The Moon, The Sun, The Sleepers

He had known only darkness. It had been so for the thousands of years he had lain here, suspended within the air. He could see that which had held him here for so long, ancient runes carved into the ground, imbued with great power and great purpose.

It would have been far more merciful to slay him. Instead, he was imprisoned within this cage where he would not even put an animal, a cage where his every movement was restricted. He was not even allowed to twist a neck or bat an eyelid; he could not even take his own life. He was a great sorcerer, one of the most powerful among the ponies; however, this prison had rendered his powers all but useless, every soul-damning enchantment and sanity-breaking spell interweaving in the most intricate of ways so as to perform their duties best.

To ensure that he stays buried for eternity.

The spells fed him life, so that he would never waste away. However, life was much worse than death in such a predicament.

Such was his mental fortitude that this treatment had yet to drive him mad. Or perhaps he had already been mad, and the pony feared that possibility greatly. The prospect of insanity was not one he truly entertained or welcomed.

Celestia...

He could only say the name within the deepest recesses of his mind; such is the strength of the bonds that hold him. That accursed Alicorn of the sun, her power was great and her mind, cunning. He had no doubts that the castellan of the sun was responsible for taking that window of opportunity, that moment of weakness he displayed, to fell him.

Luna…

The gullible younger sister, She who raises the moon. She was the emotional counterpart to her logical elder sibling. He had heard tell that one of his rivals was responsible for planting seeds of doubt within the Walker of Dreams. Seeds that the rival claimed would fester into jealousy and hatred, and seeing that pony’s work, he believed it wholeheartedly. His only regret would be that he could not see the plan come to fruition, being trapped here as it were.

Then there was the third one. The most insidious member of the trio. Many thought the third to be their greatest ally, only for that pony to betray them to the princesses. He squirmed, remembering his last moments before being trapped within here. He was surprised, then, and it had cost him. Heaving with rage, as he had did a thousand times before, he strained against the bonds, and such was his hatred that even his will could not contain it.

“STA-!”

The magical bindings flickered; they could not differentiate between the actions of their charge. As such, they reacted accordingly as though an escape attempt was in place. He felt a sense of displacement, and then a sound echoed throughout his mind, breaking his train of thought.

The prison was made to contain him.

Then, he fell limp, unmoving, for who knows how long. The enchantments layered over each other were perfect for containing a prisoner who could escape any cage.

What was that?

He felt it, however brief it was. It was a tremor that just ran through the earth. All his time that he was incarcerated here, he had never felt the barest of earthquakes, and he had just felt one.

This could be bad, or good. He could either be hallucinating; the mere beginnings of insanity, or it could mean one other thing.

A chance at freedom.

Even if the bindings had not held him so, he would have stayed completely still, not daring to hope, but eagerly awaiting the slight opening and a hundred percent ready to take it.

The tremor came again, this time slightly more pronounced. Furthermore, he could hear the dust falling from the darkness above. Even more so, he could feel the slight loosening of the bonds that were holding him still.

Could it be? He froze, hesitant at the simplicity of the situation.

Cautiously, he gathered his energy into a forehoof, then increasing the transition into it when it was apparent that the spells holding him had failed to detect that action.

He would had nodded in satisfaction, but settled for a mental shout of victory. Then, he concentrated at the mass of magic within the hoof, and it exploded.

Splat. Splat. Splat.

Gobbets of blood and flesh, potent with magical energies, rained down upon the runes layering the ground. The artwork fizzled blue, then green, before turning red. Red, the color of the blood now pooling about them.

All this, however, were missed by the only pony who occupied the room. The pony who stood, for the first time in centuries, admiring his ruined forehoof.

“Fa-Fascina-nating…” The pony croaked, his voice trembing from years of disuse. “Su-Such in-intricate Spellwo-work. Bu-But s-so easi-sily ru-ruined by a slight di-disruption.”

Then he smelled it. Despite being locked away for possibly more than a millenia, his sense for magic had never dimmed. Especially when it caught up to scent most familiar.

“Th-The Tree of Ha-Harmony?”

How Ironic! How laughable that the tree that was responsible for imprisoning him was the very reason that he was freed!

“It-It’s time.” He declared, hobbling towards a nearby door he had never noticed during his imprisonment, his ruined limb forming a new hoof under his own command of spells.

He dimly recalled that there were other prisoners here, and the occasional guard with laughable strength.

It matters not.

They would help him achieve his goals, either with him, or as a part of him.

Months later…

“Come now Cadence,” Shining Armor stressed, “we are going to be late.”

His wife, Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, leader of the Crystal Empire and the jewel of his life, was buried in a mountain of paperwork. To be honest, ever since the defeat of the Dark King Sombra and her subsequent coronation, Princess Cadence had devoted herself wholeheartedly to the welfare of the Crystal Empire.

“Coming!” Cadence called, her pink horn glowing blue as a dozen papers stack together. “I just need to finish documenting the required supplies for Auntie. There!”

Crawling out of her fortress of reports, Cadence triumphantly displayed a stack of scrolls floating in her magical grasp. Trotting casually towards her husband, the pink Alicorn flashed a winning smile, one that had caught the eyes of her beloved when they first met.

“Done, darling. Shall we get moving?”

Shining Armor failed to notice one of the guards at the door cringe at that honey sweet tone and nodded. “We should get moving, I have the itinerary here.” With a single thought, he produced a paper out of thin air and levitated it towards her.

“First thing when we arrive at Canterlot, we would be having a two day conference with the Princesses Celestia and Luna. After that, we would have one week of leisure, two days of which we would spend with our respective families. Following up, we would then take a trip to Ponyville to visit Twilight and spend three days with her before we head back to the Crystal Empire.”

“Sounds like you had planned quite a bit of R and R for me.” Cadence commented, raising an eyebrow at her husband. “Are you sure it’s not a bit too… excessive?”

“You need to relax, Cadence.” The white unicorn stressed. “You had barely taken a rest for months already!”

“It’s just…” Cadence hesitated and promptly gave in at Shining Armor’s questioning gaze. “There is just so much so much to consider! So much to prepare for! The citizens just woke up after a thousand years of sleep; I don’t even know how to integrate them back into society! How do we-“

Shining Armor found himself having to halt the stream of confessions flowing from his wife’s mouth with a hoof. Sighing, he looked her in the eye, hoping that his eyes would convey what his mind could not find words for.

“Sorry,” Cadence whispered as she pushed the hoof stuffing her mouth out of the way before chuckling. “I sounded like Twilight then, didn’t I?”

“You sure did.”

“Maybe I should get advice from Twilight how to relax in this situation.” Cadence suggested.

“Get advice from Twilight on how to relax?” Shining Armor’s brow shot up in surprise. “Good luck with that.”

“Oh you.” Laughed Cadence, her head now much clearer and lighter as she gave her beloved a playful shove before heading out of the doorway. Shining Armor smiled, grabbed his helmet from a nearby desk before jamming it onto his head and followed suit, signaling the guard to follow suit before realizing something was off.

“Are you alright?” Now that he thought about it, the yellow mare before him looked very ill. In fact, he was half surprised that she even came to work in her current state.

“No sir.” The mare replied, her voice full of strength despite her expression, “Had a late night. That’s all.”

“Alright, you’re the one that’s following us to Canterlot…” Shining Armor frowned, searching his memory banks for the correct name before chancing upon it. “Golden Concoction?”

“Yes sir.”

Weird name, Shining thought, but declined to mention it out loud. Instead, he nodded. “Get some rest on the trip there. We wish to present our best to Celestia and Luna.”

“Understood sir.”

Putting the matter behind him, Shining Armor marched out of the room after his wife. The Guard, on the other hoof, made a loud retching noise once the coast was clear, and followed suit.

Flash Sentry, Captain of the Crystal Guard, was about to have his most important assignment yet. He was part of the detachment that accompanied Shining Armor at the behest of the Diarch of Equestria to the Crystal Empire. For his exemplary record serving in the Palace Guard in Equestria, the two rulers gave him the honor of becoming the first Captain of the Crystal Guard. It had come with other benefits; however, the responsibility was just as great. Nevertheless, all this would come to naught…

If he could not survive the lengthy introduction of the to-do list prescribed by Princess Cadence. The Monarch of the Crystal Empire apparently saw fit to address her captain at the train station and bring to his notice a list of events that were scheduled to occur in their absence. Fifteen minutes before the train for Canterlot leaves.

“- so please ensure that the citizens each get their Chronotherapy. Furthermore, the Griffonia Kingdom of Nordyem would have their ambassador arriving roughly two days before our return. Please be sure to accommodate them. Also…”

“Cadence, you’re sounding like Twilight again.” Warned Shining Armor. Turning a sympathetic eye towards the incapacitated Captain, he continued, “Besides, I’m sure the good captain can read the list you prepared.”

“Oh yes. My apologies, Captain Sentry.” The ruler of the Crystal Empire smiled. “I mean no slight.”

“All in the line of duty, milady.” Flash Sentry replied. The orange pegasi resisted the urge to run his hoof through his blue mane. Tired as he was, he still had to show respect to his superiors. However, he could not help but feel a faint sense of relief as his regent and her husband marched up the ramp into the train.

Once they had vanished into the interior of the train, Flash Sentry readied a sigh only to halt it when he caught sight of an approaching group of guards carrying a quite a sum of cargo between them. He needed to be a role model to his subordinates after all… Except…

His eyes narrowed as he picked out an Earth Pony guard, a yellow mare, supporting two medium sized saddlebags. He could not quite place it, but it bugged him somehow. It was as though she was somepony he thought he should know. Then, who is she?

“Golden Concoction?” He blurted out, the name coming to mind after a minute of searching his tired brain. The yellow mare then stiffened, stopping in her tracks and her head whipped around to face him.

“Yes sir?”

“Nothing,” Flash Sentry frowned. Apparently he was not disciplined enough. Thinking aloud! It was poor form, especially for a Guard Captain! “Carry on.”

Golden Concoction nodded, and resumed her march towards the ramp. Unsatisfied with his conduct, Flash Sentry turned away, making his way towards the palace. He had some time before he had to begin working on Princess Cadence’s instruction. Time enough to steel his thoughts with some hard training.