Aveline stretched and sat up in the bed and looked around at a sight she had never imagined.

A large room lit brightly by the early morning sun through a large window that over looked the town complete with high quality drapes made from silk that started red near the bottom and casually transitioned to violet near the top and they were lightly sequined so that they sparkled as the light hit them. The room also had exceptionally well–made furnishings and Aveline discovered that they were made from real wood!

She stood and looked out the window, wondering if this was what it would have looked like to live during the Golden Age. There was a knock at the door and she turned to it as the door opened and Twilight’s diminutive assistant, Spike, walked in carrying some towels.

“Good morning, Aveline!” He greeted her cheerfully. “You look like you’re ready for anything!”

“I feel that way, Spike.” She replied, taking the towels. “Such comforts are a luxury precious few can afford where I come from and are almost entirely eschewed by Guardians completely; we’re rarely at our own living quarters long enough to do more than sleep.”

“Wow… what do you do as a Guardian?”

Aveline smiled at the dragon’s curiosity; most children in the City had become so used to darkness that such innocence was difficult to find.

“The Guardians are warriors chosen by the Traveler to go out into the stars and fight against The Darkness to return Light to our people.” She told him and his eyes widened in awe. “There are many foes so very near our home that we must struggle against every day to reclaim what was lost, but we do so because we are the only ones who can.”

“Wow, you guys are like superheroes!” He exclaimed, excited. “Do you think I could become a Guardian, too?”
Aveline’s smile vanished, her expression turning sad. “I… would not wish this on anybody, young one. I love what I do and the friendships I’ve made, but this life was not one of my choosing.”

“Oh, why is that?” He asked, but Aveline didn’t answer. Instead she rose and walked out of the room, heading toward the bathroom to shower. “Why don’t you want me to be a Guardian?”

“You are not ready for such truths, young one.” Aveline told him. “Perhaps when you are older, I will tell you.”

She closed the door on a confused Spike and took a shower.

Just like with the bed, it was an entirely different experience than the cleansing booth in her Vanguard–issued living quarters in the Tower. All her life, even before she had died and been subsequently returned as a Guardian, the people of Earth had scrapped using the limited water resources for cleaning, instead relying on the cleansing booths that were left over from the Golden Age. Admittedly, they were much more efficient at cleansing and sterilization, but after her shower, Aveline realized that the running hot water was strangely relaxing and actually helped soothe some of the aches of injuries she had acquired over the past few days. She stepped out of the shower, and felt relieved, as if a great burden had been temporarily lifted off her.

She returned to her room and changed into her leathers. Gospel had vehemently refused to stay on the planet’s surface and had returned to the ship while she and Samson remained in Ponyville, with Princess Twilight Sparkle letting them stay in the strange, crystalline castle that looked oddly like a tree. Aveline left her room and walked to the dining area to find that Twilight’s energetic pink friend, Pinkie Pie, was sitting at the table with Samson, apparently trying to feed him some kind of pastry.

“Come on, Sammy!” Pinkie cooed, waving the pastry in his face. “You won’t know you can’t eat it until you try! This cupcake’s extra, super–duper, scrumdiddlydumptious and I made it just for you!”

“I already told you, Miss Pie, that I physically cannot eat it.” He told her, getting frustrated. “I’m an Exo; we’re artificial creations and therefore we are incapable of consuming food of any kind, I apologize.”

“You silly billy, everybody can eat cupcakes!” Pinkie exclaimed happily, shoving the pastry into his face again. “Now open wide!”

Aveline intercepted the cupcake and sniffed it.

“I hate to break it to you, Pinkie, but Samson’s right. If he eats food, it will get caught in his servos and potentially do serious damage to his systems.” She told the party pony, who deflated slightly. “But the thought is appreciated. What is this, anyway?”

“It’s a cupcake, Linny!” Pinkie replied excitedly. “That one’s orange cream swirl! I suppose you can have it since Samson can’t eat it. I also brought one for you, it’s minty triple chocolate, a new recipe!” She held up another cupcake and looked at it sadly. “I made one for Gospel, too… lemon surprise, but he’s not here.” She then smiled brightly at Aveline. “Go on, try your cupcake!”

Aveline examined the cupcake suspiciously, took a cautious bite, and then practically spit the super sweet treat out of her mouth. Pinkie looked alarmed at this.

“Oh my gosh, did I mess up the recipe?” She asked, terrified. “Is there not enough frosting? Maybe I didn’t put enough chocolate in. I’m so sorry, Aveline, I’ll make sure it’s the right amount next time!”

“No, Pinkie, the cupcake was fine, really.” Aveline said, covering her mouth to keep herself from spitting it out. “It’s just… I am not used to something so sweet.”

“So… I put in too much sugar?” Pinkie asked and Aveline nodded. “Huh… maybe I should have held back on the bag when making the dough.”

“You will get it next time, I am sure.” Aveline told Pinkie, ruffling her mane and causing the pink pony to giggle. “Where is Princess Sparkle, Spike? I assume Gospel will be returning soon so that she can explain how it is she knows what she does.”

“I don’t know, she said she needed to go to Canterlot and that she would return with some ponies you needed to see.” Spike said as he ate what, to Aveline, appeared to be a fairly expensive–looking gem.

There was a roar from outside the castle and Aveline looked out the window of the dining room to see the Mischief Maker landing next to the castle with several gathered ponies watching in awe.

Once it landed, the engines shut off and Aveline saw a ramp extend from the ship and Gospel walked down it. Aveline nodded to Samson and both she and the Titan left the dining room to walk out of the castle and meet with Gospel in the foyer, the Hunter noticing the incredible tension in Gospel’s stride.

“Has she explained anything yet?” Gospel asked them quickly and Samson shook his head.

“No, apparently she left earlier to go somewhere called ‘Canterlot’ and find someone else she thinks we need to speak to.” Samson replied and Gospel growled.

“Great, a trap, I knew it.” He said and pulled his handcannon out to check its ammo. “Check your gear, be ready to move as soon as-”

“Relax, Gospel.” Aveline interjected, putting her hand on his weapon and gently lowering it. “I do not get the feeling that the Princess means us any harm.”

“Nevertheless, we should be prepared to fight.” Samson said, indicating the rifle in his hands. “I know they seem different to you, Aveline, but we need to remain vigilant. We don’t know whether or not these ‘ponies’ are as harmless as they seem.”

“Pinkie is nothing less than what we see, Samson.” Aveline retorted. “Maybe the aliens in the Sol System want nothing less than our demise, but I honestly do not believe that we are in danger here.”

Gospel looked at Aveline distrustfully.

“You need to be careful, Aveline, you shouldn’t trust these aliens.” He told her, but then they all heard a sound come from the top of the stairs and they all immediately turned, with Samson and Gospel training their weapons on the source.

It turned out to be Princess Twilight Sparkle and she was accompanied by two, far larger ponies that, like her, both had horns and wings, with one being slightly smaller than the other. The newcomers looked at the Guardians, and the smaller one appeared to bristle slightly while the taller one merely cocked a regal eyebrow.

“Oh, you’re up!” Twilight exclaimed, and then she saw that Gospel and Samson had their weapons out and she squeaked. “T-Those won’t be necessary, everypony; we’re all friendly here.” She indicated her guests. “Aveline, Gospel, Samson, I’d like you to meet Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, the rulers of Equestria. I apologize for not letting you know before I left, but I felt it would be good if I brought them here to speak with you in pony.”

Samson and Gospel looked at each other, and then they hesitantly put their guns away.

“Apologies, Your Majesties. We are from a world where threats come from all sides and we are trained to respond in kind.” Samson told the gathered Princesses and Celestia waved a hoof dismissively, a warm smile on her muzzle.

“It is alright, Samson, we’re the ones at fault for startling you.” She told them, and then she gestured toward a door. “I hardly think the foyer is a proper place for an intergalactic meeting however, so perhaps we should make ourselves at home with comfortable seats and warm tea?”

Samson and Gospel didn’t say anything, so Aveline stepped forward.

“That sounds lovely, Your Majesty.” She said and proceeded up the stairs as the Princesses trotted over to the room Celestia had indicated, with the blue one that Twilight had introduced as Princess Luna gazing at them for a brief moment before departing.

Gospel grabbed Aveline’s wrist and she looked at him.

“Don’t let your guard down, Aveline!” He implored, but Aveline gently pulled herself free.

“We have no choice, Gospel, they know this land better than we do and thus far they have shown that they are the farthest thing from hostile to us.” Aveline told him sternly and she returned to walking up the stairwell.

Samson walked up to Gospel and put his hand on the Warlock’s shoulder.

“No enemy on a thousand worlds is as dangerous as five miles of unknown terrain, Gospel.” Samson stated. “We should take advantage of whatever information they’re willing to part with, but that doesn’t mean we’re going to just tell them everything about Earth.”

Gospel watched as Samson walked up the stairs and he placed a hand on his gun before giving a sigh and following them up the stairs and into a comfortable looking tearoom that had a table in the center and multiple cushions on the floor.

All but one was occupied either by his fellow fireteam or the alien princesses. He reluctantly walked over to the remaining cushion and sat on it. Aveline coughed and when Gospel looked at her, she indicated her head to tell him that he needed to remove his helmet and he did so warily, placing it on the table. Spike entered a moment later with a tray bearing two pots of tea and multiple teacups and he began serving tea to everybody present save for Samson, who he knew couldn’t have any.

“Now, I can safely assume we are all comfortable?” Celestia asked after a dainty sip of tea.

“I am quite content, Princess.” Aveline said, and then took her own sip of the delicious tea, once more shuddering slightly from how flavorful it was compared to what she was used to.

“I have no complaints; Gospel?” Samson asked, looking at the Warlock, who regarded his cup of tea with a mixture of disdain and distrust.

“Yeah, sure, I’m just dandy.” He replied darkly and the princesses all looked at him curiously.

“Well, I suppose I shall not need to bore you with small talk, then.” Celestia said, her teacup returning to its plate with a light click. “Twilight informed my sister and I that you had some questions you wished to have answered?”

“Yes.” Samson replied automatically. “Our main priority, currently, is finding out how Princess Twilight knows about humanity.”

They all looked at Twilight and she blushed nervously.

“Well… you’re probably not going to believe me and I was scared that if I told you last night, you’d hurt my friends.” Twilight replied, rubbing her hooves together, and then she told them everything about her previous two adventures at Canterlot High on the other side of the mirror she kept in the castle basement. When she was finished, she smiled nervously. “I… I know it seems far–fetched, but I promise that it’s the truth.”

“I don’t buy it.” Gospel said, leaning on the table. “You seriously expect us to believe that you have a magic mirror in your castle’s underbelly that transports you to a world where all your friends are humans? That’s more than just ‘far-fetched’, that’s outright unbelievable. Just so you know, we tend to get shooty if we suspect bad behavior.”

“Do you make a threat against my friend, Guardian?” Luna said angrily, rising slightly while Samson cocked an eye plate curiously at her.

“Gospel!” Aveline exclaimed, looking at him angrily. “There is no reason we should not give her the benefit of the doubt!”

“Easy, both of you.” Samson told his team and they quieted, though they glared at each other. Samson turned toward Luna. “I don’t remember anyone telling you what we call ourselves. Do you know something you’re not telling us, Princess Luna?”

Luna started and looked around at the table.

“Oh yeah, time to get to the real reason I’m not terribly trusting right now, particularly of her.” Gospel said, jabbing a finger at the moon princess, who jumped in surprise. “Go on, Moonie; tell us exactly how it is you know that we’re Guardians. No lies, either.”

Luna looked around, and then composed herself.

“I detected your vehicle enter the airspace above Equus and I went aboard while you and your companions were in the Palace of the Sister Princesses.” She answered, her gaze settling on Gospel, stoic and unwavering. “I proceeded to have a brief conversation with your artificial being, Wedge. He was more than happy to answer what questions I deemed necessary to ask.”

There was a pregnant silence in the room as Twilight and Aveline gaped at Luna; Twilight with horror and Aveline with a combination disbelief and fury. Celestia settled her regal gaze on Luna while Samson stared very hard at the blue alicorn.

“You… went aboard our ship?!” Aveline exclaimed angrily, breaking the silence. “Perhaps Gospel is right about this.” She looked at the Warlock. “How did you find out, anyway?”

“Wedge was ‘more than happy’ to tell me he’d received a visitor while we were planet-side.” Gospel said, grinning. “He even played a recording of the whole conversation for me.”

“Was any sensitive information given out?” Samson asked and Wedge shook his head.

“Only the objective of our scouting mission, and even if she had asked more sensitive questions, he would have refused to answer them and probably would have attacked her if she had persisted.” Gospel replied and then Celestia cleared her throat.

“It seems we have something of a misunderstanding here.” She stated. “My sister acted in the best interests of the ponies of Equestria, but that is not justification for her intrusion nor subsequent inquiry; I would ask you for grace in this matter.”

“And if we refuse?” Samson asked and this time, Celestia’s gaze grew dark.

“I shall then consider your own intrusion upon historic Equestrian territory and the threatening of not just Equestrian civilians, but of a crown princess, as an act of war and I will respond accordingly.” She told him, giving a cold smile, and all of the Guardians and Twilight shuddered.

Celestia had a thousand years of experience ruling alone, and while this was the first time she had to deal with aliens from beyond the stars, she had extensive experience with diplomatic negotiations and she had just given the Guardians an ultimatum that they could accept a mutual forgiveness, or they could immediately engage in open warfare with a pair of princesses that, if what the locals said was true, could smear the Guardians across the surface of the planet with barely any effort.

They all looked at each other, and then back at Celestia’s steely smile and they realized that they were in a bad position to fight. Aveline and Samson both looked at Gospel and he sighed in resignation.

“Okay, we’ll let this one slip.” Gospel said and Twilight breathed a sigh of relief. “But I still don’t believe you have a magic mirror in your basement that takes you to a world of humans.”

“Well, believe it or not, it’s the truth and you’ll have to accept that.” Twilight retorted irritably.

“Moving on.” Luna said, sipping her tea. “Since some of the questions we might have are answered, it would only be fair to answer your own; what do you wish to know, Guardians of Earth?”

“We came planet-side because we detected an unknown energy source, one that seemed to be fairly concentrated in several locations near here.” Aveline replied. “We were wondering if you were aware of this energy and perhaps if you knew of these concentrations.”

“Not really a question, but I shall provide an answer none-the-less.” Luna said. “Wedge was kind enough to inform me about your search and the locations you would go to. The energy you speak of has no common name on Equus; we Equestrians refer to it as magic, or mana. As for the locations, they are all areas where… a great power has been invoked. I assume that these ‘concentrations’ you seek are the lingering essence from their use, much like hoofprints in snow.”

“I scanned one of the locations in the town proper last night while everybody else was sleeping.” Samson stated. “It was definitely there, but not in any kind of useable form. Can you explain how you can manipulate it in a weaponized form?”

“I think that would be one of the questions you’d be defensive about.” Twilight replied. “It hardly seems fair of you to ask it of us, don’t you think?”

“Princess Twilight makes an excellent point, Guardian.” Celestia said, giving her tea another dainty sip. “If it’s all the same, I would keep your knowledge of our defenses to a minimum.”

“Wow, that was totally subtle.” Gospel remarked sarcastically and Celestia looked directly at him, giving a delightful smile.

“Thank you, I have been practicing for the last one thousand years.” She replied cheerfully. Gospel stared at her and realized with dread that he could not read her expression at all despite her smile and tone of voice, and found himself completely incapable of telling whether or not the alicorn princess was being sarcastic in response.

There was an awkward silence, broking only by the sound of teacups departing and returning to plates, before Samson gave a mechanical cough.

“If it’s all the same, I still have some questions if you could answer them?” He asked.

“Yes, of course.” Celestia replied and then she turned and smiled at Spike. “Spike, if you would not mind brewing some more tea, I daresay we shall be here for a while longer.”

“Right away, Princess!” The young dragon exclaimed and hurried out the door.

Author's Note

Griomoire card acquired: The Diarchy of Equestria.

The Diarchy of Equestria is a joint rulership shared between the two alicorn sisters, Celestia and Luna. Their age is unknown even to the populace and any Ghost attempts to scan their biometrics to acquire such information is refuted by an unknown distortion that is believed to be caused by high levels of magic. Inquiries with Equestrians reveals that Celestia ruled alone for approximately one thousand years until recently when, through the actions of Twilight Sparkle, Princess Luna was returned and she joined her sister as co-ruler.
Celestia, having one thousand years more experience on the throne than Luna, presents an amicable, if emotionally distant leader to the populace and when speaking with foreign dignitaries, she reveals her expertise as a negotiator and is unflinching in even the fiercest of diplomatic situations.
Luna tries to appear a serene as her sister, and is quite the capable leader herself, but she has a tendency toward action and has been known to act impulsively. That said, Luna is a brilliant military tactician and is usually the first pony that Celestia turns to regarding matters of defense. While the Elements of Harmony are what the public sees in regards to Equestria's defense, Princess Luna operates in the shadows, dealing with situations and threats that are too dangerous or too sensitive for Twilight and her friends to handle effectively.

While the Diarchy has held power for a thousand years, Celestia has adjusted how Equestria is run numerous times to ensure that stability and peace are maintained. In modern Equestria, the Diarchy is content to allow Equestrian Parliament and local elected officials to make most decisions, only stepping in if they feel it is absolutely imperative that they do so.