Today was no different, even though they only had to leave the relative comfort of the work vehicle three times the whole day.
It was an easy day of work on the ranch. Since the blizzard had let up, all they had to do was check on the herds of cattle that were caught in the freak storm. All was well for the most part. Only two deaths so far, which wasn’t that big of a deal for as large as the operation was. The only thing left to do after loading them up to be properly disposed of was to check the property lines for strays and the fences that comprised the lines themselves. Colt was content to let himself fall into a daydream again, that is, until the radio sputtered to life with a voice on the other end calling for him.
>> Truck Two, this is Base, we have a delivery for Colt. Seems it has to do with his dad, so if you guys could come in as soon as possible, that’d be great.<<
Frank looked over at him and nodded, which made his passenger know that he was going to honor the request. Colt sighed and pulled the radio to himself, “Thanks Base, we’re on our way. Any idea what’s goin’ on?”
>> Sorry Truck Two, it’s sealed, and we don’t want to disturb your privacy. It’s weird though. It seems to be a scroll of some sort. Got a fancy seal and everything. Seems pretty important if you ask me. Anyway, what’s your ETA? <<
“We’re rollin’ up on the Separation Fence now...shouldn’t be more than ten minutes.”
>> Alright Truck Two, see you when you get here. Base out. <<
He set the piece of plastic back on the receiver. Colt didn’t let it show, but a small amount of fear was beginning to set in the bottom of his chest. If it had to do with his father, then something was probably wrong. After the fight they had a few months ago, he would have been surprised that he would communicate with his son at all, let alone in this manner. His father wasn’t the apologizing type.
“So what do you think it is?”
Colt looked over at his friend with narrowed eyes, “Dunno. Whatever it is, it’s probably something like ‘Come back home son. You aren’t doing anyone any good working out there with the animals. Come back, I’m sure you have forgotten all the training I gave to you, so how about we learn foreign languages? Or maybe fencing? I know you do love a good fight. Oh yes, indeeeeeed!’”
Frank laughed hysterically at the impersonation of the man he had only met twice. His passenger was a far cry from the man that he was making fun of, that was for sure. The old man was prim and proper, and didn’t allow his friend to have a life of his own outside of a classical education. Colt, on the other hand, was more down to earth, and didn’t let his very closed off and seemingly narrow-minded upbringing keep him from living his life on the outside with his own beliefs. Frank could appreciate that, and Colt knew it, which is why he thought they probably got along so well together in the first place.
Colt was a good man in his book, which is all the more reason why he hung around him. Always hard working when it was asked, but never complaining when it inconvenienced him, at least, not out loud. He supposed that is what made The Boss like him so much, even though Colt wasn’t the strongest, smartest, nor fastest of the hands that tended the ranch. A hand on his shoulder served to shake him from his thoughts about his friend.
“Hey Frank, don’t mean to keep you from drivin’ like a maniac, but we passed Operations about three minutes ago.”
“Oh shit!”, the driver cursed loudly.
“Hey man, it’s fine. Don’t worry about it. I am willin’ to bet that this whole thing isn't too important.”
Frank visibly calmed at those words and smiled a little as the embarrassment faded. He pulled the wheel around as the truck pulled into a tight three-point turnaround next to the banks of snow that piled up since that morning when the plows came through. Since they didn't overshoot their mark by too far, it was a short while before they were at the building where the people that worked dispatch were stationed. Colt looked over as the vehicle was turned off and they were in park.
“You comin’ with?”
“You know it. Isn’t like I don’t have anything else better to do. Besides, you pretty much got me out of heading out to the fields for the rest of the day.”
Colt shrugged as he opened the door to the outside. Frank was right, as their day was pretty much over by being called in to Base this late in the day. They stomped their cowboy boots on the wooden steps that led into the Operations Center. Cyril didn’t like having dirty floors in his domain, and it would be best not to make him angry when he was the one with the connection to the boss...which meant he could make you stay out in the fields till the sun went down just out of spite.
Colt opened the door to the building and was greeted by a wave of heat generated by the large main room. The area was pretty much deserted, save for the lone man working at a small desk in the back. Cyril was the main dispatcher for the work trucks, and he wasn't exactly the easiest person to get along with if you somehow interrupted his perfect world. The two friends made there way over to his station while making sure not to make too much of a mess with their still wet boots. Judging by the look on the dispatcher's face when they made it to the back, they had failed miserably.
Cyril however, seemed to not care once he saw who the muddy prints belonged to. “Ah, there you are. Something delivered this straight to me once they figured out that you weren't here. Here you are.”
“Thanks Cyril. Do you know who it's from? Wait...did you just say, something?”
“No, but there is a crest there on the ribbon the holds that scroll together. I don't recognize it, but you might have better luck seeing as it was meant for you. And yes, I did say something because some overgrown bird dropped it off. Oh and by the way, I am not cleaning that up”, Cyril said pointing to the muddy trail the two ranch hands had left in their wake.
The young man took the scroll and looked intently at the crest that adorned it.
A Wax Seal? Pfft, like I haven’t seen that before. He always did seem to have a flair for things that were old fashioned. I wonder what was so important that he would go through the trouble...and what is that crest? I thought our crest was a crystal?
“If you want to read that, I suggest you go somewhere else. You've mucked up the floor, and since I know you two won't be so kind as to clean up after yourselves, I am going to have to clean it after you leave. The sooner the better, amigos.”
Ugh. “Have it your way Cyril”, Colt said with a curt nod in the neat freak's direction.
The dispatcher simply let them go with a frustrated sigh as the pair made their way to the exit. He might not be the strongest person working on the ranch, but he would be damned if he'd let a couple of simple ranch hands track that filth into his building. Cyril sprang up after the door slowly shut and grabbed a mop and bucket from a nearby closet that he kept on hand for situations just like this. Damn cowpunchers.
* * *
The cold wind picked up the minute the two ranch hands let the doors to the Ops Center close silently behind them. Colt let out a visible breath of air and pulled up the zipper on his dark green canvas coat to block out the cold air. Frank just slapped his arms a little and walked quickly to the warmth of the truck. The warmer of the two just shook his head and headed to where his friend sat in the drivers seat, his door ajar.
“Alright Colt, time to see what your dad wants from you.”
Colt chuckled a little when he pulled the ribbon away. His breath let out again, his silent fear getting the best of him as his eyes started darting across the words that were displayed on the aged parchment. The young man stood rooted to the spot for what seemed like an eternity. His steady breaths seemed to pick up their pace as he started to panic from the words he was reading. The rosy tint in his cheeks rapidly drained as he read on to the end of the letter.
Frank searched his friend’s face for some sign of what was going on. The look on his face told his Frank all he needed to know.
“Colt...If you need to be with your dad, I can take you there.”
The stunned man simply started nodding his head as he moved to the passenger seat in one shaky lurch. Colt tried controlling his panicked mind, but couldn't even begin to fathom where to start. Questions starting popping up, only to get dismissed just as quickly as his facial features solidified into a focused scowl. He didn't even feel the seatbelt go over his chest, nor his friend quickly hovering over the controls to get the work truck on the road. Whatever he was about to face, he knew that he was far from ready.
“Frank?”
“Yeah?”
“Thanks.”
The drive to the house didn't take as long as he originally thought it would, despite taking the Frontage road that wound through the surrounding mountains. Thanks to Frank being at the wheel, he had said that they had made it in record time. The worried passenger didn't care for his friend's banter however, as he threw off the seatbelt and made to run as fast as he could to get into the decrepit mansion. Frank knew his friend would try something like that however, and grabbed him by the arm before he could even start. Colt looked at his friend in anger, but couldn’t will his voice to work as his eyes started to water in earnest.
“What are you doing?” Frank asked.
“What does it look like? I have to see my father!”
“Look man, you didn't even tell me what was going on. Is he alright? You looked like a ghost when you read that letter. Do you mind letting me in on some things?”
Colt looked at his friend with tears in his eyes, which was a first for both of them. Not only had his friend never seen him cry, but he wagered that Colt had never cried for anything in the entire time he had known him. The pudgy man sitting next to the clearly distraught passenger knew that this wasn't good. Something had happened, and Colt was on the receiving end of a really bad deal. Whatever it was, he was going to do his best to help him.
“May I see the letter?”
“Yeah”, Colt croaked as the scroll exchanged hands.
Frank's eyes read like a typewriter over the fancy lettering the comprised the letter. His face hardened by the time he reached the end. He had questions, and he hoped his friend had answers. If not, then Colt's situation just got from bad to worse. Not only was his father dead, but some of the wording in here would make someone have cause for worry as to his mental state at the time of reading it. These sounded like the ramblings of a lunatic, and his friend was about to be pulled right into the middle of it.
“Do you want my opinion?”
“Do I have a choice?”
“No.”
Colt just rolled his eyes and let his friend continue.
It wasn't like he was going to get away without hearing his two cents, and who knows, maybe he might actually have something useful to contribute. For once.
“Let's find your dad, and go back. I don't know what it is he wanted you to do, but this sounds like a really bad idea. I know you may be a little bit taller than me, but I want to think I can stop you if I have to.”
Colt raised his eye brows at his normally docile friend, “Is that a threat, Frank?”
“No, it’s just a thought. Look, you’re my friend, Colt. I am making it my responsibility to look out for you when I think something might not be in your best interest.”
“Since when do you know what my best interests are? Frank, I value your friendship, but I have to do this. My father and I may not have had the best relationship, but I’ll be damned before I abandon his last requests. It might not be how I want to spend my time, but it’s the right thing to do.”
“And just how do you expect to do all this?”
“Simple. I’m going to listen.”