The Last Shadowlightby IdhrenionChaptersShadowlight encounterFiery summonsStory of my ancestors (optional read)Gift or Curse?Shadow?Adventure!Home?Little sisFirst DayIce-Cream and StallionsGood to be backSecrets Someplace old, someplace newSilly filly, trees don't talkRules (optional read)Shadowlight encounterI was making my rounds about the castle. It was night of course, I’m particularly fond of disappearing into the shadows. Only a sliver of the moon was left to illuminate the dark sky, but I’m very much acquainted with darkness. I had spent most of my life in it. As I made my rounds I felt as if somepony was watching me and thinking to how late it was I simply couldn’t ignore it. Nopony would be out this late, unless… they were going to attack the castle! So, naturally after such a thought occurred to me I made great haste to the chambers of Celestia, to protect the princess. But before I could reach my destination I tripped! This was my second sign that something was indeed amiss for when was the last time you heard of a shadow tripping of all things. So down I fell and hit the ground, Hard! It didn’t hurt and I was fine for now, but the next thing I knew a large pony came rushing out of nowhere and slammed his hooves down on the ground next to me. The force created was enormous, and created a magical surge so powerful it knocked me out of my shadow form and far into the air. He then proceeded to levitate me back to the ground and conjure a force field around me. I was dazed, and confused, and most certainly not ok. He looked me in the eyes and yelled “Who are you and what are you doing here”!? His voice was harsh and in total control of the situation. I was in no condition to speak, I was still confused by the tripping, let alone the attack. Hundreds of questions filled my mind most of which starting with how and why. He yelled again “Who are you and wha-“. “Silence…” I cut him off “You will awaken the princess with all your shouting”. He took a step back and illuminated his horn making it much easier to see him and myself. He was taller than me but not by much his coat was white and both his hair and eyes were blue, but different shades. I couldn’t see his cutie mark. it was covered by his armor which shone bright from the light of his illumination spell. I was wearing an old, grey, tattered, cloak which no doubt made it hard for him to see my cutie mark as well. I was the first to speak after the long, awkward silence. “Hello Shining Armor” I said. “How is it you know my name stranger”? His words were quick and had great power and authority,and even though he had not been captain of the royal guard long now, Shining Armor was in no mood for games. “I’ve never seen you before and I like to think anypony with a beard would stick out in my memory”. “I’d hope you’ve never seen me, I work very hard to remain like a shadow, a whisper, but you seem to have a very keen eye”. I said smiling. “You still haven’t answered my question stranger” He spoke. His words were softer but still firm. “Which one”? I said. “Let’s start with who you are”. “My name, is Idhrenion Shadowlight” “Shadowlight”? He said as if trying very hard to remember something he almost forgot. Like a name on the tip of your tongue. “But, history says the last shadowlight died hundreds of years ago”. The words struck me as offensive. I had been labeled dead! “Can’t be right, I'm still here aren’t I? But, then again that would explain why nopony has called for me in quite some time”. “Well if you indeed are a shadowlight then the books must be wrong”. He said smiling no doubt trying to lighten the mood. “Well it’s plain to see nothing gets by the captain of the royal guard”. “I'm going to pretend you didn’t say that… anyway are you a member of the S.U.R.G.”? “Surge”? I asked rather confused at the question. “You know the Shadowlight Unicorns of the Royal Guard”. He said proudly. “The last time I checked it was just the Shadowlight Royal Guard”. “Well they added the unicorn part because all of the members were, well, unicorns”. “How silly of them”. “Well I think it sounds cool”. “Cool? Sometimes it’s hard to believe that you are captain of the royal guard, but here you are”! “And here you are Shadowlight in MY force field”! Shining said with a commanding tone. I tilted my head to the side and the field vanished as if it were never there. “What force field”? Fiery summons“What do you mean you can’t go see the princess”!? Shining yelled, his words piercing the darkness. We had been walking for a while now. He seemed very interested in me and had many questions. Normally I would decline any and all questions but this was a special case in two ways. One, he was the captain of Celestia’s guard and had the right to ask me certain questions pertaining to my identity and my intentions. Two, he had bested me and I fell into his trap (albeit I escaped his skill does deserve some recognition). This condition meant he had the right to ask anything of me for a short time, unless of course it would have me break my sworn oath. (Luckily for me shining didn’t know that and wasted most of his jurisdiction on meaningless questions). He did however ask about the story of my ancestors. [1] Which I had not spoken of in quite some time, naturally. It was one of the questions he asked that I didn’t mind answering. But I stopped the fun when he asked me to come with him to the castle. “Isn’t the night sky beautiful?” I said quietly. He paused, looked at the sky and said calmly “Please Idhrenion, don’t you think she wants to see you after all this time”. “If she wanted to see me, she would only have to ask”. “She can’t possible ask for the appearance of a dead pony now can she”? “That’s no excuse. I can’t break the rules of my ancestors”. “What if I told her that you were still alive”? “If she requests my appearance I will always appear. Do what you feel is right Shining Armor”. “…”. Shining pondered for a moment and then quickly turned away. “I ask of you one thing”. “Yes”? He said with hastiness in his voice. “I ask that you only tell Celestia, what happened tonight”. “If that is what you really want then so be it”. “Thank you”. With those finale words I vanished back into the shadow. The next day I received a summons from Celestia to meet her in the throne room at noon. I was delighted that the princess had summoned me and I made great haste to our meeting place as soon as I received the notice. I was early, very early, but I didn’t mind the wait, not one bit. I watched as the princess preformed her royal duties silently waiting in the shadows till noon. Right before noon I noticed that she called Shining to the throne room and ushered everypony else outside. Right at noon I stepped out of the shadows and made my presence known. The princess spoke as she sat back down onto her throne “So it would seem Shining Armor was right. How are you Shadowlight”? “Perfectly fine, your majesty” I said with a bow. “Good, good we have much to discuss, but first I have to ask. Are you the last Shadowlight”? “Yes your majesty, the others died long ago”. “I see, so you must be a very capable unicorn then”. “Yes, your majesty“. “Excuse me, but I’m not sure I follow”. Shining interjected. “I almost forgot you were here Shining”. I said. “What is it that you don’t understand”? “I don’t get why being a Shadowlight makes you so magically adept. Last night you dispersed my shield with such ease”. “It is because… well actually, you should tell him Shadowlight it is your tradition after all”. Celestia said. “Of course, your majesty. Shining do you remember the promise my ancestors made”? “Yes, they promised to always protect the royalty of Equestria as long as there heritage lives on”. “Correct, however they were not aware that the princesses would live quite so long. So in order to truly protect the princesses as best they could they made it the tradition to pass their magic on to a Shadowlight of their choice. This, in their eyes, allowed them to serve the princesses beyond death”. “So since you are the last Shadowlight, you are the most magically adept unicorn alive”! Shining said with his eyes wide open. “No”. I said with a rather disappointed tone. “Most of the magical properties of my ancestors has faded over time.” “Oh” shining said looking a bit disappointed as well. “But I have retained all of their knowledge”. I said gleefully. Sparking Shining’s interest again. “So you must be like a walking, talking library of magical information. Wow twilight would love you”! “But you promised not to tell anypony didn’t you”? Celestia said with a commanding yet soft tone. “It is a secret I will carry to my grave Celestia”. He said with a bow. “Thank you, again”. I said. “But if you say you’re not that powerful then how did you break my force field so easily”? Shining said eagerly. “I simply studied how you created it and cast a counter spell. We talked for just long enough for me to do so. Excellent work by the way, most impressive”. “Thanks, twilight helped me perfect it”. Shining said with a big grin. “Speaking of twilight, is she that same filly who caused that massive magic surge and hatched the dragon egg”? “The very same”. Celestia said. “She seems to have a lot of magical potential. More than most anyway.” I said. “Yes, and naturally after that I immediately accepted her as my new student. And she has been a most faithful student at that.” Celestia couldn’t help but smile whenever she spoke about twilight. “Anyway now that we’ve gone over the formalities, let’s get down to business”. Celestia stood as she spoke. “First off I'm relieving you of your duties” “I couldn’t agree with you more, princess”. I said with a slight smile. “As long as I'm here your services won’t be needed Shining Armor”. “I wasn’t talking to Shining Armor” Celestia said with almost a grim tone. The harsh words hit me like a brick to the head! “Wha-“. I suddenly felt faint. Hundreds of years I've done nothing but protect the princess now she fires me! This must be some mistake. “But I… I, oh my… surely, you don’t mean”? “I'm sorry Idhrenion, but I do”. I couldn’t take it. I struggled to remain conscious but ultimately, I failed. Most ponies would have just fainted but my body just laid there, silent and lifeless. [1] The story of my ancestors (optional read) Story of my ancestors (optional read)“It was the dawn of a new age, Discord, god of chaos and temporary ruthless ruler of all of Equestria, was finally defeated. It was a long cruel time in which Discord ruled over Equestria. There were many brave ponies that tried to challenge him. Some lived, others were not so lucky. In the end they all failed, even them. Now, some may have never heard the story but I will never forget it. It was wet that faithful day. Chocolate milk covered Discords playground and soaked those who dared to enter, down to the bone. It was a sticky, bittersweet wetness. This was the heart of the chaos storm and it was cold. A cold that could freeze your very soul, but not to them, their hearts burned with the flames of vengeance. Long had they suffered under discords rule but no longer. 64 magically gifted unicorns faced the harsh, cold, and heavy rain, but above they all faced their oppressor, their self-proclaimed ruler. Oh how it would please this old pony to speak of their brave and courageous victory over that monster, but alas, no such victory came and none would come, not for a long time at least. Discord won that fight with such ease that all hope seemed lost. Only 10 survived and he barely lifted a finger. That single defeat obliterated all hope for Ponydom. Then, years later, the single two most important ponies in Equestria arrived ready for battle. They called up arms, but nopony would listen. Nopony wanted to die. So the sisters named Luna and Celestia went alone. They took with them only a collection of peculiar gems now known as the elements of harmony. This time was a little different. I suppose Discord underestimated them, for he had let his guard down. No rain or cold, just him in an open field of broken reality. In the end, as everypony is well aware, the sisters won. Trapping Discord in a stone prison. Years went by and the sisters were crowned as princesses and made to be the new rulers of Equestria. In their old age the 10 unicorns that survived that fight with Discord returned to the sisters and said, “Oh great princesses long has there been peace in Equestria because of you, long have we prospered because of you, as a token of our eternal gratitude we give you our lives and the lives of our descendants. We will long serve to protect you and all further rulers of Equestria with our very souls. Luna, Celestia, I present to you the Shadowlight Royal Guards First Generation”. From out of the shadows manifested 8 young unicorns. The tallest and oldest of the group then spoke out. “We are your hidden guard, we will silently protect you unless otherwise necessary. We will always obey your every command and put your lives far ahead of our own. We wish to forever serve you until the day our heritage is lost. Do you accept?” Luna looked at Celestia and then back at the guard. Celestia smiled and nodded. That was all they needed to fulfill their self-established destinies, they smiled and bowed. The encounter was over and as quickly as they arrived, they vanished, only reappearing when called or in times of danger”. That Shining Armor is the story of my ancestors and the creation of the Shadowlight guard. Gift or Curse?I awoke to the sound of Celestia’s voice calling to me. She kept telling me to wake up. I stood up, my body feeling very strange. This had never happened to me before, but then, this was the first time I had rested at all since then. “What did you do”? Celestia’s voice was full of anger and she was pacing around the room. She seemed to be more than displeased with me, but as always she somehow managed to remain calm. ”I noticed the way your body reacted to my magic. What have you done”? My head ached at the memory of that day. “I had to”! I yelled, trying to justify the deed I had done. “In order to protect you”. “Tell me what you did”. I paused for a moment and surveyed the room. We were below the castle but not quite to the crystal caverns. Celestia and I were the only ponies present so I decided to tell her everything. “Celestia”? I said softly. “I'm listening”. Celestia said, still with an aura of harshness in her voice. “When I told Shining that all of my ancestor’s magic had faded, that was only the partial truth”. “And the whole truth”? She beckoned. “The magic is all gone, but instead of just fading, I…I used it all up”. “What!? How do you just use up thousands of years of magic”? “I used it to create a permanent vessel for my soul. It was the only way the Shadowlights could live on. I've never married and I have no chil-”! “You cannot justify this Idhrenion” she interjected, then paused for a moment as if to remain calm. “So the body your soul now inhabits is a magical copy of your original body. I assume that it’s arcane. Am I correct”? “Yes, your majesty”. “You can stop calling me that you don’t work for me anymore”! “But princess, I-“. “Silence! Please listen to me Idhrenion you have done too much for me all ready. You and your family have protected my legacy for longer than most ponies will ever remember. You’ve never asked for a thank you, not once stopping and thinking about yourselves, and to top it all up you gave up your mortality”. I could have sworn the princess almost started to cry. She paused, again composing herself and started again. “I'm still reliving you of your job, but not as a punishment, as a gift. I'm giving you your freedom. No more listening to orders. No more protocol. Just go and live your life, please, for me”. “Fine”. I was very reluctant to obey this order, but I could feel the hurt in Celestia’s voice. After all I knew why she was so angry. “Thank you”. Celestia stood up straight and looked up at the ceiling as if avoiding eye contact. ”Now, tomorrow we shall have a very small ceremony honoring your time as a guard. Just Shining and I will attend. I ask that you keep the matter of your ‘body’ between the two of us”. “Will do”. I felt strange not to say ‘yes, your majesty’, but at the same time it was a little relieving. I didn’t like it. “Good”. She then began to tell me about the ceremony but not in too much detail. She told me that the rest would be explained when I arrived. It was to be held in three days, because that was the only time the princess had enough time to throw a secret ceremony that nopony would be allowed to attend. After that Celestia left and so did I. I had nothing to do since I had agreed not to be a guard anymore so I just waited silently for the ceremony to come. After all I was good at that. Shadow?It was early on the morning of the ceremony. I put on my old, grey cloak and walked to the throne room. I was no longer required to hide in the shadows so I decided to stretch my legs. It didn’t take me to long to reach my destination. When I arrived the guards let me in. The ceremony had just begun and I almost missed the beginning. However I would not have minded. All it meant was that I would have to leave, and that was the last thing I wanted. When I entered I saw Celestia, Shining Armor and another pony who I thought was the royal tea brewer. “I'm sorry shadow there had to be some last minute changes, Ms. Stitch wanted to show you in person”. Celestia said with a smile. I smiled back but I'm sure it looked just as fake as it was. Ms. Stitch was the royal seamstress she was particularly good and capes and cloaks. As for why she was here I’d just have to wait to find out. Then there was the matter of Celestia calling me shadow, but I suppose she was protecting my identity. “Very well then, that is fine”. I said with little to no emotion whatsoever. “Good, first order of business I had Ms. Stitch make you a gift…” She paused for a moment. “Ms. Stitch” “Yes of course your majesty right away”. She said as she scurried around the room. She was a somewhat short earth-pony , with a tannish coat and light blue hair. Her cutie mark was a ball of yarn. “Here it is”. She proclaimed as she pulled out a huge box that looked like a wardrobe on wheels. Inside was an assortment of capes and robes in all kinds of colors. “So what do you think”? She pulled out a purple cape with silver lining and waved it in front of me. “Do you perhaps have something a little more simplistic”? I asked. “Let me see”. She said nervously as she searched through her wardrobe flinging the garments everywhere. One in particular caught my eye. It was just what I was looking for. The silk felt amazing and the pure white fabric shone bright in the light of the sun. The lining was just the opposite. It was almost as if you were staring into a pitch black void of nothingness. I quickly took off my old cloak and put on the new. “What about this one”? I asked. She turned around to look at me. “It feels and looks great. You did an amazing job”. “Thanks” she said looking a little disappointed. Then she gathered up here things and left. I was so busy admiring my new cloak I had almost not noticed. “Thank you” Celestia and I said right before she shut the door. “Is she going to be okay princess”? I asked. “She’ll be fine; it’s just that the one you chose was merely a concept so she could get the size and shape right”. Celestia said. “Well it’s very nice for a concept. It even has this little pocket” “Oh yes, that is for this” Celestia levitated a small package with a letter attached to it over to me. “The letter will explain everything, but for now put it to the side” “Okay” I said reluctantly and used my own magic to levitate it back where Celestia had it. “Celestia”? I asked. “Yes”? “How come Ms. Stitch didn’t noticed who I was based on my cutie mark. I know she saw it and it was on all of those capes she made even this one”? I was of course referring to the cape I chose which had my cutie mark-the Shadowlight seal-seamlessly sown into the white back. [1] “Not many ponies even remember the Shadowlights, let alone who they were” Celestia said. “Shining only knows of their existence because of the royal guard exam he had to take in order to become captain”. “Oh yeah, that worthless test took forever”. Shining said under his breath. “What was that Shining”? Celestia said raising an eyebrow. “Nothing, your majesty” he said with a bow. “Anyway” she said shaking her head. “Are there any other questions shadow”? “As a matter of fact yes. Why do you keep calling me shadow”? “Idhrenion is such an old name and would hardly fit in nowadays, so I improvised a nickname. Do you like it”? “It’s simple yet very effective; it will work for the time being.” I said with a smile. In all honesty I liked the nicknamed and planned to use it for a while. “Now I have a question for you shadow”. Shining said. “I might have an answer”. I said happily. “Where will you go now, and what will you do”? I thought about the question for a moment and said. “When I was young, my father told me that he always wanted to go out and build a home for my family here”. I pulled out a map and pointed to the edge of a forest north of galloping gorge. [2] “I figure I might give the place a visit and see why my father was so fond of that particular area. Who knows I might even build a home there. Seeing as I can’t live here anymore”. I said looking straight at the princess. She was however unfazed by my meaningless comment, but I would expect nothing less from the ruler of Equestria. “Good for you”. Was the only thing shining could say to loosen the mood. It worked and I ceased my attack on the princess. “Anyway”. I said “As for what I will do, I shall wait”. “For what, exactly”? Shining asked, but I could tell Celestia was equally curious. “For your sister to graduate from that school of Celestia’s. We all know she will, and when she does, she is going to accomplish great things. As for what that means we’ll all just have to wait and find out”. The ceremony was coming to a close and I was readying myself for my departure when I realized I still had one question left for the princess. “Before I forget, Celestia what school of magic do you plan to teach Twilight after she graduates. Will you teach her you side of the spectrum, of light and love? Or do you dare to teach her the way of the night, of darkness and fear?” Shining was shocked by the nature of my question. Celestia however was unaffected, still though I would not have asked the question if I did not want the answer. “Friendship… Twilight Sparkle will learn the magic of friendship”. This was her response, one that shocked me. All of my vast knowledge of magic was at this particular point, useless. The only thing I knew about the magic of friendship was the name. I was utterly stumped and at a loss for words. Celestia saw though my confusion and began to explain herself. “The great Starswirl failed to achieve his ultimate goal because he lacked knowledge on the magic of friendship. I intend to correct this mistake with Twilight by teaching it to her first”. Check mate Celestia. Genius is the only word that could come to mind. She intends for Twilight to become the new Starswirl, a better Starswirl not only am I interested, I don’t think I will be able to wait. But even with all of my excitement I still remained composed (till I got outside at least). “Naturally both of you will keep this information a secret”. Celestia said. Both Shining and I agreed of course. “Oh my goodness look at the time I'm going to be late for my train” I said rushing out the door to the throne room on my way to Canterlot station. I could hear Celestia’s voice trying to tell me something but I had no time to listen. I was on an adventure! [1] My cutie mark (The Shadowlight seal) is my profile picture. [2] On the official map of Equestria. Adventure!“Money, what uses have I for money”? I yelled, frustrated at the ticket salespony. Whom I'm sure was equally as frustrated with me. “I'm sorry sir but train tickets aren't free”! He yelled back. “Not even for a princess”? The salespony quickly bowed and I turned to see Celestia right behind me. “You forgot your gift back at the castle, shadow”. She said, bowing back at the salespony. She levitated the small package towards me and I gripped it within my magical grasp. “Thank you, princess”. I wasn't all that excited that she brought it to me. I had purposely left it there; after all it was probably some long, drawn out apology/thank you for your service letter and some cheese. I took it anyway, as not to be rude. “I'm sorry to interrupt, but tickets still aren't free even for a princess”. Said the sales pony. Celestia chuckled then gave the pony 5 bits. Then she began to ask the pony for something but I couldn’t make out what. “Right away princess”. He said with another equally annoying bow. “Is there something wrong shadow”? she said with a concerned tone. “Hm… what? Oh its nothing, anyway thanks for the ticket”. I must have been making a face at the salespony. “Naturally I expect you to pay me back of course” She spoke as though I was trying to rob her, or maybe I was still mad at her. Nah, it was probably her. “Naturally”. “Here you are one ticket on the friendship express. You might want to hurry the train leaves soon” “Thank you sir” I said with a smile. I then turned to Celestia “Goodbye old friend, till next time” she smiled and waved as I took my leave. The ticket salespony wasn’t joking; the train was preparing to set off as soon as I got onboard. The train itself was rather empty with only nine other ponies in my car. They all were somewhat clumped together at the front of the car. A small stage was also set up near the front with a mandolin, guitar, and banjo. It was later in the afternoon so I assumed that the performers had gone to diner. I chose a bench near the back of the car and sat down. It was more comfortable than I had expected it to be and one bench could easily fit three ponies. I situated myself and pulled out Celestia’s package. It wasn’t much of anything, just a cardboard box bound in twine with a letter attached. I opened the letter and began reading. Dear, Old friend This is a complicated mater in which I write to you. Firstly, I'm sorry I did not tell you this sooner but as I mentioned before it is indeed complicated. Secondly, this is a matter which must be kept confidential and the item enclosed must not be used until 30 days after reading this letter have passed. Thirdly, this is an honor of the greatest magnitude. So without further ado I present to you the Shadowlight Badge.— I paused my reading for a moment confused, happy, nervous, and curious all at the same time. I almost opened the box to see if it was real or not. However in the end I decided reading on was the best course of action. The badge was created by Luna and I to honor any outstanding Shadowlights, but since they remained in the shadows and were rarely seen, none were ever received. (This sentence was slightly smudged no doubt due to the mention of Celestia’s sister) Until now, Shadow by doing what you have done to protect me and your kingdom I believe you deserve this award. I am fully confident that you will use its power for nothing but the betterment of pony kind. Enclosed are the Badge itself and are rulebook explaining its many uses and restrictions. Sincerely, Princess Celestia As the letter drew to a close my suspicions of its authenticity quickly faded away. I then turned and looked at the box that lay beside me. It suddenly had become very important to me. I opened it and examined its contents. Inside was a rectangular shaped case which no doubt held the badge and a scroll which by process of elimination had to be the rules and regulations. Opening the badge was accomplished with a simple flip and the casing flipped over and folded behind. The badge was made entirely out of silver and looked Macedonian in nature; it was quite stunning to say the least. Its shape was similar to Celestia’s cutie mark but instead of a full circle in the center it had a crescent moon. Shortly after opening the package I remembered that the pocket in my cloak was made for my new badge. It fit perfectly into the pocket, but I would expect nothing less from a master tailor such as Mrs. Stitch. The weight from the badge was just enough to remind me that I had it, but not too much so that I wished I didn’t. Next up on my list of thing to do was to read the rules [1] and so I did. After about one-thirds the way done the scroll, a group of ponies entered through the door behind me. They walked over to the stage, picked up their instruments, and sat down. They then proceeded to tune them, and at that point I went back to reading my scroll. I finished reading right before they began to play. I did not recognize the song, or tune, or genre but perhaps that was because I had not been out much before now. The more I listened the catchier the song became. From what I could gather the song was about a train called the “Friendship Express” which I think I recall somepony calling this train that. Anyway by the time the song was over we had arrived at my stop and I was eager to get off and scope the land. I step off the car with that catchy song still stuck in my head. It was so catchy that I started singing it. (Out loud!) “Listen to the jingle the rumble and the roar Smell the ash rise from the smokestack as in days of yore May the iron horse I speak of always have success The one best way to travel is on the Friendship Ex-“[2] “um sir”. Said a worried looking pony, rudely interrupting my singing. “Yes”! I said a little more hatefully than I should have. “I'm here to guide you around the wonderful city of Vanhoover”! He said excitingly “That’s ok I don’t need a guide… Wait! Where did you say we were”?! “The wonderful city of Vanhoover”! Said the happy-go-lucky pony without hesitation. “What! Can I see a map please”? “Of course here you go” I looked down at the parchment that the pony handed me. “This is a map of ‘The wonderful city of Vanhoover’ isn’t it”? “You bet it is” by now he was giving me a headache. “Listen I need a map of Equestria. Can you get me one of those”? “I sure could try, sir”. He said as chipper as ever. “Thanks” I said rubbing my forehead. [1] Rules (optional read) [2] Clip from the song “The Friendship Express” by Skypause and her family check out the full song and others on thier channel Skypause Bgp. Home?“Are you sure you don’t want to stay”? At first I expected the guide to vanhoover to move on to some other tourist when I explained to him that my arrival there was a mistake. However, he seemed genuinely upset that I wouldn’t be staying. “It’s quite alright. I actually have somewhere I need to be, and I think I’m rather late getting there”. “Well, if you ever come back to ‘the wonderful city of vanhoover’ I’d love to actually give you a tour”. He said, back to his upbeat self. “If I come back you’ll be the first to know, I promise”. I waved to him as I boarded the train for a second time. I took my seat and saw him walking away out my window. I felt bad for disappointing him like that, so I decided to come back and visit one day. Now, finally I was back on track, new train, new place, and a new life. This time around I had the entire cart to myself, I had to be the only pony going to galloping gorge. The train ride was awfully boring and I spent most of the time reading the rules or admiring my new ‘toys’. When we arrived the train slowed to a stop and stayed just long enough to let me dismount before taking off again. I looked around at the station, and it was in awful condition. It was very clear that nopony had even set hoof on the platform in decades. Past the station, which was covered in vines and other plant life, lay a vast forest. A glance at my map told me I had to trek through the woods to reach my final destination. The sun was hot, but not unbearably so. It didn’t take long for me to reach a large clearing near the edge of the gorge. Although the sun was brightest here, there was a swift, cool breeze giving the clearing a perfect temperature. A small stream flowed by the clearing and the sound of the flowing water was peaceful to listen to. By this time it was starting to get dark, and the sun and moon would soon switch places. The peaceful forest ambience combined with the soft, warm glow of the moon made this a wonderful place to rest. I laid under the stars and thought about what I would do next. After long contemplation, I decided to make a home for myself. A cozy little house here in the clearing. It could easily serve as a ‘base of operations’ in my search for the unknown. I got up and began working immediately, after all I didn’t need any sleep. I toiled away building my new home, I worked tirelessly, and only taking a few breaks here and there. I felt as if I needed to do this, it gave me a purpose again. My anger at Celestia only fueled my constructive rage, and within five months I had built a small cottage in the woods. I loved my cottage, to me it meant a great accomplishment. I had no idea I could cut wood, or build a house. With the house finished I began working on how I would furnish it. I gathered leafs mostly and made a small bed-ish thing in the corner. And for now, it was complete. But, as much as I loved my home in the woods, it was a very lonely place. For someone like me that wasn’t so bad, I had, after all, spent most of my life alone. However, that was not by choice, and now that I do not have to remain hidden…I can make some friends. Firstly I had to get out of these woods, I had spent way too much time in there by my lonesome. I waited at the station till a train came by and flagged it down using my magic. Oddly it felt great to be surrounded by other ponies again. I relished in their company, and listened to their fascinating conversations until I got off again at Canterlot station. Spending so much time in solitude I had almost forgot about the young unicorn that Celestia thought could surpass Starswirl. I made my way to the castle gates before being stopped by one of the royal guards. “Halt who goes there”? Demanded the guard. “Starswirl the bearded” I answered joking. He chuckled and softened his tone. “Honestly sir, what business have you with her majesty”? Although he sounded tough, he was still smiling at my joke. “I’m sorry, I wanted to ask her about one of her students”. I rummaged through my cloak and pulled out my badge showing it to each of the guards. “This should prove to be adequate identification”. They then bowed as if I was the princess and quickly opened the gate. “No sir, we are sorry for the trouble” “Non-sense, you boys are doing a wonderful job”. I smiled and walked up to the throne room and knocked on the large ornate doors. Little sisThe doors opened inward as if expecting my presence. I walked inside and looked around, Shining Armor was speaking with a few of his guards, but Celestia was nowhere to be found. “Sir. News from the frontlines”. I mocked, with an over exaggerated salute. He turned to face me, and was about to say something before he noticed who I was. Without hesitation he began galloping in my direction, quickly picking up speed. He was traveling so fast it was a miracle that he slowed down in time. In fact, he didn’t, I was knocked to the ground by the force of the impact. However, he seem completely unaffected. “Shadow”! He yelled, as he hurried to help me up. “Where have you been? My sister has been dying to meet you”. It then occurred to me that I had never actually seen miss sparkle before. I thought since she was a personally prodigy of the princess that she would be staying in the castle, but I had never seen her while I was making my rounds. “Actually, she is the very reason I have returned to Canterlot”. Although she was a big part of why I came back, I wasn’t about to tell Shining the main reason was because I was lonely. “I had expected to speak to Celestia about her training, but I can see she is not here”. “Well follow me you can speak to twilight in person, she really has been looking forward to meeting you”. “As long as she doesn’t bombard me with endless questions…Wait a minute, why does she want to see me? As far as she knows I’m just an ordinary citizen of Equestria. Right”? “Don’t worry, as promised I kept your secret safe, but I did tell her that you knew a lot about magic”. “Oh, I suppose that makes sense” After waving goodbye to the other guards we headed to twilights home away from home. A short walk later and we had arrived at a decently sized tower near the edge of the castle grounds. Up a small flight of stairs was twilight’s home. Shining wasted no time and quickly knocked on the door. “Little sis, open up, I brought a surprise for you”. Little sis? Shining was already quite young, could his sister be even younger? A small noise came from inside, then the door slowly opened to reveal a small purple filly. “Brother”! She exclaimed, running up and hugging him. This must have been his other sister. “Excuse me little miss, but is twilight here”? I asked, smiling. She giggled and looked at shining and then they both laughed. “What’s so funny”? Then it hit me, like a flower pot, and an anvil, and some bales of hay, and a grand piano! “Don’t tell me this is twilight sparkle”. “OK” She said in the cutest voice possible. “We won’t tell you”. They then began laughing again, and this time I joined them. The laughter hid my astonishment, I felt the magic surge that miss sparkle had caused, and now to find out it was the work of such a young filly. Not much longer after that she invited us inside and offered us tea. We talked a great bit about how she learned magic and what she thought of her studies. I learned as much as I could about how she was being taught, but ultimately I knew I’d have to hear it directed from Celestia if I wanted the full picture. She was very interested with my magical knowledge, and I promised her that if she finished her studies I would teach her everything I knew. She quickly learned that I wouldn’t budge on my decision, and after learning that she ushered us out and jumped right back into the books. Shining and I then made our way back to the castle to see if the princess had returned. First DayWe arrived back at the castle in search for the princess. After shining and I searched for some time he decided to tell me that the princess had left Equestria in a hurry and wasn’t due back any time soon. “And you couldn’t tell me this sooner”? I said, extremely frustrated. “I just remembered”. “Honestly Shining Armor, how do you even function”? I said a lot more angrily than I should have. “Hey! Be nice”. “I’m sorry, I’m just a bit frustrated”. “I understand why. I should be more aware of where our princess is considering I’m captain of the guard”. “We all make mistakes, but I did want to speak to her about twilight’s training. So what am I going to do now”? “Oh yeah”! Shining exclaimed. “What is it now”? “Celestia wanted you to take over the training for a while, seeing as she won’t be back for some time”. I just stared at him for a moment, dumbfounded by is forgetfulness. “Shining”? I asked softly. “Yes, Shadow”? “We were just at twilight’s house. You couldn’t tell me then”? “Well I’ve had a rough day ok”. I sighed and shrugged it off, he probably did have a lot on his plate considering the princess was gone and his only sister was training to become a legend. “Well then, I’m not going back over there. She made it perfectly clear she was busy”. “But what about her training”? “If she wants to be trained by me then she’ll just have to come over here tomorrow. I don’t feel like training anypony right now. Naturally I will be staying in the castle while I’m here”. “I suppose that’s alright. I’ll have one of my ponies prepare a room for you”. “That won’t be necessary I’ll stay in my old room, I like the smell”. We said our goodbyes and I made my way there. The room was small, and quaint. It smelled like my family, whom I missed very much. This was the one thing I truly couldn’t bring to my new home in the woods. I had a proper bed to sleep on, even though I wouldn’t use it. I spent the night brushing up on some old spells I planned on teaching twilight the next day. Tomorrow I would test her, see how far I could push her latent abilities. I had several high magic enchantments in mind as well. The next thing I knew, harsh light was entering through the one window in my room. From the angle the sun was shining in it had to be mid-day. I made my way out of the room and into the castle courtyard where I told one of the guards to fetch me shining armor. He and twilight soon entered the courtyard and my exciting day of teaching would soon begin. “Good morning miss sparkle”. I said as cheerfully as possible. “Afternoon Mr. Shadow”. “Right, your training will begin immediately. Every day, until Celestia returns, you will meet me here at exactly noon. Do you understand”? “Yes sir”. She said with a bow. “No need for sirs or misters, not any kind of protocol. It makes me feel as if I’m controlling you. I am here as your friend, nothing more. Also shining, you may leave”. They both agreed and shining left quietly. “I am a stern believer in honesty miss sparkle, so I’m going to be frank with you. Today will not be easy. I have chosen some very difficult spells for you to perform. None of them pose any danger if not performed correctly but still use caution” “I understand”. I could tell by the look in her eye she was eager to start. No doubt she was wondering how far she could go, much like myself. I levitated I book too her and she held it in her own magic. As I expected she would. However, without any instruction she immediately began reading it. At first I was going to tell her to turn to a specific page, but I decided to wait and see what she would do. Even with the great length and complication of the book she read it cover to cover in under an hour. She was so engrossed in its contents that we didn’t even speak for that entire time. “Did you, enjoy the book”? I asked, eagerly awaiting a response. “I most certainly did”. She said smiling brightly. “Which of these did you have in mind”? “Never mind that, just pick one that you liked and I’ll make the preparations to preform it” Ice-Cream and StallionsSparks flew from twilight’s horn as she prepared to shield herself. Her light purple magic enveloped her in a sturdy bubble of magic energy. “Now when you have become comfortable with that size start expanding”. She wasted no time and within minutes the field was double its original size. It didn’t take long before the shield enveloped myself. I had been accustomed to this before, with the numerous ponies I’ve trained over the years, but this was different. Most young fillies have great difficulty when pulling others into a magic barrier. This results in a rather unpleasant, cold, lifeless feeling inside the pony that the field surrounds. However, twilight’s was vastly different. Instead of cold, there was warmth, a soothing warmth. It felt like a nice long hug, the kind of hug you get from your loving mother, or grandmother. As the field passed over my body the feeling faded away. I missed it. But then, I felt a rather different sensation. Twilight’s spell had gotten out of control, in seconds it covered most of Canterlot. Somehow, she had found a way to tap into my own magical energy and was using it to fuel the shield. “Twilight, calm down”. I struggled to get the words out, until now my magic body was nothing but a strength. Twilight proved that it could be my ultimate weakness. Slowly I faded away, back into the abyss of unconsciousness. When I bounced back into the world of the living what I saw was enough to make me want to go back. It seemed my magic had triggered her hidden abilities, all except for the height and wings, she reminded me so much of princess Celestia. And as if hearing my internal cry for help, Celestia appeared next to twilight. She calmly placed a hoof on twilight's shoulder. I felt my strength returning and twilight was gaining control of this malevolent spell. A final crack of thunder sent a bolt of bright, purple magic my way and I caught it head on, with my face. The bolt did no obvious damage, so disregarding it I ran to twilight’s side. When I reached her the image of Celestia faded and twilight returned to normal. “Twilight”? I asked holding her carefully in my hooves. Almost immediately she woke up and smiled brightly. “How did I do”? She asked with great enthusiasm. Obviously she had no recollection of the events, and I felt it was best to keep it that way. “Wonderful, a bit to robust but we can work on that”. I hardly noticed that my voice had been altered to a higher pitch. “Oh my goodness, I’m so sorry”. “For what dearie”? I noticed it then, I sounded a lot more mare-ish than usual. “Oh my”. Twilight jumped up and began reading from the book I gave her. “I don’t understand how this happened. Those are two completely different spells”. On the surface they seemed very distinct, but it actuality the algorithms created when preforming the spells are strikingly similar. She must have sapped a lot of magic in order to pull that off and no doubt pulled it from other ponies in the city. “Ok, Ok, Ok, I’m calm”. Of course I wasn’t calm, I had been turned into a mare. I suddenly felt the need to cry about it, and eat ice-cream, and my goodness Shining’s armor was extra shiny today. Oh sweet Celestia help me! Somewhere I the back of my mind I could hear her laughing. “If I could just cast a counter-spell”. “No”! I rejected. But instantly felt bad for doing so. I could hear the regret in her voice, “I mean, I am here to train you aren’t I. I suppose this will be part of your training. New assignment, turn me back as quick as ponily possible. Begin…Now”. Minutes, and Hours went by. But, it felt like days, years even. There were several times I nearly broke down and cried. However, I pulled myself together, after all it really was a humbling experience. I couldn’t help but wonder how mares go about with all this emotion. “There we go”! She exclaimed. I jumped around eagerly awaiting my transformation. “I found out what’s wrong and have devised a counter-spell”. She stood up tall, as tall as she could, and focused her energy at me. But nothing happened. She had used up all her magic energy. I stood there, frozen, I knew what had happened but it seemed I couldn’t accept it. “I’m really sorry”. “It’s alright, don’t worry about it. We will try again tomorrow”. I knew if I gave myself some time to prepare I could reverse the spell, but as much as I hated it, this exercise could really benefit twilight. I relaxed, it was only one day as a mare. If things truly got out of hoof I could having Shining change me back. Whom I had the strange urge to go visit. “Seeing as we can’t do much more, you are free to go back home”. “I should probably go check on spike anyways”. “Spike? Is that the baby dragon”? “Yes, he sleeps a lot so he isn’t much help. But the princess says he will be a great assistant once he is a bit older”. “He is an adorable thing though”. This transformation was going to ruin my reputation, I could just feel it. “I guess, well I’m off. I’ll see you back here tomorrow”. We said our goodbyes and went our separate ways. She made her way back home. I on the other hoof felt compelled to go to Shining’s side, so I made my way to the throne room. Good to be backAs I made my way back inside the castle I noticed something rather strange. None of the guards were at their posts. All throughout the castle as well. Of course I wasn’t studying any of the other guards. Foolishly, I made my way to the throne room. I knew it would be empty, but a part of me expected Shining Armor to be waiting for me there. With Ice-cream, sweet Celestia I wanted Ice-cream. But alas, Shining armor had left with the other guards. And with nothing to dissuade my attention I began to wonder where they had all gone. I didn’t panic because I no longer had to worry about the state the kingdom was in. still, I was indeed curious. I made my way out to the front of the castle, there I found a few of the guards chatting. Naturally I listened in. One was a tall muscular looking stallion. “I told you it was a bad idea to goof off in the locker room”. One of the guards said as he smacked the other, less muscular pony, upside the head. “Ow”! He exclaimed, quickly regaining composure. “But you did enjoy it, didn’t you”? “Now is not the time! The other guards have left the city and are on their way to the griffon kingdom”! “Don’t yell, we get to stay behind and watch the city”. “I thought that shadow pony was doing that”. “Well nopony could tell him in time, I heard”. At this point I decided to join in. “Excuse me sirs”. I interjected, whilst exiting the shadows. “I heard somepony was looking for me”. “Who are you”? The muscular pony asked, looking rather confused. “Wait”. Started the other. “Shadow”? “Oh, Yeah. I’m not in the mood to talk about it”. “Alright. I’m sorry”. “Anyways, like I said I heard somepony needed me”. “Yeah, Shining wanted you-“. Said the muscular pony before being interrupted. “How’s the training of Miss Sparkle going”? I paused for a moment to consider why the other pony was cut off. Then I put the pieces of the puzzle together. After letting it settle in for a minute I responded. Sighing, I then said. “Well this”, pointing to my body “is actually her doing”. “Whoa, she is able to perform such a complicated spell”?! The ~~cute~~ less muscular pony asked, with eyes wide open. “Well, all of the spell casting was her. But, I have reason to believe that she used magic other than her own to perform it”. “That pony is going to be great one day”. “Honestly, she’s already pretty amazing”. I said with pride. “I’m sorry, I don’t believe I caught your names”. “Well, I’m Private Restorn”. So the tall one was Restorn, a private. “And, this is Lieutenant Crestron”. The other I had heard about, a lieutenant from Cloudsdale. He had a promising career as a wonderbolt but gave it up halfway through his second season. The other was a unicorn, but I had never heard of him before. “It certainly was nice meeting you two. But, don’t you have a castle to protect”? They both blushed and made their way back to their posts. Since it was just the three of us I helped keep watch over the castle. However, the task I had taken on was extremely boring. At least those two had each other, all I had was the echoes of the empty halls. I didn’t want to tell them I was leaving for fear of interrupting something. So I calmly waited it out, the other guards returned late in the night and by the time they had arrived I was already in my room preparing for the next day. Morning came and I waited for Twilight in the courtyard. When she arrived not a word was spoken until she undid her perplexing, and most annoying mistake. “Oh how wonderful it feels to be back”. I said admiring her work. “Now we need to have a talk”. “I’m really sorry mister shadow”. She hung her head in shame. “No it’s not that, we all make mistakes. Today I’m going to tell you my biggest mistake”. She lifted her head and looked at me with great interest. “But, only if you promise to keep it a secret”. “Well, I don’t talk to that many ponies so I don’t know who I might tell”. “I suppose that’s good enough”. We both smiled and laughed. I then told her about my family and how I was the last one. Most of what happened recently I relayed back to her. The most important thing I told her was about the arcane body I possessed. “I see why you did it, but now you regret it”. She said grimly. “Well it was all for nothing seeing as the princess fired me”. “If you were fired then how come you are doing so much for her”? She made an excellent point. For somepony who didn’t have to do anything for the princess, I was sure doing a lot for the princess. “You sure are a clever little thing. But I’d rather not go on about that”. She nodded. “So tell me what the most interesting part of that story is”. “There is one thing that doesn’t make much sense”. “And that would be”? I asked with a spark in my eye. “If your body is made of magic as you say, then it should have a perpetual state of form. Therefore should be extremely difficult to change without destroying it and rebuilding”. And again she exceeds my standards. “Now that we are both on the same page, we need to figure out how it happened”. “You mean you don’t know”? I was flabbergasted. Could she have just figured it out right there? In under an hour! “Do you”!? “Well, no”. Thank Celestia. “But, shouldn’t you”? “I’ll ask the questions here”. She giggled. “Now, why don’t I know”? “How am I supposed to know? I’m not you”. “Sometimes I wish I wasn’t either. Anyways back to the topic at hoof”. We both sat down and pondered the questions. Secrets Secrets As we ponder the complexity of arcane constructs, a familiar voice fills the air. “Hello again, my faithful student”. The soft, sweet voice brings a smile to Twilight’s face the likes of which nothing else could. ”Princess”! Twilight exclaimed as she rose to stand before her mentor. “Where have you been”? She politely bowed before returning to her studies. I too bowed courteously as to set a good example for Twilight. “Just away my dear student”. She said with a serene smile. “Some business outside of Equestria. I hope you don’t mind but I’ve left your brother behind for a short while to tidy up a few loose ends”. “He can handle it no problem”. Twilight said obviously very proud of her dear brother. “He certainly can”. The princess said turning her attention to me. “Twilight dear, do you think the Princess and I could have a word alone”? Twilight agreed and made her way inside the castle. Celestia smiled as she turned to face me and caught me in the middle of a blush. "That color looks good on you Shadow". Her words made my blush worse and I attempted to hide my face from her gaze. "So you saw then". "I always keep a watchful eye on my faithful student". "I want to keep as much of that a secret as I possibly can ok"? "Of course...miss Shadow". She said with a laugh which caused me to blush even more and I completely turned away from her. "Honestly Celestia"! "Lighten up, I'm sorry Shadow. Now on to business, I know you didn't send Twilight away to talk about that. So what's bothering you"? "Well" I said turning back to face her. "It was but it wasn't. You see, apart from my discomfort, she accomplished something incredible and I'm certain she sapped my magic to do it". "She's quite talented no"? "Stop it"! "Stop what"? She knew what I meant as evident by the slightly devious smile she now wore. "You are hiding things from me I know you are. This filly is destined for greatness and we can both feel it. But, you have confirmed it somehow. Show me". Out of respect for her and twilight both I bow low. "Please". "Follow me". She said slowly and calmly as she lifted up my chin. She then walked inside the castle with me following closely behind. Watching carefully I noticed that she seemed lower to the ground than usual. As if bearing some large unbearable weight. I almost thought I saw a tear form before being dashed away. "Wait here". She spoke with a voice that was less like a stone wall and more like a rope bridge. But still I felt authority in the words she spoke and I waited for her to return as she entered her bedroom. Not long after, she emerged wearing a regal cloak and we began to walk back outside the castle. She said a few words to some of the guards but I couldn't make out what. Then she kept walking and again I followed her becoming more curious. "Where are we going Celestia"? I said softly so I wouldn't intrude on her thoughts. "To a small agricultural village named ponyville". She lifted her head up and seemed a little happier after I asked. "I think I've heard of it". In truth I had forgotten if I had or not. "We will have to take the trains". She said as we exited the castle grounds and made our way to the station on the south west side of Canterlot. She paid for the tickets and we boarded the car without a word. The band wasn't playing today. It was as if the whole of Equestria was saddened. We made small talk to accompany the ride but we didn't say much more than formality. I told her everything that happened since she was gone and she told me what she could about her business outside of Equestria. As we exited the car Celestia put a few bits in the jar that the band normally collects from and we made our way into town. The wind was blowing hard in the town when Celestia stood up high and tall, her horn glowing brightly. She outstretched her wings and hovered in the air. I watched in awe while the sun was engulfed by her ethereal energy and lowered to make way for the moon which came up slowly on the opposite horizon. When she finished she gently drifted down and caught herself before standing back up. My eyes were wide in amusement even though I'd seen her preform the spell at least a hundred times or more it was always special when she did it and I had never been so close before. I shook my head to regain myself and she looked back at me smiling. I smiled back and we continued on our way to our destination. "Amazing" I whispered under my breath as we walked to the outskirts of the town. The wind was still blowing harshly and we put up our hoods to fight the chill. As we got to the very edge of the small village I turned back to see ponies darting inside and slamming their shutters to keep out the severe wind. A few Pegasus ponies were flying around, blowing out the lanterns throughout the town and one by one they all prepared for bed. I wished I could join them but I turned back to my guide and called out to her. "Now where Celestia"? She stopped at the start of dirt path that lead into a dense forest. She pointed to the thick collection of trees and called back to me saying. "The Everfree Forest"… Someplace old, someplace newWe crossed into the thick brush of the untamed forest and the wind died down to a complete halt. The air inside the prison bars of trees was trapped in, and the outside wind, locked out. We were isolated from the world beyond the wild woods. But, we certainly were not alone. Silently we stalked through to our destination which lay deeper and deeper into this overgrown amalgamation of shrubbery. I had heard stories of the Forest Everfree. I knew of its weather that acted sentient and how the plants grew without earth pony care. My father would tell me tales to keep me on my hooves. When I was younger, much younger, I dreaded the thought of going to such a place. But, I had nothing to fear, being safe inside Canterlot Castle. I didn't think Celestia to be the kind of pony who feared anything, but still. Why were we in a place like this? As we drew deeper the lurking creatures who observed our every move got braver. At first I would see one set of eyes in the distance, every so often. But now, I could catch glimpses of their shadowy forms moving swiftly and preparing to strike. If they ever got too close I felt a warmth in my soul as if reassuring me of my safety. I knew it was her. Right before it happened Celestia would tilt her head and shuffle her wings ever so slightly. To a master of the arcane like myself I knew that even the smallest twitches could mean something tremendous if done properly. This further reassured me of Celestia's awesome might. We came upon a few clearings and then a river. Celestia froze the water so we could pass unhindered. Or she could anyway. I on the other hoof had great trouble keeping my balance and slid to and fro before finally reaching the appropriate side. This of course made her giggle but I was too concerned to be amused. On one of my passes across the ice I saw a large ominous creature swim directly under me. I told Celestia about it but she only told me not to worry about "him". As if it meant nothing to her. Was this large and quite possibly dangerous creature a pet of hers!? I began to feel like I'd gotten in far deeper into this web of secrets than I wanted to. But, before I could finish my thought the next thing I knew Celestia was saving me from falling off a cliff. I screamed when I realized what had happened and it echoed on throughout the whole forest. "I'm sorry Celestia I wasn't paying attention". I said after my screaming had ceased and I had calmed down, realizing now I was no longer in danger. "It's alright, I'm glad you're safe". "Thank you". "Of course Shadow. It's not much further ahead". She said as she lifted the bridge up with her magic and tied it securely in place. "Can you manage"? "Yes of course". I said jumping to my hooves. "I'm not out yet". "I'd hope not. Nothing has really happened". She said laughing. It was good to see her happy again. Even if it was at me. However, this happiness soon faded as we approached our journey’s end. A short ways across the rope bridge we came upon the tattered remains of an old castle. The large doors to the entrance of the castle hall were flung open, though, the holes in the brick walls were large enough for most ponies to sneak in anyways. Moss clung to the bricks seeping deep into the core of the building blocks that made up the castle walls. Truly these dilapidated ruins had seen brighter days. “It’s a shame such marvelous workponyship has been forgotten and left to rot away”. I said turning to Celestia hoping this would spark a conversation that might last. She merely regarded my comment with a nod followed by a soft sigh. I looked around and noticed that all the dark creatures that had been so eager to pounce on us before, had left. All that remained was an eerie silence that swept through like fog in early mornings. Not a hiss or purr broke the spell of muteness. As Celestia marched onward into this unnamed but familiar castle she was unfazed by the change in volume. But to me the silence was deafening. I couldn't shake the unsettling feeling in my ‘heart’. I wouldn't be left alone in a place like this so I followed behind the Princess very closely. The walls creaked and the floor squeaked. Wind reached this part of the forest and blew through the broken windows with ease. The night was cold and the cobblestone floor was freezing to the touch. It wasn't long before I started to shiver and shake. I tore my thoughts away from the cold and tried to think about where I was. As I looked around I saw long ornate tapestry hanging on the walls. Although they were torn and faded I could tell that they seemed to detail events that took place long ago. Similar to the stained glass windows in Canterlot castle. We stepped out of the hall and through another set of doors into a large library. Two or more stories high at least. Piled high with bookcases lined with books. I wasn't much for reading and I didn't have my favorite little chronicler so I just skimmed over the titles. We ponies sure love to alliterate. The sheer size of the library was impressive to me but I would have preferred it in better shape. I silently took in the awe of the room as Celestia walked to a table near the center. Turning back she smiled and said to me. “Watch this” Her gentle hoof outstretched and ever so gingerly tipped over one of the chairs that accompanied the table. My eyes widened and I tensed up in anticipation waiting to for the loud crash of the chair hitting the floor but it stopped itself from falling. With each subtle inch that it moved a click resonated through the silence in the library and one final, slightly louder, click echoed before its halt. Then, almost instantly air rushed towards two nearby bookcases and they were suddenly flung ajar. My jaw hung loosely and Celestia smiled as she entered and lit up the small hidden room she had now revealed. I eagerly rushed in after her taking a look around. Inside was yet another bookcase but this was much smaller and most the books I could see at a quick glance were about magic training. To the right was an assortment of chairs and pillows lined the outer edge of the small antechamber. Plenty of places to sit and read. If one wished to stand and read a single podium was in the very center. But, the most interesting thing in the room were the two stained glass windows at the back. One was day themed and the other moon themed. And that's when it hit me. I then knew where I was. Silly filly, trees don't talk“Yes, yes, yes” Celestia answered. “This is my old castle. But…” “But”? I shot back in reply. “But” She paused building the anticipation and making me nervous. “I wasn't the only princess to live here”. This made me pause and think back, far back. Nearly a thousand years ago. I’d only knew of the past from stories. That being said one in particular stood out. “The Mad Moon Mare of Midnight”! I replied with glee. But she looked at me as if I was joking. “What”? She sigh in reply and corrected me. “The Mare in the Moon, Nightmare Moon”. I kind of shuffled my hoofs in embarrassment. “That one. But, wasn’t she a crazy Alicorn who demanded power and threatened to shroud the whole of Equestria in eternal darkness”? “No”! Celestia shouted turning to face me. She paused for a moment and I drew back a few steps. “She was my sister”. She said with great solace retreating to the memories of the old library. “We used to have so much fun in here”. Her thoughts trailed off and for the first time in my life I saw her vulnerable side. “Celestia”. I interjected, swiftly bringing her to her senses. And as if the moment had never happened she then turned to me and said. “I brought you here for a reason Shadow, and that reason was to show you this” she levitated a small book in my direction which I instantly recognized as “the journal of the two sisters”. Because the title was conveniently put on the cover of course. I flipped through the pages and it somewhat got me familiar with the situation. Bringing me to the point when Celestia and her sister got their cutie marks. At first I thought it just to be a story Celestia had written to pass the time. But I knew better. The book taught me a lot and again I missed the book my father gave me. “I’m sorry Celestia, I thought she was a myth”. “Everypony thinks she is a myth, but I know that Twilight will one day see the truth”. “How can you know this”? I asked her eagerly as I inched forward. “Starswirl predicted it long ago. And what's more her cutie mark looks almost identical to the mark in the center of the tree of harmony”. “I wish to see the tree, according to your journal it's near here”. She agrees and we make our way back outside of the castle after setting things back in order. “It’s nearly been one thousand years. If the legends are true then she will use the stars to escape her imprisonment”. “That's why I must teach Twilight all I can in the time she has”. “Tell me Celestia, how long did you intend to seal her away”? “I did not intend to do anything”. She replied reluctantly. “The elements required both of us to control and even then we never knew the outcome. It was like the elements themselves decided, a sort of judgement...I felt it though, and Luna was supposed to be trapped forever”. As she spoke she looked away as if distancing herself from the conversation. Perhaps she was looking for the moon through the thick forest. “Chin up my dear Celestia, next time will be different”. She could see through my ruse but it was all I could say to ease the tension. But we had arrived at the tree and she ushered me to approach it. So I did so. But, I did not take but three steps before the tree stopped me dead in my tracks. It...It spoke to me. “I know you” it said. That’s all it said. Celestia swore it wasn't her, and she never heard it then nor since… After confirming that Twilight’s cutie mark was indeed similar to what was on the tree I asked Celestia to go back without me. When she left I just waited. And listened to hear the tree again. Rules (optional read)Rules of the Shadowlight Badge . 1. One can only use this badge and all its power to protect oneself, Equestria, The royalty of Equestria, or in cases of extreme emergency. 2. One cannot use this badge to enter private residences unless in compliance with rule one. 3. One is to announce ones presence before entering private residences unless in the case of an extreme emergency. 4. One does not have immunity from any of Equestria’s laws unless otherwise stated in this document. 5. One does not have the power to make arrests unless in compliance with rule one. 6. One must be in physical possession of the badge in order to use it. 7. One can temporarily transfer power to another individual. This individual may only maintain power for 24 hours. 8. One is allowed to enter any and all establishments in Equestria as long as in compliance with rule one. If one finds it necessary one can use any entrance they see fit. 9. No one rule is more important than another. All rules must be followed exactly as written. Side note from Celestia: Shadow these rules were written a Long time ago and as such are subject to change. Naturally I am too busy to revise them now but if I happen to think of any changes I’ll send you a new copy.[1] [1] This is obviously my way of saying I'm too lazy to continue writing rules. I will eventually update this rule book but for now this will do. Also a note to anyone reading this if you would like to help me with suggestions that would be much appreciated.
Shadowlight encounterI was making my rounds about the castle. It was night of course, I’m particularly fond of disappearing into the shadows. Only a sliver of the moon was left to illuminate the dark sky, but I’m very much acquainted with darkness. I had spent most of my life in it. As I made my rounds I felt as if somepony was watching me and thinking to how late it was I simply couldn’t ignore it. Nopony would be out this late, unless… they were going to attack the castle! So, naturally after such a thought occurred to me I made great haste to the chambers of Celestia, to protect the princess. But before I could reach my destination I tripped! This was my second sign that something was indeed amiss for when was the last time you heard of a shadow tripping of all things. So down I fell and hit the ground, Hard! It didn’t hurt and I was fine for now, but the next thing I knew a large pony came rushing out of nowhere and slammed his hooves down on the ground next to me. The force created was enormous, and created a magical surge so powerful it knocked me out of my shadow form and far into the air. He then proceeded to levitate me back to the ground and conjure a force field around me. I was dazed, and confused, and most certainly not ok. He looked me in the eyes and yelled “Who are you and what are you doing here”!? His voice was harsh and in total control of the situation. I was in no condition to speak, I was still confused by the tripping, let alone the attack. Hundreds of questions filled my mind most of which starting with how and why. He yelled again “Who are you and wha-“. “Silence…” I cut him off “You will awaken the princess with all your shouting”. He took a step back and illuminated his horn making it much easier to see him and myself. He was taller than me but not by much his coat was white and both his hair and eyes were blue, but different shades. I couldn’t see his cutie mark. it was covered by his armor which shone bright from the light of his illumination spell. I was wearing an old, grey, tattered, cloak which no doubt made it hard for him to see my cutie mark as well. I was the first to speak after the long, awkward silence. “Hello Shining Armor” I said. “How is it you know my name stranger”? His words were quick and had great power and authority,and even though he had not been captain of the royal guard long now, Shining Armor was in no mood for games. “I’ve never seen you before and I like to think anypony with a beard would stick out in my memory”. “I’d hope you’ve never seen me, I work very hard to remain like a shadow, a whisper, but you seem to have a very keen eye”. I said smiling. “You still haven’t answered my question stranger” He spoke. His words were softer but still firm. “Which one”? I said. “Let’s start with who you are”. “My name, is Idhrenion Shadowlight” “Shadowlight”? He said as if trying very hard to remember something he almost forgot. Like a name on the tip of your tongue. “But, history says the last shadowlight died hundreds of years ago”. The words struck me as offensive. I had been labeled dead! “Can’t be right, I'm still here aren’t I? But, then again that would explain why nopony has called for me in quite some time”. “Well if you indeed are a shadowlight then the books must be wrong”. He said smiling no doubt trying to lighten the mood. “Well it’s plain to see nothing gets by the captain of the royal guard”. “I'm going to pretend you didn’t say that… anyway are you a member of the S.U.R.G.”? “Surge”? I asked rather confused at the question. “You know the Shadowlight Unicorns of the Royal Guard”. He said proudly. “The last time I checked it was just the Shadowlight Royal Guard”. “Well they added the unicorn part because all of the members were, well, unicorns”. “How silly of them”. “Well I think it sounds cool”. “Cool? Sometimes it’s hard to believe that you are captain of the royal guard, but here you are”! “And here you are Shadowlight in MY force field”! Shining said with a commanding tone. I tilted my head to the side and the field vanished as if it were never there. “What force field”?
Fiery summons“What do you mean you can’t go see the princess”!? Shining yelled, his words piercing the darkness. We had been walking for a while now. He seemed very interested in me and had many questions. Normally I would decline any and all questions but this was a special case in two ways. One, he was the captain of Celestia’s guard and had the right to ask me certain questions pertaining to my identity and my intentions. Two, he had bested me and I fell into his trap (albeit I escaped his skill does deserve some recognition). This condition meant he had the right to ask anything of me for a short time, unless of course it would have me break my sworn oath. (Luckily for me shining didn’t know that and wasted most of his jurisdiction on meaningless questions). He did however ask about the story of my ancestors. [1] Which I had not spoken of in quite some time, naturally. It was one of the questions he asked that I didn’t mind answering. But I stopped the fun when he asked me to come with him to the castle. “Isn’t the night sky beautiful?” I said quietly. He paused, looked at the sky and said calmly “Please Idhrenion, don’t you think she wants to see you after all this time”. “If she wanted to see me, she would only have to ask”. “She can’t possible ask for the appearance of a dead pony now can she”? “That’s no excuse. I can’t break the rules of my ancestors”. “What if I told her that you were still alive”? “If she requests my appearance I will always appear. Do what you feel is right Shining Armor”. “…”. Shining pondered for a moment and then quickly turned away. “I ask of you one thing”. “Yes”? He said with hastiness in his voice. “I ask that you only tell Celestia, what happened tonight”. “If that is what you really want then so be it”. “Thank you”. With those finale words I vanished back into the shadow. The next day I received a summons from Celestia to meet her in the throne room at noon. I was delighted that the princess had summoned me and I made great haste to our meeting place as soon as I received the notice. I was early, very early, but I didn’t mind the wait, not one bit. I watched as the princess preformed her royal duties silently waiting in the shadows till noon. Right before noon I noticed that she called Shining to the throne room and ushered everypony else outside. Right at noon I stepped out of the shadows and made my presence known. The princess spoke as she sat back down onto her throne “So it would seem Shining Armor was right. How are you Shadowlight”? “Perfectly fine, your majesty” I said with a bow. “Good, good we have much to discuss, but first I have to ask. Are you the last Shadowlight”? “Yes your majesty, the others died long ago”. “I see, so you must be a very capable unicorn then”. “Yes, your majesty“. “Excuse me, but I’m not sure I follow”. Shining interjected. “I almost forgot you were here Shining”. I said. “What is it that you don’t understand”? “I don’t get why being a Shadowlight makes you so magically adept. Last night you dispersed my shield with such ease”. “It is because… well actually, you should tell him Shadowlight it is your tradition after all”. Celestia said. “Of course, your majesty. Shining do you remember the promise my ancestors made”? “Yes, they promised to always protect the royalty of Equestria as long as there heritage lives on”. “Correct, however they were not aware that the princesses would live quite so long. So in order to truly protect the princesses as best they could they made it the tradition to pass their magic on to a Shadowlight of their choice. This, in their eyes, allowed them to serve the princesses beyond death”. “So since you are the last Shadowlight, you are the most magically adept unicorn alive”! Shining said with his eyes wide open. “No”. I said with a rather disappointed tone. “Most of the magical properties of my ancestors has faded over time.” “Oh” shining said looking a bit disappointed as well. “But I have retained all of their knowledge”. I said gleefully. Sparking Shining’s interest again. “So you must be like a walking, talking library of magical information. Wow twilight would love you”! “But you promised not to tell anypony didn’t you”? Celestia said with a commanding yet soft tone. “It is a secret I will carry to my grave Celestia”. He said with a bow. “Thank you, again”. I said. “But if you say you’re not that powerful then how did you break my force field so easily”? Shining said eagerly. “I simply studied how you created it and cast a counter spell. We talked for just long enough for me to do so. Excellent work by the way, most impressive”. “Thanks, twilight helped me perfect it”. Shining said with a big grin. “Speaking of twilight, is she that same filly who caused that massive magic surge and hatched the dragon egg”? “The very same”. Celestia said. “She seems to have a lot of magical potential. More than most anyway.” I said. “Yes, and naturally after that I immediately accepted her as my new student. And she has been a most faithful student at that.” Celestia couldn’t help but smile whenever she spoke about twilight. “Anyway now that we’ve gone over the formalities, let’s get down to business”. Celestia stood as she spoke. “First off I'm relieving you of your duties” “I couldn’t agree with you more, princess”. I said with a slight smile. “As long as I'm here your services won’t be needed Shining Armor”. “I wasn’t talking to Shining Armor” Celestia said with almost a grim tone. The harsh words hit me like a brick to the head! “Wha-“. I suddenly felt faint. Hundreds of years I've done nothing but protect the princess now she fires me! This must be some mistake. “But I… I, oh my… surely, you don’t mean”? “I'm sorry Idhrenion, but I do”. I couldn’t take it. I struggled to remain conscious but ultimately, I failed. Most ponies would have just fainted but my body just laid there, silent and lifeless. [1] The story of my ancestors (optional read)
Story of my ancestors (optional read)“It was the dawn of a new age, Discord, god of chaos and temporary ruthless ruler of all of Equestria, was finally defeated. It was a long cruel time in which Discord ruled over Equestria. There were many brave ponies that tried to challenge him. Some lived, others were not so lucky. In the end they all failed, even them. Now, some may have never heard the story but I will never forget it. It was wet that faithful day. Chocolate milk covered Discords playground and soaked those who dared to enter, down to the bone. It was a sticky, bittersweet wetness. This was the heart of the chaos storm and it was cold. A cold that could freeze your very soul, but not to them, their hearts burned with the flames of vengeance. Long had they suffered under discords rule but no longer. 64 magically gifted unicorns faced the harsh, cold, and heavy rain, but above they all faced their oppressor, their self-proclaimed ruler. Oh how it would please this old pony to speak of their brave and courageous victory over that monster, but alas, no such victory came and none would come, not for a long time at least. Discord won that fight with such ease that all hope seemed lost. Only 10 survived and he barely lifted a finger. That single defeat obliterated all hope for Ponydom. Then, years later, the single two most important ponies in Equestria arrived ready for battle. They called up arms, but nopony would listen. Nopony wanted to die. So the sisters named Luna and Celestia went alone. They took with them only a collection of peculiar gems now known as the elements of harmony. This time was a little different. I suppose Discord underestimated them, for he had let his guard down. No rain or cold, just him in an open field of broken reality. In the end, as everypony is well aware, the sisters won. Trapping Discord in a stone prison. Years went by and the sisters were crowned as princesses and made to be the new rulers of Equestria. In their old age the 10 unicorns that survived that fight with Discord returned to the sisters and said, “Oh great princesses long has there been peace in Equestria because of you, long have we prospered because of you, as a token of our eternal gratitude we give you our lives and the lives of our descendants. We will long serve to protect you and all further rulers of Equestria with our very souls. Luna, Celestia, I present to you the Shadowlight Royal Guards First Generation”. From out of the shadows manifested 8 young unicorns. The tallest and oldest of the group then spoke out. “We are your hidden guard, we will silently protect you unless otherwise necessary. We will always obey your every command and put your lives far ahead of our own. We wish to forever serve you until the day our heritage is lost. Do you accept?” Luna looked at Celestia and then back at the guard. Celestia smiled and nodded. That was all they needed to fulfill their self-established destinies, they smiled and bowed. The encounter was over and as quickly as they arrived, they vanished, only reappearing when called or in times of danger”. That Shining Armor is the story of my ancestors and the creation of the Shadowlight guard.
Gift or Curse?I awoke to the sound of Celestia’s voice calling to me. She kept telling me to wake up. I stood up, my body feeling very strange. This had never happened to me before, but then, this was the first time I had rested at all since then. “What did you do”? Celestia’s voice was full of anger and she was pacing around the room. She seemed to be more than displeased with me, but as always she somehow managed to remain calm. ”I noticed the way your body reacted to my magic. What have you done”? My head ached at the memory of that day. “I had to”! I yelled, trying to justify the deed I had done. “In order to protect you”. “Tell me what you did”. I paused for a moment and surveyed the room. We were below the castle but not quite to the crystal caverns. Celestia and I were the only ponies present so I decided to tell her everything. “Celestia”? I said softly. “I'm listening”. Celestia said, still with an aura of harshness in her voice. “When I told Shining that all of my ancestor’s magic had faded, that was only the partial truth”. “And the whole truth”? She beckoned. “The magic is all gone, but instead of just fading, I…I used it all up”. “What!? How do you just use up thousands of years of magic”? “I used it to create a permanent vessel for my soul. It was the only way the Shadowlights could live on. I've never married and I have no chil-”! “You cannot justify this Idhrenion” she interjected, then paused for a moment as if to remain calm. “So the body your soul now inhabits is a magical copy of your original body. I assume that it’s arcane. Am I correct”? “Yes, your majesty”. “You can stop calling me that you don’t work for me anymore”! “But princess, I-“. “Silence! Please listen to me Idhrenion you have done too much for me all ready. You and your family have protected my legacy for longer than most ponies will ever remember. You’ve never asked for a thank you, not once stopping and thinking about yourselves, and to top it all up you gave up your mortality”. I could have sworn the princess almost started to cry. She paused, again composing herself and started again. “I'm still reliving you of your job, but not as a punishment, as a gift. I'm giving you your freedom. No more listening to orders. No more protocol. Just go and live your life, please, for me”. “Fine”. I was very reluctant to obey this order, but I could feel the hurt in Celestia’s voice. After all I knew why she was so angry. “Thank you”. Celestia stood up straight and looked up at the ceiling as if avoiding eye contact. ”Now, tomorrow we shall have a very small ceremony honoring your time as a guard. Just Shining and I will attend. I ask that you keep the matter of your ‘body’ between the two of us”. “Will do”. I felt strange not to say ‘yes, your majesty’, but at the same time it was a little relieving. I didn’t like it. “Good”. She then began to tell me about the ceremony but not in too much detail. She told me that the rest would be explained when I arrived. It was to be held in three days, because that was the only time the princess had enough time to throw a secret ceremony that nopony would be allowed to attend. After that Celestia left and so did I. I had nothing to do since I had agreed not to be a guard anymore so I just waited silently for the ceremony to come. After all I was good at that.
Shadow?It was early on the morning of the ceremony. I put on my old, grey cloak and walked to the throne room. I was no longer required to hide in the shadows so I decided to stretch my legs. It didn’t take me to long to reach my destination. When I arrived the guards let me in. The ceremony had just begun and I almost missed the beginning. However I would not have minded. All it meant was that I would have to leave, and that was the last thing I wanted. When I entered I saw Celestia, Shining Armor and another pony who I thought was the royal tea brewer. “I'm sorry shadow there had to be some last minute changes, Ms. Stitch wanted to show you in person”. Celestia said with a smile. I smiled back but I'm sure it looked just as fake as it was. Ms. Stitch was the royal seamstress she was particularly good and capes and cloaks. As for why she was here I’d just have to wait to find out. Then there was the matter of Celestia calling me shadow, but I suppose she was protecting my identity. “Very well then, that is fine”. I said with little to no emotion whatsoever. “Good, first order of business I had Ms. Stitch make you a gift…” She paused for a moment. “Ms. Stitch” “Yes of course your majesty right away”. She said as she scurried around the room. She was a somewhat short earth-pony , with a tannish coat and light blue hair. Her cutie mark was a ball of yarn. “Here it is”. She proclaimed as she pulled out a huge box that looked like a wardrobe on wheels. Inside was an assortment of capes and robes in all kinds of colors. “So what do you think”? She pulled out a purple cape with silver lining and waved it in front of me. “Do you perhaps have something a little more simplistic”? I asked. “Let me see”. She said nervously as she searched through her wardrobe flinging the garments everywhere. One in particular caught my eye. It was just what I was looking for. The silk felt amazing and the pure white fabric shone bright in the light of the sun. The lining was just the opposite. It was almost as if you were staring into a pitch black void of nothingness. I quickly took off my old cloak and put on the new. “What about this one”? I asked. She turned around to look at me. “It feels and looks great. You did an amazing job”. “Thanks” she said looking a little disappointed. Then she gathered up here things and left. I was so busy admiring my new cloak I had almost not noticed. “Thank you” Celestia and I said right before she shut the door. “Is she going to be okay princess”? I asked. “She’ll be fine; it’s just that the one you chose was merely a concept so she could get the size and shape right”. Celestia said. “Well it’s very nice for a concept. It even has this little pocket” “Oh yes, that is for this” Celestia levitated a small package with a letter attached to it over to me. “The letter will explain everything, but for now put it to the side” “Okay” I said reluctantly and used my own magic to levitate it back where Celestia had it. “Celestia”? I asked. “Yes”? “How come Ms. Stitch didn’t noticed who I was based on my cutie mark. I know she saw it and it was on all of those capes she made even this one”? I was of course referring to the cape I chose which had my cutie mark-the Shadowlight seal-seamlessly sown into the white back. [1] “Not many ponies even remember the Shadowlights, let alone who they were” Celestia said. “Shining only knows of their existence because of the royal guard exam he had to take in order to become captain”. “Oh yeah, that worthless test took forever”. Shining said under his breath. “What was that Shining”? Celestia said raising an eyebrow. “Nothing, your majesty” he said with a bow. “Anyway” she said shaking her head. “Are there any other questions shadow”? “As a matter of fact yes. Why do you keep calling me shadow”? “Idhrenion is such an old name and would hardly fit in nowadays, so I improvised a nickname. Do you like it”? “It’s simple yet very effective; it will work for the time being.” I said with a smile. In all honesty I liked the nicknamed and planned to use it for a while. “Now I have a question for you shadow”. Shining said. “I might have an answer”. I said happily. “Where will you go now, and what will you do”? I thought about the question for a moment and said. “When I was young, my father told me that he always wanted to go out and build a home for my family here”. I pulled out a map and pointed to the edge of a forest north of galloping gorge. [2] “I figure I might give the place a visit and see why my father was so fond of that particular area. Who knows I might even build a home there. Seeing as I can’t live here anymore”. I said looking straight at the princess. She was however unfazed by my meaningless comment, but I would expect nothing less from the ruler of Equestria. “Good for you”. Was the only thing shining could say to loosen the mood. It worked and I ceased my attack on the princess. “Anyway”. I said “As for what I will do, I shall wait”. “For what, exactly”? Shining asked, but I could tell Celestia was equally curious. “For your sister to graduate from that school of Celestia’s. We all know she will, and when she does, she is going to accomplish great things. As for what that means we’ll all just have to wait and find out”. The ceremony was coming to a close and I was readying myself for my departure when I realized I still had one question left for the princess. “Before I forget, Celestia what school of magic do you plan to teach Twilight after she graduates. Will you teach her you side of the spectrum, of light and love? Or do you dare to teach her the way of the night, of darkness and fear?” Shining was shocked by the nature of my question. Celestia however was unaffected, still though I would not have asked the question if I did not want the answer. “Friendship… Twilight Sparkle will learn the magic of friendship”. This was her response, one that shocked me. All of my vast knowledge of magic was at this particular point, useless. The only thing I knew about the magic of friendship was the name. I was utterly stumped and at a loss for words. Celestia saw though my confusion and began to explain herself. “The great Starswirl failed to achieve his ultimate goal because he lacked knowledge on the magic of friendship. I intend to correct this mistake with Twilight by teaching it to her first”. Check mate Celestia. Genius is the only word that could come to mind. She intends for Twilight to become the new Starswirl, a better Starswirl not only am I interested, I don’t think I will be able to wait. But even with all of my excitement I still remained composed (till I got outside at least). “Naturally both of you will keep this information a secret”. Celestia said. Both Shining and I agreed of course. “Oh my goodness look at the time I'm going to be late for my train” I said rushing out the door to the throne room on my way to Canterlot station. I could hear Celestia’s voice trying to tell me something but I had no time to listen. I was on an adventure! [1] My cutie mark (The Shadowlight seal) is my profile picture. [2] On the official map of Equestria.
Adventure!“Money, what uses have I for money”? I yelled, frustrated at the ticket salespony. Whom I'm sure was equally as frustrated with me. “I'm sorry sir but train tickets aren't free”! He yelled back. “Not even for a princess”? The salespony quickly bowed and I turned to see Celestia right behind me. “You forgot your gift back at the castle, shadow”. She said, bowing back at the salespony. She levitated the small package towards me and I gripped it within my magical grasp. “Thank you, princess”. I wasn't all that excited that she brought it to me. I had purposely left it there; after all it was probably some long, drawn out apology/thank you for your service letter and some cheese. I took it anyway, as not to be rude. “I'm sorry to interrupt, but tickets still aren't free even for a princess”. Said the sales pony. Celestia chuckled then gave the pony 5 bits. Then she began to ask the pony for something but I couldn’t make out what. “Right away princess”. He said with another equally annoying bow. “Is there something wrong shadow”? she said with a concerned tone. “Hm… what? Oh its nothing, anyway thanks for the ticket”. I must have been making a face at the salespony. “Naturally I expect you to pay me back of course” She spoke as though I was trying to rob her, or maybe I was still mad at her. Nah, it was probably her. “Naturally”. “Here you are one ticket on the friendship express. You might want to hurry the train leaves soon” “Thank you sir” I said with a smile. I then turned to Celestia “Goodbye old friend, till next time” she smiled and waved as I took my leave. The ticket salespony wasn’t joking; the train was preparing to set off as soon as I got onboard. The train itself was rather empty with only nine other ponies in my car. They all were somewhat clumped together at the front of the car. A small stage was also set up near the front with a mandolin, guitar, and banjo. It was later in the afternoon so I assumed that the performers had gone to diner. I chose a bench near the back of the car and sat down. It was more comfortable than I had expected it to be and one bench could easily fit three ponies. I situated myself and pulled out Celestia’s package. It wasn’t much of anything, just a cardboard box bound in twine with a letter attached. I opened the letter and began reading. Dear, Old friend This is a complicated mater in which I write to you. Firstly, I'm sorry I did not tell you this sooner but as I mentioned before it is indeed complicated. Secondly, this is a matter which must be kept confidential and the item enclosed must not be used until 30 days after reading this letter have passed. Thirdly, this is an honor of the greatest magnitude. So without further ado I present to you the Shadowlight Badge.— I paused my reading for a moment confused, happy, nervous, and curious all at the same time. I almost opened the box to see if it was real or not. However in the end I decided reading on was the best course of action. The badge was created by Luna and I to honor any outstanding Shadowlights, but since they remained in the shadows and were rarely seen, none were ever received. (This sentence was slightly smudged no doubt due to the mention of Celestia’s sister) Until now, Shadow by doing what you have done to protect me and your kingdom I believe you deserve this award. I am fully confident that you will use its power for nothing but the betterment of pony kind. Enclosed are the Badge itself and are rulebook explaining its many uses and restrictions. Sincerely, Princess Celestia As the letter drew to a close my suspicions of its authenticity quickly faded away. I then turned and looked at the box that lay beside me. It suddenly had become very important to me. I opened it and examined its contents. Inside was a rectangular shaped case which no doubt held the badge and a scroll which by process of elimination had to be the rules and regulations. Opening the badge was accomplished with a simple flip and the casing flipped over and folded behind. The badge was made entirely out of silver and looked Macedonian in nature; it was quite stunning to say the least. Its shape was similar to Celestia’s cutie mark but instead of a full circle in the center it had a crescent moon. Shortly after opening the package I remembered that the pocket in my cloak was made for my new badge. It fit perfectly into the pocket, but I would expect nothing less from a master tailor such as Mrs. Stitch. The weight from the badge was just enough to remind me that I had it, but not too much so that I wished I didn’t. Next up on my list of thing to do was to read the rules [1] and so I did. After about one-thirds the way done the scroll, a group of ponies entered through the door behind me. They walked over to the stage, picked up their instruments, and sat down. They then proceeded to tune them, and at that point I went back to reading my scroll. I finished reading right before they began to play. I did not recognize the song, or tune, or genre but perhaps that was because I had not been out much before now. The more I listened the catchier the song became. From what I could gather the song was about a train called the “Friendship Express” which I think I recall somepony calling this train that. Anyway by the time the song was over we had arrived at my stop and I was eager to get off and scope the land. I step off the car with that catchy song still stuck in my head. It was so catchy that I started singing it. (Out loud!) “Listen to the jingle the rumble and the roar Smell the ash rise from the smokestack as in days of yore May the iron horse I speak of always have success The one best way to travel is on the Friendship Ex-“[2] “um sir”. Said a worried looking pony, rudely interrupting my singing. “Yes”! I said a little more hatefully than I should have. “I'm here to guide you around the wonderful city of Vanhoover”! He said excitingly “That’s ok I don’t need a guide… Wait! Where did you say we were”?! “The wonderful city of Vanhoover”! Said the happy-go-lucky pony without hesitation. “What! Can I see a map please”? “Of course here you go” I looked down at the parchment that the pony handed me. “This is a map of ‘The wonderful city of Vanhoover’ isn’t it”? “You bet it is” by now he was giving me a headache. “Listen I need a map of Equestria. Can you get me one of those”? “I sure could try, sir”. He said as chipper as ever. “Thanks” I said rubbing my forehead. [1] Rules (optional read) [2] Clip from the song “The Friendship Express” by Skypause and her family check out the full song and others on thier channel Skypause Bgp.
Home?“Are you sure you don’t want to stay”? At first I expected the guide to vanhoover to move on to some other tourist when I explained to him that my arrival there was a mistake. However, he seemed genuinely upset that I wouldn’t be staying. “It’s quite alright. I actually have somewhere I need to be, and I think I’m rather late getting there”. “Well, if you ever come back to ‘the wonderful city of vanhoover’ I’d love to actually give you a tour”. He said, back to his upbeat self. “If I come back you’ll be the first to know, I promise”. I waved to him as I boarded the train for a second time. I took my seat and saw him walking away out my window. I felt bad for disappointing him like that, so I decided to come back and visit one day. Now, finally I was back on track, new train, new place, and a new life. This time around I had the entire cart to myself, I had to be the only pony going to galloping gorge. The train ride was awfully boring and I spent most of the time reading the rules or admiring my new ‘toys’. When we arrived the train slowed to a stop and stayed just long enough to let me dismount before taking off again. I looked around at the station, and it was in awful condition. It was very clear that nopony had even set hoof on the platform in decades. Past the station, which was covered in vines and other plant life, lay a vast forest. A glance at my map told me I had to trek through the woods to reach my final destination. The sun was hot, but not unbearably so. It didn’t take long for me to reach a large clearing near the edge of the gorge. Although the sun was brightest here, there was a swift, cool breeze giving the clearing a perfect temperature. A small stream flowed by the clearing and the sound of the flowing water was peaceful to listen to. By this time it was starting to get dark, and the sun and moon would soon switch places. The peaceful forest ambience combined with the soft, warm glow of the moon made this a wonderful place to rest. I laid under the stars and thought about what I would do next. After long contemplation, I decided to make a home for myself. A cozy little house here in the clearing. It could easily serve as a ‘base of operations’ in my search for the unknown. I got up and began working immediately, after all I didn’t need any sleep. I toiled away building my new home, I worked tirelessly, and only taking a few breaks here and there. I felt as if I needed to do this, it gave me a purpose again. My anger at Celestia only fueled my constructive rage, and within five months I had built a small cottage in the woods. I loved my cottage, to me it meant a great accomplishment. I had no idea I could cut wood, or build a house. With the house finished I began working on how I would furnish it. I gathered leafs mostly and made a small bed-ish thing in the corner. And for now, it was complete. But, as much as I loved my home in the woods, it was a very lonely place. For someone like me that wasn’t so bad, I had, after all, spent most of my life alone. However, that was not by choice, and now that I do not have to remain hidden…I can make some friends. Firstly I had to get out of these woods, I had spent way too much time in there by my lonesome. I waited at the station till a train came by and flagged it down using my magic. Oddly it felt great to be surrounded by other ponies again. I relished in their company, and listened to their fascinating conversations until I got off again at Canterlot station. Spending so much time in solitude I had almost forgot about the young unicorn that Celestia thought could surpass Starswirl. I made my way to the castle gates before being stopped by one of the royal guards. “Halt who goes there”? Demanded the guard. “Starswirl the bearded” I answered joking. He chuckled and softened his tone. “Honestly sir, what business have you with her majesty”? Although he sounded tough, he was still smiling at my joke. “I’m sorry, I wanted to ask her about one of her students”. I rummaged through my cloak and pulled out my badge showing it to each of the guards. “This should prove to be adequate identification”. They then bowed as if I was the princess and quickly opened the gate. “No sir, we are sorry for the trouble” “Non-sense, you boys are doing a wonderful job”. I smiled and walked up to the throne room and knocked on the large ornate doors.
Little sisThe doors opened inward as if expecting my presence. I walked inside and looked around, Shining Armor was speaking with a few of his guards, but Celestia was nowhere to be found. “Sir. News from the frontlines”. I mocked, with an over exaggerated salute. He turned to face me, and was about to say something before he noticed who I was. Without hesitation he began galloping in my direction, quickly picking up speed. He was traveling so fast it was a miracle that he slowed down in time. In fact, he didn’t, I was knocked to the ground by the force of the impact. However, he seem completely unaffected. “Shadow”! He yelled, as he hurried to help me up. “Where have you been? My sister has been dying to meet you”. It then occurred to me that I had never actually seen miss sparkle before. I thought since she was a personally prodigy of the princess that she would be staying in the castle, but I had never seen her while I was making my rounds. “Actually, she is the very reason I have returned to Canterlot”. Although she was a big part of why I came back, I wasn’t about to tell Shining the main reason was because I was lonely. “I had expected to speak to Celestia about her training, but I can see she is not here”. “Well follow me you can speak to twilight in person, she really has been looking forward to meeting you”. “As long as she doesn’t bombard me with endless questions…Wait a minute, why does she want to see me? As far as she knows I’m just an ordinary citizen of Equestria. Right”? “Don’t worry, as promised I kept your secret safe, but I did tell her that you knew a lot about magic”. “Oh, I suppose that makes sense” After waving goodbye to the other guards we headed to twilights home away from home. A short walk later and we had arrived at a decently sized tower near the edge of the castle grounds. Up a small flight of stairs was twilight’s home. Shining wasted no time and quickly knocked on the door. “Little sis, open up, I brought a surprise for you”. Little sis? Shining was already quite young, could his sister be even younger? A small noise came from inside, then the door slowly opened to reveal a small purple filly. “Brother”! She exclaimed, running up and hugging him. This must have been his other sister. “Excuse me little miss, but is twilight here”? I asked, smiling. She giggled and looked at shining and then they both laughed. “What’s so funny”? Then it hit me, like a flower pot, and an anvil, and some bales of hay, and a grand piano! “Don’t tell me this is twilight sparkle”. “OK” She said in the cutest voice possible. “We won’t tell you”. They then began laughing again, and this time I joined them. The laughter hid my astonishment, I felt the magic surge that miss sparkle had caused, and now to find out it was the work of such a young filly. Not much longer after that she invited us inside and offered us tea. We talked a great bit about how she learned magic and what she thought of her studies. I learned as much as I could about how she was being taught, but ultimately I knew I’d have to hear it directed from Celestia if I wanted the full picture. She was very interested with my magical knowledge, and I promised her that if she finished her studies I would teach her everything I knew. She quickly learned that I wouldn’t budge on my decision, and after learning that she ushered us out and jumped right back into the books. Shining and I then made our way back to the castle to see if the princess had returned.
First DayWe arrived back at the castle in search for the princess. After shining and I searched for some time he decided to tell me that the princess had left Equestria in a hurry and wasn’t due back any time soon. “And you couldn’t tell me this sooner”? I said, extremely frustrated. “I just remembered”. “Honestly Shining Armor, how do you even function”? I said a lot more angrily than I should have. “Hey! Be nice”. “I’m sorry, I’m just a bit frustrated”. “I understand why. I should be more aware of where our princess is considering I’m captain of the guard”. “We all make mistakes, but I did want to speak to her about twilight’s training. So what am I going to do now”? “Oh yeah”! Shining exclaimed. “What is it now”? “Celestia wanted you to take over the training for a while, seeing as she won’t be back for some time”. I just stared at him for a moment, dumbfounded by is forgetfulness. “Shining”? I asked softly. “Yes, Shadow”? “We were just at twilight’s house. You couldn’t tell me then”? “Well I’ve had a rough day ok”. I sighed and shrugged it off, he probably did have a lot on his plate considering the princess was gone and his only sister was training to become a legend. “Well then, I’m not going back over there. She made it perfectly clear she was busy”. “But what about her training”? “If she wants to be trained by me then she’ll just have to come over here tomorrow. I don’t feel like training anypony right now. Naturally I will be staying in the castle while I’m here”. “I suppose that’s alright. I’ll have one of my ponies prepare a room for you”. “That won’t be necessary I’ll stay in my old room, I like the smell”. We said our goodbyes and I made my way there. The room was small, and quaint. It smelled like my family, whom I missed very much. This was the one thing I truly couldn’t bring to my new home in the woods. I had a proper bed to sleep on, even though I wouldn’t use it. I spent the night brushing up on some old spells I planned on teaching twilight the next day. Tomorrow I would test her, see how far I could push her latent abilities. I had several high magic enchantments in mind as well. The next thing I knew, harsh light was entering through the one window in my room. From the angle the sun was shining in it had to be mid-day. I made my way out of the room and into the castle courtyard where I told one of the guards to fetch me shining armor. He and twilight soon entered the courtyard and my exciting day of teaching would soon begin. “Good morning miss sparkle”. I said as cheerfully as possible. “Afternoon Mr. Shadow”. “Right, your training will begin immediately. Every day, until Celestia returns, you will meet me here at exactly noon. Do you understand”? “Yes sir”. She said with a bow. “No need for sirs or misters, not any kind of protocol. It makes me feel as if I’m controlling you. I am here as your friend, nothing more. Also shining, you may leave”. They both agreed and shining left quietly. “I am a stern believer in honesty miss sparkle, so I’m going to be frank with you. Today will not be easy. I have chosen some very difficult spells for you to perform. None of them pose any danger if not performed correctly but still use caution” “I understand”. I could tell by the look in her eye she was eager to start. No doubt she was wondering how far she could go, much like myself. I levitated I book too her and she held it in her own magic. As I expected she would. However, without any instruction she immediately began reading it. At first I was going to tell her to turn to a specific page, but I decided to wait and see what she would do. Even with the great length and complication of the book she read it cover to cover in under an hour. She was so engrossed in its contents that we didn’t even speak for that entire time. “Did you, enjoy the book”? I asked, eagerly awaiting a response. “I most certainly did”. She said smiling brightly. “Which of these did you have in mind”? “Never mind that, just pick one that you liked and I’ll make the preparations to preform it”
Ice-Cream and StallionsSparks flew from twilight’s horn as she prepared to shield herself. Her light purple magic enveloped her in a sturdy bubble of magic energy. “Now when you have become comfortable with that size start expanding”. She wasted no time and within minutes the field was double its original size. It didn’t take long before the shield enveloped myself. I had been accustomed to this before, with the numerous ponies I’ve trained over the years, but this was different. Most young fillies have great difficulty when pulling others into a magic barrier. This results in a rather unpleasant, cold, lifeless feeling inside the pony that the field surrounds. However, twilight’s was vastly different. Instead of cold, there was warmth, a soothing warmth. It felt like a nice long hug, the kind of hug you get from your loving mother, or grandmother. As the field passed over my body the feeling faded away. I missed it. But then, I felt a rather different sensation. Twilight’s spell had gotten out of control, in seconds it covered most of Canterlot. Somehow, she had found a way to tap into my own magical energy and was using it to fuel the shield. “Twilight, calm down”. I struggled to get the words out, until now my magic body was nothing but a strength. Twilight proved that it could be my ultimate weakness. Slowly I faded away, back into the abyss of unconsciousness. When I bounced back into the world of the living what I saw was enough to make me want to go back. It seemed my magic had triggered her hidden abilities, all except for the height and wings, she reminded me so much of princess Celestia. And as if hearing my internal cry for help, Celestia appeared next to twilight. She calmly placed a hoof on twilight's shoulder. I felt my strength returning and twilight was gaining control of this malevolent spell. A final crack of thunder sent a bolt of bright, purple magic my way and I caught it head on, with my face. The bolt did no obvious damage, so disregarding it I ran to twilight’s side. When I reached her the image of Celestia faded and twilight returned to normal. “Twilight”? I asked holding her carefully in my hooves. Almost immediately she woke up and smiled brightly. “How did I do”? She asked with great enthusiasm. Obviously she had no recollection of the events, and I felt it was best to keep it that way. “Wonderful, a bit to robust but we can work on that”. I hardly noticed that my voice had been altered to a higher pitch. “Oh my goodness, I’m so sorry”. “For what dearie”? I noticed it then, I sounded a lot more mare-ish than usual. “Oh my”. Twilight jumped up and began reading from the book I gave her. “I don’t understand how this happened. Those are two completely different spells”. On the surface they seemed very distinct, but it actuality the algorithms created when preforming the spells are strikingly similar. She must have sapped a lot of magic in order to pull that off and no doubt pulled it from other ponies in the city. “Ok, Ok, Ok, I’m calm”. Of course I wasn’t calm, I had been turned into a mare. I suddenly felt the need to cry about it, and eat ice-cream, and my goodness Shining’s armor was extra shiny today. Oh sweet Celestia help me! Somewhere I the back of my mind I could hear her laughing. “If I could just cast a counter-spell”. “No”! I rejected. But instantly felt bad for doing so. I could hear the regret in her voice, “I mean, I am here to train you aren’t I. I suppose this will be part of your training. New assignment, turn me back as quick as ponily possible. Begin…Now”. Minutes, and Hours went by. But, it felt like days, years even. There were several times I nearly broke down and cried. However, I pulled myself together, after all it really was a humbling experience. I couldn’t help but wonder how mares go about with all this emotion. “There we go”! She exclaimed. I jumped around eagerly awaiting my transformation. “I found out what’s wrong and have devised a counter-spell”. She stood up tall, as tall as she could, and focused her energy at me. But nothing happened. She had used up all her magic energy. I stood there, frozen, I knew what had happened but it seemed I couldn’t accept it. “I’m really sorry”. “It’s alright, don’t worry about it. We will try again tomorrow”. I knew if I gave myself some time to prepare I could reverse the spell, but as much as I hated it, this exercise could really benefit twilight. I relaxed, it was only one day as a mare. If things truly got out of hoof I could having Shining change me back. Whom I had the strange urge to go visit. “Seeing as we can’t do much more, you are free to go back home”. “I should probably go check on spike anyways”. “Spike? Is that the baby dragon”? “Yes, he sleeps a lot so he isn’t much help. But the princess says he will be a great assistant once he is a bit older”. “He is an adorable thing though”. This transformation was going to ruin my reputation, I could just feel it. “I guess, well I’m off. I’ll see you back here tomorrow”. We said our goodbyes and went our separate ways. She made her way back home. I on the other hoof felt compelled to go to Shining’s side, so I made my way to the throne room.
Good to be backAs I made my way back inside the castle I noticed something rather strange. None of the guards were at their posts. All throughout the castle as well. Of course I wasn’t studying any of the other guards. Foolishly, I made my way to the throne room. I knew it would be empty, but a part of me expected Shining Armor to be waiting for me there. With Ice-cream, sweet Celestia I wanted Ice-cream. But alas, Shining armor had left with the other guards. And with nothing to dissuade my attention I began to wonder where they had all gone. I didn’t panic because I no longer had to worry about the state the kingdom was in. still, I was indeed curious. I made my way out to the front of the castle, there I found a few of the guards chatting. Naturally I listened in. One was a tall muscular looking stallion. “I told you it was a bad idea to goof off in the locker room”. One of the guards said as he smacked the other, less muscular pony, upside the head. “Ow”! He exclaimed, quickly regaining composure. “But you did enjoy it, didn’t you”? “Now is not the time! The other guards have left the city and are on their way to the griffon kingdom”! “Don’t yell, we get to stay behind and watch the city”. “I thought that shadow pony was doing that”. “Well nopony could tell him in time, I heard”. At this point I decided to join in. “Excuse me sirs”. I interjected, whilst exiting the shadows. “I heard somepony was looking for me”. “Who are you”? The muscular pony asked, looking rather confused. “Wait”. Started the other. “Shadow”? “Oh, Yeah. I’m not in the mood to talk about it”. “Alright. I’m sorry”. “Anyways, like I said I heard somepony needed me”. “Yeah, Shining wanted you-“. Said the muscular pony before being interrupted. “How’s the training of Miss Sparkle going”? I paused for a moment to consider why the other pony was cut off. Then I put the pieces of the puzzle together. After letting it settle in for a minute I responded. Sighing, I then said. “Well this”, pointing to my body “is actually her doing”. “Whoa, she is able to perform such a complicated spell”?! The ~~cute~~ less muscular pony asked, with eyes wide open. “Well, all of the spell casting was her. But, I have reason to believe that she used magic other than her own to perform it”. “That pony is going to be great one day”. “Honestly, she’s already pretty amazing”. I said with pride. “I’m sorry, I don’t believe I caught your names”. “Well, I’m Private Restorn”. So the tall one was Restorn, a private. “And, this is Lieutenant Crestron”. The other I had heard about, a lieutenant from Cloudsdale. He had a promising career as a wonderbolt but gave it up halfway through his second season. The other was a unicorn, but I had never heard of him before. “It certainly was nice meeting you two. But, don’t you have a castle to protect”? They both blushed and made their way back to their posts. Since it was just the three of us I helped keep watch over the castle. However, the task I had taken on was extremely boring. At least those two had each other, all I had was the echoes of the empty halls. I didn’t want to tell them I was leaving for fear of interrupting something. So I calmly waited it out, the other guards returned late in the night and by the time they had arrived I was already in my room preparing for the next day. Morning came and I waited for Twilight in the courtyard. When she arrived not a word was spoken until she undid her perplexing, and most annoying mistake. “Oh how wonderful it feels to be back”. I said admiring her work. “Now we need to have a talk”. “I’m really sorry mister shadow”. She hung her head in shame. “No it’s not that, we all make mistakes. Today I’m going to tell you my biggest mistake”. She lifted her head and looked at me with great interest. “But, only if you promise to keep it a secret”. “Well, I don’t talk to that many ponies so I don’t know who I might tell”. “I suppose that’s good enough”. We both smiled and laughed. I then told her about my family and how I was the last one. Most of what happened recently I relayed back to her. The most important thing I told her was about the arcane body I possessed. “I see why you did it, but now you regret it”. She said grimly. “Well it was all for nothing seeing as the princess fired me”. “If you were fired then how come you are doing so much for her”? She made an excellent point. For somepony who didn’t have to do anything for the princess, I was sure doing a lot for the princess. “You sure are a clever little thing. But I’d rather not go on about that”. She nodded. “So tell me what the most interesting part of that story is”. “There is one thing that doesn’t make much sense”. “And that would be”? I asked with a spark in my eye. “If your body is made of magic as you say, then it should have a perpetual state of form. Therefore should be extremely difficult to change without destroying it and rebuilding”. And again she exceeds my standards. “Now that we are both on the same page, we need to figure out how it happened”. “You mean you don’t know”? I was flabbergasted. Could she have just figured it out right there? In under an hour! “Do you”!? “Well, no”. Thank Celestia. “But, shouldn’t you”? “I’ll ask the questions here”. She giggled. “Now, why don’t I know”? “How am I supposed to know? I’m not you”. “Sometimes I wish I wasn’t either. Anyways back to the topic at hoof”. We both sat down and pondered the questions.
Secrets Secrets As we ponder the complexity of arcane constructs, a familiar voice fills the air. “Hello again, my faithful student”. The soft, sweet voice brings a smile to Twilight’s face the likes of which nothing else could. ”Princess”! Twilight exclaimed as she rose to stand before her mentor. “Where have you been”? She politely bowed before returning to her studies. I too bowed courteously as to set a good example for Twilight. “Just away my dear student”. She said with a serene smile. “Some business outside of Equestria. I hope you don’t mind but I’ve left your brother behind for a short while to tidy up a few loose ends”. “He can handle it no problem”. Twilight said obviously very proud of her dear brother. “He certainly can”. The princess said turning her attention to me. “Twilight dear, do you think the Princess and I could have a word alone”? Twilight agreed and made her way inside the castle. Celestia smiled as she turned to face me and caught me in the middle of a blush. "That color looks good on you Shadow". Her words made my blush worse and I attempted to hide my face from her gaze. "So you saw then". "I always keep a watchful eye on my faithful student". "I want to keep as much of that a secret as I possibly can ok"? "Of course...miss Shadow". She said with a laugh which caused me to blush even more and I completely turned away from her. "Honestly Celestia"! "Lighten up, I'm sorry Shadow. Now on to business, I know you didn't send Twilight away to talk about that. So what's bothering you"? "Well" I said turning back to face her. "It was but it wasn't. You see, apart from my discomfort, she accomplished something incredible and I'm certain she sapped my magic to do it". "She's quite talented no"? "Stop it"! "Stop what"? She knew what I meant as evident by the slightly devious smile she now wore. "You are hiding things from me I know you are. This filly is destined for greatness and we can both feel it. But, you have confirmed it somehow. Show me". Out of respect for her and twilight both I bow low. "Please". "Follow me". She said slowly and calmly as she lifted up my chin. She then walked inside the castle with me following closely behind. Watching carefully I noticed that she seemed lower to the ground than usual. As if bearing some large unbearable weight. I almost thought I saw a tear form before being dashed away. "Wait here". She spoke with a voice that was less like a stone wall and more like a rope bridge. But still I felt authority in the words she spoke and I waited for her to return as she entered her bedroom. Not long after, she emerged wearing a regal cloak and we began to walk back outside the castle. She said a few words to some of the guards but I couldn't make out what. Then she kept walking and again I followed her becoming more curious. "Where are we going Celestia"? I said softly so I wouldn't intrude on her thoughts. "To a small agricultural village named ponyville". She lifted her head up and seemed a little happier after I asked. "I think I've heard of it". In truth I had forgotten if I had or not. "We will have to take the trains". She said as we exited the castle grounds and made our way to the station on the south west side of Canterlot. She paid for the tickets and we boarded the car without a word. The band wasn't playing today. It was as if the whole of Equestria was saddened. We made small talk to accompany the ride but we didn't say much more than formality. I told her everything that happened since she was gone and she told me what she could about her business outside of Equestria. As we exited the car Celestia put a few bits in the jar that the band normally collects from and we made our way into town. The wind was blowing hard in the town when Celestia stood up high and tall, her horn glowing brightly. She outstretched her wings and hovered in the air. I watched in awe while the sun was engulfed by her ethereal energy and lowered to make way for the moon which came up slowly on the opposite horizon. When she finished she gently drifted down and caught herself before standing back up. My eyes were wide in amusement even though I'd seen her preform the spell at least a hundred times or more it was always special when she did it and I had never been so close before. I shook my head to regain myself and she looked back at me smiling. I smiled back and we continued on our way to our destination. "Amazing" I whispered under my breath as we walked to the outskirts of the town. The wind was still blowing harshly and we put up our hoods to fight the chill. As we got to the very edge of the small village I turned back to see ponies darting inside and slamming their shutters to keep out the severe wind. A few Pegasus ponies were flying around, blowing out the lanterns throughout the town and one by one they all prepared for bed. I wished I could join them but I turned back to my guide and called out to her. "Now where Celestia"? She stopped at the start of dirt path that lead into a dense forest. She pointed to the thick collection of trees and called back to me saying. "The Everfree Forest"…
Someplace old, someplace newWe crossed into the thick brush of the untamed forest and the wind died down to a complete halt. The air inside the prison bars of trees was trapped in, and the outside wind, locked out. We were isolated from the world beyond the wild woods. But, we certainly were not alone. Silently we stalked through to our destination which lay deeper and deeper into this overgrown amalgamation of shrubbery. I had heard stories of the Forest Everfree. I knew of its weather that acted sentient and how the plants grew without earth pony care. My father would tell me tales to keep me on my hooves. When I was younger, much younger, I dreaded the thought of going to such a place. But, I had nothing to fear, being safe inside Canterlot Castle. I didn't think Celestia to be the kind of pony who feared anything, but still. Why were we in a place like this? As we drew deeper the lurking creatures who observed our every move got braver. At first I would see one set of eyes in the distance, every so often. But now, I could catch glimpses of their shadowy forms moving swiftly and preparing to strike. If they ever got too close I felt a warmth in my soul as if reassuring me of my safety. I knew it was her. Right before it happened Celestia would tilt her head and shuffle her wings ever so slightly. To a master of the arcane like myself I knew that even the smallest twitches could mean something tremendous if done properly. This further reassured me of Celestia's awesome might. We came upon a few clearings and then a river. Celestia froze the water so we could pass unhindered. Or she could anyway. I on the other hoof had great trouble keeping my balance and slid to and fro before finally reaching the appropriate side. This of course made her giggle but I was too concerned to be amused. On one of my passes across the ice I saw a large ominous creature swim directly under me. I told Celestia about it but she only told me not to worry about "him". As if it meant nothing to her. Was this large and quite possibly dangerous creature a pet of hers!? I began to feel like I'd gotten in far deeper into this web of secrets than I wanted to. But, before I could finish my thought the next thing I knew Celestia was saving me from falling off a cliff. I screamed when I realized what had happened and it echoed on throughout the whole forest. "I'm sorry Celestia I wasn't paying attention". I said after my screaming had ceased and I had calmed down, realizing now I was no longer in danger. "It's alright, I'm glad you're safe". "Thank you". "Of course Shadow. It's not much further ahead". She said as she lifted the bridge up with her magic and tied it securely in place. "Can you manage"? "Yes of course". I said jumping to my hooves. "I'm not out yet". "I'd hope not. Nothing has really happened". She said laughing. It was good to see her happy again. Even if it was at me. However, this happiness soon faded as we approached our journey’s end. A short ways across the rope bridge we came upon the tattered remains of an old castle. The large doors to the entrance of the castle hall were flung open, though, the holes in the brick walls were large enough for most ponies to sneak in anyways. Moss clung to the bricks seeping deep into the core of the building blocks that made up the castle walls. Truly these dilapidated ruins had seen brighter days. “It’s a shame such marvelous workponyship has been forgotten and left to rot away”. I said turning to Celestia hoping this would spark a conversation that might last. She merely regarded my comment with a nod followed by a soft sigh. I looked around and noticed that all the dark creatures that had been so eager to pounce on us before, had left. All that remained was an eerie silence that swept through like fog in early mornings. Not a hiss or purr broke the spell of muteness. As Celestia marched onward into this unnamed but familiar castle she was unfazed by the change in volume. But to me the silence was deafening. I couldn't shake the unsettling feeling in my ‘heart’. I wouldn't be left alone in a place like this so I followed behind the Princess very closely. The walls creaked and the floor squeaked. Wind reached this part of the forest and blew through the broken windows with ease. The night was cold and the cobblestone floor was freezing to the touch. It wasn't long before I started to shiver and shake. I tore my thoughts away from the cold and tried to think about where I was. As I looked around I saw long ornate tapestry hanging on the walls. Although they were torn and faded I could tell that they seemed to detail events that took place long ago. Similar to the stained glass windows in Canterlot castle. We stepped out of the hall and through another set of doors into a large library. Two or more stories high at least. Piled high with bookcases lined with books. I wasn't much for reading and I didn't have my favorite little chronicler so I just skimmed over the titles. We ponies sure love to alliterate. The sheer size of the library was impressive to me but I would have preferred it in better shape. I silently took in the awe of the room as Celestia walked to a table near the center. Turning back she smiled and said to me. “Watch this” Her gentle hoof outstretched and ever so gingerly tipped over one of the chairs that accompanied the table. My eyes widened and I tensed up in anticipation waiting to for the loud crash of the chair hitting the floor but it stopped itself from falling. With each subtle inch that it moved a click resonated through the silence in the library and one final, slightly louder, click echoed before its halt. Then, almost instantly air rushed towards two nearby bookcases and they were suddenly flung ajar. My jaw hung loosely and Celestia smiled as she entered and lit up the small hidden room she had now revealed. I eagerly rushed in after her taking a look around. Inside was yet another bookcase but this was much smaller and most the books I could see at a quick glance were about magic training. To the right was an assortment of chairs and pillows lined the outer edge of the small antechamber. Plenty of places to sit and read. If one wished to stand and read a single podium was in the very center. But, the most interesting thing in the room were the two stained glass windows at the back. One was day themed and the other moon themed. And that's when it hit me. I then knew where I was.
Silly filly, trees don't talk“Yes, yes, yes” Celestia answered. “This is my old castle. But…” “But”? I shot back in reply. “But” She paused building the anticipation and making me nervous. “I wasn't the only princess to live here”. This made me pause and think back, far back. Nearly a thousand years ago. I’d only knew of the past from stories. That being said one in particular stood out. “The Mad Moon Mare of Midnight”! I replied with glee. But she looked at me as if I was joking. “What”? She sigh in reply and corrected me. “The Mare in the Moon, Nightmare Moon”. I kind of shuffled my hoofs in embarrassment. “That one. But, wasn’t she a crazy Alicorn who demanded power and threatened to shroud the whole of Equestria in eternal darkness”? “No”! Celestia shouted turning to face me. She paused for a moment and I drew back a few steps. “She was my sister”. She said with great solace retreating to the memories of the old library. “We used to have so much fun in here”. Her thoughts trailed off and for the first time in my life I saw her vulnerable side. “Celestia”. I interjected, swiftly bringing her to her senses. And as if the moment had never happened she then turned to me and said. “I brought you here for a reason Shadow, and that reason was to show you this” she levitated a small book in my direction which I instantly recognized as “the journal of the two sisters”. Because the title was conveniently put on the cover of course. I flipped through the pages and it somewhat got me familiar with the situation. Bringing me to the point when Celestia and her sister got their cutie marks. At first I thought it just to be a story Celestia had written to pass the time. But I knew better. The book taught me a lot and again I missed the book my father gave me. “I’m sorry Celestia, I thought she was a myth”. “Everypony thinks she is a myth, but I know that Twilight will one day see the truth”. “How can you know this”? I asked her eagerly as I inched forward. “Starswirl predicted it long ago. And what's more her cutie mark looks almost identical to the mark in the center of the tree of harmony”. “I wish to see the tree, according to your journal it's near here”. She agrees and we make our way back outside of the castle after setting things back in order. “It’s nearly been one thousand years. If the legends are true then she will use the stars to escape her imprisonment”. “That's why I must teach Twilight all I can in the time she has”. “Tell me Celestia, how long did you intend to seal her away”? “I did not intend to do anything”. She replied reluctantly. “The elements required both of us to control and even then we never knew the outcome. It was like the elements themselves decided, a sort of judgement...I felt it though, and Luna was supposed to be trapped forever”. As she spoke she looked away as if distancing herself from the conversation. Perhaps she was looking for the moon through the thick forest. “Chin up my dear Celestia, next time will be different”. She could see through my ruse but it was all I could say to ease the tension. But we had arrived at the tree and she ushered me to approach it. So I did so. But, I did not take but three steps before the tree stopped me dead in my tracks. It...It spoke to me. “I know you” it said. That’s all it said. Celestia swore it wasn't her, and she never heard it then nor since… After confirming that Twilight’s cutie mark was indeed similar to what was on the tree I asked Celestia to go back without me. When she left I just waited. And listened to hear the tree again.
Rules (optional read)Rules of the Shadowlight Badge . 1. One can only use this badge and all its power to protect oneself, Equestria, The royalty of Equestria, or in cases of extreme emergency. 2. One cannot use this badge to enter private residences unless in compliance with rule one. 3. One is to announce ones presence before entering private residences unless in the case of an extreme emergency. 4. One does not have immunity from any of Equestria’s laws unless otherwise stated in this document. 5. One does not have the power to make arrests unless in compliance with rule one. 6. One must be in physical possession of the badge in order to use it. 7. One can temporarily transfer power to another individual. This individual may only maintain power for 24 hours. 8. One is allowed to enter any and all establishments in Equestria as long as in compliance with rule one. If one finds it necessary one can use any entrance they see fit. 9. No one rule is more important than another. All rules must be followed exactly as written. Side note from Celestia: Shadow these rules were written a Long time ago and as such are subject to change. Naturally I am too busy to revise them now but if I happen to think of any changes I’ll send you a new copy.[1] [1] This is obviously my way of saying I'm too lazy to continue writing rules. I will eventually update this rule book but for now this will do. Also a note to anyone reading this if you would like to help me with suggestions that would be much appreciated.
