Identity Crisis
Fan-fic written by DragonlordT
Trixie, Twilight Sparkle and other canon ponies belong to Hasbro.
Planewalker, Checkmate and Cherryblossom belong to me.
Arriving just as dusk started to set in a dark blue colored pegasus with a green mane and tail knocked on a simple door pushed it open slowly. The light from the doorway making a small sliver of light that shone into the room, illuminating part of the black and white chess board that marked the pegasus' flank as he entered. In front of him posters lined the walls around a bed where a light blue colored mare slept, her silver mane covering part of her face from view.
Tapping his hoof on the solid wood floor a few times to wake the mare as nicely as possible the pegasus spoke, "Sorry to bother but I think I have found what we were looking for." As if she had not even been asleep, the blue mare in front of him jumped off her bed and put on her purple cloak, covering the wand shaped cutie mark on her flank, and hat all before touching the ground with her hooves. "Well, don't keep the Great and Powerful Trixie in suspense. What did you find?"
Nodding the dark blue colt floated an old worn book in the air as it flipped open to an entry near the back. "I was looking for old folk-lore that might prove to be valid and in this book these last few pages talk of a group of unicorns that were able to pass their own magical abilities onto other living creatures.” Turning the book around he showed it to the rather skeptic mare.
“When those unicorns died their spirits supposedly became part of their magic and lived on until they would pass their knowledge and skills onto somepony else. As more and more ponies sought them out for power the remaining spirits fled into a group of ruins in the Everfree forest.” Floating the book back in front of him he turned the page. “Legend has it that these spirits still reside there to this day. Perhaps if we find them we would be able to convince them to share their magic."
Looking up from the book he noticed that Trixie was already moving toward the door. "No time to lose then, checkerboard, let us be off at once!" And with that she was out of the door, Checkmate rolled his eyes at the nickname she used for him, carefully putting the book back into his bag and sped off after her.
Reaching the edge of the Everfree forest Trixie turned to her assistant. "Well where are these ruins exactly?" Using his cloud shaped pendant, Checkmate levitated the book out from his bag and flipped open the pages. "If this map is right it is somewhere inside of the hydra's swamp." The two ponies headed into the dark forest cautiously. Inside the forest the gnarled old trees seemed to hang over the path as they trudged along the slightly worn down earth that marked the only often used route through the gloomy area.
Darting his eyes back and forth among the trees and shrubs that stretched out before them, Checkmate kept a watch out for the array of dangerous creatures that they were both aware made their homes in this forest. Oddly enough on this day none seemed to be active. Even as they entered into a thick murky bog there was no sign of anything larger than a frog or a fish moving about.
Taking out the book once more Checkmate rummaged through the pages that told of the last known path toward a temple that the unicorn's had made long ago. "According to this there is a passage that leads underground somewhere around here."
Looking around both ponies saw nothing but scattered trees on lonely patches of ground and mucky swamp as far as they could see. "The Great and Powerful Trixie wonders if your information was correct about this place. All I see is muck and swamp, no caves or out of place scenery, or anything that would be anywhere near an underground passage."
Flipping through the pages yet again Checkmate stumbled upon a line he had missed and read it out-loud. “It says here that the only way to find the cavern is by magic.” Scribbled on the margin of the page were what looked to be an incantation for a spell. Pointing to it with his hoof, Checkmate looked over at Trixie. “We may as well give it a try.”
“If the Great and Powerful Trixie has to." Taking a step forward with a slight huff, Trixie's hat started to glow a faint pink as her magic took effect. A spider web thin line seemed to appear from Trixie's hat to a spot on one of the scattered mounds of land that dotted the swamp.
As the two approached the patch of ground the earth underneath them seemed to shake as a section of the landmass slid backwards, revealing a large tunnel that gradually angled down into the ground. Nodding to each other the two ponies started down into the passage with Checkmate in front just in case.
After a couple of minutes the tunnel floor seemed to flatten out like a floor and opened up into a dimly lit cavern. Inside the cavern a dozen lanterns hung suspended in the air with green and purple flames illuminating the open space. As the two carefully entered the cavern the wall seemed to close up the opening they had just come through, sealing them inside of the empty space. Examining one of the lanterns that had no lit flame.
Checkmate had to cover his ears as Trixie's voice echoed throughout the room. "Who dares to trap the Great and Powerful Trixie? I demand that you show yourself and explain your actions!" Every lit lantern dimmed and flared brighter than before as an eerie wind kicked up inside of the seemingly sealed cavern.
Faint outlines of unicorns appeared over each of the flames and all seemed to stare at the pair of ponies standing in the cavern. "The better question would be." All the spirits seemed to respond at once, "What is a magic deficient unicorn and a skill-less pegasus doing in our sacred temple?"
Again putting his hooves to his ears right after that comment, the following tirade from Trixie was drowned out somewhat. "How dare you insult the Great and Powerful Trixie in such a manner! I am the most powerful unicorn in all of Equestria and you would do well to remember that!"
The wind blew around the cave in a way that sounded like laughter to Checkmate as he planted his hooves back on the ground. "We are well aware of who you both are. The so called "Great and Powerful Trixie" who is no more than a common trickster and a show-off that would not be here in this cave had she the power that she boasts. And you, an outcast pegasus named Checkmate, a skilled thinker that can never seem to follow through with any of his plans. It is astounding that you two were even able to find this place."
Mumbling under his breath Checkmate returned the book to his bag and examined each of the floating spirits, they all seemed to share the same look of indifference and slight disdain except one that seemed to be watching them intently rather than having a disconnected stare. While Trixie and the remaining spirits exchanged banter back and forth, Checkmate slowly approached the odd spirit. "Why do you not seem to be connected with the rest of these unicorns?"
The spirit eyed the blue pegasus for a moment or two before replying. "They keep themselves connected to better judge those that come into this place. To that end they may very well grant that loud-mouthed unicorn with the power she seeks and pass you over completely. But you are one that while limited with magic by that pendant you possess have become quite verse with its uses. Unlike the rest of my fellow unicorns I don’t view magic to be obtainable only by those born with a horn.”
The knowledge that this spirit had of things outside of this cavern was astounding as well as the bluntness of his response. Checkmate stood silent and surprised at how this spirit was able to tell what the cloud shaped pendant hanging around his neck allowed him to do. A bright light distracted Checkmate from the spirit as Trixie was enveloped with a bright blue veil of magic coming from the rest of the spirits that lifted her up into the air a few feet.
After a brief amount of time the veil disappeared and Trixie was left standing with her hooves on the ground once more. "It seems the transfer ritual we normal use was not necessary for your friend, all that was needed was for the spirits to unlock her true magical potential. You on the other hand will need to remain here for a small amount of time for a more complicated spell if you wish for the same gift."
Checkmate nodded slightly as he walked over to Trixie as she looked herself over for any odd changes. "Well how do you feel?" He asked and somewhat knew what was coming as Trixie proudly stood on her back legs with her front legs stretched up toward the top of the cave, small orbs of magic shooting up and exploding in a shower of sparks. "Better than the Great and Powerful Trixie has ever felt before!"
Checkmate waited as his eyes adjusted once again to the dim lighting of the candles before replying. "Well things are sure looking brighter now for you at least. Though it seems I need to stay down here for a short while for some sort of spell. I'll join you back outside Ponyville when it is finished."
Trixie looked over the blue pegasus curiously for a moment before turning to leave as the cave wall opened up once again. "Humph, you had better not keep me waiting too long checkerboard." Nodding Checkmate watched as the cave wall slid shut once more, leaving him in the dim light of the cavern with the spirits.
"Now then young pegasus…" The detached unicorn started off as the others stared silently, "the ritual I have persuaded the others to use will have the desired effect by binding my own magical abilities to you. What will happen during this spell we are unsure of as it has never been tried on a pegasus before, but we remain hopeful that the end result is the same. Although, we must put you into a sleep-like state during the ritual: for your safety as to keep any unintended pain or unpleasantness to a minimum. Are you certain you wish to proceed?"
Taking a moment to consider the ups and possible downs of this action he nodded and looked from spirit to spirit with an air of certainty. "I'm sure." Checkmate watched as every unicorn spirit's horn and eyes started to shine in an array of bright light as lines of magic sped along the ground around him forming a giant circle and many odd shaped symbols. The lights intensified as Checkmate felt his body start to grow heavy as his vision blurred before going black.
In his magic induced sleep Checkmate's mind thought back to a few days prior to this whole event that put him in this current situation. He had come to Ponyville in search of Trixie to recruit her to his cause. Landing on the outskirts of the town he found a rather large but slightly run-down shack.
Scattered about the ground were large pieces of decorated wood that had seemed to be broken off from something much bigger as well as various orbs, packets of colorful powders, and other items that Checkmate had seen used once or twice before for crowd entertainment. Carefully stepping his way through the various piles of effects on the ground, Checkmate reached the door of the shack and knocked on it with his hoof.
From inside a rather grouchy voice replied to the knocking. "The Great and Powerful Trixie thought she told you not to interrupt her during her beauty sleep. I will not repeat myself so away with you Twilight Sparkle, and stop leaving your letters on my doorstep!" Intrigued, Checkmate knocked on the door once more with a bit more force this time. Hearing hoofsteps on the wood inside Checkmate waited as he took a step backwards from the door as it opened. "I told you to go away Twil..."
Standing in the now open doorway was a light blue colored mare, her silver and blue streaked mane partially hidden underneath the large purple hat that she wore, decorated with stars and other effects that matched the jewel clasped cape she wore over her back. Her expression remained indifferent as she looked over the pegasus. "And just who might you be?"
Carefully choosing his words to best handle the situation in his favor Checkmate replied. "I am a fan and admirer from years ago. As it seems you have very little of them now-a-days. Although I can’t blame them for that, after all you were exposed to be nothing more than a fraud not too long ago."
Checkmate could see the fire in Trixie's violet eyes as she glared at him, although this was the best way he knew he could get through to this particular pony, it gave him little comfort to be throwing around insults. Trixie's irritation was easily picked out as she voiced her response to him. "How dare you come to the great and Powerful Trixie's home and insult her in such a manner! You would do best to leave before I..."
Checkmate smirked as he interrupted her statement. "Or you'll what? Shower the air with special effects? Sabotage my act? Try to fake being better than me? You had more potential than this when you first started out as a show-pony but somewhere along the way the only thing that mattered to you was your fan-base. You had the ability to become just as skilled as Twilight is now, yet you threw it all away just to make your act look better."
Irritation visibly turned to anger as Trixie's horn started to shine underneath her hat as some of the orbs on the ground lifted up into the air and flew at Checkmate. Seeing the orbs out of the corner of his eye, Checkmate spun around and knocked the orbs away with his wings, during his spin a photo slipped out of the saddlebag on his side and floated down onto the ground in front of Trixie.
Looking down as the glow from her horn faded, Trixie’s expression seemed to change all at once from anger to wonder as she stared down at a photo of herself as a filly on the stage during her first magic show. Written on the top corner of the photo were the words, "To my first fan, Blue." Looking up away from the photo Trixie stared at the pegasus in front of her. "W... where did you get this photo?"
Checkmate merely smiled as the photo floated back up off the ground, with a soft green glow, and into his bag once more. "It was a gift from a very inspiring unicorn I was able to meet while I was still growing up. That unicorn in this photo had much more promise than the mare I see now, but perhaps there is a way that we could change that so that you would not have to rely on tricks to be impressive."
Composing herself Trixie's expression changed back to the high strung look she had on before. "Trixie is already the most powerful unicorn around but I suppose it would not hurt to make sure of it. Very well then, you will help me by becoming my assistant and looking for a way to do what you propose." She put her hoof up to her chin as she thought for a few moments. "I suggest you go to that Twilight Sparkle's library and find something that would be of use to us."
Nodding as he turned away and walked back through the piles of stuff on the ground, the dark colored pegasus called over his shoulder as he unfolded his wings. "By the way, the name is Checkmate now." And without another word he jumped into the sky and flew off toward the large tree that was Ponyville’s library.
When his eyes opened again he was still surrounded by black but this darkness felt oddly strange and he still had the sensation that he was floating in a void. Slowly appearing in front of him was the unicorn spirit from earlier yet he seemed less like a spirit this time. The unicorn's voice seemed to echo around him. "It seems the ritual has succeeded… yet there was a development that we did not anticipate."
Slowly rising Checkmate looked around curiously, in this void there was no wind, no cold or even heat, only darkness as far as he could see. "Who are you really? And what kind of outcome are you talking about?"
The unicorn seemed to understand his confusion. "My name is Planewalker and as for the outcome of the ritual I was successfully bound to your conscious and subconscious mind. That being said we are both currently conversing inside of your subconscious. While performing the ritual we put your mind in a sleeping state as you are aware. What we did not account for is that you seem to have a very different personality locked up inside of you. When we transferred my magic into you we broke the seal that was placed on this aspect of your mind and it took the chance to take control of your mind."
Pondering all of this information Checkmate took a few moments to take it in. "If that is true then how am I being held here and not able to take control again?" Planewalker's horn shone as the blackness around them was replaced by a clear image of the night's sky. Scattered clouds seemed to move past them. After a few moments the view panned back to show a pony similar to Checkmate flying through the sky. The differences he noticed were a thin pointed horn at the top of the pony's head as well as his cutie mark looking like a blurry patch of white.
"Who is this pony?" It was the only possible question that would matter at this time, which Checkmate could think to ask, hoping that this was just a dream. Planewalker’s reply made his heart sink in his chest. "He calls himself Whiteout. And it seems he has some ponies to settle a score with in Canterlot. He is actively keeping up a barrier to stop us from escaping into your conscious mind."
Multiple ideas started to form in Checkmate's head as he abandoned some and reworked others in hopes to find one that might work. "If he is using magic to keep himself in control then we may have a way to use that against him. But he is too focused right now for it to work so we will just have to wait it out it seems. Yet there is one thing we may be able to do in the midterm." Planewalker nodded as the two ponies watched events slowly unfold with a mutual feeling of helplessness at being unable to stop it.
Soaring through the night sky, Whiteout scanned the horizon for his target. "Finally I'll be able to do what that weak-minded side of me should have done all those years ago and make those near sighted unicorns pay for casting me out! Although I may need a quick test of how strong this magic is…" Underneath him the town of Ponyville started to grow larger as he grew closer to it, a smirk forming on his face. "Perfect."
Standing on a balcony overlooking Canterlot, a dark blue alicorn watched the clouds passing through the sky as the light from the moon made her light blue eyes seem to glow. A slight gust of wind blew past the dark pony and into the room behind her. Turning around, the light inside sparkled off the tip of the alicorn's crown and the dark blue choker around her neck with a moon symbol on the front, matching her cutie mark.
Inside the lights seemed to shimmer and dim as a pony seemed to materialize out of thin air, although he remained see-through the shape took the form of a unicorn. "Princess Luna, it is good to see you again out of your nightmares. It has been quite a long time… Well longer for me at least. For you it has merely been a brief moment between memories."
Luna slowly looked over the apparition, the voice she swore she knew from long ago. "You seem familiar to me…" The greeting as well as the voice clicked something in her mind as she realized who it was, "Planewalker? It has been over 1000 years. How is this possible?"
A hint of joy seemed to spark in the unicorn's expression before it faded just as quickly. "Sadly I have no time to explain how. I come with a warning that there is an alicorn out for vengeance against Canterlot. Although he seems to be slowing down over Ponyville he will undoubtedly reach here soon after. He must be stopped… no matter what needs to be done. I trust you will know what to do."
The spirit in the room seemed to blur and then vanished as fast as it had appeared, leaving the princess to stare at an empty room. "Guards!” She shouted to the two armored ponies outside of the room. “Ready all available squads, we have an immediate threat to address!" After explaining what needed to be done to the guards outside her room, Luna's horn radiated with a light blue aura as she vanished from sight.
At the same time, down in Ponyville a familiar cloaked pony with a purple hat covered in stars knocked on the wooden door to the library. Opening the door with her magic, a lavender colored unicorn stood in the doorway somewhat surprised at who had come to visit. "A little late to be roaming around isn't it, Trixie?"
The light blue pony slowly walked past the unicorn into the library. "Humph, the Great and Powerful Trixie is free to go where she wants when she wants." Rolling her eyes as she closed the door behind her, Twilight turned and was about to make a reply when she was interrupted as an image of a pegasus appeared in the middle of the library floor.
Waiting a moment for the two unicorns to focus themselves on his image, Checkmate spoke rather quickly. "Sorry I have little time to explain what is going on but the ritual didn't turn out as well as planned and now there is an alicorn headed for Canterlot. I doubt he is coming for a random stroll, but you two need to slow him down or even stop him if possible. For some reason he seems to be moving your way. Do whatever you have to do to keep him fro…"
Through the open library window a green orb of magic slammed into the image of Checkmate and detonated. The blast that followed knocked books off shelves and filled part of the room with smoke. "Tsk, that know-it-all could never keep things short, that is one quality I'm glad didn't carry over to me."
Whiteout stood on the open window frame, his horn glowing deep green as another orb started to form on the tip. "Yes, just stand there shocked for a few more seconds and we can end this quickly." Firing the orb this time at Twilight, who jumped over the sphere of magic as it impacted against one of her bookshelves. Books and pieces of paper scattered all over the room.
Landing on the stairs, Twilight turned in time to see a beam of light purple magic hit against the alicorn's side and sent him tumbling through the air out the window. Trixie's hat gracefully floated down onto the table in the middle of the room as her horn stopped glowing. "No one is going to upstage Twilight Sparkle but me, the Great and Powerful Trixie!" Running outside after the alicorn the two unicorns ducked under a beam of green light from up above one of the houses next to the library that shattered the wooden door behind them.
"The Great and Powerful Trixie? More like the puny and weak Trixie. That foal Checkmate may believe in your power but I say he was wrong to think a trickster like you could be any better than the average unicorn. Compared to me you are nothing but a pest!" Whiteout's horn shone a bright green as he made a horizontal motion with his hoof.
An arc of green magic formed in the air in front of the horned pegasus before it shot forward at both ponies and slammed into a pink tinted bubble of magic that surrounded the unicorns. Twilight’s horn shone brightly inside the sphere. "Tsk, Quick thinking there Twilight, but how long can you hold that up?!" His voice echoed down at the unicorns as his horn shone brighter as arc after arc of magic energy flew down at the ponies.
Every impact seemed to strain Twilight as she kept up the protective field with all her strength, small cracks starting to show in the field as the assault continued. "Now to finish you off!" With both front legs Whiteout made an X motion as two energy waves descended down against the field of magic and detonated on contact. The shattered barrier slowly faded away as an unconscious Twilight lay on the ground a few feet from where she had been holding the barrier up.
Standing between the lavender unicorn and Whiteout, Trixie glared up at him as her horn shone brightly while her eyes started to glow with the same bright light. "I WARNED YOU! NO ONE UPSTAGES TWILIGHT SPARKLE BUT ME! THE GREAT AND POWERFUL TRIXIE IS SECOND TO NO PONY!" Standing on her back legs Trixie's horn almost seemed to blaze with light as a large beam of white/purple magic shot forward from her front hooves and slammed directly into the alicorn's chest.
Whiteout's horn pulsed with green energy as a field of magic similar to Twilight's formed in front of his body. The magic from Trixie's attack seeming to glace to the sides of the shield, but regardless she kept up the attack for as long as she could. After a few more moments the glow in Trixie's eyes faded and she stood back on all four legs, fighting just to stand with the absence of a good portion of her magic.
Looking up at the bubble protected alicorn she noticed that there had been a small patch of his jacket burned off as well as a handful of feathers from his wings. "Perhaps, I had underestimated the power you had gained… but it is still too small to be compared to me!" His words were empty even to his own ears as Whiteout struggled to maintain in the air from the force of that last attack.
Raising his left foreleg as his horn shone brightly he took one final look at the two unicorns. "Be gone you troublesome mares!" Bringing his leg down, the arc of another magic blade started to form in the air as he made the motion but he stopped halfway through and the magic dissipated. Eyes wide open, Whiteout’s entire body convulsed and shook, his head throbbing with pain as he felt a presence pushing him out.
"N... no… I trapped you out of here, how did you… get out…? This… this is my mind now! I won't let you have it back!" Wildly flailing around in the air Whiteout's horn shone brightly as orbs and blades of magic were thrown randomly through the sky, some just flying far to the distance as others hit the ground and buildings in Ponyville.
Down below a flash of light appeared next to the two battered unicorns as Princess Luna blinked into existence and immediately went over to examine them both. After making sure Twilight was still breathing and not badly injured, Luna went over to Trixie and there was a moment of silence before the Princess looked her over for the same kinds of injuries. "What is going on here?"
With one of her hooves Trixie shakily pointed up in the air where the dark colored alicorn was flailing around in the air. "We were listening to a message from my assistant Checkmate when that alicorn attacked us. He mentioned something about a ritual going wrong before he was inter…"
Amidst Whiteout’s flailing a stray arc of magic had managed to angle its way down and catch Trixie off guard while she was explaining the situation to the princess, sending her flying to the side. Skidding along the ground and stopping a few inches from where Twilight lay.
Trixie struggled in vain to rise back onto her feet and laid on the ground weakly, the strain from her trance state coming at her full force now coupled with the pain from the hit she had just taken left her barely able to keep aware of what was happening. Rushing over to the light blue mare on the ground, Luna's horn shone a dark blue as she focused on healing the damage on the unicorn’s side.
Back up in the air the alicorn struggled to keep his hold on his mind as the force against him started to win over. "Y… you can't banish me! So long as you have this magic you can't be rid of me, I will always come back and take control from you again!” Checkmate voiced a response to his captor as he moved his front hooves up to either side of the horn atop his head. "Then why don't I rid myself of this magic and be sure you will never come back!"
Planewalker's voice pushed through his thoughts with a hint of urgency. "Checkmate, I would advise against this course of action! If you do this you may not live through it." Hesitation crept into his mind at those words as Checkmate considered any other options as he thought of possible choices. During this small interval of time he felt his control start to fade as he tried to move his front legs but they would not respond. Cursing, Checkmate once again found himself trapped in the dark void of his own mind.
Strain as he might the void was once again impossible to get out of, yet he could feel that Planewalker wasn't as held back as he was. Reaching out to the unicorn's consciousness he relayed a set of instructions to him while keeping up his attempts to break the void to keep Whiteout distracted from his plan.
Down on the ground Princess Luna watched as the alicorn in the air stopped flailing around and stared down at her. "I had not thought to go after the royals till after I had finished my little errand, but as you have delivered yourself here with no one around to help you I can't pass up this opportunity! Let us see if you value your life more than the lives of those two weaklings!"
Bringing his hooves down from above his head twin arcs of magic shot down toward the ground, one aimed at each of the two unicorns collapsed on the ground. Jumping between the arcs of magic and the two unicorns, the princess' horn shone a bright blue as a field of magic surrounded the three of them.
Unlike Twilight and Whiteout's shields, the field Luna made seemed to be made of large hexagon shaped pieces rather than a solid barrier. The arcs of magic impacted against the barrier and rather than fight against it the magic seemed to get absorbed into the panels that protected the three ponies.
Glaring furiously down at the shielded alicorn Whiteout threw arc after arc of magic down at the lunar goddess. Every blade of magic had the same effect as it vanished against the glowing blue panels surrounding the princess and the unicorns.
A specter of Planewalker appeared inside of the blue barrier and quickly relayed his message to the princess as she concentrated on keeping up the protection as well as listen to the plan put forth to her. “What good would a spell like that do him?" The ghostly image merely shook his head and looked up as Whiteout desperately rained blades of magic down on the protective panels. "I'm not sure Princess but I trust Checkmate on this."
Dropping one of the blue panels for a moment Luna fired a small orb of blue magic up toward the attacking alicorn before replacing the hole in the barrier. Whiteout immediately stopped throwing attacks and brought up a shield of his own to block the sphere. Surprise struck him as the orb easily passed through his magic as if it wasn't even there and absorbed into his body.
"Wha... What kind of magic is this?" Whiteout's shield ebbed and seemed to fade as he was suddenly dizzy; a bout of pain wracked his entire body from nose to tail as a bright green orb of magic shot out from his body and into the air in front of him. The orb took shape with a bright green glow and as it faded Checkmate hovered in the air facing Whiteout.
With a sharp glare Whiteout roared in anger at the pegasus in front of him. "I don't know how you managed to escape but you can't best me! Your efforts are all for not!" Whiteout's voice was cold and harsh. Checkmate just smirked as he ran a hoof through his mane, happy to find no horn occupying his head. "Perhaps, but this first attack will be a warning, I suggest you try to dodge the rest."
Rising backwards up into the clouds, Whiteout focused on Checkmate as he made an attempt to dive at him and knock him out of the air. A blue blade of magic shot up between the two winged ponies causing Whiteout to stop short and look down at the source. On the ground below, the barrier surrounding Princess Luna shimmered as the blades of magic they had absorbed shot back up out of them in rapid succession.
Cursing, Whiteout formed up his magic shield once more as he weaved through the rain of magic blades, some grazing the bubble as others hit it straight on. The blades that missed flew up into the clouds, came to a stop, and then dropped back down toward the ground, pelting the top of Whiteout's barrier as he focused on dodging the ones still coming up at him. When at last the final blade dispersed against his shield the green bubble surrounding Whiteout was riddled with chips and large cracks.
"I… have had… enough of this… nonsense! If I can't destroy any of you directly I'll just level this town and everypony in it!" Whiteout's voice rang through the air as he flew high up into the sky, his horn illuminating the clouds as he started to form a large orb of green and black magic between his hooves.
"I won't let you do that!" Placing a hoof over the cloud pendant on his neck Checkmate closed his eyes. "I'm sorry Princess… I know I was supposed to save this but I have no other choice." A golden yellow glow lit the sky above Ponyville, as the light enveloped Checkmate's body his eyes shone the same golden color. Spreading his wings out, he shot up into the sky directly underneath Whiteout.
"You foal! Perish with the rest of this town!" Whiteout fired the orb directly down at Checkmate who made no effort to move out of the way. The sky seemed to shake as the orb impacted against the glowing pegasus and detonated in a large cloud of smoke and green fire.
Down on the ground Luna watched as the golden light was blocked out by the explosion. She dropped her shield as she prepared to jump into the air but stopped short as she swore she heard a chuckle. Looking to the ghostly image next to her she saw the specter of Planewalker smiling. "I wouldn't count him out too quickly princess."
As the smoke slowly cleared a shining pegasus stared up at Whiteout with neither a scratch nor singe on his coat. "This ends now." Glaring angrily and shouting, something that couldn't quite be made sense of, Whiteout rained a hail of magic blades, orbs and beams down atop Checkmate.
A gold tinted field of green energy surrounded the waiting pegasus, the onslaught of magical attacks merely dissolved as they entered the field. "Using the power you so quickly tried to take for your own to hurt other ponies just proves you are not deserving of having it!"
Checkmate's wings seemed to vanish entirely into a blazing light as he disappeared from sight and reappeared hovering in the air in front of Whiteout a split second later. The field of light surrounding Checkmate dimmed slightly as a small orb formed between his hooves. Firing the orb at point blank range the sphere shattered Whiteout's cracked barrier and expanded around the alicorn's body, holding him in place in the air.
"You talk big but you are too soft to destroy me! You can cage me again but you'll never be rid of me!" Whiteout growled as he struggled in vain to free himself from the magic holding his limbs. Checkmate's golden eyes focused onto his counterpart as he hovered closer.
"You are wrong. You are no longer a part of who I wish to be and I will be rid of you!" Pulling his leg back, Checkmate slammed his left front hoof against the side of Whiteout's horn and with an audible snap it broke free and tumbled toward the ground while slowly fading out of existence.
Snarling, Whiteout brought his head back and then smashed it against Checkmate's chest. The broken end of Whiteout's horn shattered the cloud pendant that hung there. "Tsk… you failure of a pegasus… even in victory you have lost. Without the princess' precious gift, you now have no way left to use magic without me…" Whiteout's voice trailed off as he slowly started to fade away.
The golden glow slowly dissipated from Checkmate's body as the pieces of his pendant fell to the ground. Hovering for a moment Checkmate watched with his bright gold eyes returning to their normal green as the last specks of Whiteout faded from view.
Once the last sliver of gold light faded from his eyes, Checkmate's body ached as waves of pain coursed through his body. His wings flailed weakly as he looked up towards the clouds above him as they got farther and farther away. A few moments later the sensation of falling stopped and the world went dark.
Muffled voices stirred Checkmate from the dark void he was in. Slowly opening his eyes the pegasus sat up and looked around the stark white room, machines hummed faintly next to the bed he was in. Reaching down off the side of the bed he pushed his hoof to a rather large button.
A few moments later a familiar white earth pony entered the room. The pony wore a white cap with a red cross that matched the mark on her flank. She looked at him rather calmly as Checkmate knew she was very used to seeing all kind of patients come in for a wide number of things. "Hello Miss Redheart, sorry I cannot give a proper greeting as I can't be sure what time of day it is from in here."
The nurse smiled at the pegasus as she walked over and started to shut off the machines. "Well then Checkmate, you will just have to go and find out now won't you?" The dark colored pegasus looked at her curiously as he hopped out of the bed, feeling a little dizzy but otherwise normal. "I am free to go then?"
Nodding as she turned off the last of the equipment, Redheart turned to face him. "Yes Checkmate you are free to go..., the others that came in with you on the other hand will be here quite a bit longer." Stopping short with his wings half stretched out the pegasus slowly folded them back to his sides. "M… may I go to see them?"
Seeing the concern in his expression, the white earth pony nodded after a moment and led the pegasus through most of the hospital to the intensive care section. They passed by other ponies in white coats, who rushed from here to there checking on patients; his ears picking up groans and pained sounds coming from here and there as he trotted along through the hall. Stopping at one of the back rooms Redheart slowly pushed the door open and let the pegasus inside.
A hollow feeling started in Checkmate's gut as he walked into the room. Inside were two beds with machines similar to the ones that had been in Checkmate's room, as well as one or two others he did not recognize, that hummed and beeped periodically. On each bed lay a unicorn, the light blue mare on the left had bandages wrapped around her torso whilst her hat and cloak lay folded at the foot of the bed.
The lavender unicorn on the right had no obvious injuries from the lack of bandages on her form. Both had multiple machines hooked up to them with small circular patches that were placed on various parts of the unicorns' bodies connected by thin wires to their respective machine. Twilight's small dragon assistant lay on the side of her bed who Checkmate guessed had been keeping a constant watch over her but being a young dragon the need to sleep had caught up with him.
He also noticed that pacing between both of the beds a heavy eyed white alicorn kept a watch over both young unicorns, her multicolored mane billowing behind her as she moved. Unable to make eye contact with the solar princess, Checkmate slowly walked over to the blue mare's bed and sat down next to it, laying a hoof gently on her foreleg. Thought after thought buzzed through his mind but none could fit how sorry he was to see what his actions had wrought on the mare in front of him.
After quite some time he saw the unicorn stir and partially open her eyes. "You are late, checkerboard…" Seeing her violet eyes looking up at him was strange. He had seen her once or twice without her hat and cloak on but this was different. Rather than her normal showy expression was one that seemed vulnerable, weak, and helpless even.
He fought back the grief building inside of him knowing that he had put this unicorn, that he admired so much, in such a state. Composing himself Checkmate nodded. "My apologize Miss Trixie. I will work harder to be on time for the next meeting." He suppressed his wonderment as he thought he saw a smile appear for a moment on her face before she closed her eyes once more.
"I shall hold you to that checkerboard… I am the Great and Powerful Trixie after all and I dislike being kept waiting…" Her voice trailed off as she drifted back into her sleep leaving the room quiet once more except for the humming and beeping of the machines.
After waiting a few moments of silence, Celestia turned away from the resting lavender unicorn to address the pegasus; yet she found herself looking at an empty space next to the bed where he had previously been. Looking to the entrance all she saw was the green of Checkmate's tail as he ran out the door and down the hallway.
Dodging as best as he could through blurred vision Checkmate somehow managed to avoid tripping or knocking any other pony over before he burst out of the front entrance to the hospital. The sky was dark and gloomy as a steady rain fell from the darkened sky to the ground. Checkmate ran purposelessly and without a destination until he had to stop to catch his breath.
Taking a look around he noticed he had run straight to the square of Ponyville, amidst the normal handful of ponies ducking here and there to avoid the rain, there were large marks dug into the ground here and there as well as shingles from houses scattered on the ground from the events that had unfolded the previous day.
Spreading out his wings, Checkmate crouched down and jumped up into the air. Flying up higher and higher he was content to glide just below the dark clouds as he let his emotions go, tears dripping down his cheeks and fell with the rain as he let out his guilt and sorrow of the recent events, somewhat glad that up this high no pony would be able to tell whether it was tears or rain rolling down his cheeks.
It wasn't until after he had opened his eyes once more that he noticed he had drifted down closer to the ground and Canterlot had appeared not too far off in the distance. A subtle pull in the back of his mind kept Checkmate on his present course and rather than turn and fly away he let it guide him as he flew.
The gloomy sky colored the ground below in dark shadows as the lights of Canterlot rapidly grew brighter and brighter as he approached the city. As he passed over the city he watched the few unicorns and earth ponies that walked about the streets blissfully unaware that Ponyville had paid for an attack that was meant for here. Holding back the grief that started to build up again he flew to the edge of Canterlot as the castle came fully into view.
Angling up Checkmate followed the pull in his mind and landed on a balcony near the top of one of the spires. As he folded up his wings he noticed multiple small gaps were feathers had fallen out during the trip. Considering that was the worst of his injuries he was glad but at the same time a hint of sadness stuck him at the sight of his normally well-kept wings in such a state.
Putting his thoughts to the side the pegasus slowly walked into the lit room. The room itself closely resembled the night sky but on a much clearer and more detailed scale. Checkmate may have looked past the dark colored alicorn inside had it not been for the billowing of her mane. "Ah, my apologizes for just barging in out of nowhere Princess."
The lunar princess turned to look at the damp furred pegasus. She smiled with slight amusement at the rather embarrassed looking figure standing just inside of the room with his head bowed down. "Come here young one, we have been expecting you."
"We?" Looking up, Checkmate took a second look around the room. The lights were slightly dimmed more than they normally would be for this time of night as well as a gentle breeze coming from the inside of the room and not from the window behind him.
Looking back over at the princess, Checkmate noticed three large pillows on the floor, one occupied by the Luna, another was vacant, and the last was odd in the fact that there was an impression in it as if somepony had just gotten up off of it. Starring for a moment the air over the cushion shimmered as the outline of a unicorn slightly bigger than the princess took shape, the pony seemed to become more solid every couple of seconds.
The lights seemed to brighten back to normal and sitting on the pillow next to the princess was a large silver coated unicorn, his mane and tail a light blue color with tips of silver matching his coat. On the unicorn's flank a symbol of blue waves with an arrow weaving through them seemed to pulse with energy as he finished materializing.
The light seemed to reflect off of the unicorn's ice blue eyes as he looked at the pegasus with a very familiar expression. After a few moments it dawned on Checkmate and he almost jumped back in surprise. "Planewalker? How is this even possible? I thought breaking the horn would have cut the connection that the ritual had made, which would have made you disappear with Whiteout."
Luna slowly got up and walked over to a stone table near the side of the room, on top of the polished stone was a set of black and white chess pieces. She calmly motioned the pegasus over to the table while moving one of the white pawns forward with her magic.
Attempting to take his mind off of the flood of thoughts and emotions now floating around in his mind he looked at the small objects on top of the board. He noticed that unlike the normal glass or wood pieces he was used to these were finely detailed pieces of polished marble.
Luna's voice pulled him out of his study. "You make a very common assumption about what happens in such situations. But breaking a unicorn’s horn, or an alicorn's for that matter, can have a varying degree of outcomes from just the loss of one's magical ability to, in the worst case, death."
To break the somber mood that was forming Planewalker started to make his way over to the two dark colored ponies. "Though if you remember young pegasus, the ritual that I preformed bound my spirit and magic to you. As long as you are still here I shall remain bound to you, horn or no horn."
Another question slipped into Checkmate's head as Planewalker came nearer. "How is it that you are no longer a ghost?"
The unicorn merely smirked at the question. "Well my name was given to me after my talent had been fully realized, much like you picked your own name." Planewalker motioned to his flank with his left front hoof as he continued his explanation. "My talent is the ability to convert matter into energy and vise-versa. In this sense I can change myself from a pony into a spirit and back again at will"
Nodding silently Checkmate looked at one of the black pawns on his side of the board and willed it to move, as he was accustomed to, yet nothing happened. It then dawned on him as he remembered the end of the battle against Whiteout, whose broken horn had shattered his pendant.
Looking down as he placed a hoof where the pendant normally hung he was visibly saddened to find that all that remained of the white cloud pendant was a small white sliver hanging from the necklace around his neck. "I suppose Whiteout was right. I'm nothing more than a failure of a pegasus without my pendant…"
Sitting next to the dark colored pegasus, Planewalker's horn shone softly while the piece Checkmate had been focusing on moved a square forward. "Yet you were able to outsmart even yourself when you had to. Would a failure have been able to do such a thing?"
Checkmate pondered Planewalker's statement as Luna moved another pawn along the checkered squares. "But just like this here," Checkmate paused as he had Planewalker move one of his knights forward. "I can't do anything without someone to help. I'd still be trapped in my own mind if not for you, Princess Luna. Nor would I have been able to fight against Whiteout without the magic Celestia had given me."
Luna's voice interrupted him but he could tell the same question was in Planewalker's mind as well. "Why would my sister have given you such a powerful amount of magic if you had no potential or skill?" Having pondered this question more than once, Checkmate merely shrugged in response. "I… I have no answer for that."
Luna nodded as she got up from the opposite side of the table and walked over to the balcony, observing the rain that was still falling whilst the moonlight leaked through small breaks in the clouds that made the rain look like small gems falling to the ground.
"For the remainder of the night I would like you to think on that question and give me your answer in the morning to both my sister and me. Until then you and Planewalker are guests and may stay here in the castle. Dawn is only a few hours off and my sister shall be returning in time to raise the sun."
Checkmate's mind wandered as he stared blankly at the chess table in front of him as if the slightest move of a piece would send the whole table crashing onto its side. The lunar princess walked back across the room to the large wooden door that connected it with the castle as it slid outwards into the hall with a blue glow. "Rest while you two can. I suspect tomorrow shall be a very long morning."
And with that Luna vanished into the hall as the door quietly shut behind her. As to not disrupt Checkmate's train of thought, Planewalker slowly trotted to the large cushions in the middle of the room and laid down on one of them, sleep quickly overtaking the unicorn which left the pegasus to wrestle with his thoughts in silence.
As the pale rays of dawn started to shine over the horizon, light filled the high tower of Canterlot castle. A knock on the large wooden door at the far side of the room stirred the silver coated unicorn from his slumber. The brightness stung his eyes for a moment as the light of day greeted him.
Because as a spirit he had no real need of sleep, grogginess was something Planewalker to adjust to as he slowly rose onto his hooves and made his way over to the door. Taking a moment to examine the intricately detailed wood that played out a scene of the raising of the moon into the sky, Planewalker’s horn shone a faint blue as the door slowly slid open into the room.
To no surprise Princess Luna stood in the doorway as her dark colored mane billowed about her neck. Standing behind her and to the side a larger alicorn stood, her multicolored mane waving in the same fashion around her. Bowing his head, Planewalker took a step back to allow them into the room. “Good morning Princesses.”
Luna smiled as she walked into the room. “Good morning to you as well Planewalker.” Her eyes catching the pieces on the chess table as she passed it which made her stop and examine the board. Every black piece except for the king was set into the felt box on the edge of the table, which was used to hold the pieces, as well as two white pawns and a bishop. “Were you and Checkmate playing after I had left by any chance?”
Shaking his head, Planewalker joined the dark colored princess at the table. “As far as I recall I had turned in when you left and Checkmate was still sitting here.” Looking around the room it the unicorn noticed that the pegasus was nowhere to be seen. “Speaking of which…”
Celestia trotted over to the table, listening to her sister and Planewalker as they talked. Her horn shone a soft gold as the black king slowly lifted off the board and was set gently into its place in the box. Planewalker and Luna merely watched as the solar goddess turned and headed for the door. “Well come on then. We were going to have a talk with Checkmate were we not?”
Luna was the first to snap back from the odd moment as she proceeded after her sister. “But Tia, we don’t even know where he is.” Her voice was slightly raised from her normal speech with a hint of concern in it. Celestia smiled as she started down the staircase. “I know where he is.” And with that she disappeared from sight down the spiraling corridor. Coming out of the room Planewalker nodded slightly to the lunar princess as they followed down the stairs.
The trio of magical ponies made their way lower and lower into the castle and got off at the second floor. Hoofsteps echoed through the large halls as they passed the large wooden doors that lead into the royal library, Planewalker noticed that one of them was slightly ajar, a small sliver of light shining on the floor and wall of the corridor.
The rays of the rising sun shone through the large windows along the hall and onto the polished white stone as they passed by door after door and stopped in front of one near the end. Near the top of the door there was an engraved pair of spread wings. Occupying the rest of the door were scattered clouds and delicately carved raindrops.
The door had no handle but Celestia merely stepped forward and touched the tip of her horn against the wooden mural as a small spark of magic passed from her it into the wood. With a resounding click the door shuddered and started to open out into the hall. The white alicorn smiled as she walked into the room.
Inside the room, books littered the floor some were open while others were closed and laid in lazily made piles and stacks. The only window in the room, unlike the windows in the hall, had no light coming through it. Contrary to the rays of light that poured into the outside hall from the sun, the window inside actively displayed dark clouds rolling back and forth as rain and an occasional boom of thunder could be heard echoing in the room.
Above the clouds an image of a bright full moon shone with stars dotting the top of the window which cast a pale light into the otherwise dark room. Forks of lightning streaked along the glass and lit up the entirety of the room every couple of minutes.
A made up bed occupied the far wall with open books covering most of it. Near the wall closest to the door a large table was set against it, on the table was a set of old but well cared for wooden chess pieces. On the far side of the table a dark colored pegasus slept with his head on his hooves, leaning forward on the table.
Under Checkmate’s left hoof was a scroll of paper that slowly lifted out from under his hoof and in front of Celestia with a soft glow. On the paper were two columns. At the top one had the word white and the second had the word black. The white side had twenty-four dashes showing under it and the black side had only one dash as well as a scribble of words at the bottom.
As Celestia looked over the paper in front of her Luna was the second to enter. Her gaze traveled from the table and followed the trail of scattered books as her eyes fixed on the back window. Stepping closer her horn shimmered faintly as the rain seemed to ripple in reaction to her magic as she got closer. Small beams of light pierced through the spot where the image deformed. “Tia, what is going on with this window?”
Taking her eyes off the window the dark colored alicorn looked over at Celestia who nodded her head slowly. “A rather clever enchantment Checkmate had come up with. It casts the recipient’s favored time of day and weather onto the desired object.” Luna made no reply as she backed up slightly and fixed her gaze once more on the window.
Celestia floated the piece of paper over to Planewalker as he entered the room. “What would you make of this?” She asked as she let him take the paper with his own magic while she looked at some of the open books on the ground.
Counting out the tallies on the paper, Planewalker read the note at the bottom. “What is the difference between a pony who gives up to save other from one who makes the necessary sacrifices to accomplish a task? Are those that give up regarded as…” The rest of the writing was too hard to read as it was smudged from drops of water. Placing the piece of paper down on the table Planewalker watched the sleeping pegasus. “I’m not sure I understand.”
Lifting the open books into the air as she closed them and set them neatly in a pile on the ground; Celestia cleared the bed on the far side of the room and carefully lifted Checkmate with her magic. Setting the pegasus down on his bed she turned and sat on the opposite side of the table from Planewalker. “Observe the table if you will.” With a spark of magic from her horn the lines on the chess board started to shine as a projection of the board floated above the table.
On the floating image the thirty two pieces appeared on each side, sixteen of both black and white, and started to move one at a time. After the sixth move on the white side the game ended in only a check of the black king as the pieces reset and started to move differently.
The next game ended after the black side had lost three pawns and a knight. “What can either of you tell me from this?” Other motions flashed about the screen as game after game played out. Luna, who had torn herself from the window, watched the pieces intently. “One would think that a pegasus that could develop such creative spells would be a better chess player.”
Celestia nodded slightly. “One would think, but as with the window, Checkmate had me enchant this table as well. The white pieces are controlled by magic and are a reflection of the best games he has ever played.”
”If that is true then he isn’t even trying to play the game correctly. Either he is giving up early on because he lost a few pieces or he refuses to move his king backwards or block it with a different piece.” Luna’s words had a sharpness to them that made Planewalker wince. Although he knew she was correct in her observations.
Seeming to sense the question in Planewalker’s mind Celestia replied to her sister. “That is true dear sister. He used to play very differently, but how do you expect him to accept sacrificing those around him to protect himself?” Luna and Planewalker’s confused looks that followed were the expected responses to her statement.
“As you can tell by now, this room has been here for quite some time. Checkmate has been living here since he was a young colt. During that time I had helped nurture the young pegasus’s curiosity for things that most pegasus would never take an interest in.”
Celestia chuckled to herself. “One thing you should understand about Checkmate is that he has a tendency to relate games and how they work with how the life of a pony should work. This became obvious during one of our practice sessions.” Her voice changing to a more serious tone.
Gently placing a white bishop from her side of the board to left center Celestia let go of it with her magic. “Check.” The pegasus in front of her put his hoof to his chin as his eyes danced among the pieces on both sides. He knew the princess was pushing him towards the corner but with only a bishop of his own and a rook left there was not much he could do at this point.
Using his wings to hover in the air Checkmate carefully slid his bishop along with a hoof between Celestia’s own piece and his king. As predicted Celestia’s bishop took his own and once again placed him in check. Sliding his rook up the line and taking Celestia’s bishop he realized his mistake too late as her queen moved diagonally to take his rook. Four moves later he was trapped in the corner with no safe spaces to move to.
Carefully picking up the king with his hooves Checkmate placed it in the felt box on the table with the other fifteen of his pieces. He watched as the rest of Celestia’s pieces lifted off the board and set into their respective placing in the box as well. “You don’t seem to be all too focused today. Is there something on your mind Checkmate?” Celestia asked curiously as she commented on the pegasus' somber mood.
Rather than trying to avoid the question Checkmate nodded in response. “Were somepony to look at life like a game of chess. What would the pieces represent?” He knew it was an odd question but it was one he had wanted to ask for a while now. He could see the slight surprise on the princess’ face from the sudden seriousness of his question and a silence filled the air for a few moments.
Celestia looked over the pegasus across the table. Her reply to this would have an immense effect on this pony but it was a question she was determined to answer truthfully. “I would assume that the king would represent yourself and downwards from there. The queen would be the one closest to you in life. From the bishop to the rook those would be the ponies that are a big part of your life as a whole and the pawns would be those that either you know a little or those you don’t know at all.”
Another question rolled into his mind and he asked it without a second of hesitation. “Then what would it represent taking a piece on a chess board compared to life?” This question Celestia took a few moments to think about before she put forth her answer. “I suppose that would be your own interpretation Checkmate. Unfortunately in life we tend to use others to shield ourselves; whether it is for blame or more serious events.”
Thinking back on games he had played over the past few months, since he started, his heart sank in his chest and he was filled with an overwhelming feeling of grief. “As long as you protect your king all the other pieces are expendable. That is what we were taught on how to view this game, but are other ponies' lives and dreams ours to throw away so easily…?”
Celestia stopped in her tale as she looked from Planewalker to Luna as they listened to her words. “It was after that when Checkmate started to play his games different. Many times since then he would never finish a game. It has been a long time since he last played a game of chess for fun. But he never backs up his king even when it was the only possible move; to him the king should take the same risks as all the other pieces protecting him.”
Walking over to the bed where Checkmate lay, the solar princess noticed he was shaking in his sleep and fresh tears streaked along his cheeks. She spoke a little quieter as she ran her hoof through his two-tone green mane. “A stalemate would equal him giving up every pony close to him just to save himself.”
It then dawned on Planewalker why Checkmate did not break the horn on Whiteout’s head the first time he had a chance. “He wasn’t trying to save himself… he was trying to save me…” Celestia nodded as she touched the tip of her faintly glowing horn to Checkmate’s forehead and he slowly stopped his fitful stirring. “A king that sacrifices all of his subjects is merely a shell of a frightened coward is he not?”
Floating in the darkness of his mind Checkmate slowly walked in a line through what seemed to be an endless void of black. He swore he heard a voice behind him and spun around to see himself as a colt walking into a large hall full of unicorns who sat in pairs at tables with an array of small detailed black and white pieces on each. Most of the unicorns either ignored the small pegasus or gave him looks that made him both uncomfortable and scared.
“Even on that first day you knew you were never wanted there. If not for Celestia’s influence you would never have been allowed past the front door of that hall.” An eerie voice echoed through the void, one that the pegasus had hoped he would never hear again. An image of a pony similar to himself materialized next to Checkmate but this copy had a horn on his forehead.
Checkmate glared at his counterpart. “You are not welcome in here Whiteout.” The copy merely flashed a wicked smile at him. “Ha. You think you can just destroy a part of yourself so easily? I can haunt your dreams all I like, because they are mine as much as they are yours.” There was some truth in that statement that made a chill run down Checkmate’s spine.
“Yet neither of us are one for pointless conflicts so do to me what you came to do and be gone.” Whiteout hissed in response to Checkmate’s command but complied. The images of the hall changed slightly as an older but still young Checkmate sat at one of the tables with a unicorn about the same age across from him. All the other unicorns had gathered around the table to watch the match.
The unicorn across from Checkmate had a brown coat and a rust colored mane and tail. The pony had yet to acquire a mark on his flank but he was known for being a prankster. “I will never understand why you foolishly chose to agree to a game where you would put your right to play in that hall on the line if you lost.” Whiteout’s anger was apparent as they both watched the match play out.
The game had favored the dark colored pegasus right from the start until something has begun to fumble Checkmate’s movements. Either making him push the wrong piece with his hooves or stopping him from taking pieces that would have helped him win.
As Checkmate watched the scene unfold he confirmed an old suspicion that it wasn’t the unicorn he had been playing against. Many of the unicorns gathered around the table were using their own magic in small bursts whenever his younger self had tried to make a move.
After the match had ended in his loss, the younger Checkmate slowly got up and headed for the door. If he was wanted gone so badly then he would do so with his head held high yet a chuckle made him stop and look back over his shoulder.
The unicorn he had been playing against sat smugly as he tossed the black king up and down in the air with his hoof. “Next time Celestia decides to send someone here from Canterlot you should tell her it had better be someone worthy of such a privilege. Pawn that she can just throw at us and have any hope of being useful.”
Watching his younger self Checkmate saw something visibly snap in the eyes of the young pegasus. Turning around his image charged straight at the table he had walked away from and jumped with all his might at an angle over the top of the table, flapping his wings the second his hooves left the ground.
The momentum of his jump as well as the help of his wings allowed the pegasus to easily spin in the air as he kicked out with his hind legs. Two successive thuds followed as his back hooves connected with the unicorn’s chest and sent him flying backwards into one of the other chess tables with a loud crash. Landing squarely on his hooves with his back to the fallen unicorn the pegasus gave the rest of the unicorns, which stared at him in a shock, an icy glare that made Checkmate himself cringe.
Looking away from the scene Checkmate noticed Whiteout was trying to suppress his amusement. “One of my finer works don’t you think? I’m only sorry I wasn’t able to give the rest of those high strung unicorns what they deserved before they threw us out. But I think I’ve made quite a dent in that goal.” With a mischievous laugh the void was filled with images and scenes from when Whiteout had attacked Twilight and Trixie in Ponyville.
Trying to shake the images from his head Checkmate turned fully around but the images surrounded him, even above and below him the same scenes played out again and again. Closing his eyes as he put his hooves to his ears, Checkmate attempted to drown out the images and sounds but the voices and laughter rang through his head regardless of what he did.
“That… that isn’t me… it isn’t…!” The laughter grew stronger still in his ears even as he firmly pressed his hooves against them, almost choking on the tears that rolled down his cheeks Checkmate screamed into the dark. “Get out! Get out of my head!” The laughter continued for a few moments but started to die down as a strange warmth started to course through Checkmate’s body.
Slowly moving his hooves from his ears there was nothing but silence. Looking up with tears still in his eyes a bright golden glow shone through the black void as an image of Celestia slowly floated down and landed in front of him. Her gaze was gentle as she laid on her belly next to the shaking pegasus and spread her wing out over his form to shield him from his own thoughts as she looked at all the images floating in the dark around them.
“You are a very restless sleeper young one. But judging by the recent events I cannot blame you for that.” Checkmate didn’t need to respond; here his thoughts were open and unhidden. The princess could easily read each and every emotion as it passed through the pegasus under her wing. From under a mask of calm, waves of guilt and sadness seemed to consume the dark colored pegasus with every breath he took.
“You have not changed one bit have you Checkmate? Still bottling up all those emotions till they threaten to explode and engulf you with them. You really need to learn to let these things go.” She looked down at the pegasus under her wing, the grief in his eyes made her wonder who he really blamed for what had happened. “Just let it out.”
Checkmate nodded weakly as he buried his head against Celestia’s neck and for the fourth time since he awoke in the hospital he broke down in tears. “I... I’m sorry princes… I failed… failed to control my own emotions when it mattered most… put your most skilled student as well as an innocent unicorn in the hospital… almost destroyed Ponyville… broke the pendant you gave to me… attacked your sister and almost sacrificed my newest friend…” Pushing out the words as coherently as he could Checkmate wept until his eyes were dry and his throat pained him.
Celestia tightened her wing around the pegasus as he spoke through his tears and waited until he had finished before she spoke. “The pegasus I see in front of me is not the one that caused the disaster in Ponyville. A certain pony that I knew years ago as a young colt may have been capable of such acts but the Checkmate I see before me now is a much kinder and braver pony then he ever was.”
A maniacal laughing filled the void as the image of Whiteout reappeared in front of Checkmate and the princess. “Tsk. Like your words matter when you can plainly see how much darkness this failure keeps trapped within himself. It was your outrageous idea that he could possess any kind of ability that got him…”
Moving out from underneath Celestia’s wing and taking a step forward, Checkmate glared at his counterpart with an overwhelming sense resolve that made Whiteout crouch down and back up a step midway through his sentence. “I told you before that you are not welcome here.” A green aura surrounded Whiteout and lifted him up into the air. “Now for the last time. Get out of my head!”
With a bright white and green flash the image of Whiteout shrunk and disappeared from view. The void surrounding Checkmate and Celestia slowly started to chip away and fade as light filled the place where darkness had been. Turning to face the white alicorn sitting in front of him Checkmate smiled at her genuinely. “Thank you for believing in me even when I would not even try to.”
Celestia nodded and smiled proudly at the pegasus. Rising onto her hooves she looked around at the thoughts that had once again become visible. Stopping one with her magic she examined an image of one of the books she had seen on the floor of Checkmate’s room. “You plan to unbind Planewalker?”
Nodding silently Checkmate let the image change and show the plan he had come up with. “I would have sacrificed him to save myself. I won’t allow him to be put in that situation again if I can do something about it.” Staring at the pegasus in front of her Celestia saw the resolve that he had confronted Whiteout with burning just as strongly as before with no hint of being swayed.
“I will not try to change your mind. But you do realize that once you unbind Planewalker there is no to reverse that.” Checkmate nodded as he slowly spread his wings, the rumbling of thunder echoed through his mind faintly. “I am aware of that result and I would prefer that outcome than one leading to Planewalker’s unnecessary end because of my foalishness.” Vaulting up into the air, Checkmate flew straight up toward the light where Celestia’s image had descended from.
