Sins of the Father

Chapters

Imaginary Friends
Unexpected Warmth
First Meal
Sun Rise

Imaginary Friends

Ginger Bread pranced into the kitchen with a song on her lips. “Prince Monster would like more oatmeal,” she said to her mother.

Sweet Roll laughed at her daughter. Not with malice, but simply being amused by her daughter’s endless imagination. Looking into the pot, there was a bit left over from breakfast: it was going to be thrown away anyway. “And how is the prince doing today?” she asked, putting the half serving of oats into a bowl.

Ginger’s expression went grave. “His wing got hurt pretty bad last night.” Looking out the door, her frown deepened. “Somepony thought he was bad. Tried to hurt him.”

Hoofing her daughter the bowl, Sweet patted her on the head. “I’m sorry your imaginary friend got hurt. You know where the rags are, if you need bandages.”

Ginger scowled. “He’s not imaginary,” she said, before taking the bowl in her teeth, the trotting out the front door.

“What does she do with all the scraps you give her?” Sour Dough asked, looking up from his paper.

“Feed it to the birds.” Sweet shrugged. “I guess.”

“We’re going to have some really fat birds soon.” Standing up from the table, Dough looked out the window. “She’s been feeding that imaginary friend of hers for three weeks now,” he said, watching Ginger trot behind the barn.

Moving closer to her husband, Sweet kissed him on the cheek. “It’s been a hard winter, they need the food.”

Dough leaned into his wife for just a moment. “It’s better that throwing it in the trash.” Standing upright, Dough walked towards the door. “Speaking of hard winter,” he said, slipping on a coat. “I need to fix that bit of roof, before the snow caves it in.”

Sweet smiled, then went back to her own chores.“I’ll bring you some coffee here in a bit, to warm you up.” She heard Dough open the door, but then there was a long pause.

“Umm... Honey?” Dough said.

“What’s a matter dear?” Sweet said, turning with some annoyance at the draft her husband was letting in.

“The guard from the Crystal Empire is here.”

Sweet blinked, not sure if her husband, too, had taken up seeing the imaginary, then moved to look over his shoulder. Sure enough, a dozen shimmering guards were in front of their house. The only normal pony in the group was currently taking off his helmet, and walking up onto the porch. She’d seen that face in the papers enough — it was Prince Shining Armor.

Both Sweet and Dough gave a nervous bow as he stopped before them. Not from any sort of fear, but rather amazement. The crystal ponies had been a legend until 2 years ago, but now their empire was only a few miles north of their little town. The few that had visited their town had been perfectly pleasant, if not a little out of touch with modern Equestria.

“No need to bow,” Shining said, waving a hoof at the display. “I’m just here looking into a reported disturbance.”

Dough tilted his head at the comment. “What’s the disturbance? It’s been quiet out here, your highness.”

Shining shifted his helmet from one hoof to the other, not quite comfortable with the title. “Well, there’s been a lot of reports in town about a monster... raiding trash cans at night.”

“Racoons get pretty big up here,” Sweet said, offering the first thing that came to mind.

A smile spread across Shining’s muzzle as he laughed.. “No, the locals had a pretty consistent description. Some kind of pony-looking creature, but definitely not a pony. They almost caught it last night, wounded it pretty bad from what they told us.”

The air went thick and the blood drained from both Sweet and Dough’s faces. “They wounded one of its wings, didn’t they?” Sweet asked, after a moment.

This time it was Shining who tilted his head. “Yeah, how’d you know?”

Dough pushed past Shining, making a quick trot towards the barn.

“Our daughter has been feeding it,” Sweet said, shock taking all emotion from her voice.

Shining stared at her for a heartbeat, letting the comment soak in. In a blink, he rushed to catch up with the farmer. A glance and a motion summoned his guards to follow.

“Let me go first. Where are they?” Shining asked when he caught up.

Sour Dough wanted to protest, but thought better of it. “She’s been playing in the woodshed a lot lately. I’d guess there.”

Moving ahead of the father, Shining motioned towards the little building behind the barn. The first thing was to protect the filly. Lighting his horn, he readied a shield spell.

His sergeant moved ahead without being told. Shining held his hoof up as Diamond Peytral neared the door, ready to open it as fast as possible. Before they opened the door they could hear a voice.

“I’m glad you like that, Prince Monster. I’m really sorry about your wing, some ponies can just be the worst.”

“Thank you,” said another voice.

The look of surprise on Sour Dough’s face was enough to tell Shining that the second voice wasn’t supposed to be there. Shining nodded at his sergeant. The crystal pony nodded back, and jerked the door open.

Inside, no monster greeted him, but he did see the filly. She was looking up at him with shock and confusion. Not bothering to wait for any monster to react, he wrapped her in a protective bubble.

It was then that the monster revealed itself. “No, bad!” it yelled at him. Standing atop a pile of wood, it looked ready to attack him with everything he had.

Well, It wasn’t really a monster. It was another foal, maybe three or four years old. He had a calico coloring, and one wing was bandaged with what looked like an old picnic blanket.

Still... he understood why the locals had feared the little thing. What ever innocence the foal had, was spoiled by the horn jammed upon his head. The smooth red protrusion flickered and smoked purple and green.

“Sir?” Peytral said quietly from the doorway, looking for orders.

Staying as still as possible, Shining motioned from him to go away. “Surround the shed,” he said in a hushed voice.

Peytral nodded, then vanished from sight, letting Shining Armor focus on the foal.

There was no mistaking it, it was Sombra’s horn, smack in the middle of some poor pegasi’s head. Shining had thought it destroyed along with the rest of the villain, but somehow the strange looking foal had become another of Sombra’s victims. Or perhaps some foal he sired... No the colors were all wrong for that, and his jaw was far too soft to be Sombra’s blood.

Shining couldn’t help but feel sorry for him; a pawn in an unforeseen scheme. That didn’t mean he was about to let his guard down either. What ever magic had affected the foal was dangerous.

“Easy there,” Shining said, taking a step back to face the unfortunate foal.

The foal answered with a growl, jumping down from the pile to be between him and the filly.

Lowering himself to the colts level, Shining readied a sedation spell, while letting the shield spell drom rom around the filly. “I’m not going to hurt you.”

The filly bolted to the colt’s side the moment her hooves touched the floor. “Leave us alone...”

Shining smiled at the two, but kept his focus. “I’m sorry. It was just a protection spell. I’m Prince Shining Armor. Who are you?”

The filly brightened up at the introduction. “I’m Ginger Bread, and this is Prince Monster,” the filly said, giving him her best bow.

The colt seemed less impressed, but he did relax a bit; the vapors of dark magic around his horn growing thinner. He nodded out of respect.

“Prince Monster?” Shining asked, confused.

“Of course!” Ginger Bread beamed “He has wings and he has a horn. That makes him an alicorn, which makes him a prince.”

“I see.” Shining chuckled, smiling at the filly’s bubbliness “Well then, Prince Monster. Surely you have a different name than that?”

The foal remained silent, his eyes staring back at Shining

Shining sighed “Look, I’m sorry for startling you, and for reacting the way I did. We heard reports of a mon... dangerous creature, and apparently it was in here. Believe me though, I am not here to hurt you. I just want to talk.”

The foal looked like he was deep in thought about his next words

The colt glared at him with suspicion “Don’t hurt Ginger, promise?” he asked.

Shining nodded, but the action didn’t satisfy the colt. Seeing he needed a bit more of an oath, Shining lifted one hoof into the air. “I promise to protect her, and see that she isn’t harmed.”

The colt relaxed at the formal oath, and stepped closer. “Talk here, or outside?”

“No, Prince Monster!” Ginger Bread cried “Please don’t go out. I don’t want you to get hurt again.”

The foal looked back at the filly and smiled “It fine. Don’t want you hurt.”

Shining was impressed; monster or not, the amount of kindness he had for Ginger Bread was reassuring.

“How very noble of you.” Shining said, getting the foal’s attention. “I’ll protect you too, if you’ll let me, but we can stay in here for right now.”

“Okay,” the foal said, accepting the offer by sitting down.

“Do you have another name besides Monster?”

The foal slowly shook his head.

Shining wrinkled his face in confusion. “Who named you that?” he asked.

“Father,” the foal responded.

Before Shining could ask the foal who “Father” was, the door opened.

“Sir!” Diamond Peytral shouted, stepping into the room while still looking behind him. “We have the-” his words died as he turned to see the red-crystal horn and the fine mist of dark magic around it.

Reflex went before thought, as he leaped next to his captain, and lashed out with his magic. The shot went wild, as Shining flung his own sergeant back out the door with a spell, but the damage was done, not to Peytral, but the foal. A surge of dark magic had twisted his face into mask of rage and fear.

More dark magic collected on the foals horn, readying for an attack, but Shining loosed his own magic first. The sedation spell he had readied cracked against the red horn, dropping the colt unconscious to her floor.

“No!” Ginger cried, throwing herself in front of the colt, in an attempt to protect him.

“He’s just asleep.” Shining said. “See, he’s breathing just fine.”

Ginger paused to examine the colt’s breath, while Shining stepped outside to check on his sergeant. He was about to ask if he was okay, but fear was still in Peytral’s eyes, even as he scrambled to his hooves. .

“That horn!” Peytral gasped. “How in Tartarus does he have that horn? Sir, how is that even possible?”

“Enough!” Shining roared. “No more cowering. You are part of the Crystal Guard, Sergeant. Act like it.”

Peytral immediately stood up and snapped to attention. This was Shining Armor’s way. Generally he was a fair and kind captain and ruler, treating his troops with respect , but he was not afraid to get strict and force the ponies under his command to toe the line.

“Now,” Shining said, after calming down “We will discuss that little stunt you pulled when we get back to the empire. For now,” Shining rounded to face his soldiers that weren’t currently’ surrounding the shed. “It seems that we have found our monster. What we will do now is take him back to the empire with us. When he wakes, he will have the chance to explain his story. Am I understood?”

“Yes, Captain,” chanted the platoon.

Looking back to the guards that were still holding post around the shed, he waved for them to rejoin the others. “Line up, we’re going home,” he said, stepping forward to collect the unconscious colt from inside. Despite everything, Shining couldn’t blame Peytral for his actions. It had only been two years since the fall of Sombra, and the memories of the horrendous hardships that tyrant forced upon the crystal ponies still ran deep.

Back inside the shed, he found Ginger still over the colt. She had made another bit of bandage from tablecloth, wrapping it around his head and horn.

“Now ponies won’t see,” she said, looking up with sad eyes. “What’s going to happen to him?”

Shining sat next to her with a heavy sigh. “We’re going to get him help. Princess Cadance and I will see how to get him the help he needs.”

He could tell she didn’t fully understand him, but nodded anyway. “Please, promise me he isn’t going to be hurt anymore. He’s my friend and he’s been through enough.”

Shining nodded. “I will. Protecting ponies is my mark.” Taking the colt into his magic, Shining gave the filly a smile before standing. “We need to go now though. Thank you for helping him.”

Ginger nodded, watching as her friend was draped across Shining’s back. Reaching up, she touched his limp hoof. “Good luck, Prince Monster.”

Unexpected Warmth

The weight on Shining Armor's back began trouble his thoughts as he lead his soldiers home. Hours of marching behind them, and hours yet before them, he had little else to occupy his mind. How would Cadance and the rest of the empire react when he brought back a foal with Sombra’s horn? He was sure that his wife would want to help him, but the other ponies might not be as understanding. Looking back at the sleeping foal, Shining frowned. ‘That horn, what did it mean?’

“Cute little thing, isn’t he? If you ignore the horn, anyway.” one of the guards said, interrupted Shining's train of thought. “It’s amazing that somepony this small could cause so much trouble.”

“The biggest things often start out small, Private,” said Shining, remembering how he and his sister had gone from humble beginnings to royalty. “What is important now is finding out what going on with this foal. We must not, however, tell anypony that he has a horn that looks like that. This stays between us, understood?”

“Yes, Captain,” his squad said in the perfect unison only soldiers could manage. Shining looked over at Peytral, who gave him a nod of acknowledgement.

Hours later, the battalion finally crested the last hill between them and home. In Shining’s youth, stories about the Crystal Empire had ranged from it being a legend, a fable of hope. Now, with the evil presence that once controlled it gone, the empire’s true brilliance could show. At the centre of the city, stood the palace itself. The beautiful building that seemed to pierce the heavens with it’s sheer magnitude.

"Alright guys, we're making a beeline for the castle. I want you all to stay surround me as we go, so nopony can get a look at our little friend here…”

Shining sighed, floating his helmet off, and smiled. It was good to be home. Placing the foal safely in a guest bed, he once again turned his mind to the reception this foal would receive if his secret was discovered. Any way he envisioned it, the only result for the foal was vitriolic. Keeping the foal locked in the palace was also a lost cause. Any foal’s natural curiosity would take hold soon enough, and if he wondered unescorted, his secret was bound to be discovered. The only true way he would be safe is if he would be taken to Canterlot, under the care of Celestia and Luna.

Shining’s train of thought was once again interrupted by a knock on the door. He knew that out of all the ponies currently in this castle, there was only one that would be one anticipating his return so eagerly; his wife. Shining Armor steeled his resolve, normally meeting his wife would be a time he greatly looked forward to. When they were together, Shining felt like they occupied their own special space, where nopony could touch them. But today, he faced the difficult task of explaining the foal with Sombra’s horn. The task was made even more difficult considering the only one with the full story was the foal himself, and he seemed either reluctant or scared to talk about it.
Shining wished he had another chance to talk to the foal before this meeting, to get a few more details at the very least. Their previous conversation had only left Shining with more questions than answers and now he feared the foal would react in a similar fashion now that he was going to face more scrutiny.

Shining knew he was just prolonging the inevitable, so he made his way to the door and opened it. Standing in the doorway, just as he predicted, was Cadance. Coming home from a particularly hard couple of days work and knowing that waiting for him was this resplendent and loving mare, Shining had to admit, he was probably the luckiest stallion in all of Equestria.

“Welcome home, Shining,” Cadance said with a hint of relief in her voice. Stepping beside him, she nuzzled her husband.

Shining let out a laugh, and leaned into his wife. “I’m glad to be home.”

“So...” Cadance moved to meet Shining's eyes. “Did you find the “monster” the ponies were talking about?”

“It’s funny you should mentioned that.” Shining said, to which Cadance tilted her head in confusion. Shining directed his wife towards the bed.

Cadence followed this direction with her eyes, then walked towards it and peered inside to find the sleeping foal. “Shining?” Cadance asked “Who is this foal?”

“This foal...is the monster.” Shining replied “I didn’t believe myself at first, but then I saw this...” he moved towards the foal and gently reached for the tablecloth bandage Ginger Bread had made. “Brace yourself” he said and removed the bandage, revealing the horn.

Cadance immediately grasped and backed away from the foal with a horrified expression. Much like with Peytral’s reaction, Shining couldn’t blame his wife for hers.

“That...horn…” Cadence quavered, struggling to grasp the situation “But... Shining, how?”

“I don’t know, Cadance,” Shining explained, resting a hoof on hers. “Before I could ask him about it, Sergeant Peytral... reacted badly, and I had to use the dreamless sleep spell. Maybe he’s an unwilling pawn in Sombra’s plan, maybe he’s Sombra reborn, maybe this is just something that happens every now and then. I just know the townsfolk didn’t take to kindly to him.”

Letting go of his wife’s hoof, Shining returned to the bedside. “They hurt him pretty bad right before we found him,” Shining said, pulling back some of the blankets to reveal the tablecloth bandage that Ginger Bread had made for his wing.

Cadance stared at the foal for another moment; each second her wings relaxing from near flight, to a sad droop. Pity mixed with fear, and she took a step closer to the foal. Shining knew his wife well enough. There was a battle of expressions across her body. Part of her wanted to coo and coddle the little foal, and part wanted to toss him out the window and forget about it by lunch.

“Even if he is part of one of Sombra’s plans, he’s still an innocent foal,” Cadance said, undressing the wing, to check the damage. “No child deserves to be treated like this. The poor thing.” Cadance looked at Shining. “Do we know his name?”

Shining shook his head “The only name I got out of him was Monster, he says that all he has been referred to by others. He referred to ‘Father’, but if that’s, biological, adoptive or otherwise, I don’t know.”

Cadance looked over the rest of the foal’s wounds. It was clear that he had been living rough for a while. Shaking her head, she picked up a towel to clean the dirt from a cut.

“For now, we don’t know whether this foal is an unwilling pawn of Sombra, or if he’s part of something bigger. We’ll have to wait until he wakes up to hear this story.” Cadance tucked the foal’s wing back into place. “First of all, we need to hide that horn.”

Summoning up her magic, she wove a spell at the tip of her horn, then passed it to the foal.
An aura surrounded the foal’s horn before bursting apart in bright sparks. When the glow faded, the red crystal horn was gone, and in it’s place was the fluted horn of a common unicorn.

“That should help him blend in. It’s a temporary measure, but it will help,” Cadance said, turning back to her husband. “I’ll call for a couple of nurses to clean his wounds, and give him some food. After that, we’ll see what all he has to say about himself. In the mean time, I will write a letter to Auntie Celestia. She’ll want to know about this.”

Shining nodded, mentally preparing himself for the worst the foal could offer. He had theories, but they were really only guesses on how the foal had gotten Sombra’s horn on his head. Assuming is even was Sombra’s horn; maybe there was a whole valley of those things out there somewhere.

“But for now...” Cadance said, leaning against Shining. “This is the first time I’ve seen you in a week, I’d like to have some time with you.”

Shining smiled, then kissed his wife. “Lead the way.”

/ / /

Consciousness slowly crept over Monster. The world around him was unbelievably soft, and delightfully warm. Wherever he was, it definitely wasn’t a barn. He swam dizzily into full wakefulness to see that he was in some sort of living quarters. The bed he was lying in was a luxurious piece of furniture, almost luring him back to sleep, but too many questions remained unanswered for him to relax. The last thing he remembered was talking with that pony, Shining Armor, and then that other pony entered the barn and…

Monster jumped as a knock at the door echoed through the room. Two ponies, a mare and a stallion, entered the room before he could hide. He closed his eyes, waiting for their inevitable gasp and for them to attack him, but it never came.

“Hello there, little one,” went a chipper voice. “It’s good to see you awake.”

Monster opened his eyes to see the two ponies smiling at him. They both had on clean white gowns, and saddlebags loaded with gauze and medical supplies. Monster wasn't a stranger to medical exams, they had been a daily part of life back when he lived with Father. Still, the two unnerved him, he had never seen ponies like them before. Their coats seemed to shine like jewels, but there was no hardness to their appearance. He could help but want to touch the shining softness.

Still, too many bad memories haunted him. He tried to bolt from the bed, towards a nearby window, but the bedding foiled his escape. The sheets slipped and tangled beneath him, while the blankets clung to the rest of his body.

“We are here only to help you, don’t be afraid,” said the stallion taking slow ever steps toward him. “Prince Shining Armor told us about you. We’re here to clean you up, and make sure you’re going to heal properly.”

The mare nodded in agreement, moving quicker than the stallion, but with a grace that mesmerized Monster. “After we clean you up, the prince and princess want to invite you to dinner with them,” she said, setting her bag down by the bed

Monster marveled at their calm demeanor. Other than Ginger Bread, they were the first ponies to treat him like his family had. They reminded him a lot of Mother, when she was in a good mood.

Seeing no reason or means to flee, Monster just nodded his head, and let them unwrap him from the bedding twisted around him. He nodded and obeyed their gentle request for him to sit on the edge of the bed, and allowed them to go over every cut and scrap.

He followed them to the room’s bathroom, and let them bathe him in warm soapy water. It was a wonderful feeling to have his coat scrubbed, and his wounds washed clean. He was careful not to wince or hiss when the medicine stung his wounds, staying still so that they wouldn’t mess up because of him.

After the bath, the two ponies applied salve and bandages to his wounds, and placed his wing in a splint.

“Don’t worry,” the mare said “Nothing is broken, but we want to brace it to help it heal faster.”

“Feel better?” the mare asked, cinching the wing-brace tight, then stepping back.

Monster stretched his legs, and looked over his bandaged body. It had been a long time since he had felt clean, and the two ponies had taken most the itch and ache from his body. “Yes, thank you.”

“Oh, he’s polite too,” the stallion said, grinning at the foal. “Ready for a bit of dinner now?”

Monster nodded. The oatmeal Ginger had scrounged from him had been his only meal in days. He had tried sneaking into town to raid the baker’s rubbish bin, but that had resulted in a beating that nearly killed him.

“Good, you’re too skinny,” the mare said, walking towards the door. “We need to fatten you up a bit.” Stepping into the hall, she motioned for him to follow.

Not waiting to be asked twice, Monster stood and trotted into the hall. Anticipation knotted his stomach as he followed the mare down the corridor. He knew Shining Armor was at least a pony of his word, but the princess...

Father had never had kind words for her or the crystal ponies. “They are fools, child… Completely ignorant of what they could have been.”

Monster put Father's usual rant out of his head, but he couldn't help but worry about meeting these new ponies.

What questions would they ask? How much did they know already? Ever since the family had been captured by those ponies in gold armor, Monster had lived in fear of ponies seeing him. Yet here were ponies giving him a roof over his head, and treating his wounds. Maybe they were secretly part of the family, and he would be reunited with the others and things would go back to normal.

“Little one,” the mare said, jogging Monster’s attention. “The royals will meet you now.” She had stopped in front of a door that looked no different than the many doors they had passed.

Monster took a deep breath, preparing himself for the inevitable.

“Don’t worry. They’re nice ponies,” the mare said, before opening the door.

Nodding to her, he stepped into the warm glow of the cozy little room. The smell of fresh bread lighting his hunger ablaze.

Taking another breath, Monster gathered his self control, and looked around the room. It reminded him a lot of Father’s study back at home. A fireplace glowing brightly with bright orange flames, shelves lined with books about various subjects and various comfortable looking chairs. But instead of Father’s imposing presence, there was Shining Armor and sitting beside him on one of the divan sofas was the most beautiful mare Monster had ever seen.

First Meal

Cadance straightened her posture as the door cracked open. She studied every little movement of the nervous foal as he entered the room. Even in her second meeting with the strange colt, a range of emotions ran through Cadance.

Cleaned up, he was even more adorable than he had been. The patchwork of bandages stirred her anger at the ponies that could attack him. Then again, there was still that horn, and all the harm it could bring.

Putting a hoof to her chest, she breathed in, then out—silencing all those thoughts and bringing focus to the task at hand. As the princess of love, and ruler of the crystal empire, she had a duty of care to the ponies that served and lived under her. She needed to learn this foal’s story and then decide; not jump to conclusions like those that had maimed him.

“Please take a seat,” she said, pointing a hoof at the seat next to her. The foal froze for a moment, looking at her like he had seen something he didn’t understand. Her heart clenched with the belief that she had frightened him already, but before she could say anything else, he jumped up onto the seat. Never once taking his eyes off her, he radiated with both fear and amazement. Cadence could understand that. He must have just as many questions for her, as she did for him.

“Do not be afraid, my husband and I are not here to hurt you,” she said, pouring a cup of tea for the foal. “We do have questions, but we will not harm you.” Sitting the cup in front of the foal, she then picked the honey stick up. “Honey?”

“Please,” the foal said, relaxing enough to give her a smiling nod.

Cadance returned the smile as she stirred in the honey. “Now, let's have a nice dinner, and see what we can learn about you.”

With a loud clap of her hooves, Cadence summoned a unicorn into the room with a domed tray in his magic. The servant levitated the tray on to the table and removed the lid to show the contents. The foal’s eyes went wide at the collection dishes on the tray. It was nothing fancy: a hearty lunch of mixed fruit, salad, and a few vegetables; the same kind of meal that could be found in any home. A little tray of crystal candies was the only thing that marked the meal as elaborate.

Reaching out, she took a fresh roll and placed it on Shining’s plate, before getting one of her own. “Your father named you Monster?”

The foal hesitated a moment, as if the question had been complicated. “Father called me Monster, but he wasn’t my dad.”

Cadance held a neutral expression, digesting what the foal had said. “Would you like some bread?” She asked, holding up a butter glazed roll.

The foal nodded with excitement. “Yes please.”

“This pony, Father,” Shining asked, taking a bit of salad into his plate. “Where is he now?”

The foal’s expression wilted at the question. “The last time I saw Father was before spring. He threw me out into the snow and told me to run. When I was far enough away, I saw ponies in gold armor. They took everypony away.”

Cadance glanced at her husband as she placed salad on her plate, then the foal’s. “How long had you lived with them?”

“For as long as I can remember.” The foal said with all the dignity he could muster.

Shining tore his roll in half and nibbled on it. Taking that as permission, the foal broke his bread as well, but instead of taking the little nibbles, he consumed the whole thing in a few bites.

Cadance chuckled. “They treat you well there? How was the food?”

The foal shrugged. “The family took care of me. The food was mostly hay and grass.”

Shining was pretty sure that now was not the time to ask, but the question on his mind would not be ignored. “Do you know what the horn is?”

Cadance looked cross at Shining but the foal just smiled. “Father said that it belonged to a great ruler.” Closing his eyes, the foal continued as if reciting a nursery rhyme. “The family have kept it safe until the day of my creation. I am important to the future of the world and this horn will help me.”

Cadance looked towards the foal curiously. It was weird for the foal to use the word “creation” to describe himself. “But they didn’t tell you anything else about the horn?”

The foal picked up a fork with his hoof, then gathered some of the salad on his plate with it. “No. I’m not very good with magic—or flying. Father and Mother had only started my training just before they got captured.”

Collecting her thoughts, Cadance dived out the rest of the meal between them, letting the foal eat in silence for a moment. “So you don’t know what it was they wanted you to do?”

The foal shook his head. “Whenever I asked, they kept saying things like ‘You’ll find out when you’re older’ or ‘Just focus on your training, the rest you will find out later.’ ”

Cadance found her smile again, at the foal’s youthful frustration at being told to wait. Chewing her meal, she looked over to Shining. He seemed a bit more troubled than her, but his cutie mark gave her an idea.

“We could find you a teacher. Somepony that could show you how to use your gifts to help ponies, and protect them. Would you like that?”

The foal’s eyes lit up at her words. “Really!?”

“I don’t see why not. You’d like to become a good pony, and help others, like the foal that fed you, right?”

The foal all but bounced in his chair as he nodded. The eagerness to help others put a smile on Shining’s face to match on tone of his wife. “We’re going to have to get you a better name first.”

The foal stopped bouncing and looked directly at Cadance “Better name?”

“Well, I’m sorry to say that Monster is not a good name for a pony,” Cadance said. “Shining and I were talking about it earlier, and we thought of a new name for you. What do you think of Lucerna?”

The foal chewed on a fit of dried fruit for a moment, staring blankly into the distance. “It’s a pretty name. What does it mean?”

“It’s from my family’s old language. It means light, because I hope you grow up to shine light into the dark places of Equestria.”

“Lucerna...” The foal said, testing the name on his tongue. “I like it.”

“And we can call you Lux for short,” Shining added with a smile.

“So am I going to live here now?” Lucerna asked.

“For a little while,” Cadance said, giving the foal a sympathetic look. “Here isn’t the safest place for you, but I’m personally going to see that you find a very good home.”

After they had taken Lucerna back to his room, Cadance and Shining Armor retired to their own quarters.

“You look exhausted,” Cadance said, giving her husband a hug as the door closed behind them. “Go on to bed if you want, I’ll be there shortly.”

Shining yawned. “Thanks dear.”

“Just don’t hog all the pillows before I get there.” Cadance giggled, then nudged him towards the bedroom with a wing. She couldn’t blame her husband, he had been on constant march and patrol for an entire week, and she hadn’t really let him rest since getting home. What he needed now was sleep.

Turning towards the writing desk, Cadance sighed. As much as she wanted to join him, she need to send a letter of to her auntie, Princess Celestia.

Dear Auntie Celestia,

I hope you and Auntie Luna are keeping well. Shining Armor and I are doing fine up here. However, we have a matter that requires your immediate attention. I told you before about reports of a “monster” roaming the lands near the crystal empire. Well Shining and his troops found our culprit and he was as shocked as I was when we saw what the culprit was.

What we found was not a monster, but of all things a foal. This foal however had one crucial difference, his horn is like that of Sombra. Whether or not this foal is a child of Sombra or he’s from a place where this type of horn is common we don’t know. However, as you know, the ponies of the empire will not give this foal the benefit of the doubt and will chase him out. I have placed a spell on the horn to make it look like a normal unicorn foal to onlookers but you and I both know that this is a temporary measure at best.

Shining and I have talked about this and we believe that it is best if you and Auntie Luna were to take him with you to Canterlot for his protection. I have told the foal that I will find him a good home to keep him safe, and you are the one pony that I know who can do just that.

One more thing, the foal said he was part of a “family” that had grand ambitions for him. The family had told him that he was important to the future of the world and that the horn would be his guide. He also said that the last time he saw the family was when ponies in gold armour came and took them away while he escaped. I’m guessing that’s the royal guard, and if so, then you’ll have to explain to the foal why you did that. I hope that you can respond soon and I hope that things are well with you in Canterlot

Yours
Cadance

P.S We have named the foal Lucerna because the only name he was given was Monster. I think you and I can agree that’s no name for a foal.

Sun Rise

As dawn cracked over the snow-covered mountains, Cadance admired their crystalline shimmer.

“It’s so pretty,” Lux said from behind her.

Looking back, she smiled at the awkward foal. His eyes shined from within the shade of the cloak wrapped around his head. She’d explained the spell to him, but he still felt the need to cover his horn.

“Celestia and Luna should be here today,” Cadance said, motioning for Lux to join her at the balcony edge.

“Already?”

“It’s been a week.”

Lux peered over the railing. “Is it as pretty there?”

“Different, but yes.”

Celestia’s response had been a mixture of curiosity and concern. Both she and Luna wanted to meet the foal personally to figure out what should be done with him. They knew of the group Lucerna had mentioned, and they both wanted to meet the curious foal, for a variety of reasons that would better be explained in person. But either way, it had been decided that he should be taken back to Canterlot.

Looking into Lucerna’s half-covered eyes, she could see anxiety clouding them.
He understood the gravity of this meeting. Cadance couldn’t blame him, his whole world had been thrown into chaos and now he was about to face the two most powerful mares in existence. Cadance had been hoping to let him explore the empire before hand. Today was the start of the Crystal Fair, and a little play would have done him good.

Cadance put a hoof on the foal’s shoulder, she tried to ease his worries. “Don’t worry,” Cadance said. “You’ll be fine.”

Lucerna nodded with a weak smile. Turning his head towards the sky, his eyes widened. Cadance followed his gaze, taking little time to find what he had seen. Two figures were flying towards them and as they landed, it was clear who they were. The taller one had a white coat and was wearing golden jewellry, with a multicoloured flowing mane. The other was short and dark blue, wearing jet black jewellry and had a flowing mane that twinkled like starlight. Cadance walked up to them and accepted a hug from her aunts, Celestia and Luna.

“Hello aunties,” Cadance said happily. “How was your journey?”

“It was fine, Cadance,” Celestia responded, smiling. She then looked over to see Shining armor and Lucerna. The foal looked at the two alicorns in awe and it wasn’t hard to see why. “So this is the foal?”

“Indeed, it is,” Cadance said. “Come here, little one. It’s alright.”

Lucerna took a deep breathe and slowly walked forward. When he was close enough, she gave the most formal bow he could. Considering it was his first time bowing to any royalty, it wasn’t a bad attempt. Celestia softly chuckled and spoke first.

“Rise up, young one,” she said. “Please, let me see your face.”

Lucerna stepped backwards and shook his head. “Not out here!” he said quickly.

“Alright, don’t be scared,” Celestia said. “We will discuss this inside. I can tell from your actions that you understand how important this situation is.”

With that, all five of them turned to enter the crystal palace. Cadance guided the party towards one of the private lounges that would act their meeting room. Lucerna entered the room but before Cadance could, Celestia stopped her.

“Cadance…” Celestia said slowly. “This is a situation that Luna and I will deal with. We need to do this in private. Do not worry about him, if that truly is Sombra’s horn and his power is within this foal, we will be able to control it. Please understand that I am doing this for your safety as much as his.”

Cadance wanted to argue, wanted to be near the foal for moral support, but relented and solemnly nodded. With that, Celestia and Luna entered the room and closed the door.

As Luna walked in the room with her sister, it was clear to her that the foal was scared of what was going to happen. In a way she felt sorry for the foal; all alone and facing both the rulers of the sun and moon. But she put those feelings aside and sat beside her sister facing the foal.

“Now, young foal.” Celestia said “Show us your face.”

The foal raised his hoof to his hood but then stopped, as if frightened by the thought of showing himself.

“It’s alright, little one.” Luna said “My sister and I are not going to hurt you. We have seen far stranger things than you could ever show us.”

With trepidation, the foal slowly pulled his hood back unto his shoulders.

“If you would please, Cadance.” Celestia said nodding towards the colt.

Answering with a nod, Cadance unravelled the illusion.

Luna took in a sharp breath at the sight. “Stars, what were they doing in there?”

Celestia eased herself closer to the nervous colt. “If I may, I would like to look closer at you.”

Lux closed his eyes, and nodded in consent.

Beside her, Celestia could feel her sister weaving a web of spells. Most defensive in nature, but a few were lethal. “Thank you Sister,” she said as a few of the spells entwined around her in loving protection.

Reaching first with her hoof, Celestia touched the red crystal. Moving the colt’s head around, she examined the horn and his reaction alike. He winced, but from anxiety not pain, while the horn itself remained inactive.

“This will tingle,” she warned, more to let Luna know what she was doing then for the foal’s benefit. Celestia blinked, and her eyes smoked green. Luna’s defences bristled, pointing their energy at her for the briefest of moments. Reaching into her memories, she sound a little seed of fear, and brought it to her horn. The memory of fear burst to life on on her from, burning purple and black, before leaping for her to the foal.

“No!” The foal reeled as the fear took hold of him. Shadows drank the fire of fear, and the horn took a ember’s glow. “No,” the foal cried again. “I don’t want to,” he answered a voice nopony else heard. Scurrying backward from some unseen danger, Lucerna covered the light of his horn with both hooves. “You’re wrong. They’re nice.” Tears choked his voice as he tried to curl into a ball.

“Enough.” Luna loosed her magic into the room, snuffing out the fading clouds of dark magic from Celestia's eyes, and the glow of Lux’s horn in one flash.

Cadance burst into the room when she heard Lux scream, the sight of her mentor wielding dark magic having taken her breath. “What... was that? What happened to Lux?”

“Fear,” Celestia answered, collecting herself as Luna tended to the still crying foal. “I need to see how he would react. Is he alright?”

Luna nodded as she scooped the foal into her lap. “Shaken, but unharmed. I think it’s obvious, this foal has no more ill intention in him than you or I.”

Moving next to her sister, the adrenalin of dark magic began to fade, leaving her with a knot of guilt in her stomach. “Agreed, but we still need to watch him. Sombra’s followers had him around for a reason, I want to make sure they don’t lay their hooves on him again.”

Luna nodded, gently cradling the crying foal. He had quietened down but was still weeping. He reminded her a lot of her own tangles with dark magic. Unlike her though, this was a foal, barely out of the cradle. He should be worrying about what ice-cream flavour he gets for dessert, not dealing with Sombra.

After few moments of silence, Lux’s whimpers faded to the soft sounds of sleeping. Stepping closer, Cadance lit her horn, and again applied the illusion over the colt. The magic stirred him, sending him deeper into Luna’s embrace, but not fully awakening him.

“The Crystal Fair just started,” Cadance said, watching Luna tend to the foal. “It would be a shame for a young colt to miss it.”

A smile stretched across Luna’s muzzle, as she looked down at the colt. “A bit of revelry would do him good.”

Nudging Lucerna awake, Luna helped him back onto his hooves. “You need some fun,” she told the colt, who only answered her with a skeptical look. “There are games and sweet foods outside, would you like to go and see?

Foalish curiosity overtook fear. He had heard about the Fair, but dared not ask to leave the palace, let alone see the it. “Could I?” he asked, nodding his head.

Luna returned the smile. “Of course. Stay close to me, though. It is easy to get lost in the crowd.”

Heading towards the door, Luna motioned for Lux to follow, which he was all too happy to do.

From the balcony, Celestia watched Luna escort Lucerna into the vast street party that was the Crystal Fair. Seeing Lux all bright eyed and carefree was enough to bring a smile to anypony, especially considering that this was probably the first time the foal had ever experienced something like this. Watching Luna teach him how to play made Celestia chuckle slightly, when she remembered that it wasn’t too long ago that Luna herself was learning how to play games like this and have fun. Twilight’s letter from nightmare night had included numerous references on how Luna playing and learning about the games ponies play on occasions like these.

Even with all this, something irked Celestia: something about Lux. Even though she was sure that the foal had no ill intentions for her, or equestria at large, the fact that he was an alicorn didn’t sit right with her. Now, this could be something as simple as somepony placing Sombra’s horn onto a pegasus foal to create Lux, or something much more malicious could be at work. She remembered something that the pony that Lux called “Father” had said to her as he was being hauled away:

You sit on your throne... thinking you are safe... you think that by capturing us, you can purge us and save us... you think the darkness is gone, but you are wrong... My chosen foal has been unleashed, with the powers of the Dark Monarch... he will finish our work and it will be us who stand on top of the world.

It seemed that Lux hadn’t been told about this plan from what Cadance had told Celestia, but Celestia was not going to take any chances. She would personally oversee Lux’s training in magic and flight, make sure that he was surrounded by ponies that would love and take care of him and do everything in her power to keep Lux on the straight and narrow path. There was a reason that this “Father” wanted Lux around, but Celestia was determined to make sure that reason never came to pass.