Letters to the Unknown

Henry blinked at the princess, still not quite sure how to respond to the situation. Finally, he decided that politeness was the best option. “Er…sit down, please. I have the sense that this is going to take a while to explain.”

“Not as much time as you might think,” Celestia answered, though she obligingly sat down, “Though it may be difficult for you to process.”

“I should be able to manage,” Henry said, a little dryly, “Try me.”

Celestia smiled, her horn glowing yellow as she levitated up Henry’s journal. “I am the ruler of a country called Equestria, whose inhabitants are comprised entirely of ponies. The entire land is surrounded by magic, which bestows special properties on those who live there. Earth ponies have a special connection to land, giving them great strength, pegasi become masters of the sky, and unicorns, of course, tap into the magic directly. To one who knows what to look for, they can see a ‘spark’ inside each pony, a special energy unique to only them. It ties in to their cutie marks, and it ties them to Equestria as a whole. Do you follow?”

“For the most part,” Henry said, “But what does this have to do with me?”

“Occasionally,” Celestia said, flipping through Henry’s journal as she spoke, eyes running over the various entries, “humans wind up on Equestria, through shipwreck or exploration. Generally, we either hide ourselves from them or, if they can be trusted, reveal ourselves to them and help them return home. However, two hundred years ago, you washed up on the shores of Equestria, close to death. When I came to inspect you and see if there was anything I could do, my magic located something deep inside you. Probing a little further, I realized to my surprise that you contained that same spark.”

Henry blinked. “Are you saying that I’m…I’m part Equestrian?” he finished, not wanting to say “part pony” out loud. That way lay madness.

“No,” Celestia said, “Though I don’t blame you for thinking that way. It was the first thought that went through my mind when I saw it. In my subsequent research over the years, I’ve come to the conclusion that your 'death' occurred within Equestrian borders, and the magic of the place, sensing something inside you, activated a dormant spark. Perhaps all humans have the spark as well, but it needs the right catalyst to activate it.

“At any rate, I had never seen a spark in a human before, and decided to nurture it, feeling like there was a deeper purpose at play. I healed you as best I could, and gently nudged the spark with my own magic, hoping to convince it to develop as it saw fit. As I soon learned, that direction chose to be in granting you immortality. Curious, I have kept my eye on you for these past two hundred years, wanting to determine what exactly it all meant. And now, I’ve finally realized the answer.”

"Yes…?” Henry said, wary but excited despite himself at the thought of finally getting an answer to the mystery.

Celestia waved the journal at him before placing it in his hands. “These two hundred years were just to give you time to fully understand the nuances of life and death. Your musings on the topic make it clear that you’ve thought it over deeply, and while you might not be an expert, you certainly know more about it than any other human or pony. And it means you’re ready.”

“Ready for what?” Henry said, now completely confused.

Celestia just smiled and lifted her head in the air, her horn glowing once more. There was another flash of light, and Henry closed his eyes instinctively. When the bright dots faded from behind his lids, he opened them, and found that they had been transported out of the basement. In fact, they appeared to have left the earth entirely. They were surrounded by the night sky, and more white stars were gathered under their feet, as though they were standing on the Milky Way. And yet, they were able to breathe just fine, and the air was warm. Henry was torn between being nervous and being in awe.

Celestia placed a reassuring hoof on his shoulder, then stepped forward, beckoning for him to follow. Hesitantly, he did so. As they walked, Celestia began to sing, in a beautiful, clear voice full of promise.

“You’ve come such a long, long way…”
***

“Let me see if I’ve got this. You’re telling me that the whole immortality thing was a giant learning period to get you to learn about death?” Abe said, sounding understandably incredulous.

“Yes,” Henry said, staring down into his teacup, not sure he’d be able to look Abe in the face, “Hard as it is to believe, that was just Phase One.”

“And Phase Two came about when the magic decided you fully understood the concept?”

“Right.”

“I guess that makes sense. But why the…”

Henry sighed and shifted uncomfortably in his chair, feeling his new wings brush against the back of the seat. “It’s just the way Equestrian magic works. When you’ve proven to understand a subject in a way that no one else does, you…become an alicorn. It’s happened four times before that anyone knows of, though this is the first time it’s happened to a human. The magic doesn’t seem to care one way or the other, though.”

“So,” and now the amusement was creeping into Abe’s voice, “Does this mean you can fly now?”

Henry flexed his shoulders in irritation, causing his wings to ruffle, “Eventually, yes. I’ll need lessons, but Celestia’s promised to send someone to teach me. The same goes for learning how to use my new…” he pointed upwards at the six inch unicorn horn jutting out of the middle of his forehead. He rolled his eyes and took a sip of tea. “I supposedly have immense power, but right now, all I’ve succeeded in doing is looking ridiculous.”

“Speaking of which, tell me what your new title is over in Equestria again?” Abe’s voice was wobbling dangerously.

Henry didn’t even have it in him to glare. “The Princess of Death.”

Abe burst out laughing. Henry buried his face in his hands, having to shift his fingers to accommodate the horn. “They couldn’t at least amend it to Prince?” Abe choked out.

“Celestia’s working on that,” Henry said, “It’s just that every alicorn up till now has been female. The official documentation needs to be edited, but she assured me it will be done in time for my…coronation.”

“And I’m invited, right?” Abe said, just barely able to compose himself.

“Of course you are,” Henry said, his tone softening, “As if I’d keep you away if you really wanted to go.”

“Of course I want to go!” Abe answered emphatically, “I want to check out this Equestria place for myself! Besides, you’re going to need all the support you can get, being a human and all.”

“I appreciate that, Abraham,” Henry said, finally raising his head and looking at Abe, “I really do.”

“Hey, that’s what family’s for,” Abe shrugged, even though an amused smile was still firmly attached to his face, “In the meantime, though, we’ve got to figure out how to deal with all this.”

“Celestia will be coming back tomorrow to teach me a spell that will allow me to mask the wings and horn when I’m out in public. Hopefully that will be enough. In the meantime, I’ll use my vacation days and claim I’m heading out into the country with you for a few days. That should prevent anyone from calling and demanding my help.”

Abe nodded. “Sounds good.” Then he rose to his feet. “I should get dinner started. Beef Stew sound good to you? Or…” He glanced upwards and snickered, “Are you more in the mood for hay?”

It took all of Henry’s self-restraint not to start cursing.
***

“Heya, Henry!” Lucas said cheerfully, as Henry entered the morgue three days later, “Have a good vacation?”

“It was…pleasant.” Henry settled on, his shoulders relaxing when Lucas didn’t give any sign of noticing anything out of the ordinary (then again, this was Lucas he was talking about). The spell seemed to be working; though he could still feel the presence of the wings and horn, there was no outward sign of them, and anyone who brushed against his back or forehead for whatever reason wouldn’t be able to tell they were there. He’d have to cast the spell every morning, but it was a reasonable compromise. And at least there was no way he’d ever forget to cast it.

He removed his coat and scarf, trying to keep his voice casual. “Anything I should know about?”

“Nah. Dr. Larson took over what little work came in while you were out. I swear, most of the action seems to taper off when you’re not here.”

Henry flinched. Was that his fault? Did his—*sigh*—talent for death mean that death was attracted to him? He’d have to ask Celestia about that when she came to visit this weekend. Aloud, however, he merely said “Perhaps that trend will continue. Detectives Martinez and Hanson could use a break. Keep an eye on the morgue, will you? I’ll be in my office, catching up on what I missed.”

“You got it!” Lucas said with a grin, while Henry retreated into his office, sighing in relief when he finally got the door closed. Until he was sure he had a handle on the spell, he’d try to limit his contact with people as much as possible.

Sitting at his desk, he pulled out the files on the deaths that had occurred during his absence. Opening the first folder, he groaned. Whoever had written up the reports had arranged things totally haphazardly, sticking the photos in front of the report, jamming in papers at odd angles, and worse, ensured that the whole lot fell into his lap the moment he opened the folder a little wider. And based on the bits of paper he could see sticking out from the other files, the rest had been assembled in the same way. Lucas, for all his faults, knew how to properly file these things. Which meant that this was all the work of his replacement.

“Thanks, M.E. Larson.” Henry muttered to himself, spreading the files out carefully on his desk and starting to rearrange them properly. Still, this was just the distraction he needed. Being elbow-deep in paperwork was comforting, familiar, and exactly what he needed right now. Magic and flying was all well and good, but the world of medicine and anatomy…that was where he really belonged. After his coronation, he intended to tell Celestia in no uncertain terms that he was remaining in the human world, where he’d be able to do the most good. He had a feeling she’d be amenable to that.

Besides, he needed to track down Adam. Celestia had informed him that Adam was not in the running to become an alicorn, having come by his immortality via some sort of malicious entity known as Discord. With Henry’s new abilities, he was hoping he would be able to drive Adam away for good—scare him straight, as it were. The thought made Henry grin a little. It was the first time he’d seen any benefit to this transformation.

There was a knock on the door. “Sorry, Henry, but a body’s just come in. Seems like your standard hit-and-run, but you know how it goes.”

“That I do,” Henry said, rising to his feet and bringing along the properly sorted files to place in the records, “Come on, Lucas, let’s get to work.”

As Henry set down the files and picked up his toolkit, he reflected that, despite the wings and horn, he was still Henry Morgan. That counted for a lot, and as long as he remembered that, this wasn’t the end of everything. He’d learned to work with his immortality; he could work with this.

And maybe now he’d be able to teleport some clothes on himself after a resurrection.