The Elder Scrolls: Return of the Crystal Empireby Urimas EbonheartChaptersChapter 1Chapter 2Chapter 3Chapter 1The Elder Scrolls: Return of the Crystal Empire Chapter 1 The airship is now making preparations to land on the airship docks of Canterlot. I watch the crew getting supplies and equipment ready to disembark. I look over the railing and spot Luna, Moonbeam, and Tala all waiting for me. The sight of them alone makes me smile as I jump overboard and descend with my armour's wings. I land in front of them and remove my helmet, only to be tackled onto my back by Luna who peppers my face with kisses. "I missed you so much!" she tells me and resumes kissing me, not caring about all the staring we're getting from the dock workers. "And I missed you all as well," I reply as she finally lets me up. "DADDY!" Moonbeam yells and I smile as I pick her up for a hug. "Hello, Moonbeam. Did you behave for Luna?" I ask her getting a nod in return. "Uh-huh! I've been practising my magic while you were gone," she tells me. "That's good. You'll have to show me later. Right now though, I'd rather just relax and rest for today," I say and put her down. Tala barks at me with her tail wagging which makes me chuckle. "It's good to see you too, Tala. Did you keep an eye on Moonbeam?" I ask her getting a huff from the little unicorn filly. The timberwolf pup barks again in acknowledgement. Luna then walks over and nuzzles me with a sigh. "Come, let's get you something to eat and drink. You can tell me and my sister what has happened in Gryphus," she says and uses her magic to tug on my hand, but my ring negates her attempt to pull me along. "Sure. I'm just glad it's over and I'm home," I reply and scratch Luna behind her left ear. She hums happily and leans into my hand. Rainbow Dash lands beside me with her griffon friend. "I'm gonna head back to Ponyville. Gilda here still needs to apologise to my friends," she tells me. Gilda just grunts. "Alright. Make sure you keep practising with your spells," I tell her. "Sure! See ya later!" she says and flies off with Gilda. Reluctantly, Luna pulls away and walks back to the castle. Moonbeam, Tala, and I follow behind her to the Dining Hall where Celestia is eating a salad at the table with a small pile of paper in front of her. She looks up from a scroll she's reading and smiles at us. "Ah, Farengar! Welcome back. I take it you are well?" she asks me. "I'm doing fine. Just tired from the whole ordeal with Razor Beak. Hopefully I can now relax and spend some time with my family," I reply getting Luna to happily nuzzle me again. "We received the reports from Sargent Stalwart Aegis already. The deaths of our guards during the attack is a great loss, but it cannot be helped to stop such a cruel individual. Thank you for putting an end to such a tyrant," Celestia tells me with a sad smile. I nodded in reply. "I was going to kill him anyway for threatening Luna, Moonbeam, and myself." "It was for the best. Now with him out of the picture, his organisation will fall apart and disband," Luna says and sits down at the table. I join her with Moonbeam as well. We all order a light meal and wait for our orders. "So what has been going on around here while I was away?" I ask the alicorns. Celestia looks at me from her scroll. "Not much. There have been reports of dragon sightings near the border but they're keeping their distance for now," she tells me and writes something down on the parchment she's reading. "Paarthurnax is helping Sahloknir's family to settle in at Mount Drakan while Sahloknir has told us all he knows about Alduin and his assets," Luna then tells me. "And what does he have?" I ask them. Celestia sighs and rubs her forehead lightly. "It seems he has at least over three quarters of the dragons under his control. There's also rumours that he's subjugating diamond dog clans, most likely to dig up gems and ore for him. As well as a few others races... Including ponies." I frown in thought. I understand that dragons eat gems, but what could they need ore for? "What do you think they would want the ore for?" I ask confused. "We think he's trying to arm an army made up of other races. We believe he has either threatened them to do as he says or some form of mind control is in effect," Luna tells me. "I see... What do you intend to do about it?" I ask as our food finally arrives. "We're not sure yet, we'll have to call another meeting with the other races and decide on what to do. We alone wouldn't be able to march into dragon territory without heavy losses," Celestia replies and stacks her papers into a neat pile. "True. It would be beneficial to see if I could teach the others races to use my magic or not. The more that can do it the better our chances of fighting the dragons and their forces are," I say and then take a bite out of my food. So much better than the rations on the ship. "Yes, but for now we shall just wait for the other nations to arrive. I take it you shall continue to train in the meantime?" Celestia asks me. "Correct. I still have many spells I need to learn and relearn," I reply. "Well, before that. You and I are going to relax for the rest of the day! I want some cuddles," Luna says and nuzzles me again. Celestia shakes her head at the sight but has a smile on her face. Moonbeam is giggling while Tala just looks at us with a slightly tilted head. I take a deep breath and sigh contently. I'm home, and I hope this peaceful moment lasts a while. Author's Note It's been a over a year since we last heard from our Dragonborn nord! Now he's back! Chapter 2The Elder Scrolls: Return of the Crystal Empire Chapter 2 After lunch, Luna, Moonbeam, Tala, and I head up to Luna's room where Luna strips me of my armour and weapons leaving me in just my tunic and trousers. She looks at Sheogorath's staff with a frown before putting it on the table. She then pushes me onto the bed and lays next to my left side with her head on my chest and a smile on her face. "Hmmmm, I missed this. It just doesn't feel the same in a dream," she says quietly and closes her eyes. I can agree with her there. When she visited my dreams, it just didn't feel like she was really with me. I felt her fur, the muscles underneath, but not the warmth like I'm feeling now. I look to my right and watch Moonbeam using her telekinesis to roll a rubber ball around the room where Tala gives chase. The sight makes me smile as I gently stroke Luna's mane with my left hand. "So, Luna. What would you like to do later?" I ask her. She cracks open an eye to look at me. "I'd like to go out for dinner. A nice quiet restaurant, just the two of us. Candlelight, roses... I want to feel like a mare with her stallion," she replies and nuzzles under my chin while being careful of her horn. For four hours we just relax in Luna's room, just enjoying each other's company. I'm revelling in the calm after all the fighting I did. Moonbeam stopped playing with Tala and was reading another one of those Daring Do books. But Luna gets hungry and wants to head out for dinner now. "Wait here, my love. I'm just going to get myself ready," she tells me and heads into a walk in closet while Tala and Moonbeam are just looking at me. I rummage through the pouch I had during the Gryphus incident and pull out the necklace Discord gave me and then a suit Luna had made for me from my clothes drawers. I quickly make my way into the bathroom and get dressed. After I finish getting the jacket on I can hear Luna stepping out into the bedroom. "Farengar?" I hear her call out. "I'm in the bathroom!" I reply and quickly put the necklace on. I feel my body shift back into an earth pony, but my right hoof feels harder and there's grey dragon scales going up to my knee. The suit also changes to fit my new form. Luna then walks in wearing a beautiful black form fitting dress. It has small diamonds attached that make the end near her hooves look like twinkling stars. There's a V cut on her left flank showing off her cutie-mark and she's wearing a silver necklace with an oval sapphire attached to it. Which reminds me, I need to get a necklace of the one I used to propose to her in the Dreamscape. "Looking beautiful, Luna," I tell her as she stares at me with wide eyes and her wings spring out knocking over a bottle of shampoo on the counter next to her. "Farengar? How are you a pony again?" Luna asks me while looking me over. "Discord gave me this necklace as a thank you for dealing with Sheogorath," I reply and lift the necklace with my left hoof. I then walk over to her. "So what will Moonbeam and Tala do while we're out?" I ask her. She manages to get her wings back to her sides before walking into the main bedroom. "I'll have one of the maids bring dinner and keep watch over Moonbeam and Tala for us until we return," she replies. "Alright, so where are we going?" I ask as we walk out of her room where Luna has her right wing wrapped around my back. "We shall be heading to a restaurant called the Rose Garden. I've been there once before, and it is very beautiful and the food is wonderful as well," she tells me. Luna gets a couple of maids to retrieve food and watch Moonbeam and Tala for us before we walk out into the city where guards bow to Luna. The ponies walking by move aside to allow us to pass while bowing to Luna as well as gawking at me since I'm as tall as Luna. 'Hmmm, we could attach a pair of fake wings and a horn to me and see how they’d react to me then.' I think to myself with a light chuckle. After a nice ten or so minute walk, we arrive at the restaurant which looks more like a garden than a building. The front is covered in vines with a few roses on them with the words The Rose Garden written in what appears to be roses as well. Luna uses her magic to open the door and walks in while holding it open for me. I walk in and stare wide eyed at the decor. It looks like someone took a piece of nature and stuffed it inside a building. Crystals line the ceiling simulating sunlight, small mounds of dirt covered with grass act as seats while the tables are made from tree stumps. Bushes, flowers, and small waterfalls line the walls and in the centre of it all is a fountain with fish swimming in it. "P-Princess Luna!" a white stallion with a short light blue mane in a suit stutters and quickly comes over. "It's an h-honour to have y-you here today!" he says nervously and bows to her. "We would like a table for two please," Luna tells him with a small nod. "O-Of course! Please f-follow me," he replies and leads us to a table near the fountain. We both sit down and the sweating stallion speaks up again. "A waitress will be by m-momentarily with y-your menus," he tells us and bows before running off. "He seemed a bit nervous," I comment with a smirk. Luna sighs and faintly smiles. "I would prefer everypony not tripping over themselves at my presence," she replies. I glance around at the other ponies eating here who quickly look away once I make eye contact with them. "Don't worry about it. So, how's your pregnancy coming along?" I ask her quietly. "I could do without the morning sickness every time I get up... but I'm getting used to it. And while some of the cravings I've been having seem to make others nauseous and the chef to almost throw away his five star rating, I find them delightful," she tells me. "Especially ice cream covered in hot sauce." I raise an eyebrow at what she just said. I'm curious as to what that would be like? Is it hot yet cold at the same time? "That sounds... interesting," I say in an unconvincing tone. "Maybe you should try some next time I have it?" she says with a smirk. "Maybe I will," I reply and smirk back. She giggles and then sighs. "Oh. Tia and I have been talking and have decided that with your performance at Gryphus, we're going to make you Captain of your own squad," she tells me without warning. Good thing I'm not drinking anything at the moment or I would have inhaled my drink. "What? Don't I have to pass the elite exam first?" I reply with confusion. "You did. You're overall results were more than satisfactory to allow you into the elite guard, but it was your performance during your trip to Gryphus that made us decide this," she tells me. "I see. So, what will I have to do as a Captain?" I ask her. "You will train your squad and get to know them," she replies as a waitress comes over. "Hello! Welcome to the Rose Garden! My name is Sweet Pea and I'll be your waitress for the evening!" The food was good and Luna seems happier than I've ever seen her. She tells me I’ll be able to select my own people for my squad and I have a few in mind already. We both pay half for the dinner each and then head back to the castle. A jeweller's shop catches my attention and I smile. "Luna, I'll meet you back at the Castle. I got something I want to check out first," I tell her getting a confused expression from her. "What do you want to check out?" she asks me. "It's a surprise. Go on, I'll be back soon," I reply and she sighs. "Very well. You better be back within the hour though!" she says and teleports away. I quickly head into the store and look around. "Welcome to..." the mare behind the counter starts but stops when she sees me. "Oh my... you're a big one aren't you," she comments as she has to tilt her head up to look me in the eye. "So I've been told. I'd like to know if you take custom orders?" I ask her. "Erm, we do. Is there something you'd like?" she replies and asks. I smile and begin describing the necklace I would like made for Luna. Chapter 3The Elder Scrolls: Return of the Crystal Empire Chapter 3 With my custom order made, I start making my way back to the Castle. Ponies continue to give me odd looks as I pass them but I just ignore them. I'm looking forward to just relaxing with my family for the next few days. This will also give me time to plan out who I want for my squad and how to train them in magic. A couple of foals run past me giggling as an older mare tries to keep up. "Slow down or you'll trip over!" she calls out to them making me smile. The trip back is uneventful and the guards let me pass. I head inside and make my way back up to Luna's room where I find Moonbeam, Tala, and Luna inside. "I'm back," I say getting their attention. "So what did you do?" Luna asks me with narrowed eyes. "Just something personal," I reply and then take off the amulet. I change back to normal and go back into the bathroom to change into my casual clothing. I come out and lay on the bed next to Luna. Tala jumps up and cuddles up against my waist and I pat her head gently. She's definitely getting bigger. "So, Moonbeam, I heard you taught Honour how to use telekinesis," I say to her. "Uh-huh. It was hard at first and he kept complaining, but he got it right eventually!" she replies and grins. "Sounds like you'd make a great teacher one day. So, how's school?" I then ask her. "It's okay, though the other ponies are a bit jealous of how fast I'm learning the healing spells, but I made a friend!" she tells me. "That's great. Maybe tomorrow you can show me how far you've come with your healing spell," I reply. After a couple more hours of just spending time together, it's time for bed. "Okay, Moonbeam. Time for bed," I tell her getting an 'aww' in protest. "But I'm not *yawn* tired," she replies and rubs her eyes. I chuckle and get up. I then pick her up making her giggle as I carry her out to her room. "After school tomorrow, how about we all go out for some ice cream?" I suggest making her nod rapidly. "Alright, get to sleep then," I tell her and put her down. She quickly runs into her room and onto her bed where she cuddles up to her bear toy. I smile and close her door. Walking back into Luna's room, I see her laid out on the bed reading a book. I walk over and remove my shirt and get on behind her. I wrap my arms around her chest and pull her against mine, making her giggle. "I'm trying to read here," she tells me. "What? You can't read and cuddle at the same time?" I ask and give her a slight squeeze. "OW!" she yelps and I pull my hands back. I look at my right hand to see a bit of blood on my sharp nails making me frown. "Sorry..." I say now in a sour mood. "It's fine..." she replies as her small cuts close up. She then grins and her horn glows as five corks appear. "Show me your hand," she tells me. I hold my hand out with a raised brow and she stuffs the corks one by one on the ends of my sharp nails. A smile returns to my face as I wiggle my fingers making the corks bump into each other. "There. Now you don't have to worry about poking me again," she says with a giggle. "Maybe I should just have my nails filed down," I say and wrap her back into hug. "No. There may be a time when you lose your weapons and will need a means to defend yourself... while inconvenient now, they may very well save yours or somepony else's life later," she tells me making me sigh and stroke her chest with my left hand. "Fair enough... So what shall we do tomorrow?" I ask her. "Hmmm. We shall take Moonbeam to school, then we shall begin putting together a squad for you, Captain Farengar. Then we shall send out the invitations to the other nations for another meeting," she replies with a smile. "I have a few ponies in mind already, Honour being one of them of course," I say and rest my chin on her neck. She leans back and nuzzles the top of my head. "He is progressing faster than any guard I have seen before. I'm starting to think Moonbeam would make a better instructor than the ones we already have," she says and giggles again. "Maybe. She could be a healer instructor, or maybe a healer for the medical wing of the Castle," I reply and kiss her neck getting a happy coo from her. "We will just have to see how the future plays out. But before that can pass, we need to deal with Alduin first," she tells me. "Right... we'll focus on him once the other nations arrive. Right now though, I just want to be with my woman," I reply and pull her tighter against me. She hums contently and we both just enjoy each other's company until we fall asleep. Dreamscape I open my eyes to find both Luna and I are on the bed of the small house I made in the dreamscape. She looks around and slowly gets off the bed. "Would you like to help me with my nightmare hunt?" she asks me as she stretches her limbs. "I would love to," I reply and get up. "Wonderful. Now we wait until a nightmare shows itself," she tells me and heads for the door. I follow her out and once outside, she looks around the area. She closes her eyes and the ground changes to a meadow while the sky turns into a beautiful night sky with a bright full moon. Trees start to grow around us and a large lake forms as well, making the moonlight reflect off its surface. Luna then turns her head to look at me as the moonlight makes her eyes shine beautifully. "Now then. I wish to try something since we first met the Daedric Prince," she says making me confused. Her horn glows and a flash of light blinds me. I feel the weight of armour placed onto me and blink my eyes to see Luna is gone. "Luna?" I call out and look at my hands to find dark blue gauntlets with crescent moons on the forearm guards. Even my right hand feels normal again with skin and no scales or claws. 'I'm here Farengar, I wished to see if I could replicate what Sheogorath did to me and it would appear I can,' she replies in my head. "Why?" I ask her. 'If we are to fight nightmares together, then why not as one together? Besides, unlike when Sheogorath did this to me, I couldn't feel anything but pain. Now, it feels like I'm hugging you from everywhere,' she says with a giggle. I notice the same black blade greatsword on the ground with the crescent moon handguard and pommel. I pick it up and grip it firmly. "I see," I say as I swing it around a few times. For the next few minutes I get used to having Luna as my armour again. It doesn't take long before a red mist appears near us. 'Well then, let us go banish a nightmare,' Luna tells me. I wave my hand in front of the mist and a window opens up showing a young colt being chased by disfigured slightly older colts chasing him and calling him names. I chuckle and jump through ready to help.
Chapter 1The Elder Scrolls: Return of the Crystal Empire Chapter 1 The airship is now making preparations to land on the airship docks of Canterlot. I watch the crew getting supplies and equipment ready to disembark. I look over the railing and spot Luna, Moonbeam, and Tala all waiting for me. The sight of them alone makes me smile as I jump overboard and descend with my armour's wings. I land in front of them and remove my helmet, only to be tackled onto my back by Luna who peppers my face with kisses. "I missed you so much!" she tells me and resumes kissing me, not caring about all the staring we're getting from the dock workers. "And I missed you all as well," I reply as she finally lets me up. "DADDY!" Moonbeam yells and I smile as I pick her up for a hug. "Hello, Moonbeam. Did you behave for Luna?" I ask her getting a nod in return. "Uh-huh! I've been practising my magic while you were gone," she tells me. "That's good. You'll have to show me later. Right now though, I'd rather just relax and rest for today," I say and put her down. Tala barks at me with her tail wagging which makes me chuckle. "It's good to see you too, Tala. Did you keep an eye on Moonbeam?" I ask her getting a huff from the little unicorn filly. The timberwolf pup barks again in acknowledgement. Luna then walks over and nuzzles me with a sigh. "Come, let's get you something to eat and drink. You can tell me and my sister what has happened in Gryphus," she says and uses her magic to tug on my hand, but my ring negates her attempt to pull me along. "Sure. I'm just glad it's over and I'm home," I reply and scratch Luna behind her left ear. She hums happily and leans into my hand. Rainbow Dash lands beside me with her griffon friend. "I'm gonna head back to Ponyville. Gilda here still needs to apologise to my friends," she tells me. Gilda just grunts. "Alright. Make sure you keep practising with your spells," I tell her. "Sure! See ya later!" she says and flies off with Gilda. Reluctantly, Luna pulls away and walks back to the castle. Moonbeam, Tala, and I follow behind her to the Dining Hall where Celestia is eating a salad at the table with a small pile of paper in front of her. She looks up from a scroll she's reading and smiles at us. "Ah, Farengar! Welcome back. I take it you are well?" she asks me. "I'm doing fine. Just tired from the whole ordeal with Razor Beak. Hopefully I can now relax and spend some time with my family," I reply getting Luna to happily nuzzle me again. "We received the reports from Sargent Stalwart Aegis already. The deaths of our guards during the attack is a great loss, but it cannot be helped to stop such a cruel individual. Thank you for putting an end to such a tyrant," Celestia tells me with a sad smile. I nodded in reply. "I was going to kill him anyway for threatening Luna, Moonbeam, and myself." "It was for the best. Now with him out of the picture, his organisation will fall apart and disband," Luna says and sits down at the table. I join her with Moonbeam as well. We all order a light meal and wait for our orders. "So what has been going on around here while I was away?" I ask the alicorns. Celestia looks at me from her scroll. "Not much. There have been reports of dragon sightings near the border but they're keeping their distance for now," she tells me and writes something down on the parchment she's reading. "Paarthurnax is helping Sahloknir's family to settle in at Mount Drakan while Sahloknir has told us all he knows about Alduin and his assets," Luna then tells me. "And what does he have?" I ask them. Celestia sighs and rubs her forehead lightly. "It seems he has at least over three quarters of the dragons under his control. There's also rumours that he's subjugating diamond dog clans, most likely to dig up gems and ore for him. As well as a few others races... Including ponies." I frown in thought. I understand that dragons eat gems, but what could they need ore for? "What do you think they would want the ore for?" I ask confused. "We think he's trying to arm an army made up of other races. We believe he has either threatened them to do as he says or some form of mind control is in effect," Luna tells me. "I see... What do you intend to do about it?" I ask as our food finally arrives. "We're not sure yet, we'll have to call another meeting with the other races and decide on what to do. We alone wouldn't be able to march into dragon territory without heavy losses," Celestia replies and stacks her papers into a neat pile. "True. It would be beneficial to see if I could teach the others races to use my magic or not. The more that can do it the better our chances of fighting the dragons and their forces are," I say and then take a bite out of my food. So much better than the rations on the ship. "Yes, but for now we shall just wait for the other nations to arrive. I take it you shall continue to train in the meantime?" Celestia asks me. "Correct. I still have many spells I need to learn and relearn," I reply. "Well, before that. You and I are going to relax for the rest of the day! I want some cuddles," Luna says and nuzzles me again. Celestia shakes her head at the sight but has a smile on her face. Moonbeam is giggling while Tala just looks at us with a slightly tilted head. I take a deep breath and sigh contently. I'm home, and I hope this peaceful moment lasts a while. Author's Note It's been a over a year since we last heard from our Dragonborn nord! Now he's back!
Chapter 2The Elder Scrolls: Return of the Crystal Empire Chapter 2 After lunch, Luna, Moonbeam, Tala, and I head up to Luna's room where Luna strips me of my armour and weapons leaving me in just my tunic and trousers. She looks at Sheogorath's staff with a frown before putting it on the table. She then pushes me onto the bed and lays next to my left side with her head on my chest and a smile on her face. "Hmmmm, I missed this. It just doesn't feel the same in a dream," she says quietly and closes her eyes. I can agree with her there. When she visited my dreams, it just didn't feel like she was really with me. I felt her fur, the muscles underneath, but not the warmth like I'm feeling now. I look to my right and watch Moonbeam using her telekinesis to roll a rubber ball around the room where Tala gives chase. The sight makes me smile as I gently stroke Luna's mane with my left hand. "So, Luna. What would you like to do later?" I ask her. She cracks open an eye to look at me. "I'd like to go out for dinner. A nice quiet restaurant, just the two of us. Candlelight, roses... I want to feel like a mare with her stallion," she replies and nuzzles under my chin while being careful of her horn. For four hours we just relax in Luna's room, just enjoying each other's company. I'm revelling in the calm after all the fighting I did. Moonbeam stopped playing with Tala and was reading another one of those Daring Do books. But Luna gets hungry and wants to head out for dinner now. "Wait here, my love. I'm just going to get myself ready," she tells me and heads into a walk in closet while Tala and Moonbeam are just looking at me. I rummage through the pouch I had during the Gryphus incident and pull out the necklace Discord gave me and then a suit Luna had made for me from my clothes drawers. I quickly make my way into the bathroom and get dressed. After I finish getting the jacket on I can hear Luna stepping out into the bedroom. "Farengar?" I hear her call out. "I'm in the bathroom!" I reply and quickly put the necklace on. I feel my body shift back into an earth pony, but my right hoof feels harder and there's grey dragon scales going up to my knee. The suit also changes to fit my new form. Luna then walks in wearing a beautiful black form fitting dress. It has small diamonds attached that make the end near her hooves look like twinkling stars. There's a V cut on her left flank showing off her cutie-mark and she's wearing a silver necklace with an oval sapphire attached to it. Which reminds me, I need to get a necklace of the one I used to propose to her in the Dreamscape. "Looking beautiful, Luna," I tell her as she stares at me with wide eyes and her wings spring out knocking over a bottle of shampoo on the counter next to her. "Farengar? How are you a pony again?" Luna asks me while looking me over. "Discord gave me this necklace as a thank you for dealing with Sheogorath," I reply and lift the necklace with my left hoof. I then walk over to her. "So what will Moonbeam and Tala do while we're out?" I ask her. She manages to get her wings back to her sides before walking into the main bedroom. "I'll have one of the maids bring dinner and keep watch over Moonbeam and Tala for us until we return," she replies. "Alright, so where are we going?" I ask as we walk out of her room where Luna has her right wing wrapped around my back. "We shall be heading to a restaurant called the Rose Garden. I've been there once before, and it is very beautiful and the food is wonderful as well," she tells me. Luna gets a couple of maids to retrieve food and watch Moonbeam and Tala for us before we walk out into the city where guards bow to Luna. The ponies walking by move aside to allow us to pass while bowing to Luna as well as gawking at me since I'm as tall as Luna. 'Hmmm, we could attach a pair of fake wings and a horn to me and see how they’d react to me then.' I think to myself with a light chuckle. After a nice ten or so minute walk, we arrive at the restaurant which looks more like a garden than a building. The front is covered in vines with a few roses on them with the words The Rose Garden written in what appears to be roses as well. Luna uses her magic to open the door and walks in while holding it open for me. I walk in and stare wide eyed at the decor. It looks like someone took a piece of nature and stuffed it inside a building. Crystals line the ceiling simulating sunlight, small mounds of dirt covered with grass act as seats while the tables are made from tree stumps. Bushes, flowers, and small waterfalls line the walls and in the centre of it all is a fountain with fish swimming in it. "P-Princess Luna!" a white stallion with a short light blue mane in a suit stutters and quickly comes over. "It's an h-honour to have y-you here today!" he says nervously and bows to her. "We would like a table for two please," Luna tells him with a small nod. "O-Of course! Please f-follow me," he replies and leads us to a table near the fountain. We both sit down and the sweating stallion speaks up again. "A waitress will be by m-momentarily with y-your menus," he tells us and bows before running off. "He seemed a bit nervous," I comment with a smirk. Luna sighs and faintly smiles. "I would prefer everypony not tripping over themselves at my presence," she replies. I glance around at the other ponies eating here who quickly look away once I make eye contact with them. "Don't worry about it. So, how's your pregnancy coming along?" I ask her quietly. "I could do without the morning sickness every time I get up... but I'm getting used to it. And while some of the cravings I've been having seem to make others nauseous and the chef to almost throw away his five star rating, I find them delightful," she tells me. "Especially ice cream covered in hot sauce." I raise an eyebrow at what she just said. I'm curious as to what that would be like? Is it hot yet cold at the same time? "That sounds... interesting," I say in an unconvincing tone. "Maybe you should try some next time I have it?" she says with a smirk. "Maybe I will," I reply and smirk back. She giggles and then sighs. "Oh. Tia and I have been talking and have decided that with your performance at Gryphus, we're going to make you Captain of your own squad," she tells me without warning. Good thing I'm not drinking anything at the moment or I would have inhaled my drink. "What? Don't I have to pass the elite exam first?" I reply with confusion. "You did. You're overall results were more than satisfactory to allow you into the elite guard, but it was your performance during your trip to Gryphus that made us decide this," she tells me. "I see. So, what will I have to do as a Captain?" I ask her. "You will train your squad and get to know them," she replies as a waitress comes over. "Hello! Welcome to the Rose Garden! My name is Sweet Pea and I'll be your waitress for the evening!" The food was good and Luna seems happier than I've ever seen her. She tells me I’ll be able to select my own people for my squad and I have a few in mind already. We both pay half for the dinner each and then head back to the castle. A jeweller's shop catches my attention and I smile. "Luna, I'll meet you back at the Castle. I got something I want to check out first," I tell her getting a confused expression from her. "What do you want to check out?" she asks me. "It's a surprise. Go on, I'll be back soon," I reply and she sighs. "Very well. You better be back within the hour though!" she says and teleports away. I quickly head into the store and look around. "Welcome to..." the mare behind the counter starts but stops when she sees me. "Oh my... you're a big one aren't you," she comments as she has to tilt her head up to look me in the eye. "So I've been told. I'd like to know if you take custom orders?" I ask her. "Erm, we do. Is there something you'd like?" she replies and asks. I smile and begin describing the necklace I would like made for Luna.
Chapter 3The Elder Scrolls: Return of the Crystal Empire Chapter 3 With my custom order made, I start making my way back to the Castle. Ponies continue to give me odd looks as I pass them but I just ignore them. I'm looking forward to just relaxing with my family for the next few days. This will also give me time to plan out who I want for my squad and how to train them in magic. A couple of foals run past me giggling as an older mare tries to keep up. "Slow down or you'll trip over!" she calls out to them making me smile. The trip back is uneventful and the guards let me pass. I head inside and make my way back up to Luna's room where I find Moonbeam, Tala, and Luna inside. "I'm back," I say getting their attention. "So what did you do?" Luna asks me with narrowed eyes. "Just something personal," I reply and then take off the amulet. I change back to normal and go back into the bathroom to change into my casual clothing. I come out and lay on the bed next to Luna. Tala jumps up and cuddles up against my waist and I pat her head gently. She's definitely getting bigger. "So, Moonbeam, I heard you taught Honour how to use telekinesis," I say to her. "Uh-huh. It was hard at first and he kept complaining, but he got it right eventually!" she replies and grins. "Sounds like you'd make a great teacher one day. So, how's school?" I then ask her. "It's okay, though the other ponies are a bit jealous of how fast I'm learning the healing spells, but I made a friend!" she tells me. "That's great. Maybe tomorrow you can show me how far you've come with your healing spell," I reply. After a couple more hours of just spending time together, it's time for bed. "Okay, Moonbeam. Time for bed," I tell her getting an 'aww' in protest. "But I'm not *yawn* tired," she replies and rubs her eyes. I chuckle and get up. I then pick her up making her giggle as I carry her out to her room. "After school tomorrow, how about we all go out for some ice cream?" I suggest making her nod rapidly. "Alright, get to sleep then," I tell her and put her down. She quickly runs into her room and onto her bed where she cuddles up to her bear toy. I smile and close her door. Walking back into Luna's room, I see her laid out on the bed reading a book. I walk over and remove my shirt and get on behind her. I wrap my arms around her chest and pull her against mine, making her giggle. "I'm trying to read here," she tells me. "What? You can't read and cuddle at the same time?" I ask and give her a slight squeeze. "OW!" she yelps and I pull my hands back. I look at my right hand to see a bit of blood on my sharp nails making me frown. "Sorry..." I say now in a sour mood. "It's fine..." she replies as her small cuts close up. She then grins and her horn glows as five corks appear. "Show me your hand," she tells me. I hold my hand out with a raised brow and she stuffs the corks one by one on the ends of my sharp nails. A smile returns to my face as I wiggle my fingers making the corks bump into each other. "There. Now you don't have to worry about poking me again," she says with a giggle. "Maybe I should just have my nails filed down," I say and wrap her back into hug. "No. There may be a time when you lose your weapons and will need a means to defend yourself... while inconvenient now, they may very well save yours or somepony else's life later," she tells me making me sigh and stroke her chest with my left hand. "Fair enough... So what shall we do tomorrow?" I ask her. "Hmmm. We shall take Moonbeam to school, then we shall begin putting together a squad for you, Captain Farengar. Then we shall send out the invitations to the other nations for another meeting," she replies with a smile. "I have a few ponies in mind already, Honour being one of them of course," I say and rest my chin on her neck. She leans back and nuzzles the top of my head. "He is progressing faster than any guard I have seen before. I'm starting to think Moonbeam would make a better instructor than the ones we already have," she says and giggles again. "Maybe. She could be a healer instructor, or maybe a healer for the medical wing of the Castle," I reply and kiss her neck getting a happy coo from her. "We will just have to see how the future plays out. But before that can pass, we need to deal with Alduin first," she tells me. "Right... we'll focus on him once the other nations arrive. Right now though, I just want to be with my woman," I reply and pull her tighter against me. She hums contently and we both just enjoy each other's company until we fall asleep. Dreamscape I open my eyes to find both Luna and I are on the bed of the small house I made in the dreamscape. She looks around and slowly gets off the bed. "Would you like to help me with my nightmare hunt?" she asks me as she stretches her limbs. "I would love to," I reply and get up. "Wonderful. Now we wait until a nightmare shows itself," she tells me and heads for the door. I follow her out and once outside, she looks around the area. She closes her eyes and the ground changes to a meadow while the sky turns into a beautiful night sky with a bright full moon. Trees start to grow around us and a large lake forms as well, making the moonlight reflect off its surface. Luna then turns her head to look at me as the moonlight makes her eyes shine beautifully. "Now then. I wish to try something since we first met the Daedric Prince," she says making me confused. Her horn glows and a flash of light blinds me. I feel the weight of armour placed onto me and blink my eyes to see Luna is gone. "Luna?" I call out and look at my hands to find dark blue gauntlets with crescent moons on the forearm guards. Even my right hand feels normal again with skin and no scales or claws. 'I'm here Farengar, I wished to see if I could replicate what Sheogorath did to me and it would appear I can,' she replies in my head. "Why?" I ask her. 'If we are to fight nightmares together, then why not as one together? Besides, unlike when Sheogorath did this to me, I couldn't feel anything but pain. Now, it feels like I'm hugging you from everywhere,' she says with a giggle. I notice the same black blade greatsword on the ground with the crescent moon handguard and pommel. I pick it up and grip it firmly. "I see," I say as I swing it around a few times. For the next few minutes I get used to having Luna as my armour again. It doesn't take long before a red mist appears near us. 'Well then, let us go banish a nightmare,' Luna tells me. I wave my hand in front of the mist and a window opens up showing a young colt being chased by disfigured slightly older colts chasing him and calling him names. I chuckle and jump through ready to help.
