All Hail The Empress

“So…where do we go now?” asked Ruby as she stood with the others at the base of Smokey Mountain as well as the edge of the White Tail Woods. The exact size of the mountain was unknowable from the bottom, being masked by the clouds that gave the mountain its name. There was a cave within sight of where they stood that may have only held a bear-or worse, a territorial dragon.

It had been two days since the skirmish near Las Pegasus, and it was later in the day at that. Although she had vehemently objected, the group had moved slowly on account of Sky Blazer’s injury. On numerous occasions, the Pegasus had pleaded for the others to go on ahead, saying she’d catch up later. Every single time, the others all told her that they would either all go together or not go at all.

“I have no idea,” admitted Sapphire sheepishly, “The book didn’t exactly say whether this temple is somewhere up there or hidden inside the mountain.” The Dragon Unicorn pointed at the two options as she spoke.

“If it is higher up the mountain, we are pretty much out of luck,” stated Artemis, “There are only two of us who could even fly up there, and you aren’t one of them. And you are pretty much the only one who can translate the next part.”

“It involves matching symbols with letters. I’m sure Ruby and Wild Blitz could translate it,” replied Sapphire sarcastically.

“You know what I mean,” retorted Artemis, “It’s a matter of speed and accuracy. Anyway, my vote is that we check out the cave first. If it’s a dead end, I’ll fly up there and try to find it. Agreed?”

“Even though I hate not having a chance to join you in the search in the sky if it comes with it, that sounds like a good plan to me,” said Sky Blazer, which was met by nods from Ruby, Fire Comet, and Wild Blitz. After a second, Sapphire nodded as well.

“Well, let’s get to it then,” stated the Princess once Sapphire had agreed. It took maybe a minute for them to reach the mouth of the cave. As what was to be expected of a cave, the interior was pitch black. In order to see, the three adult magic users each used a spell that lit up their surroundings. The group was met by the sight of a short tunnel that ended up branching into three different paths, “Okay, did anypony else not see something like this coming?”

“Now what do we do?” asked Fire Comet after a brief sigh.

“We can cover more ground if we split up,” said Artemis, “I know none of us really want to do that, but it’s our best option.”

“You’re right on both accounts,” said Sky Blazer, “But there’s a problem. Half of us either can’t use magic or don’t know how to use it well enough to provide light or a way to tell what ground has been covered. I don’t want be separated from Wild Blitz, so that means the groups will be uneven.”

“I will go alone. I can handle myself well enough, but that leaves the question of the other groups,” said Artemis after a minute of deliberation, “Obviously Ruby is going to have to be with either one of you, and the other has to go with Sky Blazer and Wild Blitz.”

“Look, I know you’d be able to take care of our daughter, but I would feel more comfortable if I went with her,” stated Sapphire with a huge sigh preceding it, “I’m sorry, but that’s just how I feel.”

“Sapphire, don’t worry,” replied her husband with a smile, “I was actually going to volunteer to go with them.”

“All right, then. All that’s left is to decide which path we’re each going to take,” said Sky Blazer.

“I call the left path!” shouted Wild Blitz.

“We’ll take the right!” piped in Ruby almost immediately.

“Uh…okay then?” said Artemis, naturally taken by surprise from the sudden outburst from the two youngest members of the group, “I guess that leaves the middle one for me. Fire Comet, Sapphire, do you both know a telepathy spell?”

“Of course, I do,” answered Sapphire with a smile, “After all, it was my mom that taught us both that spell.”

“And one of the many dates that Sapphire and I went on involved my learning that spell,” added her husband, resulting in a silent gesture from Ruby noting her disgust at the thought of her parents’ dates.

“Excellent! We’ll just use that spell to let each other know if we find anything, or nothing for that matter.” With a silent nod to each other, the three groups split off and began down their respective paths. Artemis’s path was straightforward for quite a while, resulting in the Princess becoming increasingly bored. She could barely contain her excitement when the path suddenly curved to the left simply because it broke up the monotony.

Fire Comet, Sky Blazer, and Wild Blitz, however, were traveling down a path that constantly twisted and turned. They were, of course, moving rather slowly because of the mare’s injured wing, which was causing her pain even if she wasn’t moving it. Neither Fire Comet nor Wild Blitz, however, even gave a second though to the speed that they were moving.

The mother-daughter duo were on a path that descended and ascended alongside the occasional turn. Even though none of the groups could know what the others were seeing, they all simultaneously felt it strange that they had yet to find any sort of branching paths despite over an hour passing.

“Will this tunnel ever end?” muttered Artemis to herself trying to break the eerie silence of the tunnel. She’d noticed for a little bit by this point that the air was getting colder and heavier as she traveled onward.

“Oh, it will. But not in the way you’re hoping.”

“Who’s there?!” shouted the Princess, turning on place as she searched her surroundings. She then realized something rather crucial; she knew the voice, and it was one she hadn’t heard in a very long time, “I-is that you…? No, my imagination is just trying to make this search more bearable. There’s nothing else here, and if there was it couldn’t be-.”

“Normally, that would be true. But you’ve already met a pony who died a long time ago, didn’t you Artemis?” Artemis gasped when a shimmering, light blue stallion appeared out of thin air in front of her. Most of his appearance was obscured by a mist of the same color, but it was clear he was a Unicorn, “It’s been a long time, hasn’t it?”

“D-dad?!” stammered the Princess, speechless and close to tears, “B-but how are you-?”

“You can thank the magic found within this mountain for me being able to speak with you,” replied Shining Armor with a smile, “Its magic like this that’s found in the Library. And I’m grateful that it allowed me to talk to you again. But it isn’t just me that’s here to talk to you.”

“Wait, who-?” started Artemis as a second ghost pony appeared next to her father. This one was a mare who looked almost exactly like the Princess except a bit shorter and a slightly different mane style, “Mom?!”

“You have no idea how hard it was being able to watch you grow up but not being able to be a part of it,” replied the ghost Alicorn, “But you’ve made us-me, very proud.”

“How are you able to watch me?” asked Artemis, more confused now than she’d been when she first heard her father’s voice less than a minute ago.

“That is something that can’t really be explained,” replied her mother, “It can only be assumed that some kind of magic is behind it, same with how we still exist in a whole other realm of existence.”

“So, if you’ve been watching me, you’ll know we’re not doing much better without you than we did with you, dad,” said Artemis with a sigh, “Sorry I’m not doing a good job at freeing Equestria.”

“Artemis, you do not need to feel that way,” replied her father with a smile, “Like your mother said, we’re both very proud of you. You’re doing your best at one of the hardest jobs ever; being a leader. Besides, you’re on quest to find something I never knew actually existed. I mean, I read about it growing up with your aunt, but not once did I think it might actually exist.”

“You know, I had gotten so caught up in the fact that the book will lead us there that I hadn’t even thought of the possibility that the Library doesn’t even exist,” noted the Princess, “If this ends up being all for nothing, I…don’t know what I’d do.”

“If it were to come to that, and I sincerely hope it doesn’t, you’ll figure out what you need to do,” assured Shining Armor with a smile, “I mean, not only do you have everything I taught you, but you’re also resourceful.”

“Thanks dad, even if it feels like you’re just saying that,” confessed the living Alicorn, “You said that this tunnel won’t end the way I want it to. What do you mean?”

“This tunnel is a dead end that goes on for miles. You’d be too exhausted by the end to get back out, which is what was intended,” explained her mother, “You need to turn back and wait by the tunnel entrance. The others will be waiting for you.”

“Did you talk to them too?” asked Artemis, her interest piqued.

“No, we did not. Loved ones now passed are telling them the same thing we just told you,” replied her father, “Now, go. You need to get there as fast as possible.”

“Why? What’s back at the entrance?”

“It will be made clear if you get there in time,” answered her mother, “This is where we say our goodbyes, Artemis.”

“You don’t know how good it has been being able to talk to you,” said the Princess, her voice cracking as the tears she’d been holding back began to stream down her face, “I miss you both so much.”

“We know, and we feel the same way about you,” said her father. Artemis’s parents gave her a hug before turning away from her. Shining Armor turned his head back towards his daughter, “Oh, and when you fight the Empress? Make sure to give her our regards. She more than deserves to be brought to justice.”

“I know,” said Artemis as her parents smiled at her and walked down the passage. They disappeared almost instantly, leaving the Alicorn alone, “I know.”