The Journey of the Book

Chapters

Intro
A Story Unfolds
A New Day Rises

Intro

Author's Note

This is made by two people. The Rohan parts are my friends while the Night parts are mine.
*This may not be updated frequently
**The story prior to this has not been completed however each can be read separately.
-There will be grammar mistakes

Intro

Part (Rohan):

If I had to decide where this story started, it would most likely be when I arrived in that town. Well, it started earlier for me, but this story started around that time. I had been traveling for days after hearing rumors of a very powerful unicorn with a dragon living in a town called Ponyville. I arrived very late into the night in hopes to find a inn. After sleeping in the woods for a few days, it was time for a soft fluffy bed and a nice hot shower. While tricking people out of money wasn’t my thing, a pony of my lifestyle has to make a living somehow.

I got my wish and found a place, except the shower lacked hot water and the bed was as hard as a rock. I couldn't complain as I had worse places to sleep. That one prison cell comes to mind. I was to tired to ask for a better room desperate for a decent night’s sleep. The dream I had that night gave me some ideas what I could be in for in the following days.

I woke to find out it was already dark. I laughed to myself as I thought about the time I just wasted. After contemplating on what I should do, I decided on a midnight stroll. I put on my black cloak, wrapped my black scarf over my mouth and pulled my red goggles over my eyes. I also made sure to bring my satchel with me, just incase I run into any problems. While I may look suspicious at night, you better believe no one would ever bother a creature with bright red eyes in the dark.

With my trusty tome in hoof, I looked for any landmarks to make note of as I look for what I came here for. The first remarkable landmark was what looked like a combination of a house and pastries. Next I took note of a long cylinder building that looked to be in the center of town. As I walked, I noticed how plain most of the town was aside from certain buildings that I assumed to be stores. It was hard to imagine anything amazing happening in a town this plain.The only other places in the town where a building that looked like a carousel, a large apple farm and curiously what seemed to be a castle growing out of a tree made of crystals. I think?

Dawn was soon approaching, so I went back to my room to wait. After waiting until most of the ponies were out and about, I went to begin my casual questioning. With my scarf and goggles off and my hood down, I looked more presentable, but the cloak must always stays on. This town has a surprising mixture of the three races. Most towns like this are usually exclusive to only one type, but here there is a more balanced mix.

After a couple hours of asking around town, I learned that the unicorn was now an alicorn and that she was named Twilight and that she had a dragon named Spike. I also learned that she was a part of some sort of group with five others. There were other minor details about them, but I don’t feel like listing everything I heard. I mostly didn’t care about them anyways. To be honest I don’t trust everything I’m told, especially when most ponies either exaggerate or lie. After walking through the town for a bit, I was jumped by a really hyperactive pony.

She was concerningly excited to meet me. She introduced herself as Picky Pipe I think, she was talking in a manner that I can only refer to as mach speed. From what I could understand she wanted to know everything about me. I brushed her off and just told her that I was looking for an old friend. Apparently that set off a trigger as she looked like she was about to explode on me. She assaulted me with questions and hyperactiveness as she bounced around me like a frog trying to break the world jumping record. I realized I had to choose my next words carefully or risk giving her an excitement induced heart attack. I told her who I was looking for and that I wanted to surprise her. The look I saw in her eyes could have killed a lesser man. It was the look of someone who was about to go supernova and ascend into godhood. I feared that I had just unleashed a monster onto the world.Thankfully she was knocked unconscious by three kids who for some reason were jumping from roof tops. I thanked them and promised to repay as I quickly made my escape.

After a few minutes of searching I found the alicorn that matched the description of Twilight Sparkle. I kept my distance and followed her around to analyze her. I wasn’t sure whether or not she was the one who I was looking for. My suspicion of her rose when I saw her approaching the supposedly dangerous forest on the outskirts and looking around to see if she was being followed. She has something to hide and I was going to find out what. It took some practice, but I learned to master the art of hiding in plain sight. As I tailed her into the woods, I began to hypothesize what secrets she was keeping.

After walking deep into the woods, I saw her vanish right before my very eyes. I was confused and chose to run to the spot she vanished. Pain rushed to my head as I hit some sort of invisible barrier. My tome started to glow, telling me the barrier was made of incredibly powerful magic. I decided to wait in the tree right next to the path and wait for her to return. A few hours pass until she miraculously appeared from the spot she vanished from. I took my chance and jumped on her. Before she could retaliate, I quickly made a hard stomp on her face to knock her out. It felt wrong to attack like I did and without even knowing if she’s who i’m after or just a bystander getting mixed into my business.

I searched her, but I only found notes that detailed meeting with someone named Night. She was hiding something, and this Night pony could be the key to what I want to know. I needed more proof before I decide what I should do about her. I dragged her into some bushes and took her notes, but before I left her there I wanted to leave her a message so she would know someone is watching her. I took out a marker and sticky note from my satchel and wrote I know your secret on the note and placed it on her forehead.

I approached the supposed entrance of the barrier and took out my tome to search for a barrier breaker. I read the spell and quickly smashed myself an opening. Inside I saw a lone medieval style house in the distance. I snuck to the side of the house, being sure to avoid detection by any possible inhabitants. Peering through the window, I saw a female looking unicorn looking incredibly distraught. I recognized a ring around her horn as one used to suppress magic.

She stepped out of the house, so I decide to climb in through the window. To my surprise it was an ordinary and well kept home. More questions rose around who this unicorn is and why she was secluded, seemingly imprisoned here. After searching I found nothing except scrolls written in an old language I could somehow recognize, but was having trouble reading. I ignored it for the moment and continued my investigation. Time went by as I searched for possible answers until I stumbled onto a book in a desk. I opened it to find that it was strangely blank, but I could sense there was something important written there. That feeling was backed by my tome telling me how powerful the magic coming off of it was. Before I could attempt to force any words to appear I heard the front door open. I quickly snuck out the window to avoid any confrontation only to remember that the unicorn was powerless. I weighed my choices, there were many paths that lay ahead of me so I took some time to choose my next move. After a few hours of reading some newly acquired notes, I decided the best course of action was to find out what this unicorn knew about Twilight. They we’re powerless and possibly desperate for help. A trade of knowledge for possible freedom was going to be her best hope. I still wanted to hide my face incase they were unwilling to cooperate and chose to alert my target about me, so I put on my usual cover and walked around to the front door and knocked.

Part (Night):

Night woke with a start. He sat up and looked toward the window. The outside was completely dark. It's weird he had been waking up around the same time for the past few nights. He lifted a hoof and touched the band around his horn. Slowly he started to slide it off but stopped a split second later due to head pains. When the pain subsided he laid back down and went to sleep.
It was now morning the next time he awoke. He slid out of bed and headed toward the kitchen. Using his magic he levitated a tea cup out of a nearby cabinet and placed a kettle upon the stove. He left the water to boil as he went about brushing his hair. Once this task was done he went back to his room and tidied up the bed and his desk. By this time the kettle had started to whistle so he went back to the kitchen.

Night placed a tea bag in the cup and poured in the hot water from the kettle. He walked to the living room, placed the tea cup on the table and sat down on the couch. He looked over at the clock and saw that she would be arriving in about five minutes. Again he tried to slide the band off his head but meet the same fate.
The front door slowly opened to reveal a lavender colored female pony. She walked in and placed a few papers on the table. She then took a seat on the chair nearby and with her horn aglow, levitated a piece of paper and a quill in front of her.

“Hello Night. How are you today?” She asked.

“Hello Twilight. To be honest i'm quite fine, just some difficulties sleeping.” He answered.

“Still waking up in the middle of the night?”

“Yeah.”

“Do you know why?”

“Honestly I have no clue. Just…..”

“Just?”

“Nothing. Forget about it.”

“Now come on Night we have a half hour at the very least to talk about any problems you have.”

“Can this band be removed?”

She looked at him here with a stern look on her face. “No.”

“Well....”

She cut him off her. “Also I do know that you have been trying to take it off. You might have been thought to be successful, But think again.” She puts on a cocky smile here “Celestia put a extra safety measure on it in your case.”

He stared at her with a slightly shocked face. “O..of course not. How would I be able to take it off.”

“Remember everything that is said here doesn't matter. You do know that whether you manage to take off the band and the jacket you still cant leave. Even your magic won't get you out of here nor could it affect me.”

Night sat there and just stared at her. She was right. However she didn't know that his magic never left. “Okay….okay…..yes I have been trying to take off the band, but every time I try to take it off, this searing pains courses through my head and I have to stop. I assume that’s the safety precaution?”

She nods.”You do know that this will be reported to Celestia right?”

“Yeah, but like you said a few weeks ago she'll most likely won't do anything since you improved the barrier around the area.”

“Yeah, but still a report is a report.”

Night nodded. They sat there for quite some time making idle conversation. All the while she had been writing the whole conversation down. Eventually the conversation died down to the point where she might as well leave. She got up gathered all of her papers and prepared to leave.

“Well I’ll see you next week Night. Have a nice time.” She proceeds to the door and exits.

Now Night was back to solitude. He got up and put the teacup in a basin. He headed back to the bedroom and opened a drawer on the desk. He pulled a book out and looked at it. He opened the cover and looked at the first page. He sighed as everything on the page was completely blank. He flipped through the pages and still they all remained blank. At one point in time they were filled with words, words of spells long forgotten, words that were outlawed throughout all of Equestria. This spellbook or used to be spellbook is all he owns from his past. However Celestia let him keep it for hope that the words might come back so she could lock it up or so he was told.

He placed the book back in the drawer and headed out the front door. He went to the left of the house and up a path on a hill. Reaching the top he walked over to the tombstone there and placed a hoof on it. After paying his respects he sat by the old oak tree on the hill overlooking a field of flowers within the forest. He sat there for quite some time and once the sky turned dark he headed home. He laid in bed now hoping not to wake up in the middle of the night again.

A few hours pass when Night once again woke up in the middle of the night. However this time there was a reason to it. There had been a knock at the door. He got out of bed confused. “Who could be here at this time of night? The only person to knock is Celestia. Why would she be here?” He thought this as he walk to the door. “Ugh is she here about the band thing….,but even if she was it’s way too late.” He opened the door and was quite shocked. Before him stood a pony in a cloak glaring with bright red eyes.

A Story Unfolds

The Story Begins: (at) Night

Night looks at the figure for a few seconds before asking “ummm….Can I help you?” He was deeply confused as to how a random pony had found his house.

“Good evening madam. I’m sorry to bother you at this time of night, but I have some troubling questions that I believe you may have the answers to.”

“Madam? First off i'm a male and second off answers to what?”

“Well this is a bit embarrassing, but none the less. I am here to learn three things.”

“Learn three things? Mmhm...well...why don't you come in.”

“Very well, but I want this to be quick.”

Night stepped aside and allowed the cloaked figure to enter his abode. Night walked over to the couch and sat down. “Take a seat.” He motioned a hoof to the chair. “and would you like some tea?”

“As long as you’re good at brewing then sure.”

Night headed into the kitchen as the figure had taken a seat. “So stranger what's your name?” Night called out from the kitchen.

“Rohan”

“Mmm sounds nice. Well I have a big question you must answer for me.”

“That’s fine, but I want mine answered first.”

Night peeks around the corner “Okay what are they.”

“First question; what is this place?”

“Why this place. It's a house in the forest clearly.” He says with a smirk on his face.

“Alright mister smartass. Second question; who are you?”

“Me I’m Night Constant but just call me Night.”

“That sounds unoriginal and was very uninformative, but fair is fair. Third question; What do you know about a Twilight Sparkle?”

“Twilight who? I don't seem to know who that is.” The kettle at this point started to whistle so Night went about finishing up making the tea.

“You don’t know who she is? Oh well that’s a shame. It seems that I have wasted my questions.”

Night finishes making the tea and heads back into the living area with tea in tow. As he heads to the table he notices that Rohan holding papers in front of him. The same papers Twilight had. He placed the tea down on the table. He levitates one over to Rohan “For you.” He sits down on the couch and takes a sip of his own. “So what'cha reading?”

“Some local news. Was that your question for me?”

“Hmm...Oh yes right...I would like to know how you found my house?”

“I was on my way to deliver a basket of sweets to my grandmother and I guess I took the wrong turn at that tree.”

Night laughs at this. “Is that so.” He pauses to contemplate on what to do. Somepony had found him. Maybe just maybe. “I’ll cut out the act if you can help me with something.”

“Now we’re getting somewhere. What is your request?”

“Well I need your help with some magical problems. I don’t know how but you managed to get through the barrier and I need your help getting past that barrier. In turn I will answer all your questions to the best of my ability.”

“That sounds reasonable.”

“So how’d you do it?”

“I hit it really hard.”

“You hit it? No no no no no how did you even notice the barrier to begin with. Nopony other than Twilight and Celestia can even reach me. So how did you….”

“Would you believe I just ran into it after exploring the wilderness?”

“Yes and no. You were able to find this place but how could you physically enter it!” At this the teacup in front of Night shatter his anger clearly rising. He slowly calms himself down and spoke again. “What powers do you possess. Seeing that you are an earth pony I would say none but you do...So just give me a straight answer. What did you use to get past the barrier?”

“A book.”

“A sort of spell tome….no not that simple….It must be, in a sense, possessed? Am I correct. It has some form of mind of it’s own?”
Rohan smiles and laughs before saying “It’s good to find somebody that has knowledge of artifacts such as those. Most others think of those as myths.”

“Well believe it or not i'm quite old and I have a vast amount of knowledge in magic. Okay okay I now know you can help me get out of here and once we are out I shall answer any question.”

“Fine by me”

“Let me gather a few things from my room than we can leave.” Night heads off to his room to pack up his stuff.

Rohan:

I’m not going to lie. I didn’t expect this female looking pony named Night to be male, but there are stranger things in the world. As he went upstairs to gather his belongings, I drank the tea he game me. It tasted awful. Minutes passed before he returned down with what I assumed to be his belongings stuffed into bags on each side of him. I told him to follow me to the barrier.

We walked to where I had force my way in and found that the barrier healed itself. I took out my tome and told Night to watch and learn. I opened to the page I found the spell on and casted it. All I had to do was utter barrier breaker and give it a hard knock to open a way. I didn’t need to say my spells and all I needed to do was tap the barrier, but what can I say, I love being stylish. I motioned for him to go first, but he just stood baffled with his mouth agape. Taking the initiative, I went first to show Night that there was indeed a hole in the barrier. He walked through with an amazed expression on his face. It was similar to the face of a child finding out their special talent.

I told him that it would be better to return to the the town so that we can have a proper discussion. He agreed somewhat eagerly. I wasn't surprised as it seemed that he has been stuck in that invisible bubble for years with a very limited amount contact. If I was in there, I would most likely want to interact with more than one pony a week. In order to show him some trust I handed him the notes I took off of Twilight. I explained that I wanted him to be able to trust me so he would be more open to my questions.

We returned to my inn room at the dead of night. He’s not actually dead, I was talking about the time of day...at night. Before I began my question I decided to show him my face in order to make him feel more comfortable in talking to me. With my goggles and scarf off and my hood down, I asked him how he was feeling.

“Well to be quite honest amazed more so. To see how far civilization has come it's astonishing. Oh i can't wait to see what new spells have been made……..”

He look at his horn and made a deep frown. I thought of what to tell him. I decided to tell him that it was possible for me to fix his problem, but that it was risky.

“No not possible this spell cast on it is only known by Celestia. It was specially made for me. Plus i'm not worried about the device i'm just worried about how much power i can exert before the headaches come back cause as of right now i can do minor spells.”

Taking what he said into consideration I at least offered to make the ring removeable, though it would still be active.

“Ahhh... No thank you...i've grown quite fond of it...even though every so often i try to take it off Ha.”

I told him that that was understandable, but the offer stands if he decided to change his mind. I was a bit upset that he didn’t let me at least try, but it was his choice. Either way I decided to cut to the chase and told him that I need to know everything he knows about Twilight Sparkle.

“Well that's a tricky one. Mainly because she wouldn't tell me much of her personal life even when i poked and prodded. All I can tell you is she's a fairly new alicorn princess under Celestia. She currently lives within this town at the time. I do know she has five other friends within this town also but I don't know anything about them. However I did manage to over hear her talk of a pony who grows apples around here and how she needed to talk to her about a party a few months back.”

I made a deep sigh. I told him I already knew about that with the exception of the possible party.

“Sorry I can't be much help there. It was Celestia's orders that she was not to form any kind of bond with me. And well she stuck to it...kind of. She did sort of loosen up around me in time. Letting things slip from her mouth about her personal problems of the time. Also the fact that she sort of helped me learn about some new things in the world.”

I started to worry if that pony that I knocked out and left in the forest was innocent. I told Night that it was very important that I know everything about her and that if there was anything that he was hiding from me.

“Believe me if I knew any more i’d tell you in a heartbeat cause really anypony who follows Celestia that devoutly is a pony whom which i would preferably not like to know. So everything I told you is all I know. Sorry.”

It seems that everyone knows the exact same information about Twilight and that bothers me to no end. I hate bringing in others to help, but in a situation like this I have to. I asked Night if he would be willing to help me get the information I needed.

“Sure I mean just give me about a week though. I should be able to induce enough magic into this device so that i can have a sort of appearance alteration while I walk around town. Well I might be able to do it in three days actually if i'm not bothered at all. Deal?”

I told him sure but then asked if he would want to wear a disguise so that he can investigate sooner.

“That wouldn't work cause I also need to mask the aura of magic on the device itself. Twilight herself has no clue what my magic is like so if i were to just walk around disguised and happen to pass by her she would instantly sense the aura of the device.”

Just incase I told him that I was going to put an aura confusion spell on the room and get him something to wear if someone were by chance either stumble into the room or look through the window and sees him.

“Alright looks like we are in business. Soooo…..you got a mare-friend?”
I told him that we’ll talk more in the morning. The firsting I had to do now was to get what we needed. After saying that I went into town to borrow some things from the local stores.

Night:

After having fallen asleep shortly after Rohan left the room. Night woke up from a fairly uneventful sleep. With his eyes still closed he pondered whether or not the stuff that happened last night was real. He opened his eyes to reveal a fairly bland room.”So last nights events did happen.” he said to himself. He got up slowly and looked around for his stuff. “Ah there it is.” He reached over and opened one of the packs. He pulled a book out from the inside of the bag and opened it. “Still blank huh….oh well.” He placed the book back in the pack. He proceeded to go look for the pony that helped him last night. “Rohan?” He called out, but no answer came back.

He entered the kitchen and placed the kettle he brought from home on the stove after filling it up with water from a nearby spout. It took him a second to figure out that when the top of the stove turned red it was heating things up. He walked back to the room he woke up in and readied his supplies for the magic he needed to perform the ritual. He went back to grab his tea once it was ready.

“Okay let's begin” Night takes a sip of his tea. His horn begins to glow slowly. Sadly it can only hold a faint glow. He closed his eyes and focused on the band on his horn. Slowly a picture of the inner works starts to form in his mind. However it only show portions of the device but he should be able to make due with it. He then focuses on the foreign magic of the band. Slowly he seeps his magic in and starts to overlap the other magic. This is going to be a long night.

He is interrupted when the door opens.

“Rise and shine Night. I got something for you.”

Night flinches for second as the magic is forced out due to his break in concentration. “Uhhh..Oh hey...ummm what did you say?”

Rohan throws a bag at Night. “I got some food to eat and some cloths to cover yourself. Hope you like apples, this town has loads of them and I hope they don’t mind me helping myself.”

“Thank you...Umm I appreciate this but I need to get back to the magic stuff if you don't mind….i'll talk to you in a while okay?”

“Whatever, just be sure to try on those clothes though. I worked all night on them and I need to know if they fit.”

Rohan then leaves the room. NIght looks inside the bag that Rohan threw at him. Inside looks to be clothes and upon closer inspection shows that they were crafted together hastily. Night sigh and tosses it to the side. “Alright back to work.” He regains the mental image in his head and continues the process. He makes progress at a snail's pace and every so often takes a sip from his tea. However he is making progress, the former magic seems to be enveloped by his own.

He pauses from his work to Write a few notes of the device. It seems that outside of the barrier the power in the band weakened even further. This now gave Night hope that at some point in time he might be able to take over the device and use it as a catalyst making his magic slightly stronger. He looks down at his tea cup and notices that it's empty. “Well this is a good point to take a break. Hmph I might even get this done within this day if all goes right.”

After obtaining a second cup of tea Night went back to the room. He also made sure to tell Rohan that if he were to complete the spell today it was vital that he was not interrupted. The clothes given to him fit however he wasn't a fan of coats or hats. Rohan told him that he was leaving anyway. “Well let's get this done.” Night muttered to himself.

Rohan:

I wouldn’t call myself a real thief as I only take what I need. I also make a point to repay those who I took from anonymously. If it’s something that can’t be returned like food, I try to leave the amount of money equal to what I took and a thank you note with an apology. If it’s a returnable item like a tool I always give it back, unless I want it. Then I leave the money to pay for it with the same type of note. There were times where I refused to leave a town that I didn’t pay back, but there were a few exception. No matter what I do, I could never repay those towns for what I had done.

Since I asked around town about Twilight Sparkle, I would be looked at as a suspicious character when it’s found out what happened to her last night. In order to help cover myself, I had to decided what my next move would be. I not only had to create an alibi for last night, I also have to create a reason for me to come to and still be in this town. A part time job or even some odd jobs around town would not only give me a good reason to stay in town for a while and would also give me some money to use.

I went about the town looking for those that could use help. After a few minutes of walking I ran into a pony selling apples. She looked like there was something she had to do, but had an obligation to be there. I walked up to her and introduced myself as someone looking to help to make a little money. I offered to stand at her stand and sell her apples for a minor cut while she did whatever she had to do. She was hesitant at first, but she agreed. Her friend needed her help, because apparently their store was broken into last night and some items were stolen. I smirk as I realise I inadvertently gave myself a quick job.

A few hours pass and a good amount of sales were made. When she returned I gave her the money I made while she was out. She thanked me for my help and told me her name. While Applejack was appropriate for her talent and work, I couldn’t see that name on anyone else except maybe for food. She gave me a fifty percent cut of the money I made while she was out. I told her it was too much, but she insisted. I thanked her for the opportunity and went on my way. If she knew I stole some of her apples last night, she wouldn’t be this kind to me.

It was a little past noon, so I knew that I could do another small job before I went back or even try to establish a part time at one of the various stores around town. I went to that pastry building assuming that It was a bakery. I asked the two ponies behind the counter if they were looking of any temporary help. I was a little sad to hear that they didn’t need help as they had a third employee that covered them when needed. When I turned around to leave I was stopped dead in my tracks. It was that hyperactive pony from yesterday. It was difficult to pay attention to her the first time we met. She was Pokey Pop or something. Either way I was deeply confused as I had multiple questions. How long was she behind me, why didn’t I sense her approach me from behind, and how didn’t I hear her enter?

She had enormous wicked grin on her face as if she had been on a hunt for me. She opened her mouth and started a rapid fire of questions.I was only able to catch a few. The first being what was I doing here. I hesitated to answer, but I knew that somehow she could help me. I told her I was looking for a little work, but was having some trouble finding some. By giving her the option of helping me triggered her almost as badly as last time, but I don’t think those group of falling kids are going to help me this time. She began asking more questions and at a faster pace. I had to quickly stop her by shoving an apple into her mouth. I was surprised to see her effortlessly crush it in one bite and swallow it in one gulp. It was enough to snap her out of whatever happiness hypnosis she was in.

Cutting straight to the point, I asked her if she knew anyone that could use some help. She began to think for a few seconds and came up with something. Her friend had something happen to her very recently and might need a hoof or two to meet a deadline. I agreed to help with whatever she needed because I had experience with a lot of things. My only requirement was that she must be willing to pay even if it’s a small amount. She said that she will talked to her friend today to see what she could do and that I should go to the store tomorrow to meet her and introduce myself. I thanked her for this, but I had to tell her to not mention any of the things I told her yesterday. She loudly proclaimed okay is a strange manner and made a zipping motion with her hoof and her mouth. I thanked her once again before leaving, but not before buying a small cupcake to bring back to Night.

Night:

Night had finally finished. His muscles ached as he got up. He had been sitting in the same position for hours. He paced around the room for a just bit to loosen up. He headed out of the room and into the living area. He looked around for a bit wondering if Rohan had come back.

“Hey Rohan you here?” Night called out. There was no vocal answer however there was a knock at the front door. Night trotted over to it and after a moment of hesitation he opened it. Outside the door stood a cloaked figure...Rohan….”sigh.”

“Hey genius we’re undercover, don’t open the door for anyone. Not even room service.”

“Well I mean I was hoping it could be Twilight I do have her papers.” Night remarked sarcastically.

“Sorry I wasn’t your prison guard girlfriend, but I can lock you in a bubble if you’re so inclined to be caught.”

Night gave a short chuckle then walked to the kitchen. As he was putting the kettle on the stove he noticed that he had run out of teabags. “Oh that's a problem.”

“Seriously, I wanted to test you. I will never knock on that door. If you hear a knock, hide.”

“Huh...oh yeah sure. Regardless probably by morning time I should be able to start the alteration spell so I can walk around town freely. The masking spell is basically finished though.”

“Don’t push yourself too hard by using too much magic. When you’re here, wear the cloths. And be sure to mask your voice.”

“Don’t worry about me i’ll be just fine. I don’t need to use any magic for the rest of the masking spell. All I need to do is get a good night's sleep and let my magic continue to seep into the bracelet further. By morning there should be no trace amounts of foreign magic in it. So in turn I should start to regain my magic.”

“I also have some positive news.”

“Is that so? Pray tell as to what it is.”

“You failed the test, so take a guess.”

Night paused for a moment “No.”

“Well excuse me Mr.Frumpy.”

“If I play along will you go out and get me more tea?”

“Yeah and I have a special prize if you get it right. You have three tries.”

Night gives Rohan a playful look “Oh? Haha well could it be that the good news is you got me a book of new spells?”

“Sorry, but no.”

“Hmmmm you convinced Twilight i'm no trouble and she and Celestia want to forgive me?”

“Only if it was a trap to capture you and there was something in it for me.”

“Meanie. Uhh lets see...lets go with something general…” After a few seconds Night responds “Work?”

“Vague, but good enough. Here’s your prize.” He hands over a cupcake.

“Ew...I I mean thank you.” Night contains a shudder at the frosting menace.

“I made some money today so I could get some tea. What kind do you want me to get?”

“The tea doesn't matter. I have no preference. Also for future reference i don't like sweets.”

“Fair enough, not everyone has a sweet tooth. Either way just say a type or i”ll just grab one of all of them.”

“Do as you please. I guess one of all the types they have might be interesting at least I get to try some new flavors.” Night yawns into his hoof “Anyway i'm quite tired I shall bid you a goodnight.”

“Whatever though I can’t afford that much tea, I have way of getting a 100% discount.” Rohan puts on his guise.

Night proceeded into his and walked over to his packs. He lifted one of them and walked over to his bed, sat down and opened up the book. There on the first page was a smear of black ink. The same size and length of a normal line of text. Night smiled this was a good sign it means his magic was indeed coming back to him. He rubbed a hoof across the page the closed the book and returned it too the pack.

Night strolled over to the window and looked out. He then thought to himself ‘Oh Celestia I have waited for this day for so long. I cannot wait to see you again.’ After another yawn Night headed off to bed and fell asleep.

A New Day Rises

A New Day Rises: Rohan

My quick late night shopping trip was simple. It turns out I had enough to by half of the available tea. I took all of them anyways, but I did pay for what I could. I doubt the store owners would be happy about a burglar whether or not he paid. I did find something discerning on my way back to the base of operation. It was a wanted poster. My wanted poster. They only have a sketch of what I look with my disguise on and the nickname they gave me, “Omega” . I ripped the poster off the wall and took it with me hoping no one has paid any attention to it. With a bounty like mine, you start to see certain faces. Face that make it clear how much the value of a life can be. I reach the room and unpacked my cargo. Placed the tea in the kitchen and stuffed the poster under the mattress. I fell asleep with my mind weighing heavy. I couldn’t let it affect me though as I had important business in the morning.

I awoke early. Night was still asleep so I tried my best to leave without disturbing him. The town seemed to be on alert today. Most likely because of the recent break-ins. I went to the location Ponka Ply told me. It was that carousel looking building that I borrowed material from. I knocked on the door. It opened to reveal a female pony who clearly spends too much time on her hair. I introduced myself and told her that her friend informed me that she was looking for help. She was clearly hesitant, but also desperate. I explained that I was in need of some money and was willing to do odd jobs for a low price. She paused for a moment and invited me inside.
The interior of the boutique matched its’ carnival style outer appearance. The room I was in was the main floor where all the clothing was made and displayed. There were scraps of materials scattered all over the floor. The fashionista pony introduced herself in great exuberance as “The most elegant and generous Rarity”. Apparently distress was no excuse of lackluster introduction. Rarity was apparently incredibly behind schedule after someone broke in and stole some of her high quality supplies. Though I felt guilty, I knew that it was a necessary evil.
She said that she needed an assistant to complete a few orders that were due by the end of a day. I told her that I had some experience sewing and could help with the delivery. Rarity seemed surprised by that fact, but was relieved. She asked if I was willing to start right away. I said yes. She told me to follower her so that we could get started. Rarity brought me to her work station where she had multiple dress designs placed on multiple different piles of cloth. I saw that she put removable labels on each cloth to indicate where they go in correlation to one another. I was thankful for that as my visual disability would have made this job a lot harder than it needed to be. Rarity told me which designs to work on and where the sewing tools were. Without any questions I went straight to work.
A few hours passed and most the work was completed. Rarity was a master of her craft and I did my best to keep up. We put all of our focus on completing the orders without sacrificing quality. Out of nowhere the front door of the store was slammed open. We both stopped to see what was happening. It was that alicorn Twilight. She ran up to Rarity and told her to come with her. Rarity said she was too busy at the moment to help her. Twilight looked around and saw me. She then whispered something to Rarity. The look on her face told me how serious the situation was. Rarity told Twilight that she understood and the approached me. She explained to me that she had to go, but asked if I could finish her work up and deliver them. I accepted. She thanked me and said she would have a big reward for me if I completed the task. The two magic ponies left together in a hurry. I resumed my work thought I began to ponder what was going to happen next.
Not to long after they left someone else entered the store.

Night:

It was now morning indicated by the rays of sunshine assaulting Nights eyelids. He slowly got up his body aching. After a small stretch he left his room. Making his way to the kitchen he took note that Rohan was gone. “I wonder where he went this early?” Night thought. He shook his head and focused his attention back on the kitchen. His eyes lit up when he saw the variety of teas that Rohan had got. With no hesitation he grabbed a random flavor, put the kettle on the stove and waited anxiously.

After a few minutes of waiting the time had come. He poured some water into a teacup and placed the bag of tea in it. Once it had cooled he took his first sip. It was bland, like, no flavor bland. He sighed. “Well not all of them are going to be delicious” he said. After the disappointing taste test he walked back to his room grabbed his spellbook and went back to the living room. Placing the spellbook on the table he then opens it. There it was on the first page a full spell and thankfully it was the one he needed.

After downing the rest of the tea Night was ready for the alteration spell. Well this spell specifically was a form of mimicking. When cast it gave the caster the abilities of a changeling. Well only the ability to change forms. First there were three things that must be done. Number One: he needed sufficient magic, which thanks to the nullifying now turned amplifying ring on his head, was a check. Two: he needed the spell itself which obviously was in front of him. Third: was a sheet or large covering object. He pondered for a moment about the third thing when he remembered the cloak Rohan had gotten him. He walked to the room and brought the cloak back to the room.

He was now ready to begin. He closed his eyes and channeled a well of magic into his horn. This process would take about an hour sadly. Time slowly passed as the magic built up until he had the amount he needed. Next he levitated the cloak onto his body and focused his magic into the cloak. Slowly it started to warp and bend as it took in the magic. Now with half the magic released the cloak started to stretch and conform around his body and with all the magic released the cloak vanished as if it became a layer of skin. Night flexed his legs to make sure it worked and thankfully for him there was no problems. He smiled, closed the spellbook and put it into his pack. Next he needed to decide on a form to take. Then it hit him a childhood friend would be perfect. With the image of his friend in mind and a small amount of magic for activation his body shifted and change.

Walking to the mirror he took a look at his new form. He was a Brown female earth pony. His or rather Her mane was a long mane composed of 3 colors red, orange then yellow while her tail was 5 colors black, green, blue, purple, then white. She however never had a visible cutiemark even though she was a master fashion designer. With some imagination he add the symbol of a needle and thread running through the eye of it for a cutiemark. Regardless he was impressed by the detail of this spell. Of course this was the first time he used a spell from the book. So with a smile on her face she left the house and wandered into town.

She trotted down the streets with a smile on her face. It was soooo good to be out into the world once again. She wanted to see all the new features of this world. Looking around there was one place that stood out a gigantic crystalline tree with a sort of castle wedged in it. “Oh Twilight Sparkle it seems you live quite well” Night thought. He turned in the direction of the castle and sautered toward it. Upon reaching the entrance the door opened. Out walk a light purple unicorn with a quite unique mane. It was a deep purple with light blue streaks in it and was styled with floofy curves.

She noticed me staring at her but choose to ignore me and carry on her way. When she was out of view Night entered the castle. The inside was magnificent large sparse hallways and thousands of doors. Almost exactly the same as the sun princess. He continued to explore the castle when he found himself in a large open room. Inside was a large table surrounded by seven chairs. Each chair seemed to have a cutiemark on it except for the small one near the one with Twilight's cutiemark. Night walked over and placed a hoof on the table. In an instant he felt the magic energy it possessed. It was quite powerful with a mix of many different magic intertwined inside it.

He decided that this might be an important thing to him at some point so he pulled out a scroll and wrote some notes about the room and table. Once finished he left the room and continued to explore. With some stumbling around he managed to find a library. He was slightly impressed by its size but it was nothing compared to his library. He skimmed to spines of the books for a bit before writing some notes down. He then walked to an empty corner of the room and looked over the tile there. Focusing on the tile he imbue some of his magic into it the masked it. He might need to come back here in the future. With a smirk on his face he left the library and exited the castle. By this time the sun was on its way to setting.

“Hmm maybe I can get a cute outfit for my new form” Night thought. He asked around town where he can get some new clothes and almost everypony recommended a place called Carousel Boutique. So after a bit of stumbling around the city he arrived at the boutique. Once he arrived he saw Twilight dragging a white unicorn with an over styled purple mane behind her. He shrugged and head toward the entrance and entered the store.

Rohan and Night:

“Hellllllooooooo” Night called out after entering the store.

“SORRY BUT WE’RE CLOSED!”Rohan shouted from another room.

Night smiled because he knew that voice. “Oh don’t be so rude I’m just here to look for a new outfit, Honey.”

“WE’RE NOT TAKING ANY ORDERS RIGHT NOW! PLEASE LEAVE!”

“I’m not placing an order. I’m looking around.” Night headed toward the room where Rohan’s voice was coming from.

“Seriously, we’re closed for the day. You need to leave.”

Night walks into the room where Rohan was. He gives him a seductive look. “Oh come now don’t be like that. Maybe we can work something out?”

“Not interested. Too busy. Leave.”

“Alright alright i’ll be serious.” Night drops the guise currently cloaking him. “Yo.”

“Hey. This doesn’t change the fact I’m busy. What do you want?”

“I came by to get a cute outfit for my disguise.”

“Well to bad, the owner isn’t here and I have work to finish.”

“Is that so? Well I can wait and then you can make me something.” Night dawns his disguise again.

“Sure whatever, but this comes first. I promised I would have this done before the deadline.”

Two hours pass when the front door bell chimes. Rarity chimes to Rohan “Rohan darling in back.” She walks into the where Night and Rohan were located. “ I hope that...Oh who is this?”

“Me? Why i’m Ivory Klis. Rohans marefriend.” Night said.

“Don’t listen to her, she’s just a friend who came looking for cloths. I finished the work so I’ll go deliver them while you help her out.” Rohan said to Rarity.

Rarity looked over Rohan’s work before speaking. “Hmmm what is it that you need dear?” she addressed to Ivory.

“I was just looking for an outfit to wear. Rohan sweetie here said he was going to hoof make one for me.” Ivory spoke.

“No I didn’t” Rohan said as he was leaving.

“Oh you're no fun.” Ivory called out to Rohan.
“Ahem well uhh what sort of outfit were you looking for?” Rarity asked.
“I’m not quite sure”
“Yes well let's have a look around shall we!” Rarity said in a perky manner.
The two of them looked through the different outfits but found nothing. However there was a pair of black and pink striped socks with a pink frill on the tops that caught Ivorys eyes. Ivory had asked how much they were but Rarity let her have them for free because of the work Rohan did. Ivory thank her and tried them on. They were quite soft to the touch and very pretty.
“They look nice on you however they might get dirty on the bottoms if you wear them constantly. I could look for a pair of shoes to go with them if you’d like?” Rarity inquired.
“No no that won’t be necessary I know a unicorn that can put a spell on them for that.”
“Alright then.”
“I would like to ask you one more favor Ms….?”
“Oh where are my manners i'm Rarity and what is the favor?”
“Well since I have to wait for Rohan to come back do you have any tea?”
“Why yes I do. Come with me.”
The two of them went to a kitchen. The sat around idly making conversation over tea whilst they wait for Rohan to return. That moment did arrive in time.
“Hey Rarity, I’m back. I gave the cloths to all the clients.”Rohan shouted as he entered.

“We’re in here sweetie” Ivory exclaimed from the kitchen.

“Don’t call me that.”Rohan sternly stated as he entered the room.

“So Rohan baby. How do you like my new socks?” Ivory extends one of her forelegs to show off.

“I don’t care, but seriously stop.” Rohan glared at Night.
“Oh when are you going to accept my love.” Ivory turns to Rarity at this point. “So I guess me and Rohan shall take our leave now. I bid you a goodnight Rarity.”

“You can go ahead, I still need to collect my pay.”Rohan said to Night
Ivory leaves the boutique without another word. Rarity thanks Rohan for his help and gives him half of the total commissions. She said it was fair as he had done half of the work. Rohan thank her for the pay and for the learning experience. They wished each other a goodnight and parted ways. Rohan went back to the base.

Night:
Night had gotten back to the inn without a hitch. He dropped his disguise after entering the house. After an eventful day he walked over to the couch and sat down. “I should probably put that spell on these socks. Oddly enough they actually are pretty cute” Night spoke aloud. After a minute or two magic hijinks the socks were now able to withstand natural wear and tear. It wasn't long before Rohan entered the room as well.
“Heya….’Sweetie’” he jokingly said
“No” Rohan said swiftly slapping Night.
“Ow. that hurt” Night forced tears in his eyes.
“I told you, but you didn’t listen.”
“Told me what?”
“I told you to not call me names.”
“What I have to get into a character when i'm out and about with you and I choose your marefriend.”
“You’re not my marefriend and I do not want you to pretend to be one. I don’t take that stuff lightly.”
“Okay okay….then what am I supposed to be to you?”
“A friend, just that.”
“Uhuh.” Night stood up “So what are the plans for tomorrow cause I think it might be best if we leave this town soon, like very soon.”
“I understand, but I have something I still need to do here. Let’s give it one more day and then we leave.”
“Alright but what am I supposed to do in the meantime cause I think Twilight's looking for me.”
“Keep an eye out around town and stay hidden. I’ll check out in the morning and try to get more information before I leave. I want you to meet me outside of town at night.”
“Alright. Well i’m off to bed goodnight…..’Honey’” Night sprints into his room whilst laughing.
The next day when Night got up Rohan was yet again missing. After getting himself a cup of tea he packed his bags and got ready for the day ahead. With everything packed he took a quick look around to make sure there was nothing left. “Alright that should be everything” Night said to himself and without wasting any more time, he changed his appearance and left to begin his surveillance. It took about a half hour to figure out that Twilight and her friends were having some sort of meeting in her castle. Apparently the other princesses were also involved. ‘Hmmm this is getting interesting’ thought Night. Looking up in the sky the sun was about halfway across. He had about half the day left.
Night searched around for a abandoned alley. Making sure no one was around he closed his eyes and focused on that magic tile in Twilight's library. Using the magic of the tile he sent out a pulse throughout the library to sense if anyone was there. Having found no signs of anyone he channeled his magic around his body and teleported into the room. He opened his eyes and looked around ‘No one, good’ he thought. Night proceeded in looking amongst the books for anything that would give him information to this town. He did find a book but it gave him only general information.
After looking for what seemed like hours he had gotten no where. He sighed and decided to leave for the time being. Back in the alley it was he noticed it was getting dark out. Exiting the alley he noticed a wanted poster on side of a store. It was of some hooded figure nicknamed ‘Omega’ with quite a high ransom. He turned from the poster wondering where he was supposed to meet Rohan. ‘Ah damn. He never mentioned a meeting spot’ Night thought. With a sigh he thought of only one easy spot to choose, his old home. Using the cover of the city and eventually forest he made off to the “meeting” place.

Rohan:
I woke up early again to get a quick start on packing. I travel light so it didn’t take long. Night was still asleep, but I choose not to wake him. I paid for the room and left the inn. Before I can leave this town I wanted to pay back some of the places I borrowed from. The supplies I took from Rarity were returned, the rest of the tea was paid off, and I paid for the amount of apples I took. Since I know I would get in trouble if anyone saw me, I had so do it all discretely and left an apology note at each location.
It was a little past noon when I discovered I was being followed. It was that hyperactive pony Panky Pike again. I was confused to why she was trying to be secretive this time and not just approach me like before. As I continued around town I noticed the she had someone with her. It was that apple peddler Applejack. I began to piece together what was happening. Keeping an eye out for other possible followers. There were two pegasi hiding in between clouds, most likely thinking I wouldn’t notice a stalking cloud with four eyes. To do away with the possibility of coincidence, I began to run. Just as I assumed, they followed. Only two caught up to me, Applejack and one of the pegasi. The flyer tried to tackle me, but here movement was predictable. I dodged, which caused her to ram right into a rock stand. As I ran one thought went through my head. Who the hell is buying rocks and who the hell is selling them? Trying to push that concept out of my head, Applejack somehow got a lasso which I assumed was under her hat. Her skill where quite remarkable, but my determination to not get captured out matched her. I stalled for the perfect moment to trip her up. She went for my head and there was my opening. I quickly swapped places with a passerby. They took the hit for me. Applejack noticed her mistake but couldn’t react in time. She ran straight into the innocent bystander and ended up getting tangled in her rope. I got away clean.

Curiosity demanded that I figure out what they wanted so I decided to give them a lesson in stealth. I ran to nearby alley and snuck around back to where I left them. The two ponies that were chasing me where with the other two that I left behind. The chasers were arguing over whose fault it was that I got away. While they argued they were approached by two more ponies. It was Rarity and Twilight. Twilight asked what had happened. Applejack and the Pegasis shamefully explained their failure to properly follow me and caused me to run away. Twilight was visibly upset, but told her companions to not be hard on themselves. She desperately wanted to talk to me about something. Before she ordered them to resume the search I took the initiative and made myself appear behind them. They were more then startled to say the least.

After one of the pegasi was revived from fainting, their attention was placed on me. It was a back and forth of questions that I answered with half-truths, lies, and sarcasm. They were the basic interrogation question. The “Who are you, Why are you here, What were you doing on day X between the times of Y and Z” and other such things. A few hours of questioning later, they left.
I decided that now was the best time to go. I learned all I needed to know from them and there questions. As I left the town I realized I never specified a meet up location. After cursing at myself a few times, I came to the conclusion that Night would most likely go somewhere familiar. To the invisible bubble prison in the forest I went.

Night and Rohan:

Night was busy pacing around the outside of the bubble when Rohan showed up. “Where the hell have you been? I've been sitting here more than an hour.” He addressed to Rohan.

“Looking for loose mares that were willing to give me a good time” Rohan said flatly with a straight face

“Oh hardy harr harr. I’m sorry but you're not the one with a bounty on his head. Can we get going now I know of a place to go.”

“Alright but first I want to get rid of this pathetic barrier.” Rohan said with a grin.
Rohan’s eyes began to glow and a red essence surrounded his body. A flash shot out from his body quickly blinding Night. When Night’s vision returned he saw a needle in Rohan’s mouth.

“What are you going to do with that?” Night asked with confusion.
Moving the needle to the side of this mouth, “Pop a bubble” said Rohan.
He walked up to the barrier that had kept Night a prisoner. Rohan placed the needle in the front of his mouth and thrusted his head forward.The barrier made a loud pop that could be heard for miles and sent a powerful shockwave all around. Rohan and Night were blown back and landed on one another.

“That had a bigger kick than I thought it would.” Rohan said with a soft groan.

“Well that hurt” Night looked down noticing he was on top of Rohan. He pushed a hoof into his chest. “My you're quite muscular.” Night got off of him.

“Sorry, but I don’t swing that way.” Rohan said while standing up.

“What? I was merely stating a fact. You actually thought I might be interested in my quote on quote savior.” Night chuckled after say that. “Alright I thinks its best we head out.”

“I suppose you’re right and about that interested thing, I already have someone I promised myself to so i’m a bit touchy on the subject.”

WIth that the two set off to their new destination. “So Rohan I might as well tell you where we are heading. It's a place call Zvenstrian, I had a manor there back in my day and if all is still well I should still own it.”

“Well i’m out of options right now so sure.”

“Alright then trust me you’re going to love it.” Night and Rohan continued on their way for an hour or so when it dawned on Night that they had no supplies “Uh hey Rohan.”

“What?”
“Did you manage to get any supplies for the journey?”
“I have what I need”
“That doesn't really answer the question, but whatever I guess we'll manage somehow.”
It was now fairly late into the night when the two started to get tired. They set up a small camp and went to sleep. In the morning they packed up any necessities and trashed the rest of the makeshift camp to hide the fact they were there. After a couple more hours of trotting along they were nearing their destination.

The Pursuers Catch a Break: Twilight

The day after Night and Rohan left town.

“What do you mean they got away!?” Celestia says in an annoyed tone to Twilight Sparkle.

“I'm sorry princess, the pony we questioned the day before seemed of no importance but it seems like he was the prime suspect.” She said in a meek tone

“Alright Twilight give me a full oral report on all the events that transpired up until now.”

“4 Days ago I was supposed to have a normal meeting with Night. Getting there was no problem. Upon entry of the T.S.S or Time and Space Stasis I went and entered the abode of Night Constant. The conversation went normally, however Night mention something about removing his magic sealing ring. Once the conversation came to a close I left.

“Shortly after exiting the T.S.S I was assaulted from behind by an unknown assailant and knock unconscious. When I regained consciousness I found that all my notes were stolen and a note left on my head that read ‘I know your secret.’ Quickly I hurried back to the castle to find spike. Once I found him I had him send a letter to you with the information. Rarity’s Boutique was robbed not long after Night’s escape however the supplies were returned in the end. The day before yesterday the pony in question that helped with Night’s escape, whom we now know was Omega, got a minor job under Rarity's guidance. At the time i was gathering up all of us to set up this meeting so i ended up pulling Rarity away from Omega.

“Once all the details were settled with us we went back to our homes for the night. When morning broke all six of us went out on high alert in search for Night and his accomplice. Pinkie and Applejack had managed to catch tail of Omega but he managed to get away. And that's all we know at the moment.”

Celestia sat there quietly for a few moments. “Okay I will be heading back to Canterlot tomorrow. When i arrive there i will mobilize a task force of the top guards we have. I need you to get in touch with your brother about the situation. We are going to need to cover a large amount of territory. Do you understand Twilight?”

“Yes princess I do but is there anything else we can do?”

“If there is anyway you all can help in the capture of Night Constant and Omega please do so. Contact anypony who you think will help.” Celestia directed to the seven other ponies in the room. Each of the other ponies mumbled about different relatives and friends that will help. Celestia turned back to Twilight. “Twilight i'm going to need you and Starlight to come with me.” She turned and headed off to the library.

Twilight motioned to Starlight to follow her. The two ponies walked behind celestia in silence. When the entered the library Celestia spoke “I going to teach you a spell. This spell will be crucial in the capture of Night but it requires a lot of magical energy. Do you think you two will be able to handle it?” The two nodded in unison. “Okay then let us begin.”

The three of them studied and worked for hours on end in the library. Meanwhile the other five had gone to their respective homes. Each with their own idea on how to help in the situation. Tomorrow was going to be the start of a full scale pony hunt.