Canterlot High 12:30pm
It was a typical summer day at canterlot high, you know the ones where the sun is always shining and there are no clouds in the sky. The ones you usually see at this time of year, luckily the repairs had been practically finished from the “Interesting” incident earlier in the year and the building was having a new coat of paint. You could see the mounted scaffolding over the entrance as you walked in, which was definitely what Tyrone Volt saw as he headed to the doors for the first time.
Tyrone was a quite a tall person for a high school student, standing at around six foot five inches, his head topped off with blonde spiked hair adding a couple more inches to his already impressive stature. He sported a simple red t-shirt and black jeans, finishing the look with some simple black trainers. His eyes were as clear blue as the sky overhead but what truly set him apart was the set of goggles he always wore. They were a set of goggles that you would often see scientists wear during experiments which, along with his proficiency is electronics and design, granted him the nickname “The Technican”. Most people had never seen him actually wear the goggles but he would say he would keep them on “just in case”.
He opened the doors and looked into the large foyer of his new high-school. It looked as all foyers should, grand and spacious, walls lined with decorations and trophy cabinets and packed with students. He gulped silently as he looked along the amassed crowd, he had never been the best at socialising. He hadn’t really gotten along with many people before he moved and would often spend much of his free time in his dad’s shed, thinking and creating new gadgets to make people’s lives easier, which would break about half the time, but eventually worked and garnering attention from professional engineers. He took a deep breath and shouldered his way through the throng, heading to the registration desk.
He managed to find it near the principal’s office, but was disheartened to see that whoever was supposed to be manning it had put up a sign saying “Out of Lunch”.
“Great” he muttered to himself, “This is a good start to coming to a new school, first day in the building and everyone’s out to lunch”.
“Can I help you?”
He jumped and turned around, taken by surprise. He found the voice belonged to Principal Celestia. She was resplendent with her flowing pastille coloured hair and dark magenta eyes. She was wearing her formal golden blazer along with smart deep purple trousers to complete the picture. She was looking at him curiously, either because she had never seen him before or from the fact that he was at least a head taller than her.
“Oh” Tyrone said, after a brief pause “I’m.... new here, I applied a week ago and I am here to enrol”
“Ah yes” Celestia replied, with a smile “You must be one of the new students. Tyrone Volt, I presume”
“Ah..... yes that’s right, that’s me” He said, scratching behind his head as he wore a nervous smile.
“Well I’m afraid my sister, Principal Luna, is not in her office at this time but I’d be happy to help” said Celestia. She ushered him into her office, taking her place behind the desk as Tyrone sat in the free chair on the other side. He looked around briefly as Celestia sorted through the files. He examined some of the awards hanging on the wall and a photograph of her with who he presumed was her sister, judging by her appearance and the similarities of their hair. Eventually she produced the papers and placed them in front of him. Tyrone began to fill them out until eventually Celestia broke the silence.
“So, how are you liking Canterlot high at the moment?” she asked
“Oh... um.... it seems like a nice school” he replied, a bit taken by surprised.
“Well we hope you enjoy your time here” she said “We can understand how hard it must be to fit in to a new place”
“Oh, I actually have a friend who already goes to this school” he said
“Oh? Well that’s good to hear” she replied “Maybe they can introduce you to some of their new friends”
“I’m actually planning to meet him before the next lesson starts” he said, handing back the completed papers.
“Well I will not hold you up any longer” she said, with a warm smile “Welcome to Canterlot High”
He smiled and nodded as he got up and left out the door.
Canterlot High Fields 12:45 pm
The sun was beating down upon the vast green fields of Canterlot High, the various sports teams were busy training and practicing for the upcoming games and tournaments. A small crowd have gathered on the stands to watch the athletes practicing on the track. In the centre of the track stood Tornado Blitz, finishing up his warm up exercises.
Tornado was an impressive six foot tall with short spiked ginger hair. He was donning his usual dark blue sports attire streaked with white stripes, he completed his outfit matching blue trainers. His eyes were a deep ocean blue but what was most striking about him was his “Never say die” attitude. He would stop until he proved he was the best. Despite only joining the school recently he had turned many heads having successfully beaten some original school records and leading the athletics team to both district and regional gold. This, combined with his hair colour, had garnered him the nickname “Blaze” and the chant “HE’S ON FIRE”.
He readied himself on track next to other runners, waiting for the starting gun. His launch off the line was nothing short of rapid. He started as soon as the gun was fired and was already charging down the track. The other runners attempts of keeping pace were short lived as the crowd cheered tornado on as he approached the lead runner. Tornado easily overtook him and with a burst of extra effort he went across the line in 1st. At this point Tyrone had made to the field so was just in time to see Tornado cross the line, with the crowd roaring with applause. The coach came over to Tornado.
“You are not gonna believe the time you just posted” said the coach, holding out his stop-watch for Tornado to see. Tornado had a look.
41.52 seconds
“A new record” Tornado and Tyrone said at the same time, surprising Tornado in the process.
“Hey, T-Volt” Tornado said “So you made it through registration?”
“Yeah, managed to get the papers sorted with the principal, so I’m fully in.’’ Said Tyrone with a smile.
Tornado was one of the few people Tyrone got to know so well. They went to the same school before Tornado’s family had decided to move. Whenever Tyrone wasn’t making new gadgets and gizmos, he was making things to help Tornado be the best. He had made step counters, heart rate watches, exercise monitors and had even designed Tornado's signature running shoes. All of which helped Tornado become one of the most recognised athletes in the school. And he certainly had made his name here.
‘’Congrats on breaking the record by the way.’’ Tyrone said quickly after a few seconds.
‘’Thanks.’’ Said Tornado, smiling widely. ‘’I know Rainbow Dash is probably gonna hate me for this.’’
‘’Who’s Rainbow Dash?’’
‘’Oh, she’s another student who goes here. She’s an athlete too. But she kinda gets a little proud when it comes to records.’’
‘’What, like you?’’
Tornado stared at him. ‘’Hey! I don’t get overly proud of my personal records!’’
Tyrone raised a suspicious eyebrow.
‘’Okay, most of the time anyway...’’
‘’Oh, that reminds me.’’ Tyrone interrupted him. ‘’I’ve got my hexa-copter up and running finally. You still want to do that night parkour run we planned?’’
‘’Hey yeah! I know most of the streets round here now so I know some good routes I can go on. Let’s see if your whirlybird can keep up with me.’’
‘’Oh don’t worry, it will.’’
The rest of the day passed by rather quickly, this being common during the summer days, even the teachers looked like they wanted to be outside just as much as the students did. After classes ended, Tornado said that he would meet Tyrone at the statue outside the school later that evening.
The time was now 6:30pm. Tyrone was making his way towards the statue of the armoured unicorn standing proudly outside the school. He was carrying a large silver briefcase with his hexa-copter, the six-bladed remote control machine that would carry the camcorder to record Tornado doing his run. He looked round briefly to find Tornado not there. He assumed he was just running a little late, so he sat at the foot of the statue until he arrived.
After some time had passed, the sky had grown darker. The night was clear, and the stars shimmered brightly against the inky black. Tyrone sat slumped, elbows and legs as he checked his watch. Half an hour had gone by and Tornado still hadn’t appeared.
‘’Geez what’s taking him so long?’’ he mumbled. ‘’I know he has a tendency to be a bit late, but this is ridiculous." He drummed his fingers on his briefcase, not noticing that three stars round the moon glowed a little brighter than usual. He made to lean back against the statue’s mount as he waited, so was taken by surprise when he suddenly fell through solid stone. He fell back so quickly that his legs came in after him, as well as the briefcase, and he disappeared from sight.
Tyrone couldn’t help but cry out in shock as he felt his body twist and turn in the swirling vortex. He couldn’t see anything but shining spinning light as he swirled into what seemed like nothingness. His eyes were soon blinded by a brilliant white light before his vision went black as he was spat out into another reality.
He felt his body crash into what felt like a solid wall as he heard the clatter of other objects in the room. He lay for a short time, wondering what just happened and where he now was. Focusing all of his remaining strength to his head, he slowly raised it and cracked open his eyes. His vision was blurred but he soon began to focus, he could then make out what had caused the clattering. He saw a set of long a strong looking pilums scattered across the floor in a heap. He soon began to take a better look of his surroundings. The room was dimly light by a single torch mounted over an ornate wooden door. He then noticed that the floor and walls were all shining, as if made of diamonds.
Tyrone groaned as he tried to get up. ‘’What the heck is this place?’’ he mumbled, as he looked more, seeing exquisite landscape paintings mounted in wooden frames, and decorated vases in glass cabinets.
But as he tried to move, he the realised something was wrong.
He turned to look at his own hands then quickly discovered that he no longer had hands, but...
‘’Hooves?!’’ he exclaimed, almost shouting it. His eyes wandered across his body. Panic started setting in as he soon realised that he wasn’t himself anymore. He had hooves, and flanks, and a tail!
‘’WHAT?!’’ He kept repeating to himself, suddenly finding himself on all four of his new hooves, stumbling across the room as he tried to gain his balance, settling himself in front of a large mirror in the room.
Then he saw himself. What he had become. His hair had become a mane, his skin was bright red, his ears pointed and standing, and a long horn jutting out of of his forehead.
His eyes widened even further as he took this in. ‘What?!’’
‘’HALT! WHO GOES THERE?!’’ boomed a voice from outside, as something large and strong batted at the door. Tyrone span round to face it, but only served to knock him off balance and send him into one of the glass cabinets, bashing his head against it.
The door burst open, letting a strong bright light that shined on him. Tyrone squinted as he tried to see who it was, but it didn’t ease the tension in the slightest. In front of him stood three stallions, one white, two grey, dressed in regal golden armour, covering them head to tail, their helmets sporting brilliant blue plumes. The grey ones had horns like him, but theirs were glowing, shining light onto his fallen form.
Tyrone felt himself breathing heavily. He was too scared to even move let alone say anything. The white stallion approached him, lowering his eyes down to Tyrone’s as he gave him a mean look. Tyrone stayed perfectly still.
‘’Who are you?’’ said the stallion.
Tyrone, still in severe shock, could only say, ‘’What?’’
Author's Note
Thank you for reading. This idea was originally cooked up between myself and my friend, 24railwaycuttings, who had designed our mlp characters and came up with our backstories. So this is my attempt to create a full story out of those. If you enjoy the story, feel free to rate, favourite and comment. If you have any idea for the story, feel free to leave a comment, all compliments, criticism and ideas. Thanks again for reading
Tornado Blitz
In a little valley of Equestria, stood a little town known as Ponyville. A quaint little town with many friendly and smiling faces. It was here that stood the castle of Twilight Sparkle and her friends, whom had recently saved everypony from almost certain disaster. Things had looked bleak, but at the last second, they had discovered the keys which unlocked a hidden power, allowing them to vanquish their foe once and for all. And soon after, from the very same seed itself, a mighty castle grew, and Twilight was recognised as the princess of friendship.
The castle itself was truly something to behold. The purple crystal towers standing atop a large crystal tree, for everypony in town to see. There was a lot inside to explore as well. Aside from the central throne room where the six grand thrones stood, there was still more of the castle to explore.
In one of the halls, al small purple dragon was wandering around. His name was Spike, Twilight’s assistant, and her number one assistant at that. He was looking for Twilight but couldn’t seem to find her. He opened a door to look inside. It lead into a grand chamber, probably one that would be used for ceremonial purposes, judging by how high the ceiling was. But he was not alone, for he soon found Rarity, the white unicorn with her flowing purple mane, using her magic to unravel a measuring tape, holding it up against the wall.
‘’Hey Rarity’’ said Spike as he approached her. ‘’What’re you up to?’’
She didn’t turn as she answered, looking very focused. ‘’Oh hello Spike. I’m planning to decorate this room with exquisite banners, befitting a royal princess. I’m just making sure that I get the right measurements for the banners themselves, otherwise it would just look awful.’’
‘’Wow. Do you know what’s going on the banners?’’
‘’Hmm… not sure as of yet, I’m definitely thinking something lilac, perhaps with a dark border. And then, an eloquent portrait of divine majesty, hanging splendidly for all to see.’’ She sighed, putting a hoof to her chest, admiring her imaginary work.
‘’So uh… you haven’t seen Twilight anywhere have you?’’
‘’Hmm? No, sorry darling. I think she might be exploring the castle as well, same as the others. Perhaps she’s found the castle library!’’
‘’Oh no… well, I’d better start looking. Thanks Rarity.’’
As Spike left Rarity to her measuring, he could easily imagine Twilight lurking in the library, hiding behind another looming tower of literature. He had nothing against Twilight reading books, but she almost never seemed to stop. Lock her in a library and she could have finished the entire archive in a week. But where was the library? That was the first question. He thought about where to look first, before getting knocked off his feet by a rainbow streak.
As he looked up, he saw it was none other than the rainbow-maned pony herself, Rainbow Dash. She definitely looked different somehow. Maybe it was the extravagant gold armour that gave it away. She sported a gold chest piece lined with sapphires and amethyst, and her helmet sported a lush gold plume.
‘’Whoah, sorry about that Spike.’’ She said as she touched down. ‘’Kinda got ahead of myself. Didn’t see you there.’’
‘’Ah, it’s alright’’ he said as he got to his feet, brushing dust off of him. ‘’Where’d you get that suit of armour from?’’
‘’Oh, I was just cruising around the castle, minding my own business, and then bam! I stumble into an armoury! With all this awesome looking stuff!’’ She jumped into a pose. ‘’Not too shabby, huh?’’
‘’Yeah, it looks great but… isn’t it a bit heavy?’’
‘’Yeah, it is kinda. Throws me off my flying line a little bit, but hey. I can manage.’’
‘’Great, um, so, have you seen Twilight anywhere?’’
‘’Oh yeah! I saw her run somewhere in… that direction’’ She pointed with her hoof. ‘’She looked really excited for some reason…’’
‘’I think I know why… thanks Rainbow Dash.’’ And he hurried away to find her.
He opened the door which lead into the grand castle library. The only way he could describe it was enormous. Perhaps it wasn’t generous enough. It was almost as big as the library in Canterlot castle, perhaps even bigger. It soon dawned on Spike that finding Twilight in a place like this would be close to almost impossible. The place was almost like a maze, with shelf after shelf stacked high with books after books. But he eventually started seeing gaps in shelves, so following them seemed to be his best bet.
Before long he managed to find her. She was sitting at one of the grand tables along a central aisle. Her head and eyes transfixed on the open book in front of her, as two tall towers of even bigger books stood either side of her. Perhaps not a week then, more like ten days.
‘’There you are Twilight.’’ Said her number one assistant as he came over. ‘’I’ve been looking all over for you.’’
She didn’t even look up. ‘’Spike,’’ she said, ‘’Have you seen this place? It’s like a sanctuary of endless knowledge!’’
‘’How many books have you read already?’’
‘’Oh, I’m just starting on the third bookcase. I’ve noticed that there’s some books that aren’t even here. I’ll have to make a list of the ones we’re missing.’’
Okay, more like two weeks.
‘’But don’t you want to explore the castle like the others? Rainbow Dash said she found an armoury!’’
‘’Oh, in a little while Spike, I’ll make this my last stack, I promise.’’
Spike tried to come up with a reply, but felt something swell in his stomach, and before long, he belched out a scroll in a ball of green flame. It was wrapped in a red ribbon with a heart-shaped crest.
Twilight looked up. ‘’A letter?’’ she asked, as she unravelled it and started reading. ‘’It’s from Cadence.’’
‘’What’s it say?’’ asked Spike, perching on a chair beside her, trying to read as well as Twilight read aloud.
‘’Dear Twilight, I am writing to ask you to come to the Crystal Empire for an urgent matter that needs your attention.’’ Her voice almost dipped to a whisper as she leaned in closer to the scroll, reading every word. She leaned her head back and gasped suddenly.
Spike jumped too. ‘’What is it?’’ Spike asked.
‘’Spike! Pack our things! We’re going to the Crystal Empire! Now!’’ She leapt from her seat and sprinted for the door.
‘’But what about the others?’’
‘’No time!’’ was all she could say before she vanished.
Curiously, Spike picked up the scroll and read it, wondering what caught her attention, then he soon saw what was wrong.
‘’A pony came through the mirror?’’
Tornado knew he was late. He knew he was very late. He couldn’t help it. It wasn’t his fault that his mum made him stay after dinner to help with the housework. Was it like I had a choice in the matter? He thought to himself as he ran. No… No housework done means no Geotech sneakers! He sighed heavily as he kept up his speed. He soon saw the statue outside the school. But he slowed down rather quickly to find that Tyrone wasn’t there either.
He checked his watch. 7:45 pm. Only fifteen minutes late. Granted he had been late before, but not as late as this. By now Tyrone would have just shrugged it off and got on with things.
‘’We’re both here, that’s what’s important.’’ Tornado muttered, mirroring his friend’s exact words from past experiences.
But he found it a little weird. Normally it was Tyrone who’d be saying that. But there was no Tyrone. He looked all around the statue to be sure. Nothing. He looked all around the area to see if he was coming. Nothing. He checked his phone to see if he had sent any last minute texts saying he’d be late. Nothing. Just the text he had sent beforehand ‘See you at the statue at 7:30’ it read. Tornado sighed and sat at the foot of the statue and waited.
He checked his watch again. What had become fifteen minutes had now become thirty five. ‘’Okay, this is getting ridiculous’’ said Tornado, dialling Tyrone’s mobile number and waiting for the ring. But it didn’t. The automated voice-line spoke ‘’The number you have dialled is currently unavailable.’’ That’s weird. Usually Tyrone kept his phone on. It wasn’t like him to keep it off.
Tornado then tried his home number, in the hopes that Tyrone had to fix a part on the hexa-copter, or he had to get a new memory card for the camera. At last he heard the ringing noise, and it was quickly answered by Tyrone’s mum.
‘’Hello?’’ he heard her ask.
‘’Hi, Mrs Volt.’’ He replied. ‘’It’s Tornado Blitz. I was wondering if Tyrone was around.’’
‘’Oh he left to meet you at the statue remember?’’
‘’Yes but he’s not here…’’
‘’That’s strange, he left at quarter past seven to meet up with you.’’
Tornado swallowed. It was becoming apparent that something bad must have happened. ‘’Has he contacted you in anyway lately?’’ he asked slowly.
‘’No he hasn’t. Haven’t received any emergency texts from him… hello?’’
Tornado’s arm hung by his side as he looked around at the quiet streets, his stomach almost turning over as he feared the worst for his friend.
Have you ever imagined the feeling when something you've loved and cherished through your entire life suddenly vanishes off of the face of the earth without a trace? And you feel the shock and anguish flow through yourself as you know you'll never see it again? That's kind of what travelling to a new and completely unknown world is like.
Tyrone Volt certainly felt that way. Falling through a magical portal into a new dimension where apparently horses had gained sentience wasn't something he had anticipated, let alone him becoming a horse himself. His encounter with the guards wasn’t memorable either. Multiple times they had told him to get to his hooves and follow them, but he couldn’t really so much march as stumble. So instead he was somehow lifted into the air and carried down to what seemed to him as a dungeon. They dumped him in the cell, and locked the door.
And that’s where he was now, sitting on the floor, still trying to gather his thoughts. The sitting wasn’t helping much, considering his new form. He looked over himself again, looking over his bright red body and his blonde coloured tail. He was surprised that the journey through the portal let him keep his goggles, so was a little thankful for that. The only other thing h could work out was that he was in some sort of castle. That was made a bit more obvious with the guards in regal armour and the fact that he was sitting in a dungeon. So perhaps this place was run by some sort of monarchy. Whatever this place was.
‘’Suppose I’d better make the most of it while I can.’’ He said to himself. He held up one of his front hooves, sighing softy as he turned his hoof left to right. ‘’Well, let’s make a start.’’
He managed to stand himself upright on all four of his legs, and managing to keep considerable balance. He didn’t move for a few seconds, internally debating how to actually go about something as trivial as walking. ‘’How do they make it look so easy?’’ he mumbled. He knew there was some sort of pattern, but he just couldn’t think of it.
Before long, he took a deep breath, lifted his front right hoof, and placed it forward. Then, he lifted his back left hoof, whilst trying to stave off the thought ‘’Oh geez this feels really weird’’, and placed that forward too. He then did the same for his front left, then rear right. He slowly managed to gather up speed, and before he knew, he found himself walking around his cell. He actually felt rather pleased with himself, adapting to his new circumstances. He was also thankful that the cell was big enough for a good walk-around too.
‘’Okay, let’s try this.’’ He soon went a little faster, and soon found himself working up a decent trot. He couldn’t help but giggle to himself as he trotted merrily round his little cell. He was rather enjoying it.
But he soon stopped as he heard other foot… hoof-steps coming his way, and soon he saw two of the castle guards approached his cell door. One of them making the lock glow with a clicking-like sound as the door was unlocked and opened.
‘’The princess will see you now.’’ Said the other.
So there IS a monarchy, Tyrone thought as he gathered himself to his full height, definitely much taller than the guards. ‘’Very well gentlemen. Lead on’’
The two guards lead him through different corridors and doorways before finally coming to the grand throne room. The bright sunlight gleaming through the stained glass windows, reflecting off the shiny crystal-like floor, creating quite a colourful picture. Two rows of guards stood either side of an ornate purple and blue carpet, stretching all the way to the grand throne. The guards lead him along the carpet. He noticed the other guards looking at him suspiciously. He supposed it made sense. Perhaps suddenly appearing in a room deep within a castle wouldn’t exactly put you in their good books. Plus the fact that he was the tallest horse in the room didn’t seem to help.
Before long he was stopped suddenly as one of the guards approached the throne. ‘’Presenting her royal highness, ruler of the Crystal Empire, Princess Cadence!’’ he boomed.
Some of the guards behind Tyrone raised ornate crystal horns, trumpeting the royal fanfare as the princess stepped down from her throne to greet them. Tyrone found her quite a sight to behold. Her fur was a soft pink, and her lush mane and tail decorated with streaks of pink, purple and light yellow, her eyes a soft baby blue. She had a horn too, like he did. But then he noticed that tucked away either side of her body was a pair of wings. They too were pink, but the tips of the feathers were hinted with purple. Horns AND wings? He thought to himself. Are there going to be centaurs next?
‘’Greetings to you.’’ She said, in a soft, calm voice, bowing her head politely. The guards did the same, as did Tyrone, knowing he was dealing with royalty, so manners were more than necessary.
The same guard who announced them raised his head and addressed the princess. ‘’We found this unicorn sneaking inside the castle. We managed to find him when he made a ruckus in one of the inner chambers.’’
‘’I see.’’ Said the princess, her soft voice now taking on a more serious tone. ‘’And how did you apprehend him?’’
The guards looked at each other briefly. ‘’Um… very easily your majesty.’’ Her raised eyebrow made him flinch a little. ‘’Um, you see, when we asked him to follow us he couldn’t seem to stand on his hooves all that well. Probably from disorientation. We ended up carrying him to the dungeon where he spent the rest of the night.’’
‘’I see.’’ She said after a brief pause. ‘’Very well. You are dismissed. I shall take it from here. Thank you sirs.’’
The guards bowed politely, and made their way out of the throne room to resume their duties. Tyrone watched them go before turning his attention back to the princess, their gazes meeting instantly, making him gulp.
‘’What is your name?’’ she asked him.
‘’Um… Tyrone Volt, your highness.’’ He replied.
‘’And might I ask what you were doing in the castle?’’
‘’Well, uh…’’ He wondered how to best phrase his answer. Probably saying that he fell through a magical portal in a school statue and ending up in her castle might not be the most convincing answer to go for, so he quickly tried to think of something else. ‘’In all honesty your majesty… I’m just as confused as you are…’’ The look she gave him showed lack of belief. ‘’You see… I was trying out something with a friend, and uh, somehow something went horribly wrong and, I ended up in this castle.’’ Her look hadn’t changed. Tyrone swallowed again, knowing he’d be in for the count about now.
‘’So, all of this was just a simple miscalculation on your part?’’ she asked.
‘’Y-yes!’’ he said quickly, wearing a nervous smile. ‘’It was all just a simple miscalculation. S-sorry if I caused a disturbance’’
Her expression didn’t change for a few second. Tyrone really wondered if she believed his story. He wasn’t sure that he believed it either. Then her expression changed to more of a reassuring smile. ‘’Oh, well there’s no harm done, am I right?’’ she said.
‘’Yes your highness. No harm done, at least none that I know of.’’
‘’So tell me, Tyrone, do you know where you are now?’’
He looked around the throne room again, mentally asking the question himself before turning back to her. ‘’Well, I know I’m in some sort of castle, but where that castle is, I really don’t know.’’
‘’Oh? Well then, if you like, you could join me for some tea and I could tell you everything you need to know.’’
Tyrone’s ears pricked up on instinct. He’d never been one to turn down a good cup of tea, even if it was offered by an other-worldly monarch. ‘’Well, if it’s on offer, then yes please your majesty.’’
She smiled warmly as she led him away. ‘’Wonderful.’’
Princess Cadence led the tall red unicorn to a balcony on the northern face of the castle, overlooking the royal gardens as well as some of the city. She couldn’t help but giggle a little as he watched him lean on the balcony rail and looking out at the city below, just like a foal would. She strode over to the small table and took her seat as he continued to observe.
‘’So is everything here made of crystal?’’ he asked as he joined her at the table.
‘’Well, not quite everything, but a lot of it is.’’ She replied. ‘’The flowers wouldn’t smell as sweet if they were made of crystal now were they?’’
‘’No I suppose not.’’ He smiled, chuckling at the thought, and she smiled with him.
Tyrone learned quite a few things in the conversation they had thereafter. He found out he was in a place called the Crystal Empire, which was in turn part of a bigger world which was called Equestria, which had other regions like Trottingham and Manehattan. Nearly everyone was a pony, save for a few groups which included gryphons and dragons. He also learned about the different types of ponies that inhabited the lands. There were the earth ponies, who were just like normal ponies, the unicorns, like he was, and there were the Pegasus ponies, ones with wings that could fly.
‘’And I’m an alicorn.’’ She finished. ‘’It’s like a combination of a Pegasus and a unicorn. Most of the other princesses I know are alicorns.’’
‘’Are there many other alicorns in Equestria?’’ Tyrone asked.
‘’Well, by my knowledge, there’s three others I know. There’s Princesses Celestia and Luna who live in Canterlot. They’re both responsible for raising the sun and the moon each and every day.’’
Ponies are needed to move the sun and moon? Tyrone thought. Next thing she’ll tell me is that the Pegasus ponies move the clouds.
‘’And of course there’s my sister-in-law, Princess Twilight.’’ She smiled.
Tyrone paused. He had heard that name before, or maybe he had seen it. One of the two. Who was Twilight? Why does that name sound familiar?
Princess Cadence noticed him looking into open space. ‘’Is something the matter?’’
He snapped to attention when she spoke. ‘’Oh, no. I just er…’’ He tried to think of a good excuse, but he didn’t need to when a silver tray was set between them. One of the smartly dressed butlers had brought them their tea, kept warm in an ornamental teapot, with cups and saucers to match, as well as a small pot of sugar and a small jug for milk.
‘’Oh! Thank you.’’ Said the princess, partially surprised by the tray’s sudden appearance.
Tyrone watched as the jug was somehow lifted into the air, pouring fresh tea into each of the mugs, followed by the jug, adding a splash of milk. ‘’Would you like sugar?’’ Cadence asked him.
‘’Oh no sugar for me, thank you.’’ He replied. His cup was slid over to him and he made to reach for it, but stopped, looking at his own hooves, suddenly remember the fact since he was a unicorn, it came with a severe lack in the finger department.
‘’Is everything alright?’’ Cadence asked him as she took her cup.
Tyrone raised his hooves. ‘’Oh yes, everything’s fine, just fine.’’ He smiled sheepishly as the princess eyed him curiously, before her cup was raised to her lips, and she took a dainty sip.
Tyrone waved his hands around his cup, as if contemplating whether or not he could turn it into a rabbit, or debating which part of it would make the cup suddenly explode. But at last, he managed to get a stable grip with both hooves. He raised the cup to his lips, and sipped the warm brew. It was warm, and sweet. Not like the hot tea his mum would give him, which made his almost melt when they touched the surface. This one was the perfect temperature, and very flavoursome, despite having no sugar in it. He sighed happily as he sipped some more.
But then he noticed Princess Cadence was giving a funny look, as if she caught him putting on a duckbill whilst holding up a sign saying ‘quack’. He wondered if he’d done something wrong.
‘’What?’’ he asked.
Cadence looked from his teacup to him. ‘’Why aren’t you using your magic?’’
Tyrone had made a mental list of the things she could have said to him, whether it was the noise he made when sipping or the way he sat. But it was the last word she said that left him speechless for a few moment before finally asking, ‘’My what?’’ ‘’Your magic.’’ She repeated. ‘’I would’ve thought a unicorn like you would surely use his magic instead of…’’ she gestured randomly about him. ‘’What you just did.’’
Now Tyrone was giving her that same funny look. But as soon as he saw it, he blinked. Cadence’s teacup had a blue glowing aura around it. So did her horn, he just noticed. That was how it was being lifted.
Cadence was still eyeing him. ‘’How much magic DO you know?’’ she asked, a little sternly now.
Tyrone gulped. ‘’I uh…’’
‘’Do you any teleportation spells?’’
‘’No I… wait, spells?’’
‘’What about invisibility spells?’’
‘’No…’’
Her eyes widened a little as her eyebrow stayed raised, and leaned closer to him. ‘’Not even a simple levitation spell?’’
Tyrone could feel his ears droop as he knew he was in for it. ‘’No…’’ was all he could say.
Cadence’s eyes flashed open at the sudden prospect of a unicorn of his stature not knowing a spell learned at nursery. Her face of shock changed to a strict one, as a teacher learns about the naughty pony who put a whoopee cushion on their chair. She set her cup down and stood up, circling round the table toward him. He got up instinctively, backing nervously away like rabbit trapped in a corner by a ferocious lion.
‘’Okay, there’s something odd about you.’’ She said, her voice staying on a particular level of anger, the kind just before the level which would make her explode. ‘’You, a fully capable unicorn, doesn’t even know how to perform the simplest of magic, somehow ends up in the middle of my castle.’’
Tyrone felt his back press against solid wall as Cadence continued to advance on him.
‘’And the only way you could have gotten into the castle is by either teleporting, or becoming invisible and sneaking in!’’
He leant back further suddenly as Cadence unfolded her wings and leapt into the air, the two of them facing each other nose to nose.
‘’So…’’ she demanded, her voice now raising gradually, ‘’How did you get into the castle?’’
Tyrone shut his eyes, wishing this wasn’t happening right now. But of course, it was happening anyway, and closing his eyes didn’t make a blind bit of difference.
‘’WELL?!’’
‘’I don’t know!’’ he said pleadingly.
She wasn’t impressed. ‘’What do you mean, you don’t know?’’
‘’I told you I don’t know! One minute I was elsewhere and somehow I fell backwards and ended up in that room with the big mirror!’’
Princess Cadence stayed hovering in mid-air for a short time, taking in what he had just said. And then something clicked.
‘’Wait…’’ She landed back on her hooves. ‘’A big mirror?’’
‘’Yes!’’
‘’A chamber with a large mirror and all those other ornaments?!’’
‘’Yes!’’
She gasped at a sudden realisation. She trotted on the spot rather quickly, her head moving left and right quickly, as if she had left the oven on. But she soon stopped, and her gaze met his. ‘’Excuse me.’’ She said quickly, and left the balcony fast. Tyrone just stayed where he was, wondering what on earth just happened.
Princess Cadence sped through the castle as fast as she could, rushing past guards to reach the castle study. She burst into the room, and ran towards the desk where her scribe sat. The scribe, named Ebony Hawkfeather, sat up at the Princess’ sudden arrival.
‘’Is there something wrong your highness?’’ she asked as the Princess pressed her hooves onto the desk.
‘’Ebony’’ panted Cadence, ‘’I need to write me a letter to Princess Twilight Sparkle, immediately!’’
‘’Yes, right away!’’ said Ebony, clearing her desk before laying down a piece of fresh parchment. ‘’Is it urgent?’’
‘’Very.’’ Replied Cadence, ‘’and I think that Twilight will know more about this than I do.’’
Author's Note
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