Light of the Storm

        Five Weeks Ago

        Princess Celestia

“Your majesty, are you certain you wish to proceed down this avenue of action in these troubled times?” a service pony asked cautiously. She knew it wasn’t in her place to question the Princesses orders but she felt like she had to ask at least once.

“Yes, I am certain. Things I have seen require me to head out beyond the borders of Equestria in order to hopefully assure our survival.” Celestia sighed, her mane solid and flowing down her neck and back as the bath water washed off the day’s troubles. The service pony continued to gently scrub the alicorn’s fur with her hooves, wearing specially made shoes to prevent due injury or damage to the coat.

“Are you going to personally look for that human thing? Wasn’t he supposed to be an asset to Equestria’s defense?” the mare asked casually. At least this wouldn’t be out of place to talk about.

“No, unfortunately he is unattainable as he is now. He still has much to do and no time to do it. Shame though…” Celestia drifted off in thought, as though she was watching the passage of time presently and the view was quite unpleasant. “I rather liked him.”

“Oh, Princess! You sound as though he’ll never return to us again!” The mare chuckled nervously, taking a moment to wave her hoof at the alicorn’s neck in jest. Celestia merely slipped deeper into the water until just the top of her head was above the soapy water. “You don’t mean…”

“He will return to us.” Celestia announced, rising out of the water just enough to do so though the quickly reddening eyes suggested that whatever she knew was quite unpleasant. “But not for long before he must leave.”

“Well i’m sure that your parents, wherever they may be, will be watching over him from on high.” the service mare replied firmly set in her beliefs. Even Celestia had to chuckle to that, the idea that her own mother and father were in a position to watch over the proceedings of Celestia’s realm.

“Please finish your work. I wish to retire for my trip tomorrow.” Celestia requested, rising from the water with her fur completely drenched and hanging off her body quite sorrowfully. No wait, that was Celestia’s mood as she was quickly cleaned and dried off.

“May I ask if your sister, Princess Luna, is aware of where you’re going?” The mare asked as she set to cleaning up the towels while other service ponies began the task of scrubbing every inch of the royal bath house.

“She does not. Nor is she informed of my intentions and I wish to keep it that way. I wish I could tell her something that would alleviate her inevitable suspicions that I’d been taken captive by our feathery enemies, but I cannot risk the purpose of the trip with undue attention.” Celestia replied as a white housecoat magically floated over from a rack and landed on her back with her sun printed just over the breast.

Stepping up into bed as the covers peeled back, Celestia collapsed with a sigh and allowed the day’s events drift off as the service staff all vacated the premises.

So much to do and so little time.

~~~

Just before scheduled dawn, in the short period that allowed for her and Luna to switch places, Celestia, sans crown, cast a dark cloak about herself and shimmered away from view. In reality, the cloak had been sewn to appear like Luna’s mane and night sky and should work to conceal the elder alicorn in her travels.

Stepping out onto the balcony, Celestia made a quick visual check for her sister, then let out a short magical ping in all directions; looking for her sister’s specific magical signature.

Holed up in her room preparing for bed. Perfect.

Spreading her enormous white wings out wide, Celestia took off at a gallop before launching up into the air and immediately aimed as high up as she could. The benefit of being the representation of a celestial body was that her own physical body had been conditioned to withstand the near vacuum of the upper atmosphere.

She’d never tell anypony, but she was one of four creatures to have ever actually flown into space for a short duration of time before requiring to return planetside for oxygen. Her sister Luna had gotten close but was turned away a few hundred meters before Celestia, if one was to neglect Luna’s banishment that is. The other two creatures, one being a special dragon and the other a Harpy, had long since perished and were now lost to the annals of time.

Regardless, Celestia now approached the thin threshold between atmosphere and true space but kept short of breaking it as she continued to accelerate faster in the long downward arc to her first destination.

This burst of speed had Celestia unintentionally hit terminal velocity before bouncing back to let her wings merely ride the currents down. At the same time, Celestia looked over the landscape beneath her and judged that now would be a descent to time raise the sun, if at least to cover her approach with blinding light.

As Celestia touched down, her horn lit up and began the task of guiding the sun along its predetermined track. Honestly, you’d think that after being moved along the same lines for millennia on end that the celestial body would've figured it out on it’s own.

“Princess, a pleasure for us to see. But your reason for visitation, what might they be?” a zebra cracked an eye at the Alicorn amidst their morning meditation.

“I wish to speak to your chieftain. Would I find them in the monastery?” Celestia replied with a kind smile, the kind that would rival the sun she rose with it’s warmth.

“Indeed you would. I’d show you the way, if I could.” The zebra smiled in reply, motioning towards her legs which had been seemingly locked in place to balance upon a remarkably thin stick. Had the zebra moved in the slightest, Celestia was sure that injury would be the consequence.

“That’s quite alright. Thank you though.” Celestia gave a quick nod and took off at a casual walk through the monastery grounds. Looking back into her memory and comparing it to the surroundings before her, the Captain had once described images of the zebra homeland as african; whatever that meant. He described it as being very earthy, plenty of browns and greens in the art and style of decor.

“A mask for you, should love be true!” A zebra mask dealer offered as he lifted what looked like a mask from a pair, presumably the other would go to a special somepony or similar.

“Very lovely, but no thank you. I am unfortunately on business and cannot stop for souvenirs.” Celestia nodded back to the dealer as she continued down the mosaics stone path. Celestia had a number of stops to make today and the zebra monastery was the first down a very long list. Provided nothing hindered her progress, she figured she could be back in two weeks time.

“Approach no further! We wish not to convict you a burglar!” a guard demanded as Celestia placed a single hoof on the first step into the temple.

“Oh, don’t mind them.” an elderly mare of a zebra with who knows how many rings around her throat and a cloak of intricate designs and colours adorning her shoulders. “They mean you no harm. I must ask what your doing here, but first come inside where it’s warm.”

“Thank you, Elder.” Celestia continued the short trek up the steps, taking them four at a time with her significantly longer legs.

“At a time like this, we must be wary. For a war is upon us, we cannot tarry.” the elder replied with a faint smile. As soon as the doors into the elder’s room had swung shut, the Elder gave a sigh and pulled her cloak off. “Seriously though what is it with zebra’s and the rhyming thing? It just get’s harder the older you get!”

“I’ve always assumed that it was a form of formal speaking. Or perhaps it’s not and a lack of pentameter indicated formal speaking?” Celestia looked thoughtfully at one of her oldest friends.

“Either way, it’s quite exhausting having to use it so early in the morning. Speaking of early in the morning, too what do I owe the pleasure?” The elder asked as she began pouring a green/herbal tea from a fired clay pot into two cups for the figures of authority.

“I wish it was for a social call,” Celestia replied, pulling the hood off her head. The Zebra raised a curious eyebrow at the lack of crown adorning the alicorn and made a note. “But as you can see, i’m not here on official Equestrian business.”

“So it seems. If that is the case… You seek the Azeroth stones…” The zebra sighed and took a sip of her tea, as did Celestia who smiled sheepishly. “What have you seen, Princess, that requires such ancient stones?”

“I’ve seen the end of it all. Not just for Equestria, but for all of us.” Celestia admitted under her breath. She didn’t want to risk any guards outside overhearing her voice and causing undue trouble for her.

“I see…” The elder zebra slowly played her her cup, swirling the remainder of the liquids within. “This is very grave news indeed. What happens if you find the stones and can use them in time? Are we all saved?”

“Not guaranteed, no. We’ll just have an easier time at saving everything.” Celestia slowly shook her head and took another worried sip.

“And if you fail or are late?”

“Then I hope whatever deities you pray to are lenient.” Celestia replied sternly, instantly setting the mood.

“That bad, huh? Well, I’ll have our archivists bring everything we have on the Azeroth Stones to a private guest room, if you wish to remain long enough to do so.”

“I would appreciate that, thank you old friend.” Celestia stood and downed the remainder of her tea before turning to remove herself from the elder’s chambers.

“Oh please, i‘m no where near old enough for you to call me that. I’m certain you’ve had older friends than I.” the mare chuckled as Celestia stepped through the doors to be escorted to her new temporary abode.

This was going to be a long day.

~~~

“Do you think it wise to go alone? Not in a hundred years has a zebra gone below.” the elder asked curiously as she stood next to Celestia with a pair of guards on either side of them. Celestia had scoured through the provided literary material over the course of the morning and had discovered an entrance to a hidden cave at the northern outskirts of the monastery.

“I’ll be fine. I didn’t come to be Princess through sheer will and by raising the sun every morning. I can take care of myself.” Celestia replied, staring down into the depths below. If the first of five Azeroth stones was down there, Celestia had no choice but to retrieve it from the claws of whatever dwelled within.

“We still offer you a weapon of your choosing. We cannot stand the thought of you losing.” A guard replied, shifting around nervously but remaining in position. Celestia’s horn glowed brightly and a long poleaxe shimmered into view, pulsing with solar energy.

“Who ever said I would lose?” Celestia grinned before taking the first step into the cavern.

“Good luck!” the elder bade before she and the four guards turned away to resume their daily duties.

“I’m going to need it.” Celestia muttered under her breath, magically pulling her cloak tighter around her body. “I hope I can get back out in time to lower the sun again. I may have to let Luna handle both for a night; that’ll really unnerve her if my disappearance already hasn’t.” Gradually the slope began to increase in angle until Celestia was all but forced to spread her wings to keep from sliding down in a rockslide of her own design.

Suddenly the ground dropped away altogether, leading into an enormous cavern barely lit save for the glow of Celestia’s horn as she held her weapon close to her.

“A certain death for anypony unable to achieve flight, for sure.” Celestia mumbled as her horn cast a wider glow around her, illuminating the immediate darkness of her surroundings.

Gliding towards the ground, Celestia was forced to pull up sharply and spin her poleaxe downwards as what looked like a massive worm or eel leapt up to greet her with maw open and hundreds of rows of razor teeth all eagerly to tear her limb from limb.

“Woah, forgot about you guys…” Celestia exclaimed, keeping out of the range of the eels as they repeatedly burrowed into the ground before popping back out again for lunch. “I suppose that’s what happens when you’re out of sight. Now,” Celestia cast a beam of light forwards to search for an indication of direction for travel. “Where am I going?”

“That isssssss an exccccccellent quessssssstion. What isssssss a pony princcccccesssss doing way down here? How did you even manage to find ussssss?” An eel demanded from below, warily watching the only source of light as it soared overhead; looking for another cave entrance to follow.

“Oh, you speak. My apologies, I was unaware that you had intelligence.” Celestia replied, holding relatively still but remaining out of the reach of the others.

“I ssssssupposssssse that’sssss what happensssss after a dozen ccccenturiesssssss underground. I’ll be honesssssst though. I’m probably the mossssssst intelligent one of ussssssss.” the eel replied, still watching hungrily. “You mussssst excusssssse my brothersssss and ssssssissssssterssssss. We haven’t fed on anything ssssubsssstantial in ssssseemingly eonsssssss!”

“Then how’ve you remained down here for so long? I can’t imagine there are many good sources of meat down here. Why not move elsewhere?” Celestia remarked while poking the nose of a particularly hungry eel with the tip of her axe heads.

“Oh pleasssssse. Where would we go? You know asssss well asssss I do that we’d be quickly driven off for caussssssing quite a disssturbanccccce when coming up to feed.” the eel rolled it’s eyes and Celestia had to admit, she was having a hard time with the fact that the eel didn’t seem to have any sort of gender identifier in it’s voice.

“I see your point. Look, I apologize but i’m wasting time. There wouldn’t happen to be an Azeroth stone down there, would there?” Celestia requested kindly. The sudden tension in the air became stifling as every eel previously attempting to kill her suddenly stopped and stared at the alicorn in shock.

“Uhhh, nope, sssssorry there’sssss nothing down here like that!” The eel exclaimed hurriedly as the entire cavern floor previously writhing with eels was suddenly vacated, leaving Celestia both worried and able to safely land among piles of various animal bones.

“I see… What under my sun would have had that kind of effect on them?” Celestia wondered out loud as she scanned the walls for any sort of indication.

Her light passed over a symbol scratched into the wall, just over the entrance to another tunnel and caught her eye. Cantering to the tunnel entrance, Celestia pulled some of her notes out to search through for the symbol she was certain she’d seen before.

“There it is… I knew I remembered reading about this…” Celestia mumbled, lifting the page up to compare the symbols. They were identical. Stuffing her notes back into her saddlebags under her cloak, Celestia bravely set hoof into the corridor as she relied on her magic to illuminate her path. “I would still like to know what caused those eels to run like that?” Celestia wondered as she continued deeper.

Slowly but surely, the passage seemed to light itself up and the need for a cloak to warm her slowly declined. A dull red glow seemed to seep in from ahead of her, as did the gradually increasing heat, until finally Celestia stood out on a ledge just large enough for her to stand on over what appeared to be the heart of an active volcano.

“Ahh, I suppose that would do it.” Celestia noted as she stared down at the magmatic flows beneath her and at what appeared to be magma golems of some kind, either lounging around mindlessly or taking a dip in the liquid rock nearby. “Well, this certainly will be troublesome…”