All Hail The Empress

“Are we there yet?” asked Ruby for the umpteenth time since they had first started out. It was now the third day on their journey. While the first day had a little excitement, the second was rather boring. They had spent the entire day reaching the end of the Gorge and starting their trek through the San Palomino Desert before stopping for the night. Thanks to the river they had been following, there was no real worry of dehydration.

“Ruby, if you ask that one more time,” said an exasperated Sapphire, “I swear I will use magic to zip your mouth shut, do you understand?”

“I’m just so bored!” whined Ruby, eliciting a sigh from her mother.

“Artemis, remind me why you wanted these two along?”

“Relax, Sapphire,” said Artemis, “I am confident that they’ll be a great help before this is all said and done.”

“Say, Princess Artemis?” asked Fire Comet, who was walking behind his daughter at this point, “Why are we looking for this castle along the river? I’m sure you’ve got a good reason, I’m just curious.”

“Well, in ancient times, ponies lacked the technology to transport water over vast distances like we do,” explained Artemis, still looking out at the large mountain that had been in their sights since entering the desert, which was now very close, “So, ancient civilizations like Mesoponeighmia built their civilizations along rivers so they could have easy access to the water for their crops.”

“Say that name three times fast,” said Sky Blazer jokingly.

“Oh, and Ruby?” asked Sapphire, receiving a hum from her daughter, “I’m sorry I snapped at you just a minute ago. But you have to understand that asking if we’re there yet gets on everypony’s nerves except maybe Wild Blitz’s.”

“I’ll stop, maybe,” responded Ruby, saying the last word as quiet as possible, “Hey, what’s that?”

“What’s what, dear?” asked Fire Comet, looking off into the distance.

“There!” replied Ruby, pointing towards the side of the mountain that was facing the river. What the filly was referring to was a faraway carving into it that consisted of an enormous amount of openings. Adorning it were quite clearly gemstones of varying sizes and colors that gleamed as the late morning sun shined down upon them.

“I’m afraid I don’t see what you’re looking at, Ruby,” replied her father after looking for a few seconds, “Sapphire? Do you see anything over there?”

“I’m sorry?” asked his wife, who had not been paying attention to the conversation her husband and daughter were having. Ruby pointed in the same direction she had for her father, “Aha! There it is!”

“I get it now,” said the Unicorn, remembering that one of the things that Sapphire and Ruby had gotten from their Dragon blood was the ability to see things further away than most ponies.

“Well, what are we waiting for?” asked Artemis, trusting her friend’s judgment despite the fact that she herself could not see what they were talking about, “Is anypony up for a jog?”

“Erm, why?” asked Sky Blazer, looking at the Alicorn, “It’s not like the place is going anywhere or anything.”

“To be perfectly honest, I thought you’d want to get this whole ‘quest’ done as fast as possible,” answered Artemis, “I mean, the less time it takes us to get to the castle, the less time that Wild Blitz has to spend outside of the camp.”

“I’m certain nothing will happen to him if we just walk there,” replied the Pegasus, silently refusing to be goaded into being reckless. With a sigh, Artemis quietly conceded to Sky Blazer. The walk took just over an hour and a half, during which time the castle became clear to the rest of the group. The group now stood in front of the line of pillars that adorned the front walkway. Most of the pillars were either cracking or had collapsed to the ground over time. The gemstones that Ruby and Sapphire had seen were revealed to be a small variety in various colors; rubies, sapphires, emeralds, garnets, amethysts, and an extremely small amount of diamonds. Overhead, the sun beamed down upon these gems to give them all, even the tiniest of the gems, a sparkling effect.

“Heh, good thing we didn’t bring your dad along, eh Sapphire?” asked Fire Comet jokingly. His wife didn’t hear him because she, as well as their daughter, was fixated on the gems, “Honey, remember we’re here to find…whatever it is we’re looking for. Leave the gemstones alone until after we find it.” His wife shook her head as if snapping out of a trance.

“Sorry, I know. It’s just that these gems look so delicious,” said Sapphire as she waved a hoof in front of her daughter to get her attention, “I mean, we don’t exactly get that many on the supply runs so seeing them on the ground is like a dream come true.”

“At least you’re open to reason when faced with gems,” stated Artemis, smiling at her friend, “Spike, on the other hoof, isn’t. It’s amazing, honestly, that he didn’t try to eat the Crystal Empire before it fell.”

“While I don’t expect you to know it, there is in fact a difference between crystals and gemstones,” explained Sapphire, “Gemstones actually taste good, while crystals supposedly taste worse than ‘an old leather boot that has been dragged through the mud of a swamp.’ Don’t quote me on that, since that’s what dad told me.”

“Okay, enough of the lesson on the feeding habits of Dragons and Dragon-Pony hybrids,” said Sky Blazer, “We’ve got a task to do here. Shall we go in?”

“Agreed,” replied Artemis as she began walking down the path to the castle’s largest opening, which had clearly served as a doorway in the past. Once inside, the group was met by a large entry hall with four thick pillars adorned by gemstone lines with a specific pattern; a ruby, followed by a sapphire, an emerald, and a diamond, all of the same size There was a balcony above them, though the railing was partially destroyed, and surrounding them were doorways on each of the walls except the one behind them. An ornate staircase, which was surprisingly in good visible condition despite the apparent age of it, led to the second level and blocked most of the far wall from view.

“Well, this is certainly interesting,” stated Wild Blitz, saying pretty much what the others were thinking, “Now what do we do?”

“I…guess we start looking for something that stands out?” suggested Sapphire, unsure of exactly how to go about doing such a thing, “I mean, the book doesn’t exactly say what we need to find, as much as I wish it did.”

“Hm, think we should split up, maybe?” asked Artemis after a moment of silence from the group, “I mean, we’d cover more ground that way.”

“As much as I hate to admit it, that’s our best bet,” said Sky Blazer, fearful that there could be some sort of trap hidden within the walls of the castle.

“How about you and Wild Blitz search the rooms on the left side there, Artemis and Sapphire check the rooms on the far wall there, and Ruby and I take the rooms on the right side?” suggested Fire Comet, “I mean, that way we’re in pairs so that if something goes wrong, the other will be able to help.”

“Sounds good to me,” stated Artemis, with simultaneous nods from the rest of the group, “We’re in agreement then! Let’s all meet back here once we’ve finished searching all of the rooms.”

The six ponies split off into their respective groups and began to search the rooms on the ides that they had volunteered for. Perhaps by sheer coincidence, the first three rooms searched between the pairs were all ornate bed chambers with furniture covered in dust and sand. Fire Comet and his daughter decided to check out another room once they had made sure there was nothing of interest.

The next room the pair entered was barren except for a giant mural covering the wall opposite the doorway. The mural’s left side depicted a large number of Earth Ponies led by one wearing a crown holding what appeared to be spears, but the mural was faded to the point that it was impossible to guarantee what they had been. The right side showed a small group of Alicorns of varying sizes fleeing from the army.

“Daddy, what is this supposed to be?”

“If I had to guess, and don’t quote me on this later because I honestly don’t know for certain, this is a mural depicting the Mesoponeighmian victory in the ancient Alicorn Wars that led to the near extinction of the Alicorns.”

“But…why would they attack other ponies like that?” asked the filly.

“The wars apparently started over the treatment of the other races at the hooves of the Alicorn civilization of the time. That’s one of the reasons why the Bat Ponies were driven into hiding,” explained the stallion, “Not to mention that in the past ponies were much more violent than they are even today.”

“I can’t imagine living in a time like that,” stated Ruby after her father had finished, “Wait, what’s that?”

“I’m sorry?” asked her father, which led the filly to point to something in the corner that seemed out of place. It was a small ruby in the bottom corner of the mural on the side with the fleeing Alicorns, “Okay, that seems interesting enough to make me want to head back to see the others. But first, let’s go ahead and check the rest of the rooms just to be sure.”

While that pair was conducting their search, Sky Blazer and Wild Blitz were conducting one of their own. They had already searched through the three rooms on the bottom floor of the side that they volunteered to search, so naturally the next step was to search the remaining rooms on the top floor, or rather the remaining room because the side they were given only had the four rooms between the two floors. The final room was strikingly similar to the one that Ruby and her father had been in, though the pair of Pegasi had not seen it and therefore did not know. It was an empty room aside from a mural hanging on the wall opposite the wall. This one, however, showed a group made up of Earth Ponies, Unicorns, Pegasi, and Alicorns led by an Alicorn wearing a crown on the left, many of whom were holding weapons. On the right were a group of ponies that resembled the Pegasi but had bat wings instead of bird wings, which clearly was meant to represent the Bat Ponies.

“I see. I guess the ponies that lived in the past glorified their victory in driving out the Bat Ponies,” said Sky Blazer as she viewed the mural.

“So, why did they drive them out?” asked her son, who was surprisingly equally intrigued by the mural.

“I’m not exactly sure myself, but from what I’ve heard over the years, it was because of land. You see, Bat Ponies once controlled a large portion of Equestria in the past,” explained the mare, thinking back on what she’d been taught, “Once the other four pony races began to run out of space to expand, they decided to attack the Bat Ponies and take their lands by force. Which is where their hatred of the other pony races comes from.”

“Hey, mom. Look in the corner there,” said Wild Blitz, pointing towards the lower left corner of the mural. Sitting there was a small emerald that stood out from the rest of the painting, “Maybe that’s what we’re supposed to be looking for?”

“I agree,” replied his mother, “Well, we should go back and meet with the others and tell them about it.”

While the other two pairs were conducting their searches, Artemis and Sapphire were, of course, conducting their own. Aside from the two visible rooms on the ground floor, there were two more behind the staircase. All of those turned up nothing, as did two of the rooms at the top of the staircase. The final one was situated to the right of the staircase when facing it. Inside of the room was a third mural situated on the wall opposite of the door. This mural was perhaps the most interesting for it depicted a pair of Alicorns leading a group of ponies consisting of Pegasi, Unicorns, and Earth Ponies on the left. On the right was a group of Bat Ponies facing them being led by an Alicorn with bat wing like the ponies it was surrounded by.

“What…is this?” asked Artemis after a minute of silence from the both of them.

“I have no idea,” answered Sapphire, “I’ve heard of nothing that resembles this at all. I mean, Celestia and Luna didn’t fight against the Bat Ponies as far as I know.”

“And the only Bat Alicorn that has even been described in history is the Royal Pain,” stated Artemis, “Maybe this was some sort of prophecy that the Mesoponeighmians determined? Like, they saw that she’d overthrow the Princesses and made a mural to depict it?”

“But, there’s a small problem here. There are only two Princesses here,” noted Sapphire, “If they really do represent Celestia and Luna, why aren’t there three? Your mother was in Canterlot when the Empress took over.”

“Not to mention the wielders of the Elements of Harmony aren’t on either side,” added Artemis, “I mean, the Empress had already been in control of them by the time she attacked Canterlot. At least, that’s what my father told me anyway. And if they weren’t, they’d certainly be on the side with the Princesses.”

“Perhaps there was some unrecorded war from long before the defeat of the Bat Ponies that they decided to depict?” offered the Dragon Unicorn, “Well, unrecorded aside from this.”

“Maybe,” replied the Alicorn, “Wait, what’s that up there?” She pointed a hoof at the top left corner of the mural. There sat a small sapphire.

“That looks like something important to me,” stated Sapphire with a smile, “Let’s go meet back with the others. Maybe they’ve found other interesting things.”

When the pair exited the room, they could see that the other four were waiting at the bottom of the staircase for them. The two walked down to meet them, which was followed by them discussing their findings.

“So, there was ruby in the bottom right corner of a mural, an emerald in the bottom left corner of another, and a sapphire in the top left of a third,” summarized Sapphire once they’d finished their explanations, “What could they all mean?” All of them thought for a few minutes.

“What if they’re a combination for something?” offered Ruby after a minute, “There are four corners for each of the pictures, right? And there are four pillars with four gemstones on them.”

“That…actually makes sense,” admitted Sapphire, surprised that her daughter had managed to figure that out when she herself could not.

“And you didn’t want her along,” gloated Artemis, gaining only a glare from her friend, “Anyway, what exactly would this combination be?”

“Well, let me check something first,” replied Sapphire as she walked towards the pillar to her right, which was on the left of the staircase when facing it from the entrance. After inspecting it for a second, the Dragon Unicorn touched the sapphire on it with a claw. It glowed for less than a second. She then tapped the ruby on the same pillar, which did not respond at all. “Okay, that makes sense now. Those gems in the corners of the murals? They correspond to a gemstone on a pillar. Perhaps we should try touching the emerald on the pillar on this side by the door and the ruby on the one opposite of that?”

“Makes sense, if not a tad cliché,” said Sky Blazer, muttering the second part of that so the others didn’t hear. She walked over to the pillar to her right, the one that Sapphire had suggested touching the emerald on. Using her hoof, the Pegasus lightly tapped the emerald, though she did need to use her wings to reach it. Like the sapphire, it glowed for less than a second, “Nada.”

Fire Comet started to walk towards the pillar to his left when Ruby sprinted towards it so that she could press it first. When she pressed it, the ruby also lit up for less than a second.

“Well that was a bust,” said the filly, disappointed that her idea had not played out immediately.

“Not necessarily,” said Artemis, “Maybe press them together?”

“Worth a shot,” said Wild Blitz, who was visibly a tad jealous that his friend was helping and he wasn’t.

“Okay, on three,” stated Sapphire, “One…two…three!” The three ponies pressed their respective gems simultaneously. Like last time, the gems lit up for less than a second, “Um. Any other ideas?” The three ponies that hadn’t been pressing gems surveyed the room they were in. After a few seconds, Artemis practically facehoofed when she realized something.

“Why didn’t I see that!” exclaimed the Princess, “There are four pillars with four gemstones. The only one we haven’t been doing anything with is the fourth pillar and the fourth gem.”

“Well, I feel stupid,” admitted Sapphire a she too facehoofed. Artemis took the opportunity to fly up to where the diamond was on the last pillar, “Again, on three. One…two…three!” Unlike the last attempt, the gemstones began to glow vibrantly and the ground began to shake. Wild Blitz and Fire Comet moved away from the staircase as the floor at the bottom pulled apart seamlessly. Dust filled the air, causing all of the ponies in the room to cough violently. Within a minute, the shaking ceased and the dust settled. Where the floor had been was a giant hole with an extension of the staircase that they had been using to check the top floor going down into the darkness.

“Whoa,” said Artemis, that being all she could muster for almost a minute, “So, uh, should we go down?”

“I…guess?” replied Sapphire hesitantly, “Wait, why don’t Artemis and I go down there and the rest of you stay here?”

“But mom! I wanna go down there!” whined Ruby as she walked over to her mother.

“Just hear me out. I know Sky Blazer doesn’t want Wild Blitz going down there, and I don’t want you to go down there either,” explained her mother, “Either your father or I need to stay with you to make sure you don’t follow us. Princess Artemis has to go down because, well, I know her all too well and know she won’t have it any other way. And because of that, I should go with her because we work well together.”

“Oh, all right,” sighed the defeated filly.

“You don’t mind watching her while I go down with the Princess, right dear?” asked Sapphire, realizing she hadn’t received her husband’s input yet.

“Not at all. Besides, you’re right about you and Princess Artemis,” replied Fire Comet, who had been quiet the past few minutes. Sapphire smiled as Artemis landed from being up near the top of the pillar she’d been in charge of. After nodding at each other, the two descended down the staircase. The others watched as they disappeared into the darkness completely, which took nearly ten minutes because they were both using spells to provide light. The descent took quite some time, the exact time being unknown to Sapphire and Artemis. With every stair they stepped on, the air seemed to grow colder. The two mares knew they were near the bottom because they could see, to their surprise, the light from burning pots of coals.

“So, do you find it a bit unsettling that these are here?” asked Artemis once they had reached the bottom. Though it had been visible for almost a minute, they stood in front of a doorway to a pitch black room.

“Oh, very unsettling,” admitted Sapphire without hesitation, “But, we won’t get anywhere if we let it get the better of us.” She walked through the doorway and was momentarily stunned as the room lit up as a result of more pots of coal lighting on fire. The Dragon Unicorn, as well as the equally disoriented Alicorn, gasped when she recovered. Inside of the room was large, ornate sarcophagus resting upon a pedestal.

“Um,” managed Artemis, “Do…do you think we should go in further?” Sapphire lightly stepped towards the sarcophagus as a response. Artemis followed her friend. Once the pair reached the middle of the room they were blinded by a long flash of light. After a minute or two, the light dissipated and the two mares gasped once again. Floating above the sarcophagus was a transparent, light blue Earth Pony. Though not many features were visible, it was clearly a stallion.

“Quis tu, ut ingressus est cubiculum meum?” said the stallion in a voice that seemed to shake the entire room. He took notice of Artemis, a fact that was obvious to both of the mares, “Dicit ei unus ex corrumpere? Vade! Tu meum violasti in sepulchro cum facie tua!”