The Knight and Princess of the Sun

Solaire strided forward with a renewed purpose. His reinforced iron boots crunched the cobblestone streets benath his form. Hath my Lady of Sunlight taketh on the form of these dimunative equines? The Knight from Astora thought to himself, his breathing echoing within his helmet. The polished armor gleamed in the light. He stopped in the center of the street, and looked up. That magnificent glowing sphere hung above this world like the gaping eye of an everwatching diety. "May the Sun and the Eterna; Lord Gwyne guide mine path." He muttered a quiet prayer. Lifting his arms in prostration to the sun, he continued onward, calm. He could hear the ponies whispering, he did not find this odd. Even in Astora, and Lordran, his fellow humans had found his worship ceremonies odd. He was a high ranking member of the Warriors of Sunlight, it was obvious he would praise the eternal sun, giver of light, life, and warmth to the world, and symbol of The Lord of Sunlight's prescene in their lives. A wall of smooth stones painted a rich royal purple surrounded the exterior of the castle. A golden gate, shining in the daylight, was placed in the center. Two ponies, one resembeling a hybrid of a horse and a bat, a mare, wearing rather dark looking midnight blue armor, with a coat the color of a tree trunk, and one, a stallion, with a coat the color of fresh blood, wearing golden armor, with a rich blue plume. Solaire sensed the presence of an enchantment on the armor. Tis similar to Bishop Havel's Great Magic Barrier mayhaps? Solaire thought.

The pondering Warrior of Sunlight continued towards the gate. The guards instantly snapped to attention. Their spears, held in their hooves by what Solaire sensed as a thin field of sorcery, had, to his eyes, a faint glimmer of a miracle or sorcery around their tips. "Mayhaps they hath some enchant on them? Perhaps lightning, like the great spear of Dragonslayer Ornstein that hath brought me to this new realm?" He asked, his voice barely above a whisper. With that in mind, he slid an armored hand to his chest. His fingers brushed against cloth with chainmail woven in, feeling the spot where he had been pierced, and holy lightning arced through his body. The wound was gone, but he felt as if it was still there. He shook his head, Tis' but a mere flesh wound to an Undead. He thought, and continued. The Astoran raised a hand, "Stay thine spears, noble wardens of peace." The two guards lowered their spears lightly, but kept them poised at the human. They did not look too surprised to see a human, which brought further ponderous to Solaire's mind. "In mine land, I am called Solaire of Astora, fair knight of the Warriors of Sunlight." One of the guards whispered something to the other. Solaire could only make out the word "Princess", which brought further joy in his heart. The only Princess of the Sun he knew in his heart of hearts was Lady Gwynevere. Even if he was not her lost brother, the god of war, he was still faithful to her, and to all her kin. "I hath come seeking an audience with thine Princess of the Incandescent Sun." He asked, placing a hand on his chest, as a sign of respect. If circumstances had been different, he would have followed a different path, and joined the noble Princess' Guard, guardians of the kindhearted Princess Gwynevere.

"What business do you have here, human?" The stallion, Fierce Blade asked. He was a fairly new recruit, having only joined up a few months ago. With all that had happened to Equestria, he was always paranoid of individuals who were walking up to the gate. This resulted in an embarassing incident when he had poked the rump of the Princess of Friendship by accident, when he had been startled by the Element of Laughter. He later got latrine duty from her brother, Shining, who was still technically Captain of the Guard. And, unfortunately for Fierce, it had been Burrito Bananza Night at the barracks, he still had nightmares of the bathrooms. He turned when he felt the Night Guard, a cute mare by the name of Wind Glider, gently tap him on the shoulder. True, there was a sort of, often friendly, rivalry between the Day and Night Guards, but that didn't mean he couldn't find some of them attractive. He turned, and opened the gate slowly. It creaked, causing him to grumble. "Gotta oil the gates." He mutteed to himself. He turned to Solaire, nodding, "Alright human, but be warned, if you dare harm Princess-Hey! I wasn't done talking!" He shouted, as Solaire had walked past him. "Bucketwearing Plothead." He muttered at form of the Astoran knight,

As he made his way down the paved path towards the front doors of the palace, Solaire hummed a tune. "Blast that Catarinana knight, his infernaly memorable music. Ah, what was his name? Siegfried? Sieg-, ah yes, Siegmeyer! His songs hath a nice, haunting ring. But, they are but inferior to the great hymns and ballads of Lord Gwyne and his noble Four Knights." He switched to a ballad focusing on the fierce Dragonslayer Ornstein facing off against seventeen accursed dragons, and felling them all by his lonesome. That brought a fire to his heart, and a rich pumping in his blood. He saw two more guards flanking the doors to the palace. "Fair guardsm-I hath mean, fair guardsequines," Solaire mentally had to strike himself. He had to focus that he was not in a realm of humans, but of equines. "I trust that thine good fellows at yonder gate at my back hath told thou of mine business?" The guards nodded, and opened the doors, revealing a well cared for throne room. Pillars of marble supported balconies. The throne was empty, but still two guards were stationed on either side, no doubt to protect the Princess of the Sun against foul assassins.

Solaire saw a winged pony with a mint green coat, shimmering grey eyes, a well combed for black mane, and a groomed mustache and beard hybrid. This stallion wore a red, buttoned down coat with the cuffs colored a deep blue. He had the air of a noble about him. He held up an armored hand, "Good noblestallion, mayhaps I have but a moment of thine time?" The stallion eyed the human up and down, then reached into his coat pocket. Solaire, believing he had a dirk or some other concealable weapon many nobles carried incase of an attack on themselves, placed his hand on the pommel of his Sunlight Sword, ready to cut down the stallion. He placed his armored hand back at his side when the stallion withdrew a pocketwatch. The ticking device had an engraving of a stag rearing up on its hind legs on its lid. The stallion looked at his watch, grumbled, and placed the watch back in its holding place.

The noble sighed, "Very well, sirrah, you may, but be quick." The old noblestallion, Sir Jewel Cutter, was a retired Solar Knight, a knightly order dedicated to Celestia, sister to Luna's Lunar Order. He heard rumors of Cadence and Twilight getting their own orders raised in their names, but he would find out soon. He was rarely rude to individuals, in fact, he was often the life of the party, especially if, in his judgement of Solaire, going by his armor and how he carried himself, were a fellow knight, but he had an appointment with his sister-in-law, something about needing aid with some bandits stealing her sheep. While he was no longer an active Knight, he was treated with the respect a stallion of his station deserved.

Solaire, ignoring the insult, nodded in respect. "I thank thee, good sir. May you knowest where think Solar Princess may be found?" He watched Jewel rub his chin, then instruct that she was located in the dining room. He drew a map in the air with a hoof, which Solaire memorized, his mind's gears ticking. "Thank thee." He smiled beneath his helm. Turning on a heel, he began marching down a doorway on his right, his sword swaying, his Sunlight Shield resting on his back. Jet nodded, and prompty began trotting as fast as he could to find his personal carriage.

The Astoran Knight of Sunlight made his way to the dining room. Unlike a few of the other doors he had passed, this one was unguarded. Now, the warmth and power he had felt before, where it had once been a gentle breeze caressing his cheek, made him feel as if he were bathing in the fires of the Kiln of the First Flame. "Mine Lady of Sunlight." Solaire whispered, exhaling. Placing both hands on the great doors, he grunted, as he pushed. Slowly, the doors began to swing inward. He beheld a radiant, and tall, alabaster mare, with both wings and a horn.. Her mane, flowing in an ethereal breeze, was an array of colors, like an artist's pallete blowing in the wind. A golden sun was emblazoned on either side of her flanks. "Princess Gwynevere, it is I, your humble Knight Solaire, I hath come to serve thee in this new realm! May I honor you in your radiant beauty and glory, milady.." He called out, striding forward into the room. He took little notice of the smaller mare, lavender in color, a pair of wings and a horn attached to her, being embraced by the Princess of the Sun.

Celestia turned, her marefriend in her embrace. Twilight also turned her head to the human. He was unlike any she had encountered, either in the alternate Equestria, or in the other humans that had entered this dimension, whether through some act of fate, or an accident. She cocked her head, "Gwynevere? I believe you are mistaken, sir knight," She made this judgement by his armor, which, aside from coloration, the fact theirs was made of enchanted steel, not cold iron, and they only wore cloth covered hauberks on ceremonial occasions, resembled that of her Solar Knights. "I am Celestia Faustis." She smiled.

Solaire's spirits fell slightly, as he returned his arms to his side. He bowed to the Princess, an arm extended, "My apologies, fair mare. I hath heard of your title as Princess of the Sun, and your very aura of light and warmth reminded me of another." He straigthend up. "I am called, in my homeland of Astora, Solaire. I am a member of the noble band that are calleth the Warriors of Sunlight. We are ever striving to serve our gracious Lord of Sunlight, Gwyne. In mine exodus on this quest, I camest to this world thine subjects name as Equestria." Celestia couldn't help but crack a smile. Perhaps this Solaire would get along well with Luna.

"It's nice to meet you Solaire, I'm Twilight Sparkle" Twilight smiled, then gestured to a chair opposite she and her marefriend. "Please, have a seat." The Astoran glanced at the chair, then to the duo, and slowly took a seat. "How did you end up here?" She asked, pulling over a notepad and quill. She always loved learning of different realties.

"Tis a long story, fairest Twilight." Solaire said, "But I shalt telleth it to you." He cleared his throat, and started. "Long ago, in the distance past, there was nothing, but large trees, known in mine own time as Archtrees, and drakes, immortal and powerful. Their foul scales, like stones fastened to flesh, were impervious to all mortal metals. But, therest came a time, when early man, feeble and timid, found a sacred fire in this dark. From there, four great beings came, finding the Souls of Lords within. The first, was the eternal Gwyne, Lord of Sunlight, who, with the aid of a dragon sorceror, Seath, who betrayed his own, fashioned great miracles, bolts of purest aether, to strike the scales from the drakes, wherest they were smote down by his knights of silver, and his Four Knights. Next, was Nito, a rotten being, who was said to be the First of the Dead, he who unleasheth a sickening miasma on the dragons. The cruel Witch of Izalith, and her daughters, used their blazing pyromancies to whip up raging firestorms, like those of the foulest daemons." His stomach heaved just at the utterance of her name. "Than, there was the Furtive Pgymy, Primordial Man. It is he who foundest the Dark Soul. It is a brand, which many wear, that when they die, they do not do so. They become a corpselike being, known as the Undead. and only through sacrifice Humanity, can they be returned to their form. I hath this curse mineself, for, in my homeland, there is a prophecy that states, "Thou who are Undead, art chosen, in thine exodus from the Undead Asylum, maketh pilgrimidge to the Land of Ancient Lords. When thou ringesth the Bells of Awakening, the Fate of the Undead, thou shalt known." He placed a hand on his chest, "I pray the one who calleth themself Chosen Undead canst fuffill the cause I faileth in." He said, and smiled slightly when Twilight patted his leg, "Thank thee, good Sparkle."

Twilight was at the same time both horrified, and mystified at this information, and hoped there would be a way to end this affliction. She too hoped this, human, this Chosen Undead, could stop the curse. She would hate to be trapped in an endless circle of life and revival..

"Solaire, since I believe you do not own land or a home in Equestria, and whatever curency you may posses, being the first of your realm here, will not be taken, they you may stay in the castle." Celestia smiled. "We have some empty guest rooms avaliable."

Solaire dropped to one knee, dipping his head, "I thank thee, most generous Princess of the Sun." He stood up, and bowed. Celestia smiled, and called in a guard. The mare rubbed her eyes, bowed before the Princess, and stared at the armored human. She had seen a few humans in her lifetime, but not one in full armor "Yes, Princess Celestia?" She asked.

Celestia smiled, "Please escort Sir Solaire to a guest room, please." She nodded. The guard saluted, and turned to the door. Solaire bowed in respect and thank at Celestia, and followed the guard.

Meanwhile, in a land shrouded in an illusion of sunlight, a frail sorceror, and a dark serpent, spyed at the Knight through a scrying pool.