Soul In the Sword

Chapter Two: An Unintended Royal Welcome

"Impossible..."

The sound of its voice shocked me, not expecting to hear it speak, sounding feminine and mature. I stumbled back and fell, landing on my rear and yelling in pain as I landed on a sharp twig and scraped my elbows on the rough ground. A gasp came from the creature as, what I'm now assuming is a she, took a step forward and held a hoof out tentatively, with what looked like a worried expression on her face, the sword seemingly forgotten.

"Oh my goodness! I didn't mean to startle you, are you alright?"

I tried to form a proper response, but my brain was still rebooting from the shock of hearing her speak. So I did the only thing I could at the time.

"Wha-huh?"

Her face changed to a look of concern as she withdrew her hoof and placed it back on the dirt floor of the forest.

"Oh no, did you hit your head?"

"I-I don't think so, no. W-who are you?"

A strange expression passed over her face for a moment that I couldn't quite place. It felt like suspicion and confusion, but the look left as fast as it came.

"I am...Princess Celestia, the co-ruler of Equestria, along with my sister. Forgive me for asking, but...you are not from here, are you?"

I froze as her words repeated in my head.

Equestria? Well, I guess that confirms what I already knew...I'm not on earth anymore...

"Are you sure you are alright? You seem to be a tad...disoriented."

My eyes met Celestia's, and then lowered back to the ground.

"I...I'm fine. Just a little confused. I've never seen anything like you before. What are you?"

Celestia's eyes widened, in shock or offense, I can't tell. Damn it, did I just accidentally insult royalty!?

"Sorry! I didn't mean to be rude! Please don't hurt me..." I raised my arms to my face to shield myself from whatever royal wrath I was going to receive.

"..."

That's weird. She isn't...hurting me?

I slowly began to lower my arms to see the expression on Celestia's face. Instead of anger or disdain, it was an expression of sadness that she wore.

"Why would I hurt you? You've done nothing wro-" she cut herself off as she noticed the sword in my hand, easily visible in front of my face since I was trying to shield myself from an attack that would never come. I hope...

"...Where did you get that blade?" Her gaze held an intensity that I couldn't describe as she kept her eyes glued to the sword.

"Huh?"

"Where did you get that blade!? Please, tell me!" Tears were forming in her eyes as she raised her voice.

Arms shaking from the sudden shift in demeanor, and caught completely off guard, I could only point a quivering finger back to the cave and give a weak response, still scared of being attacked.

"I-I-In there. The cave, next to the-" I gulped, and looked back to the ground. "The unicorn bones..."

Celestia's eyes widened before she ran past me, almost trampling me in her rush to enter the cave. I tried to stand, only to fall over.

Oh...adrenaline rush must be wearing off...

My second attempt worked much better than the first, using the wall of the cave entrance to steady myself. I entered the cave to see Celestia just...stare at the pile of bones in front of her. Her eyes spoke of immense sadness and grief, tears freely falling from her eyes as she turned her head to me.

"This one?"

I nodded slowly, unsure as to what was happening. Did she know this unicorn? Celestia's legs seemed to be failing to support her. She fell, lying on her stomach and openly wept, chocked sobs and sniffles coming from her slender muzzle.

"Oh...oh Sunlight...I had hoped..." Still sobbing, the winged unicorn threw her head back and wailed in anguish, the sound echoing through the cave.

"I'm so sorry! I'm sorry I couldn't protect you! My greatest friend, I'm so sorry!"

There's no doubt. She knew this unicorn...

I stumbled over to Celestia, surprisingly steady on my feet. Standing next to her, I dropped the blade, knelt down, and wrapped my arms around her long neck, giving the grieving creature a hug as best as I can. She stiffened for a moment, before looking at me.

Those eyes. Those eyes were haunting. They say that eyes are the window to the soul, and her soul was suffering. How could...how could anyone deal with that amount of pain?

She simply laid her head on my shoulder and cried. I tried to soothe her as best as I could, stroking her neck and whispering that it's okay. I...I was afraid before. Afraid of her. This isn't some callous royal who cares nothing for others, but someone who needed someone there for her. Any fear I held for this beautiful creature faded when I saw how grief stricken she was over the death of whoever this unicorn is.

I lost track of how long we sat there for. It felt like hours, just listening to Celestia cry and sob, stroking and petting her neck and mane. My knees hurt, but it didn't matter. She obviously needed this. Eventually, she stopped crying and sobbing, but she sniffled every few seconds. Gently lifting her head from my neck, she looked almost...apologetic?

"I'm sorry, you shouldn't have had to see that. That wasn't...my best first impression."

I shook my head and looked to her.

"This unicorn was obviously important to you. Don't...don't apologize for grieving, for caring."

She turned her head back to the pile of bones and gazed sadly at them, hey eyes threatening to spill more tears. I hugged her tighter.

"Who was she?"

Celestia didn't move. It was several more moments before she answered.

"Her name was...Sunlight Spirals..."

My eyes widened. That's the name that the voice in my head called herself! That...that can't be a coincidence...

My widening eyes went unnoticed, as Celestia continued.

"She was...was my daughter, in a way. I raised her from a young age, took her as a student, taught her everything I could. I was...hoping to prepare her for the world of royalty, but..."

A chocked sob escaped as she struggled to get the words out.

"But she always hated it. She always hated the nature of politics and didn't see the point. Sunlight was always straightforward and blunt, and saw no reason for politicians to be the way they were...and still are..."

A few new tears streamed down her muzzle.

"One day...she left. She left the castle to become an adventurer. I didn't want to force something on her that she would hate, so..."

Celestia glanced towards the sword that I had dropped before, and another sob could be heard.

"I didn't want to send her out without doing what I could, so...so I made her that sword. I made it with my blood, sweat, and tears, so that it may ensure my daughter's safety, but..."

She started shaking, either from grief or fatigue. Or both.

"Clearly that wasn't enough..."

A few moments passed before Celestia seemed well enough to stand again, startling me with the sudden movement and making me break off the hug. Sniffling, she looked at me, still kneeling on the ground, and smiled sadly.

"It's...it's nice to have some closure. I always wondered what happened to her after she left the castle. I had heard rumors every so often about her, but after a while...there weren't any new rumors..."

Looking away, she shook again. I could see another tear escape, which she quickly wiped away with a hoof.

"What was she like?" I asked as she turned to face me.

"Sunlight was...Sunlight was unlike any other pony I have ever met in the thousands of years I've lived for."

What?! Thousands of years?! There's no way...is there?

Ignorant to my thoughts, Celestia continued.

"She was brave, reckless, independent, and intelligent. Sunlight didn't let anything stop her. Every obstacle was simply a challenge to be overcome, every problem was a new puzzle to solve. She had a gifted mind and was a magical prodigy. Magic came as naturally as her as breathing to you or I. Though she had little control over her magic at first..."

Celestia's eyes glazed over as if she were remembering some distant event.

"Cele...Princess?"

Celestia looked to me, smiling softly.

"Please, call me Celestia. There is no need for formality for somepony who comforted an old mare like me in her time of grief."

Her eyebrow rose as a more questioning and inquisitive look replaced her soft smile.

"Though I must ask...what are you? I've never seen a creature like you before."

She must have noticed the widening of my eyes and the sadness on my face.

"What's wrong? Did something happen?"

I didn't know how to answer that. Did something happen? Of course something happened! I'm...I'm all alone now...

"I'm...human. I guess that answers some other questions I had though..."

Celestia sat next to me and gently placed a wing over my back and pulled me closer, probably trying to comfort me.

"It's okay if you don't want to tell me what happened. If it's within my power though, I will help with whatever is wrong."

I gulped and looked down, not meeting her gaze.

"It's...not that I don't want to tell you, It's just...I don't know where to start."

She laughed softly, the action causing the wing draped over me to move back and forth.

"The beginning is always a good place to start."

Heh..this one has a sense of humor.

"Well, I don't think I'm on the same planet I came from."

Celestia's eyes widened a tad and her eyebrows rose with them, though she made no action to indicate fear or suspicion.

"Why do you think that...oh my goodness! I'm so sorry! With all the excitement, I never asked for your name!"

She looked more than a little embarrassed. I laughed sadly. "My name is Liam."

"Liam? That's an odd name, but I suppose it might make more sense where you are from. Now, why exactly do you think you are on another world, Liam?"

I looked over to the charred remains of the wooden wolf and cringed.

"That...wooden creature. There is nothing like that where I come from." I looked at Celestia. She was looking at the same corpse that I had been.

"Timberwolves? Those are rather commonplace in these woods. You have never seen one before?"

Timber...wolf? Oh wow, that's a bad pun. Whoever came up with that should be ashamed.

"Heh, no. We don't have timberwolves in my world. We don't have...whatever your species is called either. You look like a creature straight out of mythology. A unicorn crossed with a pegasus, and those just don't exist where I'm from."

She giggled and put a hoof to her muzzle.

Why is that so cute?

"My species are called alicorns. You are partially correct about what I am. I, and those like me, embody all three pony tribes. Unicorns, pegasi, and earth ponies."

Well that's interesting. Others like her, huh? I wonder how many there are.

I looked back to where I dropped the sword, and frowned softly.

I also wonder...what exactly happened to Sunlight, and why did her sword react like that when I picked it up?

"Uh, Princess?"

I looked back to her. She had an eyebrow quirked and was giving me a look.

"Uh, sorry. Celestia, could I see the sword again? There is something I want to test."

After I corrected myself, her smile came back, and her horn started to glow.

What is she...

Movement out of the corner of my eye caught my attention and I jumped slightly, startled by the sword being so close to me and...floating!?

"What the..."

Celestia giggled at the dumbstruck expression on my face and the sword floated a bit closer to me.

"Its name is Dawnbreaker. Go on, take it."

I firmly gripped the handle of the sword as the golden glow around her horn and the sword faded. It felt...odd. Almost like I could feel emotions coming from the sword.

That's...definitely not normal. What kind of sword is this?

I heard something like TV static in my head as soon as I thought that. It was so loud and disorienting! I dropped the blade onto the cave floor beneath me. Celestia looked at me in worry as I held my hand to my ear.

"Are you alright? What happened?"

After a moment, the static slowly started to go away. I let go of my ear and looked down at the sword.

"I don't know. It was like...empty noise in my head. That's not normal, is it?"

Celestia frowned softly, and looked at the sword with a hint of suspicion.

"No, it most certainly is not..."

I reached for the sword again, when a white hoof placed itself on my hand.

"You looked as though you were in pain. Are you sure you want to try again?"

I nodded, feeling as though there was more to this than I could see at first glance.

"Yeah. I've just got this feeling..."

I gripped the handle again and raised the sword in front of me. The static started again almost immediately, but it sounded almost like...like someone was trying to talk to me.

Ca...you...hea....me...Pl...hear....

What? Who's there? Who are you!?

The static was slowly fading, and the sword started to glow a bright orange.

Can...hear me? Come on....ridiculous!

"I hear you! Who are you!?"

Celestia wore a concerned look as she looked between me and the sword.

"Liam, maybe you should- Liam!"

My whole body started to glow the same orange as the sword and I slowly rose into the air, unintentionally pushing Celestia's wing off of my back.

"Liam! Don't worry, I'll stop this!"

The orange glow surrounding me grew brighter, until I had to close my eyes from the intense light. I could barely hear Celestia yelling something to me before everything went white.

I slowly opened my eyes, feeling a pain in my head.

"Celestia? What happened?" I groggily asked as I sat up.

There was nothing but pure white in all directions. I couldn't believe what I was I seeing.

There's no way this is...

"Finally. It's a good thing I thought to just forge a magical connection and talk to you this way."

I froze. That wasn't Celestia. It almost sounded like...

"Sunlight?" I asked, turning to look behind me.

There was a bright red unicorn standing there, with a mane the color of fire and eyes of gold.

"No, I'm the Olden Pony! Of course it's me! Who else's soul is trapped in this damn sword?!"

"You're...trapped in here?"

Sunlight sighed as she looked away from me.

"Unfortunately, yes. I made an enemy of some seriously evil characters and after I fell for some stupid trap, my soul was ripped from my body and shoved into this thing! I think...they said they wanted to use my power against Celestia. I couldn't let them do that..."

"But if they killed you, how would they be able to use your power?"

"Magic is...a very complex thing. Just because my body perished, doesn't mean my power is gone. A unicorn's magic is fueled largely by their emotions and their soul. I think they hoped that by destroying my body and weakening me, that they could overpower my magic with their own, and force me to obey them."

A dark grin crossed her face. I never thought a pastel horse could be scary, but that smile...

"They learned very quickly why that was a bad idea."

"What...what happened?"

The cocky grin that Sunlight now sported was less unnerving than the smile she had before, but it still carried a trace of maliciousness in it.

"I incinerated them. They tried to use their combined magic to subjugate me, but I pushed back. I'm amazed those weaklings had the power to trap me in the first place, considering how easy their magic was to overpower. Though I did have a direct link to them, similarly to the link I now share with you."

I gulped, assuming the worst.

"You're not planning to incinerate me, are you?"

She laughed. The sound was melodic and cheerful.

"No, Liam. I don't plan to hurt you. Quite the opposite, in fact. This wasn't a peaceful world when I died, and I doubt it's peaceful now, even with hundreds of years having gone by."

Sunlight's steps made no noise in this world of white as she approached my still sitting self, and she placed her hoof on my shoulder.

"I felt your resolve. You're a survivor, just like me...like I was. You can make a difference in this world."

I waited for the punchline, for her to laugh. That had to be a joke, right? Me? What can I do? I could barely handle one monster.

"How can someone as weak as me make a difference?"

She smiled softly at me and drew me into a hug, surprising me.

"I'll be right there with you, Liam. You can depend on me to help keep you safe. Besides, you're not as weak as you might think."

Gripping me tighter, I could feel something wet land on my back.

Are those tears?

"Only someone magically gifted could have woken me from my self induced slumber and wielded my blade with such efficiency. A weak creature would have been destroyed by my magic."

I gently returned the hug, noticing how soft her coat is.

"Why me though? Why would you...want to come with me of all people?"

Sunlight pulled back and looked into my eyes. She was smiling, but the trails of tears on her face were very noticeable.

"Because you've saved me, Liam! You've saved me from an eternity alone, saved me from rotting away in this cave and fading away into obscurity!"

Letting go of me, she backed up a few steps and saluted. Her expression reminded me of a soldier, stoic and stern.

"I was a knight of sorts before my death. I fought evil and protected the innocent. I can see your very soul, the same way you will be able to see mine, in time. I see your strength, your intelligence, your resolve. I see someone worthy to pledge myself to! I see a future warrior! I see a future leader! Liam, will you accept me, Sunlight Spirals, as your knight?"

I don't know why, but that question sparked something in me. A small flame that grew as I stared into her golden eyes, unable and unwilling to look away.

"Sunlight Spirals. I accept you, and welcome you as my knight."

The salute was dropped and the happiest expression I've ever seen spread across her face.

"Thank you, Liam. You won't regret this."

The white surrounding us started to darken, slowly approaching us. Sunlight seemed to notice and looked towards me again, offering a small smile.

"It seems as though you are waking up now. I'll talk to you more soon."

The darkness was so close now, just a few feet away from the two of us. Sunlight started walking away from me.

"How will you do that?"

She stopped, and looked back at me, still wearing that smile.

"You'll find out." She winked as the darkness swallowed us both.

Author's Note

Holy shit, this took way too long to complete!

Okay, so my life has been beyond chaotic since i uploaded the last chapter. Hopefully i can get a more solid writing schedule set up at some point. I'm not giving up on this fic, that's for sure.

Feel free to point out and typos or errors, and feel free to give constructive criticism! Im still learning, after all!