Storm of the Century

Chapters

Prologue
Chapter One: The Beginning
Chapter Two: Planning the Rendezvous
Chapter Three: Books and Breakouts
Chapter Four: Best or Worst Decision
Chapter Five: Mysterious Stranger

Prologue

Hello. My name's Maelstrom. I'm a pony living in Equestria. Well, maybe "living" is too strong a word. Let's go with "surviving." You see, Equestria is a world that is inhabited by all sorts of wonderful and amazing creatures, but primarily, by ponies. Things used to be great. Everypony lived in harmony, and the only real threats were ancient foes come back to try to take over, or the occasional hydra attack that threatens to destroy a town, or something of the like. Well, not anymore. You see, Many years ago, before I was even born, there was a bit of a falling out with the unicorns and the rest of ponykind. And it wasn't over something petty, like, "Oh no, the unicorns drank all the cider!" or "I lost my favorite hat! The unicorns must've done it!" No. Actually, it could be interpreted as something petty, given your viewpoint. It was because, in all their stupidity and arrogance, the Unicorn Circle, a conglomerate of Equestria's most powerful unicorns, decided that they just needed more power and influence. So, they decided to do one of the most idiotic things any pony has ever done. They tried to manipulate magic to create life. Yeah, you heard me. Create Life. Except they couldn't, because as science says, you can't make something from nothing.

So they never succeeded in creating new life. Instead they borrowed it, and I can assure you, it wasn't friendly. It was called "the Unassailable," at least, that's what we've heard. As soon as it entered our reality, it started tearing ponies apart left and right. Nopony was left standing. Those who tried to flee were destroyed. Those who tried to fight were destroyed. The tower in which the Circle was stationed was destroyed. What I'm getting at, if you haven't noticed, is that everything within a mile radius was utterly and completely annihilated. So, that was the fall of the Circle, and the beginning of this nightmare.

The Unassailable didn't stop there. It moved on to destroy the nearby village. It razed the place to the ground. Little blot you wouldn't even find on a map. Nopony that wasn't directly involved with the place even remembers the name. But there were a few survivors. And they said it wasn't just one creature. There were many. Too many, by all accounts. One survivor even said that when the biggest one ate somepony, a few seconds later it would puke that pony back out, but they weren't the same. No, they were something different. They had the same shape, but they weren't recognizable from the pony that they were. They were something new, hideous, and with a desire to kill. These were nick-named "walkers," since they seemed to be the dead, walking again. Then more stories of these things started cropping up as they spread. And one thing in particular stood out. The fact that almost all of the stories were almost identical. And then we started receiving reports of new types of creatures, things we've never even heard of.

So, as some of you reading this might have guessed, the unicorns were to blame for this. Why was the entire race of uncorns blamed when only the Circle was responsible? Because in times of crisis, a sad fact is that ponies will latch onto anything to blame for their troubles. And since the ones that caused this new catastrophe was the "Unicorn" Circle, the pegasi and earth ponies blamed the unicorns. Granted, I understand why this was, but that doesn't mean I agree with it. It was an act of ignorance, but then again, what else is new?
But I digress. The scourge of the Unassailable was spreading up from the south like a plague, and nopony knew what to do. But, as luck would have it, we happen to be governed by two immortal Alicorn Princesses. They dispatched three legions of Canterlot soldiers to quell these new monstrosities.
It was a slaughter.

The soldiers inflicted more casualties than anypony had hoped, but in the end, it was futile. The soldiers were like any other ponies, and were easily turned into mindless thralls. And the apparent addition of armor and weapons only made what they turned into more powerful. These armor-plated brutes came to be known as "Vanguards," for their habit to be at the fore-front of major assaults. That's probably when things took an un-expected turn for the better. They stopped. After seven long months of death, misery, and chaos, they stopped. The Unassailable, with its armies of monstrosities, simple retreated, back to the destroyed site of Unicorn Tower.

But we knew they would be back. Militias started rising. Recruitment drives for the Canterlot armies were on over-drive, and a nation-wide alerted was issued, advising ponies to stay away from the southern region, which aptly became known quite simply as, "the Forbidden Zone." Everypony was on high alert, bracing themselves for when the nightmare might descend upon us next. But it wouldn't be for another year. But in the meanwhile, ponykind took this as the perfect time to ostricize a part of their race. At first, unicorns were merely shunned, or treated with disgust and disdain. Bosses started treating their unicorn workers terribly, unicorn foals in schools were hated by their fellow students, and unicorn owned and operated businesses started recieving less and less customers. And this was all just in the first month.

In the second month, a curfew for all unicorn citizens was established, though nopony had heard of the decree from Celestia. Many doubted there even was one. But it happened nontheless. Still, all of this didn't matter when pegasi or earth ponies needed their help. I mean, how hypocritical is that? Anyway, unicorns were still allowed jobs and miltary service, because the economy needed to keep moving and magic was a valuable commodity, even if it was treated with disdain and suspicion. Then the third month rolled along. Unicorns started being beaten publicy. Many lost their jobs, and became homeless. But still, unicorns were allowed to serve in the military. And finally, in the fourth month, unicorns were completely shunned from society. This is where it gets really bad. Since the Unassailable hadn't shown its ugly mug for four months, everypony assumed the things had simply left to terrorize some other country. So they decided they didn't need unicorns anymore. Every single one was "honorably discharged" no matter what, despite rank. Many a unicorn general was lost that day from this purge. Unicorns were forced under house arrest, but this was only temporary. Soon, they were all transported to new facilities that were seemingly constructed over-night, designed to house large amounts of ponies. This is where many unicorns were moved, to "safeguard the general populace from harm." Unicorn children, however, stayed at their schools, if they were large enough. This was so they could be "protected and educated for the good of ponykind, as the government saw fit." At least, that was the public story. The real story however, was much worse. They wanted unicorn children seperate from their families so they couldn't be taught "dangerous and harmful magics" by their parents.

Everypony seemed happy for a time. Well, except the unicorns. But then the unthinkable happened. One month more went by. And on the very date it all started, when the first of those wretched creatures appeared in our realm, they came back. After exactly one year since their arrival, they came back. The Unassailable were on the march again. Our newly created armies moved out to to meet them. They were met with surprisingly, much success at first. But after a month of battles, they were being pushed back. After the second month, the Unassailable had taken half of the land they had given up. After three more months, they had taken ball all the land they had given up, and a little more. But then they were pushed back again. Although they had incurred terrible losses, the Royal Army had pushed the beasts back. And then, two months later, after much hardship and death, they left again. The Unassailable had gone back to where it started, yet again. Many started to see the pattern. And that's when they realized, that the Unassailable might be going on a time-table. Fight for seven months, then recuperate for five. At least, that's what the general idea was. And that was true. As was expected, they returned, five months later, to begin anew. Oho, but this time we were ready. We knew how to fight them. We knew many of their tricks. This time, in those seven, long, grueling months, the army, along with the militias, fought back this horde of monsters. But when the third time that the Unassailable reatreated back into the confines of their forest, the army was weakened from the prolonged fighting. Many wished that Celestia and Luna (the two Immortal Alicorns) would go forth and destroy the Unassailable where they lived. Many went to Canterlot to petition the two to help their subjects in their time of need. But their pleas were fallen on non-existent ears.

The two Sisters had disappeared. They were gone, evaporated like air. And coincidentally, it was on the day the Unassailable retreated for the third time. Nopony knew what to think of this. It was the first time in thousands of years that the Alicorns had simply gone. So, the closest royalty that they had was thrust onto the throne, to help repair a beleaguered nation. Princess Cadence and her husband Shining Armor, had became the new rulers of Equestria. They weren't ready for this new burden, but Celestia knows they did their very best, and apparently it was enough. Attacks by the Unassailable were cut short the next time. Instead of the long seven months of war, and the short five months of rebuilding, the times were switched. Then it became five months of battle, and seven months of healing. Some ponies believed it was due to the fact that their new leadership was very capable, while others believed that the Unassailable were being thinned out and didn't have the numbers for another prolonged assault. A few even believed that Princess Luna and Celestia had known what their subjects wanted before-hand, and had entered some ethereal realm to battle the leadership of the creatures. This did not explain why they had been gone for more that a year.

This is where I come in. Literally. This is when I was born. You see, as I mentioned, my name is Maelstrom. I think that's my name because I have such a stormy personality, dark and foreboding, and liable to lash out at you with some lightning. Granted, I'm not ALWAYS like that, but I do have my moments, admittedly. Oh yeah, one other thing. I'm a unicorn. Shocker, right? After all those things I told you about that the rest of ponykind had done to us, you'd expect that the "hero" of this story would've been a stalwart earth pony, or a graceful pegasus? Nope. I'm a magically-inclined unicorn. Even got the horn to prove it. Anyway, I was born in one of those slums that I spoke about, where they keep the general unicorn population. I was taken from my mother as a foal, only one month after my birth. I wasraised ina school far from there, Canterlot Academy, actually. They didn't seperate unicorn children from earth ponies or pegasi, because they felt it would be too blatantly obvious that the ponies in charge were trying to keep down a part of their race, and that they also didn't want to spend the extra bits for entirely different schools. Also, I think that they enjoyed watching us squirm. The other foals at the school treated us unicorns like dirt. While they left at the end of every school day, we lived night and day there. Because even at school we were treated seperately from the rest of society, many unicorn children banded together in an attempt to beat the "heat," as it were.

I was a bit of an exception. Even among the other unicorns there, I was an outcast of sorts. I mean, that isn't to say I was totally shunned from everything. I socalized, on occasion. But no one there was really any one I liked. At all. The majority of the regular students acted like pompous jerks that treated us unicorn students like dirt, while the unicorns set themselves up as martyrs for our people. Anyone who didn't agree with them was the enemy, and I fell under that category. I didn't agree with any fighting between the two groups. Granted, I like a bit of scuffle, but not the kind of fighting they did. Plus, I always hated going out among the "normal" students. As if being set a part by my horn (who honestly wouldn't notice the thing?) wasn't enough, all unicorns had to wear these cyan-colored, see-through dress gown things. They looked absolutely gaudy. The only redeeming qualities, in my opinion, were the facts that they were made of silk (rather nice of my evil overlords, wouldn't you say?) and the addition of hoods. Let me tell you one thing. I absolutely adore hoods. They were the best innovations in clothing ever made. And hoodies? Best article of clothing, ever. Ponies mostly go naked, But frankly, I love wearing jackets and hoodies. Unfortunately, the officials at the school didn't like us unicorn students having personal possessions. Thought it might make us feel "normal." Not that we were allowed to go out and shop, but some of us were able to find "ways" of "acquiring" things we wanted. I was one of those ponies. Money doesn't come easily at the Academy, but you'd be surprised what one can find at the school after-hours that other students might have accidentally left behind. Yes, it was stealing, and no, I don't have any moral justifications for doing it. I was a stupid kid at the time, and the things I could get with a few velvet bows and a couple diamonds were rather nice. I found a designer's catalog once, and I saw the most amazing hoodie I will ever see. Some ponies might look at it and think it's terrible, but I loved it. It took a couple weeks of scrounging and trading, but I managed to get somepony to get it for me. It was the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. It was mainly blue, my favorite color, with black added to it. It was plaid in design, but not all-the-way plaid. It's hard to explain, you'd have to see it for yourself. It was light but thick, perfect for keeping out heavy weather. The hood was lined with cotton, rather common but it felt great anyway. I valued this jacket more than anything else I had, and Celestia damn anyone who thought of stealing it to the deepest pits of Tartarus. I never wore it among the regular students because I knew it would be confiscated if any of them saw it, but once they left, I was free to wear it as much as I liked, for I knew the guards wouldn't care. Yes we had guards at a school. I told you things were rough.

But that's not the worst thing. We weren't allowed to study magic. Magic! The very thing unicorns have that nopony else has! The school had books on it, of course, but those were restricted and forbidden to all but the Principal herself. Ha, but did that stop me? By Luna's flank, who do you think I am? Some wimpy school-boy who flinches at all the bullies and hands over his lunch money? Hay, no! Every night I broke into the restricted section and pored over those books like my life depended on it. In fact, my life did depend on it, and do you want to know why?
Because one day, I was going to break out of this hole. If it was the last thing I do. I mean, yeah it wasn't all bad. But still. That place was a prison, anypony could see it. The only reason I stayed as long as I did, was because of her, my best friend for my entire life, Aurelia.

She's a pegasus, all white fur, like myself. She's got the most beautiful orange eyes you'll ever see, and her mane and tail were colored a deep green and blue. She's my best friend in the whole world, my only friend. She's smart, I can tell you that. Always reading up on stars, the sky, weather, or anything else that has to do with pegasi. She told me she wants to be a top weather pegasus, and not just a regional manager. No, she wants to be one of the top weather pegasi. You know, tho ones who oversee everything. It was a great dream, and I was proud of her for thinking big. She's also kind and sweet. I mean, you'd have to be, to befriend a unicorn. I actually feel kind of bad for her, but if she heard me say that, she'd kill me. Being friends with a unicorn isn't very good for your social life. I hear about how ponies pick on her for being friends with me from other unicorns. She never tells me herself, doesn't want to burden me most likely. But I find out anyway. The only thing I ask for: names. You see, I may not be the most motivated unicorn in the room, but if some ignorant fool messes with my friends, well, let's just say you better bring a bucket and a mop because there's going to be a mess when I'm through with them. Of course, I don't use magic in my fights. That would put me in so much trouble if anyone found out I could use magic. I learned how to brawl and buck like an earth pony, but my being a unicorn puts me at a disadvantage, because we aren't built for that sort of thing, us being more magic prone. Or, we used to be, anyway. And Aurelia finds out every time I have a fight. She tells me that I shouldn't do this, that I'm only causing more trouble for myself. The way I see it: I don't have much to lose anyway, what does it matter? But she doesn't listen. She's too worried about me, instead of herself. I think that's what causes me to get into these fights. She looks out for me, so what kind of a friend would I be if I didn't look out for her? And so, that's what I have to say for her as a summary. Smart, beautiful, and is the knidest pony you'll ever meet. Some may think I like her in that way, and maybe I do. Who couldn't? If you've met Aurelia, you'd know what I mean. But nothing's ever come of it. We've both heard the rumors, but they're not true. Like all great protagonists, I've never asked her about it, and she hasn't asked me. I have no idea where it could go, but in all honesty, I don't see much of a future with her. I'm a unicorn if you remember, so I'm not really allowed to go anywhere. Besides, now that I think about it, there isn't any way she would ever love a unicorn. Yeah, we're friends, good friends at that, but it doesn't mean she's interested that way. So I don't ask her about it. Too awkward, in my opinion. But now I'm blathering. Let's get on with the show. It's twenty-two years after the first insurgence of the Unassailable, and seventeen years after my birthday.

My birthday's today, and it proves to be the most exciting one yet.

Chapter One: The Beginning

Today is the big day. Seventeen years old. I'm pretty much an adult now. Nopony ever told me exactly when that line was crossed, and the books here barely touch on that subject. Anyway, that doesn't really matter. The thing is, that I'm excited because my birthday is on a Friday this year, meaning it's a school day. Most ponies wouldn't be excited that their birthday is on a school day, but me? I couldn't be happier. Why? Because on school days, she's here. Aurelia, my only friend in this bleak existence, goes here, to Canterlot Academy. She's a pegasus, so that should mean that we aren't supposed to be friends, but we don't care. We enjoy each other's freindship, and isn't that all that really matters?

The day is just starting, and I'm all ready to go. Mane and tail brushed? Check. Coat thoroughly inspected and cleaned? Check. Teeth brushed? Check. Stupid see-through dress gown thing? Check. Hood up? Check. Books? Check. Eeyup, I'm all set.

Let's do this.

I opened the door to my room, leaving the small safety that it provided. The unicorn wing of the school was mostly empty, save for a guard dozing off from the long night shift, and a few other early riser unicorns like myself. I closed the door gently, so as not to disturb anypony else. I then proceeded on my way as quietly as possible, feeling that if I ruptured the silence of this beautiful morning it might cause the entire day to end up in shambles.

I kept a brisk pace, passing through the rest of the unicorn wing, then the gardens, then the main locker pod area. There weren't really any other ponies around, only a few regular students who didn't have any other lives but school, and a solitary unicorn who sat in a corner, snout deep in a book on physics, probably studying for some test he completely forgot about. I kept my pace, not stopping for anything, for I was a colt on a mission, and Celestia as my witness, I was going to fulfill that mission.

As I neared the opposite end of the school, I started slowing down. I had already made good time, as it was only six minutes after I had left my room. I had plenty of time. A clock I saw read 7:13, and school didn't start 'til 7:45, so I had more than enough time. I made it in another two minutes, taking in the view of what I had reached. I sat down on my flank, relaxing for what I was sure to be a great day. In fact, I soon became so relaxed I started nodding off, but with a swift mental kick I woke myself back up. The clock in view read 7:18, so only a few minutes were lost. I looked back at my surroundings. I was sitting on a small grassy area at the front of the Academy, conveniently gated to prevent unicorns like myself from "forgetting" that they had to stay here, whilst everypony else went back home. But I wasn't thinking about that right now. I was too busy watching the sun rise over the horizon. Now, here's the thing that gets me, every sunrise and sundown. Surely you all know that Celestia and Luna disappeared years ago, right? I mean, who doesn't? Anyway, the part that I don't understand is that if Celestia and Luna raise the sun and the moon every morning and night, how could they do that if they aren't even here? But that's when I always stop and think: but can't they do that from anywhere? It doesn't have to be Canterlot from where they do it, right? That's what the logical side of me says, but the ever-curious side of me just has to battle that. Pretty soon, I have an entire war going on in my head, and then the next thing I know, I look up and she's standing over me, looking at me with those bright orange eyes that would make the sunset jealous. I look over at the clock and it's 7:30 already. 7:30. That's when she gets here everyday. Never any sooner, never any later.

"How's it going, horn-head?" she asks me in a non-insulting, almost teasing manner.

"Not too shabby, feather-brain. Just waiting for you to stop being late every day," I return, in the same tone of voice she's using.

"Late? What in the hay are you talking about, late? I'm here at the same time every day," she says, rolling her beautiful orange eyes.

"Exactly. You're always late."

"Am not! We never agree on a time."

"That's because you know you'll always be late."

"Oh stuff it," shes says, pulling me in for a hug. "Happy birthday, hot-head."

I return the hug, feeling the warmth seeping off her body. "Thanks Aurelia, it means a lot."

"Anytime, buddy. So, what do you have planned today? And don't give me that look. You have something planned every day it's your birthday. You have for the past eleven years."

I looked at her coyly, not wanting to give up the information just yet. I looked left and right, keeping an eye out for any guards or unwanted eavesdroppers. I turned back to my pegasus friend. "I can't tell you here. Too many people starting to show up. Can we go somewhere quieter?"

"Sure," she said, eyeing me suspiciously. "I doubt many ponies are at the gardens right now, we could go there, if it's quiet you want."

"Sounds perfect. Shall we?" I asked, gesturing to the entrance to the Academy. She took the lead, as always. She claimed it was because I followed her about like a lost puppy dog, but we both know she was just joking. I however, maintained the fiction that I always took up the rear just so I could stare at her marvelous flank. But between you and me, it wasn't totally a joke. The way those hips sway, you'd claim the same thing, no matter which gender you prefer. She always thought it was a joke, at least that's what I think anyway.

After a couple minutes of walking, we made it to the gardens. They were very nice, really. Plenty of grass to walk on, a nice change of pace from the constant paved hallways we always walked on. The loud clopping of my hooves always made me feel wierd. Like I was being really loud, and everypony was staring. Granted, they usually stared because of my horn, rather than how much noise I was making. There was plenty of vegetation and trees to spruce up the area, and gave everything that "natural" feel. I always loved being in the garden, because it made me feel like I was away from this opressive school, and that I was out in the wilderness, enjoying everything nature had to offer. Of course I realized it was just a self-created illusion, and the grim reality came surfacing back. But still, sometimes you just want to pretend and get away from it all.

The gardens were completely empty, save that one unicorn that was buried inhis book, who seemed to have moved from the locker pods to the garden, most likely to avoid the crowds of pegasi and earth pony students arriving. I picked a nice, lush, green spot to sit on. Aurelia sat next to me, her coat almost brushing up against mine. I leaned in real close and looked at her cautiously. My look piqued her interest, so she leaned in too. I took a deep breath.

"I'm sure you're all wondering why I called you here," I said, stifling a laugh. Aurelia sighed, rolling her eyes.

"Come on, out with it. What are you planning, you silly filly?"

"Well, you see, this being my birthday and all, I wanted to do something special today. And do you know what that is?" I asked her.

"The suspense is killing me," she said with a hint of sarcasm. I leaned in even closer and whispered in her ear.

"Want to ditch class?" I asked. She looked at me like I had suddenly gone crazy.

"Maelstrom, you can't be serious. You're a unicorn. They'll know you skipped out. What if they think you escaped campus? They'll come looking for you, and then you'll be in a heap of trouble, more that you can shovel your way out of!" That's just like her. Worrying about what might happen to me, and not what might happen to her.

"Oh come on. I've skipped out on classes tons of times. They always just think I'm asleep. You know the staff doesn't care about one unicorn not going to history class," I brushed away her concerns. "So, whaddya say? Thinking of joining me on this impossibly brilliant excursion of mine?"

She bit her lip, thinking. She looked around to see if anyone was listening in. She looked back at me, with a hint of mischief in her eyes. "You're on, horn-head."

We sat on the roof of the main building, staring out at the cityscape. Canterlot was the capital for a reason, it would seem. I mean, not even an immortal Princess could fail to fall in love with the beauty of this city. Sure, I was in the worst place possible to enjoy the scenery, being at the Academy, surrounded by buildings, so as I couldn't really get a clear view of the serene horizon, but I couldn't complain, really. Despite it all, I had a relatively easy life. The worst I had to worry about was getting in trouble for making some earth pony cry too much for making fun of Aurelia, or forgetting to do homework and getting chewed out by one of my various teachers. It was worth it though, because if I wasn't here, I wouldn't have met my best friend in the world. I looked over to the mare by my side. She was beautiful in the sunlight. Her blue-and-green mane and tail flowed in the light breeze, her bright, orange eyes reflecting the sunlight perfectly, as if all the light in the world came from them, not Celestia's sun. Aurelia is the most beautiful pegasus I've ever had the fortune of meeting, and I'm even luckier she picked me as her friend.

I must be coming off as a complete sap, aren't I?

My point being, is that no matter anypony else might say, I wouldn't trade this moment for anything else in the world. An end to the Unassailable, or this one moment? I'd pick this moment any day. Unicorns being treated equally and fairly like in the old days? Nope, this moment. An infinite supply of sweets and treats, so much that I would die from diabeties? That's a tough one. My inner fat-flank would definitely pick the sweets, but deep down, I have this inkling that the rest of me would pick this moment. I became lost in this line of thinking for a while, so much so that I didn't notice Aurelia looking at me with a peculiar expression of curiosity on her face. I snapped out of it just in time to hear her ask:

"You alright? You've been staring at me for a good five minutes." I turned my head to the side to try to block her view of my blushing cheeks. Damn this white coat.

"Uh, yeah, I-I'm fine, r-really," I said, trying to cover for my stupidity. " I was just uh, looking at your, um, feathers. Yeah, your feathers! I was wondering how you manage to keep them so uh, clean," I ended lamely. Real smooth, I thought to myself. There's no way she couldn't not buy that, right?

Right?

Wrong. She just gave me one of her famous looks, like: I know you're hiding something, so you better just cough it up before I force it out of you.

I decided that it was time to finally ask her the question that's been on my mind since she and I first became friends.

"Aurelia, have you ever thought that-" I started, but never got to finish, because I was so rudely interrupted by Ms. Strokes, the music teacher.

"Hey! What do you two think you're doing up there? Don't you know you're not allowed to be on the roof? And you, A2-753, where is your gown? You know the rules! No unicorn allowed out without their gown!" She yelled up to us. Oh buck! I had taken off my stupid cyan gown, because it was annoying and getting in the way due to its length. It was lying with my books back at my room. What was I going to tell Ms. Strokes? She was right, after all. How could I be so stupid to forget that gown?

"I'm uh, really sorry Soothing, I forgot it," I replied lamely.

"Haven't I told you not to call me by my first name? It's Ms. Strokes to you, 753, and after twelve years with us, I'd expect a little more humility from one of our senior unicorns here!" she spat back at me. Normally, if this was another student talking like that to me, I would have flattened him out on the ground. This however, was a teacher that could make my life even worse than it was. I decided to play the brown-noser, no matter how much I hated it.

"Sorry Ms. Strokes, it's just that when I'm around superior pony kind, I sometimes forget to think. Can you ever forgive me, most esteemed teacher?" I drawled on, trying to make it sound convincing. She gave me the evil eye, most likely trying to detect any hint of sarcasm in my voice. Luckily, I can be a convincing liar when I want to be.

"Hmmm, alright. That's better. But there's no excuse for skipping class, and not wearing your gown. A2-753, you will report to the principal's office as soon as possible. Do I make myself clear?"

"Crystal, ma'am," I answered, sitting up straight. As soon as she left, I slouched back into my usual sitting position. Aurelia looked over at me and saw my obvious pained expression. She laid a hoof on my shoulder.

"It really gets to you, doesn't it?"

"Yeah, it does."

"You shouldn't let it."

"I don't really have a choice, Aurelia. It's ponies, putting me down for what I was born with. I hate every second of it. I don't know how you stand to be around me."

"It's because I don't judge a book by its cover. And you mean a lot to me."

I looked over at her curiously. Did she just say what I think she said?

"Do you really-" but I was interrupted, yet again.

"753! Let's go, now!" Ms. Strokes yelled at me. I looked over at Aurelia again.

"I gotta go," I said weakly. She merely nodded.

"I'll talk to you later. Meet you in your room, yeah?"

I nodded in return. "Sure, you know where the key is."

"Be careful in there." I looked at her with the same mischivious glint in my eye that she had earlier, and grinned.

"Since when was being careful a part of my job description?"

Chapter Two: Planning the Rendezvous

I trotted along behind Ms. Strokes, anxious to get away from her. Why did bad crap always happen to me? Granted, I wasdoing something I shouldn't have been, but come on. It's my birthday, cut me some slack. We passed through the large hallways, going by classrooms. To my great disappointment, almost all the doors leading into said classrooms were open, allowing those inside to stare at me as I went by. I like attention as much as the next pony, but not when all that attention isn't to my benfit. I could tell in their eyes that most of them hated me, and those that didn't hate me merely disliked me. You remember when I said Aurelia was my only friend? I meant it.

After what seemed like an eternity, Ms. Strokes and I had reached the principal's office. Strokes gave me one last look of contempt and left. I stood in front of the door, not sure what to do. Sure, I wasn't one of the most behaved kids, but I had never warranted a trip to the Principal's office. I was smart; I knew how to avoid serious trouble. I was actually contemplating just leaving. No one would know the difference right? But just as I was turning to leave, the door suddenly opened. I then came face to face with her. The Principal. She eyed me with those gray, cold, calculating eyes that striked fear into every pony's heart that went to see her. I never believed they were that bad, until I came face to face with them myself. I wanted to curl up into a ball and sing the Canterlot Academy Anthem just to stay sane. We stood there, staring at each other for what seemed like hours, until she cleared her throat and spoke.

"Ah yes, A2-753. I've been expecting you. Please, come in."

She was expecting me? I gulped. I had a feeling this wasn't going to end well. I stepped inside, even though my better judgement was screaming at me to get the buck away from there as soon as possible. I've never really been one to listen to my better judgment, so I do the most idiotic thing I could do. I went inside, and closed the door behind me.

The Principal motioned me to a window overlooking the open area in front of the school. I trotted over next to her, staring out into the expanse that was Canterlot. She turned to stare at me with those piercing eyes.

"I've heard quite a bit about you, Maelstrom," she said in a very commanding voice. It made me shudder. No adult ever said my name. They all called me by my tag, A2-753. When she said my name, I really knew I was in trouble.

"You uh, you have?" I asked, not looking back at those terrible eyes.

"Yes, I have," she said simply, going over to her desk. It was made of mahogany. Whatever else you hear about the Principal, just know that she has good taste in desks. She stood behind it, and opened a drawer, producing a yellowish-brown folder, lightly filled with assorted papers. On the cover, it read simply: Resident A2-753, Maelstrom. She set it down on the top of her desk.

I stared at that folder for the longest time. So the rumors were true. It did exist. There was such a thing as a permanent record. Celestia help us all.

"Let's see, where to begin? Academics, I suppose. You're relatively smart, you seem to understand all of the material we put to you, yet you don't seem to care. You excel in class, yet you rarely do homework. Your attitude could use a serious boost. You get into regular fights here. You look shocked. What, you didn't think we kept tabs on you? We do. And finally, this," she finished, gesturing toward a chair in front of her desk. I looked at what it contained. My heart stopped. Sitting there, very conspicuously, was my black and blue hoodie. How in Equestria did she get that? The guards must have taken it from my room while I was gone, because I distinctly remember it being there this morning when I left.

"W-where did you get that?" I asked, my voice betraying my fear. She looked at me with a look that surprised me. It wasn't smug victory that I usually saw on a pony's face when they happened to beat me at something, but disappointment. I didn't read much into it at the time.

"This was taken from your room. Now Maelstrom, you and I both know that personal belongings are frowned upon here at the Canterlot Academy. What do you have to say in your defense?" She asked expectantly.

I stared at her for a period of time. "Can I wear it? It's kinda chilly in here."

She frowned for a moment, but then smiled. It scared me even more. "Of course. Take it."

I reached forward and grabbed it off the chair. I slid it on over my forelegs, and draped it over my back, letting the soft cotton glide down my coat. I zipped up the front halfway, letting it hang open a bit. It brought me much comfort, even here in the Principal's office, standing in front of the Principal herself. She turned away from me for a moment, putting my folder back into her desk.

"I want you to come back later, Maelstrom. I'm rather busy at the moment, and I unfortunately don't have the time to spare. Come back at around five 'o clock, and we'll speak then. Understood?" she said, not really paying attention to me anymore.

I was shocked. I was being let off the hook? At least for a while? I was surprised, to say the least. The most I could manage for a response was a , "Yes ma'am." With that, she waved me off, turning her attention to some other files on a seperate table she had. I took that moment to leave, putting as much distance between myself and that mare. Why had she let me go so readily? Was that it? Tell me they're keeping tabs on me? That while I thought I was being sneaky, they actually knew my every move? If they knew about the fights, and my things, and my skipping classes, what else did they know about? Oh no, they didn't know about my late-night excursions to the library, did they? Did they know that I had been secretely studying magic all these years, right under their noses? If so, why hadn't they done anything about it? And what were they planning for me at 5:00? I knew they were planning something. The principal isn't just "busy" when you get in trouble. You get punishment instantly, no matter what you did. So why was I getting special treatment? Or were they just saving the horrors for later?

As these endless questions swam through my head, I hadn't realized I was back at my room. I looked up at my door, bearing the same name as me, A2-753, and turned the nob. I opened the door to the small area that was where I lived. There were no windows, unfortunately. I had a small desk at the far wall (sadly, made of walnut), a couple posters of the wonderbolts back when they had shows all the time. What with the Unassailable attacks however, their shows became less and less frequent, until they only had one annual show. Leading off to the right was a personal bathroom to the right. I guess us unicorns didn't have it as bad as we think, if we get personal bathrooms at least. I kept it relatively clean, since I never really made messes in it. There was a twin bed in the corner of the main room, the place where I slept. Under that bed was a trunk that held all the meager belongings I had in my life, save my cloak/gown thing, and my books. Inside was my entire savings of bits (127 to be exact), my clothes magazines I had (don't laugh! I only look through them because of hoodies...), two saddlebags, a fancy engraved pocket-knife that I took a liking to, and my black-blue hoodie, or at least, it did before the staff came and took it. I was wearing it now, so all was good with that.

Oh, and sitting on top of my bed? A beautiful mare reading up on Equestrian history. She looked up from her book and spotted me trotting in. Her face lit up with a warm smile as she set down the book. I returned the smile instantly, despite my scrambled mood. She sat up, making room for me. I flopped down on my back next to her, sighing as I hit the comforter. I looked up at her, waiting for the question that I knew was coming.

"So, what happened?"

"Long story."

"Humor me."

And so I did. I brought her up to speed, on everything. How they knew everything that I had done and was doing, about the jacket, and I even told her what I feared, that they had found out about my late-night magic studies.

See, here's the thing. Aurelia knew that I knew magic. There wasn't a thing about me that she didn't know. When I first told her what I was up to, years ago, she was frightened. She was worried that they'd find out, and do horrible things to me. I told her that there was nothing to worry about, that I was too smart for them, but then Aurelia did something unexpected.

She started crying.

And before you jump to any conclusions, no. She isn't the drama-queen type. She's always held a high head when facing her problems. But when I told her this, she just broke into tears. I asked her what was wrong, and she just looked at me through tear-soaked eyes. She said that I was acting like a foal, that I had no idea what I was doing, that I was going to get myself hurt. She was genuinely scared for me, and that broke something inside me. No one had ever shown this kind of emotion, this kind of care for me. I had gone through most of my life expecting to be utterly alone, but she was always there for me. I loved her for it, but I felt terrible for her. Not a day went by that I didn't think that I was ruining her life by just being in contact with her. Unicorn sympathizers were often treated just as poorly as unicorns themselves, but never openly. It was always hush-hush, never spoken about publicly. But everyone knew it happened. And nopony seemed to care. Aurelia knows this too, but she disregards it blatantly. As she said earlier, she doesn't judge a book by its cover. Apparently, I was a book worth reading. And while she was crying, I had no idea what to say. So I did the first thing that came to mind.

I held her.

It was a simple thing, but it seemed to do a world of good for both of us. It was the first night that she spent in my room. No, nothing happened. It just wouldn't even be remotely acceptable if something did. This was one friend trying to look out for the other, and the other understanding that and being there for her.

But now I'm getting off track. When I finished my story, of how I narrowly escaped the clutches of death, she just looked at me with the most serious expression I've ever seen her wear.

"You can't go," she said simply.

"I have to, Aurelia," I replied softly.

She shook her head vigorously. "No, you don't. Maelstrom, you know she's going to punish you severely. If what you've said is true, then you can't go. You can't stay here. You need to leave Canterlot Academy."

I was shocked for the second time in one day. Here was my best friend, the only reason I've stayed at this damned place without trying to escape once, telling me I have to go. I couldn't believe it. I didn't know what to say, except:

"Come with me."

She slowly shook her head. "Maelstrom, I can't. You know I can't."

I took hold of her shoulders. "Yes, you can," I said firmly. "You've told me before that you don't like your life here. You've said that your parents know you're friends with me, that they treat you as badly as any unicorn. And you're a pegasus. You aren't restricted like I am. You can go anywhere you want. You're an adult now. Your parents can't stop you, and from what you've said, it sounds like they wouldn't try to stop you anyway."

She looked up at me, the beginnings of tears. "You know, if we do this, we'll be giving up everything we've ever known. We'll become fugitives. I don't think I can..."

"Aurelia, look in my eyes."

She did. I don't know what she saw in them, but I hope it gave her reason to believe the next thing I was about to say. It would either be the best thing I ever said, or the worst. Either way, it would change everything.

"Aurelia, I've wanted to say this for the longest time, but I've been too much of a coward to say it. I've always worried you would say no, but now I can't hold it in anymore. Aurelia, I-" I started, but was interrupted by her putting a hoof to my mouth, effectively silencing me. She looked at me with those big, orange, impossibly gorgeous eyes. She simply nodded.

"I know what you're going to say. And I feel the same way," she said, smiling. A few tears were streaming down her face, but they weren't tears of sadness. They were tears of joy.

"Aurelia, I love you."

She took my face in her hooves, and brought me closer.

Then she kissed me. It wasn't a quick peck, either. It was one of those long, passionate kisses that you only read about in romance novels. The ones where something tragic happens which brings the two lovers together at the end. I had a feeling this isn't the end though, only the beginning.

After what seemed like an impossibly short time, we broke apart. I stared into her eyes, and she stared back into mine.

"So, does this mean you're coming?"

"I suppose it does." I gave her the biggest hug of her life. That hug was so big, I could've crushed a damn mountain with my epic grip.

"That's great! But you should go. Get everything you need together. We'll meet at 7:00, at the..." my voice trailed off. I then realized that I had no idea what in Celestia's name was outside the boundaries of the Academy. I sat there stupidly for a few seconds, but Aurelia spared me further embarrasment.

"We'll meet at Pony Joe's Donut Shop." she said. That brilliant mare. We had talked about Pony Joe's once one day, when she had happened to go by there one morning to grab some donuts ( from which she so graciously grabbed me one too) on her way to the Academy. I instantly fell in love with the place, begging her to take my bits and bring me a donut everyday. Like the good samaritan she is however, she refused my bits, but brought me a custard-filled donut everyday. Those donuts made my day, every day.

"Genius!" I exclaimed.

"Then it's settled. At 7:00, we meet a Pony Joe's, clear?"

"Crystal, ma'am!" I said, giving an exaggerated salute.

"It's a deal," she said. "Oh, and horn-head," she whispered, leaning in. "You better not leave me waiting."

"Leave you waiting, my dear? Perish the thought!" I said, putting on a grin.

"Sweet Celestia, what have I gotten myself into?" she said, shaking her head, but smiling all the while. We both rolled off the bed, then I showed her to the door. We kissed one more time, before I closed the door after her. I looked over at the small clock on my desk. It read 3:42. I had time. I packed everything I had, which didn't amount to much. I took everything, even the stupid gown and books. Don't know why, just felt like it I should. I looked around at my now-very empty room. I had packed my saddlebags with the contents of my trunk, a few pencils (an ingenious new writing utensil. Much more efficient that quills!), a couple notebooks, one halfway filled with diagrams and notes on pony psychology, and the other blank. The psychology one I didn't feel like taking, but it never hurt to refresh myself every once in a while, especially since I would be running into a lot of ponies in the future now, and I have had little to no social interactions, except with the teachers and Aurelia. I decided that if it ever came down to it, I'd let Aurelia do most of the talking, since she at least had a bit of outside world experience.

Once I had finished packing what I needed, I looked back at the clock once more. It read 4:27. Did I really take that much time getting ready? Sheesh! I felt relly slow just then. I grabbed my saddlebags, filled with my belongings. I draped my silk cloak/gown over my hoodie which I still wore, and left my room, for the final time.

I crept through the hallways, as silent as a ghost. I met no one on my way to the front of the school. Not even any guards, which concerned me a bit. It didn't concern me too much, most of the guards went home after hours, but there was still a sizable amount to keep watch over the unicorns that stayed there. I took it as a blessing, that somewhere, Celestia and Luna were watching over me. I made it all the way to the end, the front of the school. There were two guards at the entrance, un-surprisingly, but with my magic that I would finally be able to use, I figured I could take them. But, as fate would have it, I never got the chance. Suddenly, a pair of hooves grabbed hold of me from behind, grappling with my snout. I tried to buck whoever it was that was trying to capture me, but another pair of hooves hit my back legs in a pressure pont, which rendered them practically useless. A third pair of hooves picked me up and placed me on a pony's back, while the first pair that had attacked my face whapped me on the back of my skull, which caused me to see stars. My saddlebags had slipped off my back in the struggle, and lay forgotten as I was carried away by unseen forces.

What happened next, well. It's one of the moments that changed everything for me.

Chapter Three: Books and Breakouts

I came back to my senses as I was being hauled into a room that was very familiar to me. I was lying on the back of another pony, my jacket rubbing on their polished, shining, silver armor. I recognized the room I was now in instantly. I had spent much time here during my life at the Academy. I was surrounded by massive bookshelves practically over-flowing with books. I was in the library. Beside the guard carrying me were two other guards. I tried to see where I was being taken, but a swift smack to the snout by ugly guard #1 kept my curiosity in check. After a few more seconds of being jounced around on the back of ugly #2, I was dropped rudely to the floor via ugly #2 shrugging me off. I hit the floor, but the landing jostled my senses back in place, so I could at least make better sense of what was going on. Right, library. Check. Angry guards, check. Escape attempt foiled? Check. Now, compiling all those facts together leaves me with... Uh oh.

"Ah, A2-753, how kind of you to join us."

Aw buck.

"Maelstrom, you didn't really think you would be able to just leave, did you?" the Principal asked. "After all, why would you want to leave? This is your home, the only place you've ever known. What in Equestria would make you want to leave us so badly?"

"You know damn well why," I spat back, glaring at the guards on either side of me. They didn't even give me the courtesy of glaring back, merely grunting ambiguously.

"Actually, I don't. You've never tried to leave before, why would you now?" she asked, not even looking at me. The Principal stared out the window, her attention drawn off to something in the distance. Nothing made me angrier than when people ignored me when I was talking to them. I intended on letting her know that. I lifted a hoof to take a step towards her, but ugly #3 took the chance to give me a good smack across the face with the butt of her spear. The Principal shot the guard mare a venomous look. "There's no need for that." The guard looked as if she was the one who had just taken the butt of a spear to the face. I stepped forward to stand next to the Principal at the window. I started drawing upon the ley lines of magic that connected everything, and channeling them into myself. If I could just get close enough, I might have a chance... "Is it because of your little pegasus friend?"

My heart stopped. She knew about Aurelia? Of course she knew about Aurelia, she knew about everything else.

"No, it's not," I replied blankly, not betraying any emotion.

"Oh, don't play coy with me, Maelstrom. I know everything you're up to, how else do you think I knew of your little escape attempt? I've got eyes everywhere, my little unicorn friend. There's no hiding from me."

"Even so, she's not the reason I was trying to esc- leave."

"Oh, what then?" I smiled gruesomely.

"Besides wanting to get out of this prison, I was looking for an excuse to do this." I then released almost all of the mana I was storing, focusing it into a bubble-like shockwave, propelling everyone else in the room back about twenty feet. The blast somehow shredded the cyan gown I was wearing to bits, but my jacket was surprisingly intact. I looked over to where the Principal was sprawled on the ground and shot her a smile that probably didn't look friendly at all, and turned my attention to the large window overlooking the entrance. I could practically hear the Principal's eyes widen as she realized what I was doing.

"Stop him! Stop him before he-"

Too late. I focused a portion of mana I had stored, directly into my horn, willing the pure energy into a particular shape. I lowered my head so that my horn was aimed directly at the window, and released the pent-up energy. A blue laser shot out of my horn and through the glass, shattering it, and continued directly into a billboard in the distance, burning a hole straight through it. I didn't hesitate for the life of me. I jumped out the destroyed window, landing five feet down onto the lush grass. I ran full speed for the front gate.

"Stop him, somepony stop him!" I heard the Principal yelling behind me. I turned my head back to see the three guards with her raise their spears to throw. I focused more magic into forming a shield around me, hoping that I had studied enough to make it trustworthy in deflecting a spear. In a fraction of a second, my shield popped into place, and not a moment too soon, as I looked back and saw a pair of spears bouncing off the hardened shell I had created. I turned back to face the on-coming gate manned by two guards, when I remembered my saddlebags. Surely enough, when I turned my gaze over to where I had dropped them, they were right there, waiting for me to retrieve them. I didn't have the time to run over and grab the two bags, so I used my teleportation spell to get the saddlebags onto my back.

Frankly, at this point, I was more tired than I had been in my entire life. The constant use of magic in the short expanse of time when I had little to no practice had drained me of almost all my energy. I had about enough for one more spell, but that was it. If I tried to do anymore than that, I would probably pass out from the exertion. Unfortunately, I would have to use that last spell right now. The two guards blocking the entrance had spotted me and were brandishing their spears. I dropped my shield in anticipation for the next thing I was about to do. I charged what was left of my stored mana and released another blast from my horn, but this one was more spread out and was designed to merely incapacitate, not wound. The two guarding the gate were thrown backwards into the street, opening the gate for me at the same time. I ran by them, swiftly checking to see if they were alright. They were fine, just unconscious. The most they'd have when they woke up would be bruised egos.

I galloped full steam away from that stinking pit of a school.

My first order of business was to find a safe place to wait until seven 'o clock, at which time I would make my way to Pony Joe's, where I would be meeting with Aurelia. After a few minutes of walking around the streets of Canterlot (my hood up obviously, to hide my horn from view), Ifound a quaint little bookstore, titled simply, "Bookworm's Books." I walked in quietly, the only sound made from my entrance was the sound of a bell ringing as I opened the door. The inside of the small store was rather cozy. The wood flooring mixed with the lit fireplace and crowded bookshelves made for a rather peaceful setting. I always liked books, despite what you may have heard of me. Books were a way of learning about anything and everything, and all you had to do were read the words on a page. I love to learn, but I hate being taught, if that makes any sense. Books were my way of learning everything I needed to know, but without the incessant screeching of a teacher. This is why I always took comfort in the library. In there, I always felt more at home than anywhere else on the campus, even in my own room. As I slowly cantered into the lovely bookstore, a small earth pony with a brown coat, scraggly red mane, and a pair of glasses stepped up to the large circular desk in the middle of the room. I shot a glance over at her and smiled politely. She smiled back.

"Hello there, I'm Bookworm, as I'm sure you already know. Welcome to my bookstore! Is there anything at all I can help you with?" she asked nicely.

"I suppose," I answered quietly. "I'm trying to find a book to pass the time with. If you wouldn't mind, could you point me to your fantasy section?"

Her ears perked up significantly at hearing this. I knew I had hit a soft spot. "Oh, of course! Right this way mr...."

"Snowdrift," I lied. "It's Snowdrift."

"Right this way mr. Snowdrift. I'm sure we can find you something to your liking," she said, leading me into the back-end of the bookstore. We stopped at a small section that looked as if no one had touched it in ages. Almost everything was coated in a fine layer of dust, and in the few spaces between some of the books were cobwebs that looked as if the spiders that made them had abandoned them a decade ago. I looked over to Bookworm to ask why this was, but she seemed to have read my mind. "Nopony really seems to like the fantasy section much," she said sadly. Her ears drooped a little at this. "Everytime somepony walks in, they never ask for the fantasy or science-fiction section, it's always 'where is your gardening section?' or 'do you know where I can find the fashion books?', and one pony even told me that they had heard Princess Celestia had once visited here, and when I told them no, they just left without even getting a book! You're actually the first pony in seven years to request a book from this section."

"Well I'm sorry to hear that Bookworm," I said, trying to console her. "Where I'm from, the fantasy section in my local library is my favorite. I never go there without paying a visit to that portion of it." This was actually the truth. I always did like to go to the fantasy section of the library at the school, which was why I had asked Bookworm to show me to this particular section.

"Oh really? That's great! Do you have a favorite book? Perhaps I have it in stock!"

And that's how I ended up spending my afternoon talking to Bookworm by the fireplace about the intricacies of a dragon's mind, or the mysterious nature of Starswirl the Bearded. Before I knew it, it was already 7:00, and I told Bookworm that I really needed to go. I bought a copy of the Elements of Harmony: a History, and gave Bookworm a fond farewell. It was time to go meet with Aurelia.

And it was time to meet with destiny.

AN: Yeah, sorry, this is a bit short for a chapter. But to make it up to you, the next one is going to be twice as long. I just needed to use this chapter as a quick go-between for the school and starting the main adventure. Seriously, the next one will be great. I hope. But yeah, sorry for the short chapter this time around.

Chapter Four: Best or Worst Decision

It was raining. It was so sudden. One second, not a cloud in the sky. The next it was drizzling, then it became a torrent of water. After a while it died down, settling into a steady downpour. Many ponies I saw on the streets were scrambling to get under cover. I didn't mind. I love the rain. Something about it is just so soothing for me. I had never spent a rainy day at the Academy inside. Much to the dismay or relief of my teachers, when it started to rain I would always run outside to enjoy it. Sometimes Aurelia would join me, even though it usually gave her a wet mane. I always thought it made her look even prettier than usually. What I knew about the weather was all taken from Aurelia, her wanting to be a top weather pegasus and what-not. She said that it was the pegasi manipulating the weather itself that changed it and the seasons. There were a lot of technical stuff that I didn't quite understand, like if you didn't have a rainstorm at a specified time, it would cause a whole bunch of problems later on, but between you and me, I didn't understand any of it. I listened to what Aurelia told me, but she could tell that I didn't understand a thing and she didn't hold it against me.

My point, however, is that I love the rain. It's my favorite type of weather. I trotted along the sidewalk under the stream of water, my water-proof jacket keeping my head, fore-legs and the front half of my body rather warm. My flank, however, was freezing. Still, I didn't notice it. Why not? Because I was too focused on not becoming lost.

Yeah, I was lost. Cut me some slack, it was my first time travelling the streets of Canterlot! I passed boutiques, parlors, eateries, jewelleries, and all sorts of establishments. They were all fascinating to me, for I had never seen a more wider selection of fine things in my life. Unfortunately, I couldn't stop to admire them. I had to press on. I remember Aurelia had told me that Pony Joe's was on Canterlot Avenue, the longest stretch of street in the entire city. Seemed simple enough at the time. I checked the nearby street sign. Yep, this was Canterlot Avenue. But that's where the easy part of this mission ended. There were so many shops and stores on that street that my brain nearly exploded in my head from overload.

But ho! Off in the distance, I spied a glimmering beacon of hope! It was glorious, the brightest light in all of Equestria! Obviously I'm exaggerating, but it was beautiful nontheless. There it was, plain for all to see, the sign for Pony Joe's Donut Shop! I galloped full speed to this shining beacon of morality. I slowed to a crawl as I neared the entrance. I scoped out my surroundings, making sure I wasn't being watched or followed, and stepped inside.

The aroma caught me completely off-guard. It was an amazing scent, reminiscent of baking bread, sweet-smelling candles, sugar, and honey. I immediately fell in love with the place. The interior was well-lit by an assortment of oil lamps hanging from the cieling, their casings decorated with shapes of vines, matching the walls bearing the same designs. The floor was checkered tile, white and blue. Wooden tables were scattered through-out the room, places for ponies to enjoy their food. Booths lined the walls, their seats polished, tables thoroughly wiped down. Large windows reminiscent of tears made up part of the wall to my left, from where I entered through the door. At the end of the room (on the left half) opposite the door was a large glass counter, holding all different kinds of donuts, varying from sprinkled, glazed, bear claws, cream-filled, you name it. The wall behind it held racks of all types of baked goods, all of them still steaming as if just taken out of the oven.

At the counter, sitting on a stool, was Aurelia, nibbling on a pink donut with sprinkles. She was garbed in a fleece-lined jacket, with a pair of saddle-bags sitting at the base of her stool. But what really caught my eye was the tan colt with a brown mane and dim, green eyes. I assumed this was Pony Joe, the proprietor of the eatery (aptly named "Pony Joe's Donuts"). But what really drew my attention was the thing poking out of his forehead. His horn. I trotted over to Aurelia, keeping one eye on the baker. I pulled up a stool next to Aurelia and sat down. She glanced to her right at me and gave me a bright smile. The smile didn't hide the fact that the hair beneath her eyes seemed wet. I figured she had been crying, even though it had been raining outside. I thought this because no other part of her was wet, probably because she had been here before the rain had picked up. I gave her a brief smile in return, and turned to Pony Joe. I found he was watching me intently, probably waiting for a snide comment about his being a unicorn. I had come to expect it, so I had no reason to believe otherwise of Pony Joe.

"So, I take it this is your friend, miss?" Pony Joe said to Aurelia, not taking his eyes off me. Aurelia looked up from her donut at Pony Joe.

"Yeah, this is him Joe," she told him calmly, turning to face me. Pony Joe looked me up and down, taking my appearance in.

"Well, if he's anything like you said he is, he's more than welcome in my shop," Pony Joe said, taking his eyes off of me. "So, what'll it be sir?" It took me a second to register his question, but the I realized he was asking me what I wanted from the eatery.

"Uh, you wouldn't happen to have any blueberry muffins, would you? I've been craving one since I left school," I said.

"One blueberry muffin, comin' up," Pony Joe said, reaching onto a higher-up shelf on the wall behind him. He produced a blueberry muffin, still steaming and warm, and put it on a white plate and place it in front of me. "Anything to drink?"

"I reccomend the hot chocolate," Aurelia interceded. "It's to die for."

"One hot chocolate then, please," I asked, taking that first, warm, savory bite in my muffin. I glanced around at the bakery, noticing a few other ponies clopping in, seeking refuge from the rain.

"You got it," Pony Joe responded, pulling a piping-hot mug of hot chocolate, complete with whipped cream and marshmallows, seemingly out of nowhere. He set it down in front of me, and trotted off, leaving the counter to tend to the other ponies in the bakery. I turned to Aurelia, who looked deep in thought.

"Hey," I said, getting her attention. "You alright?" She seemed to snap out of whatever trance she was in, looking over at me.

"Huh? O-oh yeah, I'm fine. I was just thinking is all," she said, taking another bite from her shrinking donut.

"About your parents?" I asked blatantly. I immediately realized what I had just said and started mentally kicking myself. That was a stupid, insensitive thing to say.

"Yeah," she sighed, devouring the remnants of her donut. "It's just... never mind. I shouldn't bother you with it. Hey Joe, another donut, extra sprinkles. Please." Pony Joe nodded and produced another for her to enjoy.

"No, I'd like to know, if it's alright with you."

"They... They said they were glad. That they were happy I was leaving. They told me they were tired of having a disgrace for a daughter, that they were tired of being ridiculed as being the parents of a unicorn sympathizer. They told me... Maelstrom. They told me they hated me." I scooted my stool closer and pulled her into a tight embrace as the tears started trickling out of her eyes.

"Shush, it's alright," I cooed, brushing my left hoof through her mane. "I'm sorry Aurelia. I'm really, really sorry that I dragged you into this."

"No, don't say that," she said, her voice muffled by my shoulder. "It's good I left. It may not have been the nicest exit, but it's good I left. They hated me, and I didn't want to stay in a house-hold that despises me. Don't worry about me. I'll be fine, eventually."

"Okay," I whispered into her ear, pulling her even tighter to me. "If you're sure."

"I am," she replied, looking up at me with those beautiful orange eyes. "Now eat your muffin and drink your cocoa, before they get cold."

"Yes ma'am," I said, smiling slightly. I restarted work on my muffin, tearing into it like a timberwolf. Soon, Pony Joe returned, after serving the several other customers situated through-out the bakery. He sighed, plopping down on a chair behind the counter. "Long day?" I asked.

"More like an un-eventful one," he answered, looking up at me. "If it wasn't for this rain, I doubt I would've had so many customers in one day. If you hadn't noticed, being a unicorn tends to drive potential business away. Miss Aurelia here is one of my very few returning customers. If it wasn't for generous souls like herself, I would've found myself locking up the bakery permanently a long time ago."

"Don't say that Joe, lots of ponies still come here, whether or not you're a unicorn," Aurelia said, all trace of tears vanished from her face.

"That's kind of you to say, but we both know that isn't true," Pony Joe replied somberly.

"Well, every Wednesday, since I can remember, Aurelia's been bringing me donuts from your shop. I can safely say that I'm sure there are many ponies in town that greatly enjoy your goods, as I have," I interjected, trying to brighten the colt's mood.

"If you enjoy my donuts, why haven't you come in before now then?" Pony Joe said flatly.

"Well, he-" Aurelia started, but I cut her off.

"Can you keep a secret Pony Joe?" I asked him under my breath, so as nopony else in the bakery could hear me.

"Sure. Why do you ask?" Pony Joe asked suspiciously, leaning in.

"Well, this is why I asked," I said, taking in a deep breath as my hooves slowly ascended to my hood. Aurelia gave me a curious look, and glanced nervously at the other ponies in the bakery. Luckily, nopony's attention was focused this way. I heard the sharp intake of breath coming from Joe as I lifted my hood partially, revealing the horn on my head to him, but not anyone else in the shop. Pony Joe gave me a questioning look as I lowered my hood back into position, but he quickly returned to his regular, bored expression, except this time he had a slight smile on his face.

"Well I'll be," he said quietly, grinning. "Been a long time since I've come across another unicorn. You a pardoned unicorn, like myself? Or are you 'on the lamb' so to speak?"

"Option number two," I answered him, grinning back. "You won't tell anypony, will you?"

Pony Joe snorted. "Me? Bah. Like I'd ever. No, your secret's safe with me, friend. You needn't worry about a thing." I released the breath I was unwittingly holding in.

"Thank you."

"Think nothing of it."

The following minutes involved me devouring what was left of my muffin, downing the dregs of my cocoa, ordering another muffin, and paying Pony Joe what we owed, despite his arguments that we really shouldn't, that it was on the house.

"Nonsense," I told him, hoofing him some bits from my bags. "From where I'm from, the food is terrible compared to what I've just eaten. The least I can do is pay you for it." Pony Joe merely nodded his thanks, taking the money and putting it away in his register. Aurelia and I gathered up our things, and set off into the night, bidding Pony Joe a fond farewell. The rain had cleared up a bit, but was still coming down lightly. Aurelia had an umbrella with her, and we both had jackets on so the rain didn't bother us much. After those first few steps outside, I turned to Aurelia. "Well? Where to from here?" Aurelia simply smiled at me.

"Wherever you'd like. This is your first time in the real world."

I knew exactly where I wanted to go, even though I knew it would be dangerous. I wanted to go see the castle, the place where a pony could feel closest to his missing monarchs. It was guarded, obviously, but it was doubtful anyone would notice a pair of ponies paying homage to their lost princesses.

We trotted through the streets of Canterlot, passing few other ponies, on account of the rain. One soldier eyed us carefully as we passed by him, but apparently he didn't think we meant any harm.

The rain soothed my mind and body after the long and interesting day I had just had. Its cool dampness refreshed and invigored me, leaving me in a state of balance, calm and reserved, yet bursting to the seams with excitement and wonder. A whole new world awaited me, it was only a matter of going out and finding it. I certainly didn't plan on staying in Canterlot, mainly because I was undoubtedly being hunted for at the very moment by the Headmistress of the Academy and all the guards and soldiers in the city. I'm surprised that they hadn't already found me, considering that I wouldn't even be hard to find. My appearance was well known to the Principal, so you'd think they would have been able to put two and two together and think, "A white unicorn with a blue checkered hoodie. If we just look for that we should be able to find him!" But apparently not. The other reason for my wanting to leave, was quite simple. Have you ever stayed in one place for a really long time, and just gotten sick of it? I mean, just gotten extremely bored and tired of the same old thing, day in, day out? Sure, I hadn't been out of the school until now, but in a place like Canterlot, you see one part, you've seen it all. Except for the castle, of course. Sitting on the roof of the Academy gave me a good view of the city, and boy, had I seen it all.

Of course, those were just my feelings on the matter. I had to take in to account what Aurelia wanted to do. This was as much her choice as it was mine. I had a feeling that she would want to leave just as much as I do, but there was always the possibility that she would want to stay. After all, despite everything, Canterlot was still her home. Not my home, but it was hers. I hadn't asked her on the matter yet, so I didn't know what she wanted to do as of yet. I would wait until after we left the castle to ask, though.

After walking a couple more blocks, passing through the Dawn district, taking an illegal shortcut through some backyards, and taking a nice stroll up Canterlot Way through an open field, we arrived at our destination. Canterlot Castle, (former) home of the two Alicorn Princesses, Celestia and Luna. It was a grand, breath-taking sight. Awe-inspiring, to say the least. Its tall, white and gold, majestic spires gleamed in the moonlight, sitting perfectly against the backdrop of stars and clouds in the night sky. The golden drawbridge that was normally spanning the moat was raised due to it being so late at night. I spied an observatory to the left, its massive telescope protruding from the dome-shaped tower. The rain added to the awe factor, giving it that spooky feel that it was abandoned. In fact, it kind of was.

I didn't have any words for the visage before me. I was simply speechless. I assume Aurelia was in the same state I was, because I didn't hear her utter a word. We both gazed out at the intricate carvings, spiraling decor, and flowing (yet sopping) banners bearing the emblem of Princess Celestia, a gold circle orbited by orange flames on a white backdrop. Despite the bright, white-gold, pearly exterior, the castle seemed, almost depressing. As if it was missing a certain spark which gave it life and color. I realized why. Its spark was missing.

That spark was its two inhabitants. It was missing the Princesses it had housed for thousands of years. When I thought of this, a tear suddenly sprang up from my eye. Aurelia wouldn't notice, probably because of the rain, but I decided to wipe it from my face anyway. We had no Princesses. They were gone. Our two leaders, our protectors, our greatest pride, gone. Just like that. Yes, we had Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, and Prince Shining Armor (who was a unicorn, surprisingly. More on that later), but it just wasn't the same. Equestria had been under the rule of the Sisters for millenia (although there was the thousand year banishment of Princess Luna), and when they suddenly go missing and two other members of royalty have to take over, it's a severe blow to everypony's heart.

"I want to go in," I said quietly, but loudly enough for the mare at my side to hear me. She gave me a curious look.

"Why? We can't get in anyway, but why?" she asked me, studying my face for any signs as to what I was thinking.

"Because I just want to be sure," I told her, "and we can get in. I have magic, remember?"

"It's Canterlot Castle, Maelstrom. They're bound to have magical defenses to prevent people from breaking in," she countered logically.

"Maybe in the old days they did, but not now. Unicorns like me aren't allowed to join military service, remember? Besides, I won't be long. I just want to look around."

Aurelia sighed in quiet frustration. "Okay, fine horn-head. But how do you plan to get us in there? The drawbridge is up."

"Have some faith darling. It just so happens that teleportation is a part of my skill set. It usually requires that I have seen or been to the place I want to transport myself to, but if I channel more mana than is necessary or perform a scrying spell, I can either forcibly transport myself somewhere, although if there's something solid there like a mountain it could get very messy, or with the scrying spell and can use the leylines to astral project myself into an area to get a view of where I want to go. It's not always perfect, as it takes years of practice to master, but I'm pretty sure I can do it with enough concentration.

"But I don't have to do either of those things. After all, do you remember that picture you showed me of the Princess' throne room? I can just draw upon my memory of it and I can transport myself there. Pretty neat huh?"

"Except you've left out one small equation," Aurelia said, shaking her head. "How am I going to come in with you?"

"Easy," I said, waving her question away with a hoof. "I expand the teleportation field and focus on both of us when I want to use the spell, instead of just myself. I takes a little bit more out of me, so I'll have less energy than if I only cast the spell on just myself. I may not have much experience, but I know I can do this Aurelia." What I was about to say would be pivotal.

"Do you trust me?"

Aurelia looked at me as if I was the biggest idiot in the whole of Equestria. "'Do you trust me?' he asks. That's got to be the stupidest question anypony's ever asked me. Maelstrom, I trust you with my life. Now hurry up and cast your spell, I'm aching to get out of this rain."

I nodded at this, and began focusing my built-up mana, as well as drawing additional energy from the surrounding leylines around us. I called the excercise to mind which helped prepare a pony for casting spells. I went through the routine a couple times to strengthen my mental link with the energy already brimming to be released, until I was happy with my level of readiness. As I told Aurelia, I wasn't an experienced magician in the least, so I had to prepare a lot before I cast a spell like this. I finally said the world internally that I would need for the teleportation spell, and focused all the mana I had charged into the spell.

Suddenly, a swirling envelope of blue energy pulsated out from my horn, forming an almost protective ball of magic around Aurelia and I. I closed my eyes pictured the sight of Celestia's throne room in my mind's eye, and willed the pulsating, gyrating, swirling tethers of magical energy to transport us there.

Long story short, it did.

I opened my eyes to look around at my surroundings, and I was mesmerized by it. Before me was the very throne that Celestia would sit upon. This was the chair that a practical Goddess sat upon, ruling all her loving subjects. That velvet red cushion? It had felt the touch of royal flanks. It had been the spot where a Goddess' ass had been. It was glorious. Oh jeez, I just realized how wrong that sounds. I am a bad, bad colt.

I turned to my right, my eyes resting on Aurelia who was as tightly coiled as a rope, muscles as tense as a lion's on the plains of the Zavannah, ready to pounce on an un-suspecting gazelle. Her eyes were shut firmly, afraid to open and find out something had gone terribly wrong. Fortunately, I am so amazing that everything went as perfect as possible. Okay, our coats were a leeeeetle singed, but that's beside the point. I got us there in one piece didn't I? I poked her side with my hoof, trying to get her to open her eyes. Slowly and reluctantly, she did. Aurelia also took the opportunity like I did to look around at the new locale we had arrived at.

"Not too shabby for a first time teleporter, huh?" I said, brushing my hoof lightly against my chest, rubbing off imaginary dirt and inspecting it with a cocky grin.

"I guess," she said nonchelantly, "Except you left burn marks on the floor," she pointed out.

"That's a uh, side-effect of the teleportation spell. Happens to everypony."

"Uh-huh. Sure it is."

"Can we just go?"

"Lead the way, Marco Pono."

So I did. I picked a random doorway, hoping it would lead me somewhere interesting. It did. I followed a long hallway, walls lined with all assortments of detailed paintings and portraits, glass stands bearing all sorts of priceless and valuable vases, amulets, and other bits and baubles. I'm sure all these would be fascinating to somepony else, but I wasn't interested in these things. They weren't why I was here. When I reached the end of the hallway, I came to a large, spiraling staircase that seemed to go on forever. I braced myself for suffering to come, and began the ascent up the monumental steps.

I didn't realize until much later how much I would both rejoice and regret my choice to go up those steps.

It seemed like a decade passed when Aurelia and I finally reached the top of the staircase. There were other passages that we could have taken at certain intervals on the staircase, but something told me, no. Something at the top of the staircase was calling me up there. I didn't know what it was, but I was determined to find out. Between the magic I had recently cast and that colossal mountain of a staircase, I was drained of energy when I got to the top. I just wanted to curl up in a ball on the floor and go to sleep. My brain told me that I needed to keep going though, so I did. Before me stood a large set of double doors, masterly crafted out of mahogany. It seems everypony who's anypony important has something made out of mahogany, and Princesses were no exception it seems.

As Aurelia and I neared the doors, I felt a gentle breeze brush past me, and one of the doors slowly creaked open. Odd, considering that in no way could a gust of wind that light open a door that big and heavy. I knew something wasn't right here, and Aurelia knew it too, most likely, but despite our better judgment, and thanks to our idiotic curiosity, we went in anyway.

Quite possibly the best decision I've ever made, or the worst.

AN: Okay, I feel really bad because it took me two weeks to get this next chapter up. That makes me feel really bad. I promise in the future to be more diligent in updating, etc. etc. etc. Everyone who's read so far, I appreciate it, and those who are following it, even more so. I also feel really bad because I said this one would be super long, but it isn't. I plan on making it up to you, the non-existent viewer, in the next chapter. And that's a promise.

Chapter Five: Mysterious Stranger

So we stepped inside. I knew we should have just turned around and left, lived our lives as we planned. But no, for better or worse, Aurelia and I went in.

The room we had entered was not what I had expected. After walking up all those steps, we had just entered the one room I thought I would never be in. We were inside Princess Celestia's room.

The room was quite large. Unsurprisingly, Princess Celestia was a very neat pony. There were priceless paintings of all sorts of images adorning her walls, ranging from depictions of Equestria, to portraits of the Princess herself. Her bed was directly opposite the doors we had come in through. The thing was huge, its bedding matched the Princess' hair, and it was immaculate. Beside it sat a little wooden nightstand, the color of Chestnut. Atop it sat a candle, and a very large book. From a distance, the cover looked simply brown with gold corners. To the bed's immediate left was another door. I could only assume this door led to a bathroom or closet, as the door was closed. The door to the right of the bed was also closed, so I did not know what was behind door number two either.

The right wall was missing, and in its place was the biggest window I had seen. Through that window you could see the entire city below, and if you looked further, You could see so many things. There were lakes, mountains, valleys, fields, forests, and I even spotted a little town. In the center of the “wall” was a set of glass doors, so that one might step out onto the marble balcony.

The left wall was the holder of Princess Celestia's sitting area. A pair of very regal looking velvet couches sat diagonally to each other, joined at the arm rests by a small circular wooden table. In front of the two couches stood a much wider table, bearing a few opened books, as if someone was in the middle of reading them, but then just up and left. Curious. There was even a half-filled cup of tea sitting beside them. Behind and to both sides of the velvet upholstered couch were quite a few bookcases filled with all sorts of books, most of which I had never even heard of, and which most certainly not stocked in the library at the Academy.

I immediately wanted to go see what it was that I assumed Princess Celestia was in the middle of reading before she had been interrupted by something, but as I took a step towards the table, Aurelia put her left hoof in front of me, firmly keeping me in place.

“Hang on, I don't trust this,” she whispered to me, cautiously eying the room for any hidden dangers.

“Oh come on Aurelia,” I started, gently pushing her hoof back her way, “This is the Princess' room. I doubt there's anything here that could harm us.”

“And how do you know? Have you been in the Princess of the Sun's room before?”

“Well, obviously not...”

“Then how would you know if it's safe or not? Sure, the rest of the castle was undefended by magic, but Celestia's room is a whole different thing altogether.”

“Okay, okay, give me second. Would you be happy if I scanned for any possible enchantments? Would that make you feel better?”

“Immensely.”

I sighed in exasperation, but proceeded to conjure the spell for mystical detection to mind. I was still tired from my expenditure of magic earlier and my billion-something step climb, but a simple detection spell wouldn't be too difficult. After the few necessary preparations and performing the spell itself, I learned something interesting, and just a bit unnerving. There were no magical defenses or traps to speak of, but I had sensed something in the room, and it was radiating a lot of magic. It had a bigger aura than if you put five of Equestria's strongest unicorns together. While I was very intrigued by this discovery, I admit that I was scared of what this new discovery might be. Could it be the reason for Princess Celestia and Princess Luna's disappearances? Could it soon be the reason for our disappearances? I didn't know the answer, but as is expected in these kinds of situations of a fledgeling magician, I couldn't simply leave it alone, but how would I get Aurelia on board with investigating? She most certainly would want to turn around and leave the moment I told her there was something in the room with us, but I didn't want to lie to her for my own benefit, especially not when it could endanger her.

“Well?” she spoke up next to me, awaiting the answer on whether or not my spell detected anything.

“Huh?” I asked lamely. What can I say? I have a way with words.

“The spell, dummy. Did it work? Did you find anything?”

“Eeyup.”

“Well, what was it? Traps?”

“No, not traps.”

“Okay seriously, are you going to tell me or not?” Aurelia asked, losing her patience.

“I... don't know. It wasn't a trap, or defenses, or anything of the like. But before I tell you, you have to promise not to get excited.”

“Oh, for the love of Luna, just tell me already!”

“I think I just found a possible explanation for our missing Princesses.”

Aurelia just stood there with her jaw on the floor. For a second I thought she was just going to stand there with her mouth agape, but she soon spoke up.

“You can't be serious. You're not serious, are you? PLEASE tell me you're not serious.”

“I'm not serious.”

“Thank Celestia.”

“Actually, that wasn't true. I'm absolutely serious.”

“Damn it.”

“I want to investigate it. Pleeaaaase Aurelia? Please? I promise not to get into trouble, I swear!” I felt like a kid,asking his mommy if he could go play with the bigger colts on the playground. Not that I ever GOT to do that, on account of being imprisoned at a school my whole life, but still, I knew the feeling.

“Maelstrom, you shouldn't. What if you got hurt? What if whatever you sensed really is the reason the Princesses disappeared? What if it makes you disappear too? I couldn't bear it if something happened to you. And what about the guards? Wouldn't they have already tried to search for what made the Sisters vanish? They would have already found something important before now.”

Jeez, all those were really good reasons. But that last bit about the guards bothered me.

“There's a few things wrong with that last statement though, love. First, the guards didn't have magic to search with, on account of no unicorns in the guard anymore. Secondly, even if they did happen to use magic, they most likely would have searched immediately after Celestia and Luna disappeared. What if whatever this thing is, was just hiding itself to avoid being found? It could have let its guard down, allowing me the chance to find it. Aurelia, please. I know this is important. I just need to find out. Please. I wouldn't ask if I didn't think it was necessary.”

I knew that had gotten to her. Aurelia always had a certain weakness for logic. If it made sense, it was acceptable. She also didn't want to reign me in, not after I had just escaped from captivity. I probably didn't help my own case when I mentioned the bit about this presence possibly hiding, which would suggest a level of intelligence, and in turn, danger, but it was too late to take it back.

Aurelia bit her lower lip, thinking about what do choose. She looked around at the room a little bit, until her gaze settled on me. “Okay, fine. Let's go.”

“Yes! Thank you!” I exclaimed, pulling her in for a smooch on the lips. That definitely put a smile on her face, which was a win in my book. “So. Shall we?”

I stepped into the center of the room, where I felt the strongest magical connection to the strange presence, and where I felt the ebb and flow of mana pass around completely. I scanned my surroundings, checking for anything out of the ordinary that might happen. I decided that to get to the bottom of this, I would have to be direct. At least, that's what I thought, since I knew hardly any magic besides the most basic spells that somepony could learn at the Academy. I sent out another pulse in an attempt to pin-point the location of what was causing the magical disturbance. The magical “ping” I sent out, told me the location of myself (quite obvious), Aurelia, standing exactly two and a half hooves to my right, and the magical aura I had sensed. Which was right above me.

I looked up in anticipation, and seeing something that caught me off guard. It was a bright, golden wisp of magical energy, simply hovering about a hoof from my horn. I instinctively took a step backwards, putting just a little bit of extra space between myself and the foreign object.

“What, what is it?” Aurelia asked, taking a step closer to me, curious as to why I had started backing away.

“Are you serious? Look at that!” I exclaimed, pointing at the hovering sphere of magic.

“What? I don't see anything,” Aurelia said, glancing back and forth at the spot I was pointing at, and myself.

“Oh, come on! It's right there! Don't you see the floating golden ball of energy, right there?” I said, emphasizing the location of the mysterious sphere with a few quick jabs of my hoof.

“I don't know what you're talking about, Maelstrom. Are you feeling alright?: She asked, the worry evident in her voice. “I think you might have over-strained yourself with all the magic today.”

“No, I'm fine.” I said, brushing aside her concern. “I'm more worried about you. How can you not see the big, glowing, floating ball of pure magic hovering right there?”

“Maelstrom, there's nothing there but the air,” Aurelia said, taking another step towards me.

“But that's not possible! It's right there, how can you not see it?” I said, turning my gaze back to the shining aura of magic. As I re-focused my attention back on the magical anomaly, I suddenly felt the strangest sensation that it was... aware. That it knew where it was, and who was here. It was the most curious sensation, as if I could just tell what the orb was thinking, which was absurd, because it wasn't possible for magical orbs to think.

It was while I was contemplating this that I felt another strange sensation. My mind became flooded with the sensation of another presence, but not in the same sense as my magical pulse-finder. It was if the other presence was in my very mind. Oh no, was this strange ball of energy attempting to take over my mind? I panicked, lashing out with all my mental training that comes with learning magic. To my dismay, the new presence in my mind tossed aside my attack like a rag-doll, and keeping my consciousness in one place, metaphorically speaking. I feared that now was my end, that this entity was about to crush my mind and possibly kill me or reduce me to an insane, gibbering lunatic, due to the loss of my mind. I was about to accept that now was my end, until I remembered... her.

Aurelia. When this entity that she couldn't even see was through with me, what would happen to her? I hoped it would simply leave her alone, but that wasn't a risk I was willing to take. I don't know what really triggered the next thing I did, but I think it had to do with my need to protect Aurelia. I channeled all my magic, rage and fury into my mental strength and lashed out again at the strange presence. Somehow, I knew that I had surprised it with my attack, because it lessened its grip as the entity deflected the much stronger attack I had sent its way. I was grieved that my attack had done little to stop it, and I expected it to quickly crush me, but I was surprised. Why? Because as soon as it was done deflecting my attack, it loosened its metaphorical grip on my sub-conscious, but its presence could still be felt on the fore-front of my mind, as if it was waiting for something. Just then, I realized what for. It was waiting for me.

I didn't know exactly what to do, so I did the first thing that came to mind, literally.

Who are you? I asked aloud in my mind, although directed at the entity which had taken up a part of my head.. The entity did not respond, at least, not for awhile. I stood there, waiting for a response that I wasn't altogether sure would arrive, until after what seemed like an hour, I received a message. I was the sound of laughter. But it wasn't happy, hedonistic laughter that I was more familiar with. No. It was the kind of laughter that inspired a sense of foreboding darkness, as if the voice making the laughter wasn't happy at all, but was merely laughing at a dark joke that only the one remembering it would comprehend. After two short bursts of this dark laughter, a voice with no sound spoke in my mind's eye.

Did you miss me, my little pony? Which a short pause followed. I missed you.

The voice that spoke in my mind gave me a sense of familiarity, as if I should recognize it, even though I had never heard it before in my life. It was the most curious thing I had ever experienced. It sounded old, weathered by many millennium of life. It sounded strong, but also a bit erratic.

I had never heard anything like it before. So I asked again.

Who are you? I posed the question, waiting for another response as I had received previously, hoping for something a tad less cryptic. I was slightly disappointed.

You already know me, although you have not met me, the mysterious voice answered. Everyone knows me, whether they have met me or not. You are one of the latter.

That doesn't answer my question, I shot back.

You want a straight-forward answer then, but I don't always give straight-forward answers.

Why not? I asked, unknowingly letting a bit of my frustration seep into the question.

Because then, how would you grow if I gave you all the answers?

It would be helpful, at least.

You will be disappointed then. I will leave your mind alone. But know this. I will return at a later date. You have not heard the last of my words.

But you didn't answer my question! I shouted at the strange entity, as I felt its presence slip from the corners of my mind, leaving me feeling, oddly enough, rather empty. I contemplated what the voice had said, about my knowing it, yet not knowing it at the same time. How it didn't always give straight-forward answers. No kidding, I thought. Those were the most cryptic things I had heard since my last philosophy class.

As I regained my normal senses, I realized that I was lying on my side, on the floor. How did I get down here? I looked up and around, trying to get my bearings. Yep, I was definitely on the floor and- oh look, there's Aurelia. Why does she look so concerned? I rolled over onto my fore-hooves, still a bit at odds with my body after focusing on what was going on in my head for as long as I did.

“Oh, thank Celestia you're alright!” Aurelia exclaimed, releasing a breath she had undoubtedly been holding in. “I was so worried something might have happened to you! You were going on about some ball of energy that was floating; which there was no sphere of energy, by the way, and then you suddenly collapsed with no warning! I was afraid that all that strain from your over-use of magic had killed you, but I checked for a pulse and I felt a steady heart beat. But I tried waking you up repeatedly, and you just wouldn't wake, until now. Maelstrom, what happened?”

“Slow down there missy. Start over. I collapsed?” I said, bringing myself back to all fours.

“Yes!” Aurelia exclaimed, helping me back to my hooves. “You just fell over. I didn't know what to make of it, other than exhaustion. I'll ask again; what happened that made you pass out like that?”

“I- I don't rightly know,” I said, shaking my head of its sudden dizziness. That wasn't technically true, but it wasn't technically false either. I did have the notion that I had spoke to a mysterious, cryptic entity, but I wasn't sure if that was quite true. I decided I would just try to make sense of it later. I looked up to where I had seen, or thought I had seen, the hovering golden aura of pure, magical energy. It was gone. Now I really did wonder if I had simply imagined the whole thing, but I wasn't so sure. Thinking about it right now, however, simply made the dizziness came back, so I decided I would try to make sense of it later.

“Well, at least you're okay,” Aurelia said, nuzzling my neck. I returned her affection and slowly turned to face the shelves of books.

“Well, I can't sense whatever it was that I had before. Do you want to check these out?” I asked, gesturing to the large bookshelves, filled with all sorts of information.

“Wouldn't hurt, I suppose,” Aurelia answered shrugging.

I flicked my tail in anticipation, wondering what sort of knowledge I might be able to garner from the Princess' own private collection. I clopped over to the amalgamation of books, wondering where to begin. So, I started at the beginning. The “A” section. Every bookshelf was alphabetically organized, from the left to the right, making book-finding that much easier. I studied the different assortments of information, looking for something that I knew I wanted. Aha! Perfect! I had just found what I believed I was looking for.

I used my telekinesis to pull the book off its respective shelf, turning it to its cover so I might read it. On the red velvet cover, finely stitched writing over a golden symbol of an opened book with words flowing off the page, read “Spells and Incantations for the Unicorn Master, written by Starswirl the Bearded.” I had heard of Starswirl previously, due to the fact I had read another of his books, “Anthology of the Trans-mundane” a lengthy read about the different aspects and the nature of magic, and all the different types of spells one might cast, and how one might best understand the intricacies of how said spells worked. This book was obviously in the banned section of the library. This, however, was much better. I had a feeling that this book was exactly what I was looking for, and sure enough, it was. Inside “Spells and Incantations for the Unicorn Master,” was a huge collection of spells that were fit for a very powerful unicorn, and contained all sorts of knowledge on each one, including how much mana on average it would drain from you, the level of expertise that was recommended for each separate spell, and more efficient ways to cast them, for those with a much smaller mana pool. The very content of spells within the tome varied greatly as well. It ranged from powerful elemental magic, such as massive fireballs or chilling blasts of ice to freeze an opponent solid, all the way to projecting magical copies of one-self, to trick others into thinking you were in one place, when in actuality you were in a completely different place altogether.

In short, this book was everything I needed to advance my studies in the Arcane Arts. Yes, most of the spells in here required a level of training much greater than my own, but I would get to those when it was time. I didn't intend to over-step my limits. I wasn't stupid, after all. I soon discovered two more books by Starswirl, entitled “Strengthening Your Barriers: A Mind's Best Defense,” which was fairly obvious as to what the subject matter was, and another called “Beasts and their Weaknesses,” which detailed every creature known to Pony-kind, and how best to defeat them. Each creature's page suggested separate ways to deal with something, depending on whether you were a unicorn, pegasus, or earth pony. Unfortunately, the book contained no information on the Unassailable, since this book was written centuries ago, although it was still very accurate, possibly missing only one or two creatures that had recently been discovered, such as parasprites, for instance.

I turned to see what Aurelia was doing, and she had in fact grabbed a couple books as well. Later, when I asked her what they were about, she told me that one was about weather-pegasi throughout the ages, and the other was a book about wing fencing, which was like normal fencing for pegasi, except for the fact they used long, curved blades that strapped onto their wings, and basically acted as extensions of the wings. Very sharp, painful extensions meant for combat. But extensions nonetheless. When I asked her why she had picked that particular book out, she merely stated that it was “always nice to be prepared for anything.”

After we had packed up our “borrowed” books, in our saddlebags- what? The Princess certainly wouldn't be missing them. She had disappeared to who-knows-where, so she wouldn't be in any particular position to use them. Besides, she had probably already memorized each and every one cover to cover. They would do us a lot more good than her. I feel like I'm making up excuses though. I didn't look at it as stealing, but that was just me, I guess. Anyway, as I was saying. When we had finished packing the books up, I turned my attention to the two doors on opposite sides of Celestia's bed.

A quick look through the left door merely revealed that its contents was a rather lavish bathroom. It was very nice, with white and gold enameled tiling, all different assortments of soaps and expensive shampoos, and a huge bathtub. And when I say huge, I mean huuuuuge! I could probably fit twenty ponies in it, and still have room for a manticore. Overall, it was a very nice bathroom. The other room contained what I thought it might, considering the other contained a rather fancy bathroom. Behind door number two, was a large quantity of regal garments, primarily consisting of a lot of golden shoes, necklaces, and the occasional fancy robe or dress. Aurelia was fascinated by the walk-in closet, and begged me to let her try on some of the clothes, despite the fact that they were designed for an Alicorn Princess, who was much bigger than her. I made it a point to let her know this, to which she groaned in disappointment.

As we exited the closet, I couldn't help but notice what was lying on the Princess' nightstand. It was a brown book, with the image of a golden Unicorn with cyan eyes.

I was drawn to this book like a moth to the flame. It intrigued me, as it had obviously warranted the Princess' interest, since it was sitting all alone upon her nightstand. I levitated the book up to eye level. It had no title on the cover, but the front page did. It was simply called: “Legends of Equestria.” What I found particularly interesting about it was that it had a crimson-colored bookmark sticking out of the top, nestled about half-way between the pages. I was about to open it up and read what the Princess was reading, but I was interrupted before I got the chance.

“Hey, you two! What do you think you're doing in the Princess' chambers?!” A white stallion called from the open doorway, clad in the golden armor of the Royal Guard, the helmet bearing the signature blue plume. He must have noticed my glowing horn, and the fact I was levitating the book before me, because he then shouted, “Unicorn! Thief! Stop right there, criminal scum! You've violated the law!” and charged directly at Aurelia and I. I panicked, and did the first, and most dangerous thing I could do.

I quickly drew upon all my reserves of energy, and teleported Aurelia and myself as far as equinely possible from that room.