Icy Wastes

During the following morning Chrysalis could already feel the strange energy throughout the castle. She walked down to the throne room, noticing the absolute silence inside.

Celestia was refusing to even pay Luna the slightest bit of attention, and it was clear that Luna was worried about her.

“Tia, why won’t you talk to me? What caused that nightmare to happen, did something happen?” Luna asked once more, trying to get through the wall Celestia was building up.

Celestia took another bite of her food. “It isn’t som-”

“No! It is, that kind of dream, that… fear and… it felt like seeing that stallion set off something in you! That isn’t something anypony should be having a nightmare about!” Luna snapped. “Something caused that!”

“I’m worrying about an old friend! A… and that nightmare… I… I was thinking about an old story he told me. His people’s myth of the Revenants.” Celestia said, “Just… his silence bothered me now more than ever…”

“Well…” Luna muttered.

“Beyond that… I don’t know why my dreams were instantly pulled there… If… if he’s still alive, I need to ask him some things. I hope he’s alive…” Celestia sighed. “Unless either a letter, or some news of him showing up in Equestria comes to me, I… won’t be able to stop worrying. He’s prideful, headstrong… and he worries me so much. He refused any offers of help in the past, and… I shudder to think he’d willingly let his tribe starve, either we’re going to hear about war… or a scout will come back from the location of their tribe with news that they’re all dead…”

“If he’s going to refuse he-”

“No. He’s been a close friend and guard of Equestria since only a few years after your banishment… without his help, we’d have been enslaved.” Celestia slammed her fist down. “I refuse to do anything that’d lose him.”

“Then you can’t let them die!” Luna retorted. “Send them food, and whatever else they need!”

“Sister, you don’t UNDERSTAND them! They’d burn the food! Hell, they’d TORCH the carts and then escort the ponies who delivered it back after feeding them. They aren’t willing to let anypony help them. They’ve survived in the worst conditions for ages now. They’ve been battling everything since even before the Pony Tribes united… they’ve had no help, and they hold they need none. It… isn’t sane, I won’t call them such. But, it’s not something they’ll ever change… if they do, then it’d be a truly dire time for them. Gods… I hope it never comes to that.”

“How… have they surviv-”

“They fight, raid, and attack when they’re in dire need of something. They’ve never attacked Equestria… hell, the first hint we had of them was from the Crystal Empire before it vanished. Burning arrows were launched over the walls from the north, and they were unlike any make we’d ever seen.” Celestia stated.

“They hold themselves and their few friends in such a high regard that if we were threatened, they’d come forth like some tide, raging, and seething. The last time they did it… I had never seen any army turn face and run so quickly. I don’t think the Caribou expected a second army fully prepared to die to come at them from all sides… That was also the first time I met Tharian. He came with a single offer, he offered to help us. He and his warriors forced our enemies back so we’d have time to ready ourselves for anything that may come… but it appeared the threat of his race coming to our aide at a moments notice was enough to scare away any potential attackers for a long while. And seeing them in combat… I know why. They don’t have the same limits ponies do, they tore into their enemies like wild animals, fighting tooth and nail beside their wolves. But once the battle was over, they turned around so quickly… a massive party, nearly a damn riot, broke out. They hauled out barrels of mead and were quick to pass it around to everything, wolves, horses, and ponies alike.”

“Why didn’t we have to deal with them?” Chrysalis asked.

“I told him specifically not to… I didn’t want to have a genocide perpetrated. Though, when his letter came to me, he felt that it was something we could handle on our own… they had an issue with fishing boats vanishing that he was investigating with his forces.” Celestia said. “Though, I doubt he’d have gone after you to the Badlands. They would have been tired out like before they reached you. He’s not stupid. Just head strong…”

“He sounds pretty unintelligent to me.” Luna stated.

“His two point lead over me begs to differ.” Celestia sighed, “And it feels like some of them he’s just… given to me.”

“Explain.” Chrysalis said.

“We’ve been holding constant games of chess and other games for such a long time now… currently he’s on the losing side with my last move.” Celestia said. “Though, he’s turned the game around before… only twice have we ended in ties. And those are usually the most fun, neither of us having the ability to gloat, so we just forget about it and spend a bit of time chatting…” She sighed happily. “I wish those moments happened more often sometimes.”

“Make them happen more often then. The way your heart’s fluttering at happier thoughts… I’d assume you two are more than just friends…” Chrysalis mused.

“We’re too far apart for anything to happen. He rules his species, and I help rule Equestria. He wouldn’t tear me away from the ponies that love me, and likewise, I wouldn’t want to leave his horses without the leader they adore.” Celestia stated.

“Sister.” Luna stated. “Maybe you should get word out to The Crystal Empire to go investiga-”

The doors to the throne room burst open, one nearly coming off the hinges as a massive battle axe was lodged in it, the guards outside knocked on their asses as a massive stallion in full armor, a mixture of fur and steel armors, stepped in, dislodging his weapon (which he had intentionally lodged in there.

All three mares in the room were absolutely stunned, both Luna and Chrysalis prepared for an attack, however Celestia was smiling widely as she stared at the newcomer.

“C2 to E1! Checkmate!”