Prolouge View OnlineMystery MareProlouge Prolouge A pack of blazing fire outlined the chimney edges, stretching onwards to the wooden, decorated floor. The rest of Twilight's surroundings were shrouded in shadows, swallowing their way up to her tail. Its warmness scorched the alicorn's back, prompting her into unfurling her wings. Everything else was serene, further supported by the flickering moonlight filtering through the golden-framed window overhead—yet it still didn't match the sudden appearance of an off-white princess all ponies knew and loved, lying on a rich, purple cushion before the contained flames and Twilight. Her shoeless front hooves enveloped a cup of warm chocolate milk. "Do you need me to adjust that?" Twilight asked Princess Celestia, preparing to wrack up the magic within her by the magenta-colored aura of her horn. "You've served me enough already, Twilight," Celestia's hoarse whisper drifted back, contrary to the glint of mischief in the elder pony's eyes as she added, "I think I can lift that cup up by myself." Twilight watched on with worry as Celestia strained for her sunny magic field; only a spark bounced off and onto the cup, dissolving into nothing faster than it struck. Her former mentor gauged it for a few moments, expression impassive, though it soon gave way to despondence. Releasing a soft sigh, the monarch then situated her head back on her hooves, as if she'd lost the will to keep her chin high. Twilight instantly levitated the cup over to Celestia's side, who all but stared at it before averting her violet gaze to Twilight's. "Twilight," she began, earning younger ruler's utter attention. "They're approaching. They're going to disrupt the chaos. You know that, don't you?" Twilight's heart sank. "Yes, Your Majesty," she whispered, keen on keeping her voice contained. This had to strike sooner or later, she mused—she just didn't think it was going to be so abrupt and straight to the point. Another symptom of Celestia's changing demeanor. "Trying to keep them at bay will be a very difficult job—which won't last, might I add. With me, you, the rest of the alicorns, and Flurry Heart here…" Celestia's ears folded against her head, and for a moment her ancient age was reflected in the dim spark of her depthless eyes. "I always knew this would mark instability, yet…" "Celestia, no…" The words tore at Twilight's heart like the teeth of a malicious hydra. "The alicorns are needed here, and they can't back down because of a threat. You're needed here." Celestia stared at Twilight for a moment, a moment that seemed to last for moons, before she dropped her eyes back to her hooves. "I am powerless against them." Her words were strained and sour. "I cannot stop them, nor can all of us together. We don't even morph into a quarter of the powers they possess." Twilight's scalp prickled. Celestia wasn't even trying to feign confidence anymore. This was more dangerous than all the foes Equestria had faced before. And she sort of understood why. She acknowledged the fact that Celestia was trying to be honest with her, to finally discuss it thoroughly—but this wasn't what she expecting. Never in a million years did she anticipate seeing the ruler of Equestria—her mentor ever since she was a tiny filly—so helpless. And what if this doesn't have to do with propriety and trust? I've seen her before. Her hooves trembled, and she tucked them out of the fellow princess' prying eyes. She's changed. That certainly didn't help her immense nausea, either. Sure, she had ginormous wings now, an elongated horn, and a shining tiara, but she couldn't for the sake of her homeland extract her habitual anxieties. Her six best friends not by her side fueled her fear even more—even Starlight, her current pupil, couldn't attend, having been busy visiting her childhood companion, Sunburst. Starlight had apologized greatly, fearing that the lack of her presence would displease Twilight, but she'd shaken her head then. "Thank you, Starlight," Twilight had said, shooting the pale pony a sincere smile, "but I need to do this on my own. It's my duty as a princess." Starlight had shuffled her hooves for a moment, her reluctance clear in the faded castle suit, but then she had given a tight nod none-too-late. "Thank you," she'd echoed feebly. Her mouth had remained agape for a moment, as if she'd wanted to say something, but she'd eventually turned on her hoof and departed in a hurry. Yet while granting Starlight the chance of seeing her best friend from far away made sense, Twilight couldn't help the regret that simmered beneath her skin at being exposed to such an intense discussion alone again. I wish I'd brought one of the girls with me, she thought mournfully. Unethical or ethical, Twilight could feel the pretense of calmness abandoning her in a drain, all the way from her ears to the intricate threshold the duo were perched upon, one proving the need for that more than the other. In front of Celestia—the new, dull, lifeless Celestia—Twilight was powerless. "I don't think we can win this, Twilight. Not against them." Twilight shivered, terror seizing control of her limbs. We must! She shrieked silently. She knew Celestia was right, really she did, but the idea of giving up was… foreign—especially when it was shoved forth by Celestia, the most powerful being in Equestria, the habitants' savior. I can't believe it… I can't hear any of this anymore… She finally unleashed the anxiety of numerous days. "No!" She snapped, banging front hooves on the ground before them, the blood roaring in her ears like the massive explosion of a volcano. "I will not let them win!"
Cloaked Ponies are Always the Thieves View OnlineMystery MareCloaked Ponies are Always the Thieves Cloaked Ponies are Always the Thieves Flurry Heart bit down on her warm bread, savoring the texture spreading over her mouth as she watched Golden Wheat go about her job. The crystalline mare was situated next to her ever-so-radiant stand, which read BREAD FOR SALE, and was shouting out the occasion. "Come on up, everypon— oh, yes, yes, Arctic Lily. Two, right? Four bi— right there, sir, let me just... Preparing yours, Ms. Shard!" Sighing, Flurry Heart filtered out the clamor as she toyed with her levitated piece. It was common knowledge that Wheat needed co-workers for her havoc, but the hardworking, independent owner would never admit it. She'd eavesdropped on a conversation oriented around this the other day, and Wheat had denied help in a sugary, frenzied manner. Well, she can keep dealing with this if she wants. Flurry Heart began rising to her hooves, her oversized wings tucked tightly underneath the piece of cloth she'd stolen from a maid's closet. Looks like waiting out here and hoping Wheat would accept her offer was for nothing. Okay, okay, she didn't even try, but she knew what the obvious answer was. It wasn't like she was scared of confronting Wheat or anything. She didn't want trouble. But trouble seemed to find her anyway. As she was about to take the first hoofstep out of the crowded area, two burly figures—stallions, by their build—hurled themselves past her. An almost-instantaneous shriek followed their tracks. "Thief, thief right there!" Flurry Heart's ears pricked in alert, and she watched the shadowed stallions depart full-pelt with wide eyes. "You're mine!" She hollered, about to echo their route, but a heavy weight crashed down upon her. "Stop!" Wheat's hooves dug deep into her back, and the mare titled her neck so that she was eye-level with a flattened Flurry Heart. "What do you think you're doing, stealing my products?" Flurry Heart remained silent, shocked a moment too long, but her voice rushed back into her mouth. "It wasn't me!" She snapped, trying to wriggle out of Wheat's hawk-like grasp. "It wasn't me, I swear to you!" "Cloaked ponies are always the thieves!" Wheat's voice was acidic. "A hooded pony, one I don't remember approaching my stand. Do you know how long it takes for these to get harvested? Show yourself!" Before Flurry Heart knew it, the furious owner was nosing her up, revealing hundreds of ponies in her wake. They all stared, wide-eyed, some disgusted, at the unfolding scene. But that wasn't what worried Flurry Heart the most. My wings! My wings are getting exposed! Panic welled up in her throat, robbing her of her reflexives once again, and she curled into a tight, panicked ball. Would all of it really end right here, right now, at a stand congregation? Wheat inched closer and closer, jaws agape to tug at her cloak. She slowly lifted the hem up, and with it came her pastel-colored hindquarters… "Wait! Wait up, everypony! I found the actual thieves!" Safety slowed down Flurry Heart's racing heartbeat. Sunburst! Ahead of her stood her mentor, his horn glowing the brightest of skies, its mesmerizing yet powerful aura clutching the two stallions she'd attempted chasing. The larger one, bearded and stocky, was writhing at his shimmering prison, while the smaller one, concealed by a cloak still, sat in dejection. "It was a pure coincidence, but I could tell them out by the way they were running." He then motioned to her, still enclosed by Wheat's baffled clutch. "She's innocent, Ms. Wheat." Flurry Heart closed her eyes, weak with security, and she only stirred when a hoof poked at cheek. "Come on, Princess!" Sunburst's anxious, disembodied whisper said. "We need to get you out of here before the king arrives!" Groaning, Flurry Heart pushed her might up-straight, every limb screaming a protest, and scanned her surroundings. The crowd seemed to shift its attention, for they stared at Wheat as she stalked up to the thieves and gave each one of them a clout around the ears. Her moving mouth pantomimed a never-ending lecture. "Right, right." Trying to go steady proved to be a hard job with all the trembling going on, but she eventually managed to rise and follow Sunburst behind an outcrop of crystal a little ways off. "What were you you thinking!" Sunburst snarled the nanosecond they were shielded by the boulder. Flurry Heart unleashed a grown, while her hoof slipped under her cloak to massage her feathers. "Don't even start with me." But, of course, Sunburst was adamant on giving her a head migraine. "This is simply unacceptable, Your Highness! I—" "You know," Flurry Heart interrupted, "you don't have to call me that." Her request was ignored. "Sneaking off castle grounds like that is going to get you in severe trouble! How long do you think I can cover up for you in front of King Shining Armor?" "Pops is too busy for that." Adjusting the hem of her cloak, she stiffly stood up. "Besides, Teach, I know you wouldn't rat me out." Sunburst threw his head back and let out a prolonged sigh. "How much do I fear for you, Princess!" For the next few minutes, they trotted in silence—more like trudged in the princess' case—out of eyesight. The rest of the Crystal Empire's grandeur swam into view, shiny, transfixing, and utterly beautiful. Flurry Heart's home towered it, reflecting the dancing rays of the sun. A few more steps and they could spot the Crystal Heart. Sunburst was soundless. Her mentor kept looking back and forth, utterly anxious. Quite honestly, the murmur of the wind was too much on Flurry Heart's ears. "You don't need to." Hasty pause. "I'm grown-up and capable." "Not grown-up and capable enough to follow my orders, it seems." "Yes, I am! It's just that—" but she broke off. This comment had harder octaves, and Sunburst's jaws weren't even moving; he was glued to his spot, light and dark clashing in his horrified glance. Flurry Heart gulped. "Father."
Princesses Need Food, TooView OnlineMystery MarePrincesses Need Food, Too"Princess Flurry, would you like me to change these roses?" "No." "But, Your Highness, you've been staring at them for—" "No, Arrow Whizz." Rotating, Flurry turned a glare on her lady-in-waiting. The yellow pony bit down on her lower lip, blue mane mussed up, but the look the princess must have given her shut her up. "I'm fine, really." "O-oh. Okay." Shyly, Arrow Whizz reversed her light blue eyes to her hooves. "But if you need anything..." "I'll make sure to summon you." Boredly, Flurry plucked at a feather in her herculean wing, wondering why Father had nitpicked such a doormat to entertain her. Whizz was... alright, albeit bland. In fact, everything was bland these past days. Flurry couldn't help a wince from escaping her jaws every time she recalled the exchange between her and her father. "You're crown princess," the king had growled, his eyes narrowed in daggers just for Flurry Heart. "I expect you to handle your part well." "Oh, right, sorry. I forgot my entity's just being a princess." Flurry mock-pouted. "Tell a maid to add 'lock the window' next time around, Dad." "Something you should be handling?" Father's scowl deepened tenfold. "This is the third time I caught you off palace grounds myself, Flurry Heart, and it's not a good family image—" "Oh, right! Family image. Silly me. Well, thank the sun and the moon Sunburst veiled my wings there, eh?" The princess whirled on her hoof, about to depart. She'd had these types of lectures a little too many times already. Hornglowing the knob into submission, Flurry decided she'd swing by her mentor's study while she was at it. It would probably shut the rowdy king up, anyway. With one last distasteful glance over her shoulder, she strode her way out—with a bang? "Ouch!" Caressing her skull with a hoof, she peeked open a previously screwed-shut eye to see that her aura was still enfolding the doorknob, sky-blue and enticing... Wait. Her aura was sun-golden. "Dad, open the star-cursed door," she snapped to the snobby stallion, feeling her patience give way to annoyance. Silence followed, yielding Flurry no choice but to look her father in the eye. Yet as she was craning her neck, another blue-pigmented beam sliced through the air in the form of lightning, gliding locks of her mane up with its impact as it dashed precisely past her ear. Knowing what was about to come, Flurry unfurled gigantic wings, chancing a grating laugh before bolting into the air and hovering right underneath the ceiling. A mocking smirk adorned her features when her gaze met Shining Armor's once more. "A little too mad there, aren't ya?" She taunted, fluttering just out of reach when her father summoned hurtful magic her way. "Over here!" Crack! Flurry scrutinized a loose piece of crystal, now two bits as it fell to the light-deprived ground, with enlarged amusement. "Bad luck! Over here!" Snkkk! It went on like this for a while, father and daughter battling in their own bubble. Flurry would dodge, throw in a comment, and urge the furious king to circulate her with lethal shots. But none of them hit. None until now. Flurry had been outstretching her front hooves, churning them in the air as her limbs propelled her on a swim-motion, when a strike hit its target—something acutely unexpected. Everything else happened too fast: her eyes bulged with surprise. She attempted fluttering her wings to no avail. Her feathers ensconced her as she went crashing to the ground, the whole of her body twirling in her haste to slow down the fall, yet a deafening thump! accentuated her failure in doing so. Pain crippled her to the spot, disabling her ability to do anything more than pull herself up to a slouched sit. A faint pattering of hoofsteps pronounced Father's arrival, who all but had his hoof jabbed deep into her chest the next heartbeat. "You're going to obey me, got it?" The last of his stinging words echoed in Flurry's head as she cringed and shook her head, snapping herself out of the vivid flashback and overlooking her bedroom: stately, plentiful, and boring. And a couple of guards must be flanking it, too. Better than thinking about that crazy old stallion. Rolling out of the bed, ensuring that Arrow Whizz had departed as requested, she clipted over to the bedroom doors and cracked one open. The coast looked safe upon first glance, water-clear crystal shimmering in the disarray of the light leak, but it didn't take long for a gray guard to materialize—followed by his identical teammate. "Your Highness," he rumbled, dipping his head before straightening. As usual, both possessed yellow eyes similar to that of a preying eagle's. "Hey, there." Flurry went for casualty. These two would be her sole company for a while yet to come. "How's your day going, good sirs?" She'd already managed to ruffle the feathers of the second one, who seemed to employ interest in anything but the princess before him, though she had to give the first one credit: he met her head-on. Perhaps it was going to be harder to sneak out now. But she always liked a challenge. "Decently, Your Highness." "Anything new?" "Nothing I'm aware of, Your Highness." "Well..." Flurry shifted do that one of her feather brushed a guardpony's side, feigning sadness with her wide, cerulean eyes, pouting lips, and flushed cheeks. "I'm feeling rather lonely, Mister..." "Shard Shooter," the second one quipped, nervousness riling up his irises, though the first remained adamant on staring ahead aimlessly. That was easy. Paying little attention to the latter, Flurry bit back a smirk as she gave Shard Shooter a once-over. "My, my! What a lovely name you have. Are you a particularly adequate shooter?" To her amusement, Shooter nodded. "Adequacy and bravery are the key to a successful guardpony!" "Well, I'm just a princess. All I need to do is look pretty." Suggestive eyebrow wiggle. "You already have both of those— I mean, you don't just have any of those—" Shard Shooter trailed off, his scrunched snout speaking volumes of his confusion and ever-expanding embarrassment. Flurry almost felt bad for the awkward position she placed him in—almost. "That's okay," she reassured him smugly. "I know that I'm pretty great." She showcased her gradient wings and flipped her mane, the pride inside of her manifested firmly. Yes, she was the princess of the only pony kingdom to exist, heir to the throne, and overall just the best. She was no individual for being grounded. Shard Shooter eyed her admiringly, marking a job well done. "Well," she pushed, hooves prickling to weasel her way out, "princesses need food, too. Mind if I go to the kitchen?" Shard Shooter's expression creased with uneasiness, but Flurry figured he wasn't going to do much when it came to stopping the enchanting princess. With a good-natured salute, she veered towards the end of the hallway— "Halt!"
