Sol Dilemma

Chapters

Chapter 2 - "Firestarter"
Chapter 3 - "A Solar Battery"
Chapter 4 - "Cracking an Enigma"
Chapter 5 - "Ghosts from Our Past"
Chapter 6 - "In Deep Water"
Chapter 1 - "Long way from Home"

Chapter 2 - "Firestarter"

Sol Dilemma - Chapter 2

“Firestarter”

Valia stared at the strange, erratic, mote of light in her palm.

It struggled and writhed against her own light, refusing to integrate with her reserves. It twisted around her, never touching, never making contact. It continued this way for five minutes, a strange dance of a multitude of colors.

The warlock sighed and condensed the light around her. Once it had been balled up, she quickly threw it into the containment unit and closed it shut.

“That was the third time we tried, Data, and no luck so far,” she muttered, rubbing the middle of her hand with a thumb. “We’re running out of options and time. The longer we dawdle in space, the longer they get a good foothold down there.”

“I know, but this is entirely unprecedented! There is no recorded planet in our history that has a different kind of light. There is also no recorded evidence of light consciously rejecting a guardian, either,” Data chirped, thumbing through his vast libraries. “Looks like we’ll be the first to add this to the collective library.”

Valia turned to face the window. “If you really think about it, Data, I’m pretty sure every warlock out there will have a collective aneurysm when they encounter all of this.”

“Well said,” hummed the ghost. “A solar system with a planet that is orbited by a sun and moon, that doesn’t even seem to follow any known orbital pattern. None of the meteorological data matches up with the projected estimates. And then there’s the random—however small they may be—energy spikes occurring all around.”

“Those warlocks are gonna have to wait, though,” she chuckled. “We should’ve had Holliday install that new comms array before we sped off.”

“Why didn’t we do that? Aren’t we light years away from the tower, in uncharted waters, about to face off with a big group of hostiles without a speck of intel?” Data inquired, sending an accusatory glare at his charge.

“Sounds like any other Tuesday.”

“I swear, sometimes you're incorrigible.” Data shook himself to mimic the gesture of disapproval. He joined her shortly at the window. Looking down at the planet. Together with his guardian, he stared out at the planet below. It was calm for a scant while until the duo witnessed something impossible. “Did… did the sun just stop, halfway around its orbit, and then…? Oooh, sweet Traveler. The moon just sped up and parked itself where the sun was.”

“It’s almost like… like this planet is a huge middle finger to physics… how swell,” she said, exasperation coloring each word. The pair stood there, mesmerized by the strangeness that was this planet. Her eyes snapped up when an alert appeared on one of the monitors. Followed shortly by a loud clanking and the sound of metal-against-metal. “Well, let’s see if this place is just as weird on the ground, as it is from space.”

Data clicked quietly, approaching a terminal. “The scout drones shouldn’t have taken this long. Do you think they encountered a problem down there?”

“Shouldn’t have.” Valia pointed to an indent in the ceiling. “Big screen, if you will.”

The warlock nabbed a nearby chair and propped herself up to face the hanging monitor. Four distinct feeds flickered to life, one showed a vast desert. Valia scoffed, nothing new there. The other two displayed sprawling miles of vegetation, teeming with life. She blinked. Valia had witnessed plant life of this magnitude back on Venus, but there was a key difference between the one she watched and the one she lived through.

This forest, and that jungle… felt alive. “I… I haven’t seen anything like this before…” she whispered, barely above her own breath. “Data…? Was this what Earth looked like before the Traveler arrived?”

As the warlock reveled in the natural beauty of the unnamed planet, Data hovered quietly, taking in as much as he could. “Yes.”

Venus, in its planet-wide jungles, was devoid of any life. There was flora, but a distinct lack of fauna. There were no creatures that chirped, no bugs buzzing nearby, the wind itself felt dead and hollow. Just the rain pattering against the leaves, and the rustling of branches. The eerie silence that was draped over the jungle felt so wrong.

But this… this… she could take one good look at this—visuals only—and feel the beating heart of the greenwood. Still pumping, strong and fresh, free of the darkness, free of the poison it had scarred their planet with.

Then she took a look at the adjacent recording. It was a towering mountain, dotted with proud evergreens. Clear water flowed down the side, shining a crystal blue as it reflected the sun. The snow fell ever gently, peppering the summit in a…

In a…

Was that a castle hanging off the side…? She rubbed her eyes and blinked to make sure. Valia pushed her chair in closer and leaned in. There’s an actual fucking castle hanging off the side of a mountain.

“Data. Data, that’s real right? Not a trick of the light?”

“Check again, it’s… more than just a castle… and no, I don’t think camera glare would produce a pre-golden-age city.”

I woke up, with my breath uneven and a pounding headache.

I held a hoof to my poor head, massaging my temple with a repetitive circular motion. It did nothing to lessen the pain, but I received a level of comfort knowing I tried something.

Each and every night, since the incident, resulted in the strange, incredibly vivid dreams. Each and every morning, since the incident, had me waking up with my head throbbing. I almost considered not sleeping at one point. But, curse my tiny, foal body and the drawbacks of mortality.

Maybe when I grew up, I could pester the alicorn princesses on how to achieve immortality. Immortals didn’t need to sleep, right?

Pretty sure.

Okay, check that off and place that next to; consume all the world’s supply of sweets and baked goods, and; find out if the moon is actually made of cheese. I gave myself a nod, winced in pain, and collapsed back onto my pillow.

I sighed, shifting my weight to my right, hoping to ease my discomfort. It had been several days—five, I think—since the magical outburst happened. I had basically been bedridden since then, but it wasn’t like anypony actually noticed. I spent most of my daytime working off the headache. Then I spent the rest of fleeting daylight eating some food, reading another book, and dreading sleep.

The dreams themselves, those were something else on their own.

I don’t think I can even call them dreams. I remember Princess Luna talking about her dominion over dreams, and the complexity of the mind during sleep. How they were a collection of thoughts, feelings, and memories that “harmonize” to make a stable platform in the dream realm. They may replay certain events with varying differences, or may even produce new scenarios based on what the pony may subconsciously desire. They were mostly forgotten when one woke up, or it was impossible to recall every concrete detail of what happened.

However, that didn't seem to apply to these “dreams”. They were so stunningly lifelike, and I could recall feeling each tactile sensation. Each and every emotion that flowed through them, I experienced. I woke up remembering every single detail, and I wondered if these were the causes of the headaches.

The “dreams” all shared a common theme, and they happened to center themselves around a “hyoo-man” named Valia.

Out of the four I went through—not counting today, only two were worth mentioning. The first was one of a familiar alien euphoria. I could feel the same power flowing through my veins, permeating my very being. It was the same energy I vaguely remember recalling during my outburst. It still retained the same strength, but it was different. It was not so wild, calmer… I think controlled would be a better term. I relished as long as I could in the fiery embrace.

The second was of Valia soaring through the stars, her spaceship darting around asteroids and chasing comets. She orbited all kinds of planets, circled around moons, and witnessed the birth and deaths of suns. It was a breathtaking experience.

So with that conclusion, I decided they were memories and not dreams. But why? Were the memories from the crystal? Was that what it held?

I groaned and pressed my face further into the pillow. I was sick of this, and I wished my head didn't hurt as much. I sighed and feebly dragged the blanket closer to me, exclusively using my hooves. I heard knocking at my door, translating to an extra-painful reverberation in my skull. It squeaked open, and in came my mother, breakfast tray in tow. The scent of pan-fried oats and hay bacon wafted into the room. My stomach grumbled it’s approval.

“Looks like somepony is ready to eat!” She gave me the same motherly smile I was sure all mothers seemed to instinctively know, and kissed me on the cheek, “How are you doing today, my little dilemma?”

“Tired, drowsy, and my head hurts. I feel like I was thrown into a blender and then sent through a raging stampede,” I mumbled.

Mom burst out laughing, and the tray holding my food followed her movements. Fortunately, she had the foresight to anchor the items onto the surface. “You remind me so much of myself when I was younger, Dilemma. Never change…” she drifted off, laying my food next to me. “Are you still having those headaches? I had a talk with the doctor and he simply recommended these pills.” Pointing to a cup that had two resting beside it.

I shifted to an upright position and nodded. “Do I take them after eating?”

“Of course.” She paused to think of something. “Would you like me to feed you?” Mom asked, levitating a spoon loaded with food.

“Er… I'm not that young anymore, Mom!” My cheeks began glowing with embarrassment. “Yuh-You don’t need to do that for me!”

“I didn't hear a ‘no’, Dilemma,” she responded, grin growing wider by the second.

I huffed and crossed my forelegs. “W-Will… will you make those fun airship noises when you do it?”

She raised a foreleg and brushed my bangs aside. Our eyes met, and she continued to smooth out my bed head as best as she could. “It’s fine to want to act like a young foal, Dilemma. You should treasure every moment you have in your foalhood because once that’s gone, you won’t get that back.” She spoke, a sad smile adorning her face. She paused in her brushing and began moving the spoon in a manner that was meant to be enticing for younger foals. “Indulge and live a little! Here comes the airship, nyoom~!”

I burst out laughing and opened my mouth wide. Mom placed the payload onto my tongue and I let out an audible, “nom!”. We repeated this process until the breakfast had been demolished by my appetite, and we were laughing like a pair of madmares.

Wiping a tear from her eye with a hoof, Mom stood up to fix my mane—which had gotten ruffled in our play—and to collect the dirty dishes. “I'll see you later, okay? Dad should be home later this afternoon,” she said, moving closer to the window. She pulled the blinds apart and opened it up. A soft morning breeze blew in, gently causing the curtains to billow. I basked in the serenity of the moment.

Mom gave me one last goodbye kiss before shutting the door behind her. I could hear the sound of her hooves slowly fading as she went back downstairs.

I stared at the door for another minute and then proceeded to slump over. I didn’t want to worry my mother about my new condition. As she held a position in the guards… it was a high-stress job, I didn't want to add to her own load. Besides, I was starting to get good at handling these kinds of things on my own, and she mostly thought it was the consequences of heavy magical exhaustion, and that was fine. Easier for me to create a reasonable cover story.

What was not fine, was discovering my sudden ineptitude at using magic. I came across the problem when I had struggled at attempting to lift my toothbrush, and that became just as difficult as lifting the heaviest training weight.

Most of my at spellcasting failed because I couldn’t get a good enough magical flow going, or I ran out of mana.

I was starting to panic. A unicorn without their magic? I was basically a pegasus without wings or an earth-pony with no strength. I was just, pony, with a fancy bone on my head.

I theorized at first, that it was just because of my magical exhaustion, and my body was still recovering from the traumatic event. Makes sense. Recovery from exhaustion takes time, and cannot be sped up—lest the afflicted take the chance at harming their natural regeneration.

Magical exhaustion in foals aren't exactly rare either, and are actually very common, mainly due to their lack of control and developed bodies. I read somewhere once, that unicorn foals actually have an increased recovery rate from these kinds of incidents, as a defense mechanism from themselves. It's mostly so they don't stunt their growth and eventually tapers off once they reach adulthood.

So by day two, I should've been back to my relatively normal self. However, I wasn't exactly on a timer that would notify me when I was “one-hundred percent fine”, so it was probably just taking a bit longer than expected.

That was okay, I told myself.

When three more days passed and my situation didn't improve, that was when I raised the red flag.

Oh, and not to mention that Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns was starting their acceptance exams for foals five and up in a couple of days. Sure, I don't want to sound egotistical, but I was fairly smart for my age, and could probably breeze through the written portion… but… the other part dealt with the intricacies of being a unicorn. And since I was “pony”, I had something to properly fear.

Sure, there were a number of other schools I could attend that were great and could give me an amazing education, but none held a candle to CSGU! It was sponsored by the princess herself. It has her name in it, for name’s sake! So of course, the princess made sure that the school was stocked with only the best teachers, scholars, professors, along with keeping up-to-date with the latest in cutting-edge technology.

If a family could send their foal to the school, they most certainly would. As graduation from CSGU basically guaranteed you a job anywhere, and indicated that pony was skilled with the arcane arts. Any employer would be insane not to take you for your abilities. Or if you planned to run your own business, ponies knew you were a professional. All in all, it was basically a ticket for living the good life.

So this was a seriously big deal for me. But what could I do? I groaned and flopped to face the other side of my bed. The sun had finally gotten high enough to begin pestering my eyes. Maybe I should've told her not to open the blinds.

Strangely enough, it was far less unpleasant than I remembered. The heat coming off the sunbeam was comforting… in a way. Almost like it was natural and meant to be—

BONK!

I jumped back, startled by the noise. Unfortunately, that meant jumping off of my bed, since I still happened to be laying in it. With a reaction speed, I didn’t think I ever had, my hoof shot out and wrapped itself around the blanket, saving me from a painful and embarrassing face plant onto the floor below. After re-orienting myself in the bed, I snapped my head up to see a familiar steel-gray filly, hanging precariously off of the windowsill. She clambered in, landing on her side with an “oof”.

From her position on the floor, she greeted me. “Hi, Dilemma! How’re you—”

“Don’t shout! It hurts… huh. I guess those are some fast acting pills. Nevermind, sorry Mav,” I blurted out.

She gave a sad smile. “Oh! I’m sorry, I didn't mean to forget your… y’know… I'm such a klutz. ”

I frowned and beckoned her closer. “Hey. I forgave you already, Maverick! There's no reason for you to continue beating yourself over it.”

“I-I know! But… it’s kinda hard to forgive myself…” she muttered, as she looked away, abashed. Thankfully, it didn’t take long for her happy attitude to kick back in, “B-But, if I want to be a royal guardsmare like my big bro, I’ll make sure to be an even better friend! It'll be a long road ahead… but I know I can do it!”

“That's the spirit!” I looked to the windowpane, and the obvious smudge left behind by Maverick’s impact. “So what brings you here?”

“Oh, uh… so I had a feeling that you would feel good enough to come to the park and, since last time you… kinda…” she broke off, gradually turning her head to face any direction but mine. “So I just wanted to ask if you wanted to go. Eh… If not, I still haven't asked Dapper…”

“I would love to! I think I could really use the exercise –” I looked around “– and to get a nice scene change,” I replied. That instantly brightened her expression, and she regained the peppy bounce in her steps I knew her for. “I just wanna know… how did you know I was going to feel better today?”

“Oh… I um, get these feelings, big bro likes to call them pre… pron… pomegranates?”

“I think you mean premonitions.”

“Yeah, that! So I get premonagitons… or whatever, and I can kinda guess stuff off of it!” she said, tapping a hoof to her chin. “It started ever since I got my… cutie mark… a-and that’s great, and whatever. S… so, we can leave anytime! Preferably soon.”

“Okay. Let me just ask my mom if it would be okay to go.” Unwrapping myself gently and sliding off the side of the bed, I trotted over to the door. Mom was probably in her study, getting her uniform on to leave for work. My hoofwork was still a little wobbly, so I hovered a leg over the guardrail as a safety precaution. Didn't want to hurt myself anymore than I already have.

Touching down on the ground floor, I looked straight ahead to see the study’s door ajar. From here, I could easily make out the sound of armor clanking against itself, and a multitude of straps being secured to a body.

I nosed the door open and slipped in.

“Dilemma? You're up?” she questioned, levitating the helmet over her head.

“Uh-huh. Maverick came by and wanted to know if I wanted to go the park. I just wanted to ask if that was okay.” My snout scrunched at how many times I said: “wanted”.

“Ah. Alright. You know the rules, and I know you're good for them. There’s some bits on the counter for lunch, but I might be coming a little late with dinner. I’m trying to get on the CSGU protection detail,” she chuckled, before bending over and adding the last plate of armor. “So, you know, hit two birds with one stone. I can do my job and get to be there for your exam!”

I winced at the mention, but thankfully she didn't notice. “Y-Yeah! I hope you get the part!”

“I hope so too, but a small part of me is rooting for some action, it can get pretty boring from what I hear…” She shook her head. “Ah, well, something interesting could happen, huh?” Mom secured the helmet to her head. “Bah. That’s just wishful thinking. The last time anything like that happened was Princess Twilight’s exam… Well, I hope you enjoy your day at the park, I'll be heading out now.”

And with that, Mom trotted out into the hallway, and I followed her out, shutting the door. When we walked into the living room, we could see Maverick helping herself to a tray of cookies, noisily munching away. The filly waved and greeted Mom with a mouth full of food. Whatever she said was basically unintelligible, but we were both pretty sure she said, “hello” and Mom’s name.

I followed Mom to the door and gave her a goodbye hug. She unlatched the lock and pulled the knob. I was greeted with the busy cacophony outside, something I thought I would never yearn for. “I’ll be sure to miss the days that end up like this,” Mom wistfully muttered with a grin. She stepped out and closed the door behind her. I stood there, relishing in the feelings.

I could hear clopping behind me, so I spun around to face Maverick. Her mouth had crumbs scattered around it, and some parts smudged with chocolate. “Are you ready to go to the park now?”

I shook my head. “I gotta take a bath first. Completely forgot about that.”

“Oh yeah! You just got up, didn’t you?” she said. “Well, maybe we can split up? You can take your bath, and I’ll go get Dapper!”

I paused and tilted my head. “Doesn’t he live… kinda far away? Won’t it take a while to walk to Stargazer?”

Maverick let out an amused snort. “Walking? Who said anything about walking?” Her wings poofed out. “Besides! It’ll be great practice for me when I plan to enroll for the royal guards!”

We had decided upon our regular spot: a small clearing not too far into the park’s tiny forest. The trees weren’t packed close enough together to properly block out the sunlight (I wasn’t complaining right now, however), but the grass here was softer than my own bed! There even was a small vantage point created by a hill and some extruding rocks that formed a crest over our spot.

Nopony ever came by here, so we just decided to informally take it over. We even created a flag using predictions of what our cutie marks were going to be! Except… I placed a hoof to my chin. We would need to rework it now that Maverick got hers. I could use this downtime to think of some replacements.

In the distance and gradually increasing in volume, I could hear high-pitched screaming echoing across Canterlot. Some curious onlookers directed their gazes to the spectacle, but most of the ponies ignored the event. Silly antics like this was apparently commonplace, even in the higher-caste nobility districts.

With the gracefulness of a thundershocked pegasi, Dapper Night was released from Maverick’s insane grip and onto the ground below. He grunted and sputtered, flailing in the soft grass. “Wh-When y-you said we’d go to the park, I… I didn’t th-think you meant it l-like that!”

Maverick shrugged. “It got us here pretty fast, didn’t it?”

He mumbled his affirmative reluctantly. After getting over the fact that he was actually laying on solid ground, he sat upright, dusting himself off. “Oh! Dilemma! I… I haven’t seen you in a while.”

Maverick and I exchanged glances. “Yeah… I… I got sick for a while –” His eyes widened in response “– b-but I got better! So it’s all fine. No need to worry about you or me, because I wouldn’t be out and about if I was supposed to be in bed.”

He nodded. “So… uh, what games did you have in mind, Maverick?”

The pegasus filly just stared back with a blank look on her face. She gasped and then disappeared in a cloud of dust, speeding away in the direction of her home. However, that left the two of us hacking and coughing, attempting to wave the billow Maverick had accidentally produced.

Eventually, it dissipated, the wind carrying it away. “When she grows up, I'm pretty sure she could be a Wonderbolt…”

“A Wonderbolt… with the strength of a royal guard. That's absolutely terrifying.” I replied, shaking some dirt out of my mane. Dapper nodded, and I saw some dirt fall out of his mane. My vision flashed for a moment, and an unfamiliar image came to the forefront of my mind.

It was a tall, imposing figure that donned armor that screamed out against the bland background. Eye-bleeding neon green clashed against a bleached white, all the while seeming to glow. The helmet had two minotaur horns jutting out from the sides, and a thick looking cape hung from the hip. A word and a number accompanied the vision, “haven” and “eight”.

Questions swirled in my brain. Haven? Eight? Why did eight safe-spaces have to do with anything? Who was this thing? Friend… or foe? Why were they appearing as hallucinogenic visions? Why was their taste in armor color so horrible?

I could feel the gentle sensation of rocking, and I snapped back to reality. Dapper was sitting in front of me, with a concerned look on his face. “Hey, Dilemma. Are you alright? I got worried that you were nodding off when you didn't respond to me for a few minutes.” He looked me up and down, and checked my sides. “Then I actually turned to face you, and you had this ‘glazed stare’ going on.”

I took a soft inhale and lightly shook my head. “No… no, I’m fine. I just… started thinking of something.”

Dapper tapped his hooves together, and started opening his mouth to say something, but stopped. He looked like he was mulling something over. Eventually, he looked up. “I… I see. I hope it’s nothing big.”

“It isn’t.”

The colt nodded and looked away. He bit his lip and shot a glance back, but quickly returned to his previous position. This was going to be an awkward situation, no matter what happened. Sitting in relative silence, as the soft breeze tickled our manes, we made no effort to exchange any words or start a meaningful conversation. I guess this happened whenever you pitted two natural introverts against each other.

I also never noticed until now, on how much I relied on Maverick for any connections outside of my immediate family. I only met Dapper because she brought him along one day, and he was probably in the same boat as me.

Maverick really does a lot more than she realizes. I often wondered how we even managed to become friends in the first place. We were direct opposites after all; hyperactive, rambunctious pegasus, and a withdrawn, studyholic unicorn. It had been by pure chance we had even met up! It was a busy week for Mom and Dad, and they were struggling to find…

I snapped away from my thoughts and leaped, rolling into a ball and away from whatever danger was going to strike the spot I originally sat in. Turning on a bit, I tensed up and lowered my horn out of unicorn reflex. An overstuffed alabaster duffel bag and a panting filly had taken residence upon where I once sat.

“S… Sorry! It… huff… was a lot heavier than… hah… I thought it was going to be!” Maverick announced, out of breath and mouth wide open taking lungfuls of air. “That… that was a pretty sick move, Dilemma! Did your mom teach… teach you that?”

“No… I never bothered her about any combat maneuvers… I-I think I just knew that one.” I bit my lip. How did I know that one? Wait. There’s a suspicious lack of another unicorn… “Maverick… did Dapper get away in time?”

“Get away from what?” she asked, bewildered. “Oh!? Where’d Dapper go? He didn’t get bored and leave, did he? Gah! I knew I should’ve been faster!”

I let a basic thaumaturgical ping loose from my horn. It never hurt to be sure, but I just made sure to do a double-check. He might’ve teleported away in time. The ping settled around a decently sized power source before rebounding. Or not. “Maverick! Get down from there and help me push the duffel bag off of Dapper.”

She saluted and jumped down. I began pushing alongside Maverick and rolled the heavy bag away from the flattened colt. He looked wide-eyed and was breathing heavily. “Wh… what f-fell on m-me? One mo-moment I was talking to –” his eyes drifted to me “– t-to Dilemma, and then suddenly… she rolls away like nieghnja… and-and then my whole vision is obscured by something big and heavy!”

Maverick gave a sheepish grin and rubbed the back of her neck. “Ah-hah… okay… that was my bad. I totally thought I could carry the entire bag the whole way—no stop—honest!”

“You carried this thing all the way from your house without taking any breaks!?” Dapper and I exclaimed at the same time. We both gave each other an incredulous look.

I pointed at the obese monstrosity. “This… what did you bring?”

Maverick, oblivious and innocent as ever, replied with, “Well, I wasn’t sure what you guys wanted to play since I forgot to ask before I left, so I planned on bringing a selection.” She rolled her head. “Aaaaand then—I was like, ‘that’s gonna take too long!’. So I just grabbed one of big bro’s RG training bags and brought everything.”

Dapper pointed a hoof at the bag. “That has all of your outdoor toys in it?” To which the pegasus nodded with a sincere look on her face.

“I’ve got thirteen different balls, some throwable toys, practice swords, er… practice bows, and two scooters…?” she said, feathers shooting up in tandem with her count. “I think that should be it. A little much for us, but I think it’ll do good~!”

“A little much?” Dapper deadpanned. “I'm pretty sure we could outfit a large classroom with this!”

The two began arguing on the appropriate amount of toys for three foals, a heated debate discussing all the aspects and “fun” levels of certain items. I, on the other hoof, decided not to pay attention. I was transfixed by the mention of the sword.

Mother never had the time to properly introduce to me the art of the bladed weapon, mostly due to my age and her busy schedule. So I never had the chance to wield one. I opened up the top zipper and revealed the haphazard mess inside. Peering into magically increased holding space, I sifted through the things in search of my prize. I found two of them buried under a scooter and a couple of balls.

Eagerly, I tossed them out into the grass.

The blades reflected the sunlight, showing the care placed in their maintenance. They looked sharp and potentially hazardous, but the orange/yellow striped paint told me otherwise. Training blades or practice swords were enchanted to ensure blows were nothing more than savage strikes with a feathered pillowcase. A secondary enchantment also induced a minor numbing sensation to replicate “hits”.

I snatched the sword up by the hilt, and in a showy display of skill, tossed it into the air. As it spun and returned to the ground, I caught it by the handle with an outstretched hoof, blade pointing up. I stopped, surprised by my own feat. Maverick and Dapper also decided to postpone their argument in favor of staring with their mouths wide open.

Maverick shot away immediately and grabbed the spare sword. “Haha! I didn't know you were also good at using swords! C’mon! Let's spar!” She raised the blade flush with her snout.

I gulped. It probably wasn't the smartest idea to challenge the filly who had a year of experience compared to me. Unfortunately, a burning, prideful portion of my mind demanded to rise to the challenge. A raging fire flickered in my core.

The sharp end of the blade soon found itself aimed at my opponent. Maverick let out a wicked grin, and Dapper backed off a safe distance away. His expression displayed a mix of excitement, curiosity, and… pity.

I too could share sentiments with whoever went against this pegasus.

With no warning, Maverick launched her assault. I barely raised my own sword to block her powerful strike, and her hit nearly knocked it away from my grip.

I will not be defeated so easily! Changing my stance and my hold, I forced the edge to the ground and lunged with my opening. Maverick, unfortunately, read that like an open book and leaned back, the sharp end barely grazing her chin.

Twisting her blade, she attempted to catch me with an uppercut. Dislodging the blade from the ground brought a hooful of dirt with it. I turned my head to prevent it from hitting any vital organs or orifices. I don’t want dirt in my eyes! I only then caught my mistake and spied a glint of light in my peripheral vision.

I slammed myself to the ground and narrowly dodged a sweeping blow. I quickly rolled like a log and away from the follow-up, blade thumping in the grass. Laying flat on my back, and incredibly vulnerable, Maverick continued on her brutal offensive. I quickly flipped the weapon and held onto the flat side, right as her sword collided with a reverberating clang. I shoved her away with what might I could muster, and that briefly surprised her, evidenced as she stumbled away. I guess she wasn’t expecting that.

I shakily raised the training blade into a defensive position. My breathing was loud enough to be heard a reasonable distance away, and sweat raced down my dirty coat. My stance had suffered and I was constantly repositioning my hooves to make sure I didn't topple over.

Maverick, looking completely fine, hadn't even broken a sweat. She trotted up to me and batted my weak defense aside and held the sharp end to my neck. “That was really cool, Dilemma! I haven't ever seen moves like that before!”

I allowed myself to collapse to the ground, weapon landing beside me. “H… How… hah… long did I last…?”

Dapper gave a big cheery smile. “Two minutes and 23 seconds!”

I suppose that's as good as it'll ever get. Maverick laid her sword next to mine. She began patting my head. “That's alright Dilemma. You did pretty good for somepony who doesn't exercise all that much and spends all their time reading.”

“I… huff… was on the… defensive for basically… the entire fight…!” I managed to wheeze out, snout tucked into the grass.

Maverick giggled and continued to smooth out my mane. “Well… I do take swordsmareship classes and big bro helps me out from time to time. I’ve got the highest rank in my class: Princess!”

I groaned with my snout still buried in the dirt. “You take classes!? Ugh. No wonder I got creamed so hard.”

Dapper trotted closer, with an amused smile. “Yeah, and not because you're inexperienced and out-of-shape.”

I flipped over and stuck my tongue out at him. He returned the gesture. We glared at each other intensely… before breaking down and laughing. As our giggles began dying off, a familiar, chilling feeling, crept upon my spine. The three of us turned around to see our collective arch-nemesis and her pair of lackeys. Her pale pink coat almost glittered in the sunlight, and her mane seriously looked like flowing ice. Accompanying the cold was the aura of haughtiness and self-superiority.

Her two meek allies were her younger siblings, a filly and colt, both with respective shades of ice. When they bothered to stand up for themselves and obtain their own opinions, I would bother learning their names.

“Hm… what do we have here? The ruffians playing in the dirt where they belong,” she said, snout held high. Any higher and you're going to fall over. “Maverick, sometimes I fail to understand why you… choose to hang around these ‘friends’ of yours.”

Dapper said nothing, swiveling himself the other way. He stared at the two of us with a blank look with a hidden undertone of “let’s just go, we can spend our time somewhere else”. Honestly? I totally agreed with him. Dealing with her while everything was going good, would seriously sour the mood for the rest of the day. I nudged Maverick to let her know we made up our minds.

Although I should've known our attempts were futile. Maverick’s outlook on life was carefree and she rarely ever took anything seriously. Those things that she did, however, were a completely different story.

Her friends happened to be number one on that list.

And so soon after her declaration to be the best one ever? If she didn't explode from anger, that would be surprising. I guess we had no choice but to stand our ground, at least until Maverick decided we should leave. We all had a say in this, and we would stick by each other through thick and thin. Dapper mumbled and turned around to confront Glacier. My vision drifted over to Maverick.

I peeked at her eyes. Behind them seemed to be a fury that could've rivaled the sun. “And why do you care, Rouge Glacier? You only talk to me because I seem important. Honestly, I'm not. Just cuz my big bro is in charge of some ponies doesn't mean anything.”

Glacier looked like somepony had shattered a priceless family heirloom. “What do you mean? Why, is it too much to ask to be friends, simply out of the want to be buddies?” That last word sounded forced. “And your brother is quite the important stallion, Maverick! His station is quite vital to the royal guards and the EUP.”

“You always have an ulterior motive whenever I'm involved, Glacier. I might not be the smartest pony around, but I know a thing or two,” Maverick said, voice bubbling with anger. “How did you even find us? Why won’t you just leave?”

Glacier rolled her eyes. “I just followed the screaming unicorn colt.” Dapper, despite his anger, blushed and averted his gaze elsewhere. “Besides, the park isn’t all that large, and last I checked, this was a public area.”

I wrapped a hoof around Maverick’s withers. “We should just go,” I whispered. “We could always play something at your house, instead. That way she can’t bother us.”

Maverick glared at our nemesis one last time. “I don’t even know why you keep trying, Glacier. Friendships start out of a mutual desire. Last I checked, you only see me for who I'm related to, and not for the pony I am.” And with that, Maverick turned around, flicked her tail in Glacier’s direction, and collected the swords lying in the grass. She stuffed them back into her bag and slung the big strap over her and around her neck. It dangled below her barrel as she flapped her wings, and she shot us one look before lifting off past the treeline.

Dapper was visibly confused, and it showed on his face, he tilted his head to face me. “I… uh… what does that mean?”

“It means she’ll be at her house. Let’s go,” I murmured. Dapper nodded and looked one last time at Glacier and her siblings. The younger foals were whispering things to each other, while the eldest filly simply had an expressionless visage. Unlike my friends, I didn’t interact with the filly enough to notice any of her other tells, and reading her face told me nothing. No anger, no fury… just… I shook my head and moved to leave.

Her icy-blue eyes bore into me as I slowly trotted out of the clearing, a terrible, terrible chill crawling up my spine.

“Cheer up, my little dilemma! I know the tests at CSGU may be daunting, and possibly quite terrifying for somepony of your age, but I know you, Dilemma… you’re a brilliant and talented foal. This’ll be a cakewalk, don’t you worry,” Mom exclaimed, smoothing out my mane. It always looked so weird to see her with the armor on, the enchantment dying her fur and hair the same standard colors for all SRGs. “Hm… I can tell from the look on your face you’re still not convinced. Tell you what, I’ll bring you to your favorite place once you get in.”

I blinked and tilted my head. “Once, not if? Isn’t it supposed to be an incentive…?”

The mare chuckled, armor clinking as her body reacted. “It is an incentive… as well as being a promise. You can do it.” She smiled, patting me on the head. “Alright! I’ll be linking up with the rest of the guard after I sign you in.”

I stared at the courtyard, eyes trailing to the big double doors of the main building. “M-Maybe we could come back tomorrow! I… I want to study some more. I’m… I’m already forgetting things!”

“Nope. Nice try, but I’m trained to know when a pony lies, and I know you don’t forget things easy,” she snorted. She patted me on the back and gave a slight nudge with her snout. “Now c’mon. Stop stalling and let’s get going.”

I gulped and set a shaky hoof forward. Then I followed up with the other. I took another inhale, and—

“Nuh-uh. My mom always lived by ‘ripping off the bandage quickly’, and I live by that philosophy too. You’re my daughter, and you’re gonna do the same.” Her horn lit up, and I could feel the gentle sensation of being surrounded by her magic. “It got me through school, and it got me through guard training. Up and at em’ soldier.” Then I was yanked into the air, my hooves dangling uselessly under me. I wriggled to try and break her concentration.

“Mom, nooOooo!” I yelped, feebly voicing my opinion and cracking my voice.

A wicked grin spread across her face. “Mom, yesssssssss~!” She reared back. I could see her muscles tensing and rippling under her coat, as she stood on her hind legs. I could feel a distinct spell being cast, rigid in form, but with a ‘safe’ feeling. At least Mom was making sure I wouldn't be harmed by her little stunt.

And with a grunt, I was sent flying towards the door.

Sort of.

Mom’s aim was slightly off, and I bounced along the steps before splaying myself against the upper flight. I got back up, dusting myself off. I slowly craned my neck skyward. The entrance to the school looked so… so massive. It seemed to grow in size, stretching and distorting, towering impossibly over my meager form. The feeling of… being so weak… so… so defenseless. I wrapped my hooves around my snout.

I could hear the shifting of armor and hooves against stone behind me. “No sleeping on the job, Dilemma! Don’t get cold-hooves now. Where’s the brave little foal who I knew for all these years?”

I grumbled from underneath my hooves. “In her room, cowering under a blanket.”

Mom rolled her eyes and I could feel the weightlessness of her levitation once again. We walked (or she walked, I was floated over) to the main foyer and to the line for the front desk. I was gently placed back down onto my hooves, nearly toppling over from my fear. My magic hadn't improved since, and Mom was adamant about going as early as possible—mostly so we could avoid the larger crowds—to complete the entrance exam.

That really hadn't given me any time to search into my condition or allow me as much time to recuperate. My last test on my magic had been… less than what I expected… but maybe I could score really high on the written portions…

I could feel somepony tapping me on the shoulder. I looked up to see my mom and the line that had moved incredibly fast. She nudged me forward and I awkwardly trotted after her. The desk had a nearby stepping stool that allowed for foals to see eye-to-eye with the pony behind it, and to sign documents if needed.

Mom had that covered though. Her prior experience in dealing with CSGU and her extra-access as a guard allowed her some foreknowledge for the paperwork. She pulled out a tanned-orange envelope from one of her armor’s many pockets and placed it in front of the lanky green stallion.

He raised one of his eyebrows. “I assume this is the necessary paperwork for your foal’s entrance exam?”

Mom nodded. “Mhm. Personal information, credentials, signatures, and documents good to go.”

“Well. If you don't mind, I'll be checking through this,” he hummed, scanning over the stack with… what I think was a specially designed spell. “Huh. If parents came here prepared like this, we wouldn't have those wait lines.” The stallion smiled, inserting the papers into smaller boxes and shelves. He leaned over the desk and pointed to a door. “The waiting room is down… that way. Have a good day, Missus Cascade Barrier, Miss Sol Dilemma.”

We thanked him and began following his directions. We passed by some familiar ponies who we waved to and greeted, before reaching the door marked with the sign. I took a deep breath. Panicking would get me nowhere, and would only serve to deteriorate my rational thinking.

“Alright. I'm sure you'll be fine on your own from here. I’ll be heading off now to get my orders and patrol routes. I'll make sure to be there for your magical aptitude test, so don't worry,” Mom reassuringly consoled. She opened the door and motioned with a hoof for me to enter.

Deep breaths, Dilemma. You can do it. Maybe you can get some ideas from the written portion.

I was startled by the door closing behind me. I walked in? I turned around to see the interior of the room. It looked just like the auditoriums I would see in colleges, except the ground floor had been cleared away in favor of unicorn-centric toys and exercise tools. A whole spectrum of foals and personalities dotted the room, all doing their own thing. Plus, it was much larger than most other auditoriums. This looked like it could house five-hundred ponies!

I could see some adults running around, attempting to control the chaos… and failing spectacularly.

In the midst of all the madness, I spotted a certain unicorn colt cowering in the uppermost row, farthest away from ground zero. I noisily made my way over, making sure he could hear me over the cacophony. Despite everything, he still spooked easy, and while hilarious, I wasn't one to tease him about his skittishness.

His ears perked up in my direction and he lifted his head from a book. “Dilemma! Uh… hello!” he greeted, fumbling the object in his hoof.

I giggled and hiked a hoof back to the other foals. “I take it you don't exactly want to participate with that?”

He blushed. “I… er… I've got… frail bones?”

“Excuses, excuses,” I snorted dismissively. “So whatcha readin’?”

His expression changed almost immediately, face brightening up. “Oh! This is one of the newer Daring Do books! I had trouble getting my hooves on it cuz’ most of them go out of sale whenever they come up, or they’re always borrowed.”

“Daring Do and the Ring of Destiny? Who’s that on the cover? She kinda looks like… Rainbow Dash…?” I said, squinting at the two pegasi on the cover.

“That’s what I thought, too! Turns out it’s actually a different pony named Spectrum, who’s really annoying, but a good pony to hang around,” Dapper explained, flipping to a page. “Oh, uh…”

“S’ Fine. Not really a big fan of that series. Spoilers are okay,” I finished. Dapper nodded and began fanmaring about the contents of the book, talking about the parts he enjoyed, his gripes, and what he looked forward to in the next book.

After he finished, he shifted back to me. “Do you have any books you enjoy, Dilemma? I mean like, fictional. I can enjoy a good informational book from time to time, but sometimes I think it's great to get lost in a good story.”

I looked to my hooves and shuffled them ever so slightly. “I really like the Neighpon Trilogy.”

“Huh. I should've guessed that. Was that your inspiration for that roll a couple days ago?” he questioned, with a look of eager excitement. “And if you could… um… maybe… show me how to do it, too?” I raised an eyebrow at Dapper, who defensively held up his hooves. “W-Well, if you don't want to I understand! Completely, of course!”

I shook my head. “I surprised even myself with that! I don't think I could do it on command. Sorry, Dapper.”

He visibly deflated and frowned. “Dang…”

Despite all the background noise, the PDA managed to win out against the chaos. “Dapper Night! Please report to the front of the auditorium to be escorted to the magical aptitude test!” His head shot up immediately. Dapper stuffed the book into his saddlebag, which had been laying behind a chair. With his magic, he hastily slung it over his back. He made it halfway before he decided to turn around to give me a wave.

“Good luck, Dapper! I know you can do it!” I called out, wishing him well. Wait did she say magical aptitude…?

He nodded, “You too! I guess we’ll see each other at the entrance ceremony, huh?”

I flinched, but my smile remained unfaltering. This was my sole problem after all. “I guess…!?”

And with that, Dapper reached the podium where cobalt-blue unicorn stood. I sighed and slumped back down. Don’t tell me the magical aptitude test is coming first! That means I’ve been wasting time trying to figure out a way to bluff my way through it. I pressed my hooves against my cheeks and pulled down. This is going to be a wreck, and I’m going to be a disappointment, and… and Mom won’t want me anymore because… because I’m going to be a fa-hah-ailureeee!

I thumped my head on the desk, only to recoil and hiss in pain as I smacked my sensitive horn against the hard material. I rubbed it gently, to ease the pain. I took a deep breath. Maybe I should go to the restroom and freshen up.

I weaved my way through the mass of foals, dodging stray spells and tossed toys on the way to my destination. I trotted into the hallway and made a left. The lockers that lined the hallways were shiny, and the tiled floor looked so clean. Princess Celestia really took care of her school…

The restrooms were down another hall, evidenced by the signs hanging from above. There must be some way to subvert the test… Maybe I could pretend to be sick… or… maybe I could injure myself and postpone it… I shook my head. That was a drastic measure, and should be my last choice if anything—

I collided with another pony, sending us into a stumbling pile onto the floor. “Watch where you’re going, clumsy oaf!” My mouth hung open in shock. No… “Do you know how long it takes to style my mane like this!?”

I got to my hooves immediately, as the other pony begun getting to theirs. Out of all the places… out of all the times… why did it have to be now!?

Her icy glare fell upon me. “It’s you again. Hmph.” Like a predator checking out helpless prey, she circled me. “So are you going to speak up, or is Maverick going to do everything for you? Hm?”

“I’m… I’m capable of my own opinions, unlike a certain duo who brainlessly follow a certain pony.” I shot back, fur bristling.

She smirked. “At least Maverick knows how to choose a pony with gall. But I’ve done my research. Any good pony knows to do their background work, unwanted.”

I sputtered and paced back. “Wha… what do you mean!?”

“I know what I said, unwanted. That’s what you are, aren’t you? A pony who was abandoned by their parents, left alone to die in the world… you’re lucky for your situation. You either would have succumbed to the cruel fate in that airship… or maybe you would still be living an orphan…”

“Sh-Shut up! You d-don’t know anything!” I cried, tears already streaming down my face. “Y-You just want to rile m-me up! I… I won’t let you!”

She giggled, fur glittering in the soft afternoon light. “Oh, most certainly. You are the picture perfect image for ‘calm’.” Her eyes gained a venomous gleam. “Wouldn’t want to scar your record. Make sure not to file it above, ‘magically-inept’, as well!”

My heart stopped beating for a moment, and the color drained away from everything. Her laughs turned into echoing cackles. “W-Where… where did you hear that?”

“I do my research, Dilemma,” she answered back. “But I like to keep the sources to myself. Besides, your reaction is confirmation enough.”

“I… I’m not i… inept…” I said, barely above a whisper. “I c-can do magic, j-just fine!”

Her tail swayed, and she placed a hoof under my chin. “You’ve told me otherwise. Now you’ll fail the test, and ruin your chances with CSGU. They’re very strict about these kinds of things, y’know? A black mark on your history. Rejected by the best school in the nation.”

I was shivering now, tears running down my face, plastering my fur and dampening it to an even darker shade of gray. “I…”

“Ah-ap-ap! Do you know how your parents would feel? Especially your mother?” Her eyes locked with mine. “That their foal… the one they adopted… couldn’t even do magic? What use would you be? Hm?”

Visions flashed before me. Ones where I was cast out, crying with a heavy box of my things, sent to an orphanage where I would spend the rest of my foalhood. Her tears, and my father’s angry stare… their disappointment… they couldn’t raise a failure… a failure like me. What place did I have?

Others where I lost my friendships because I was useless. Maverick and Dapper staring back, with a forlorn look in their eyes as they slowly trotted away, the light fading away as their shapes shrunk.

Some had me in adulthood, shunned by society because I was a magicless freak. Turned away because I had nothing to offer, other ponies being able to do the job better than I ever could.

In the end, they all came up to the same conclusion. I was left alone.

I don’t want to be alone.

I… don’t want to be alone.

I DON’T WANT TO BE ALONE!

I screamed, my shrill cry bouncing across the hallway. Eyes screwed shut. I could hear hooves stumbling backward.

And a familiar sensation resurfaced, one that I vaguely remembered from a week ago.

I could feel the same fury hammering at my walls. Writhing, twisting, furious. It burned indiscriminately, it wanted nothing else but to consume everything with its power. It only demanded one thing from me. One thing only.

It needed to be out. I happily obliged.

I let it out.

The train’s whistle bellowed, announcing that they were closing in on the Canterlot station. “Alright, Spike! We’re almost there, so let’s go over that checklist one more time!” Twilight said, pulling out a folded piece of paper. The small drake grumbled, who reluctantly took the paper, and proceeded to unfold it.

“Twilight… this is the third time. Besides… we don’t actually need the rest of this… uh… ‘stuff’. Celestia said she would prepare the guest room for our use.” He peered over the bags. “We didn’t need to bring half of all of your belongings.”

Twilight looked offended. “The Prin—er… Celestia, always told me to be prepared, so here we are!” Levitating the multitude of suitcases and bags to the door. Only to have them slowly cave and obstruct the entrance. Twilight sputtered and set out to fix the mess.

Spike shook his head indignantly. He tapped a claw against the top of his cheekbone. Maybe he could play this in his favor. “Twilight… there’s prepared, and then there’s you. We’re just overseeing some of the aptitude tests for the week.”

Twilight’s eye twitched. “SOME? SOME?” Spike cowered back and lifted the paper as a rudimentary shield. “This…” She sat on her haunches, forehooves trembling in the air. “THIS… is the defining moment of many pony’s lives, Spike! The make it or break it point! The deciding factor in your adult life! And… and they’re all just foals!”

She wrapped her hooves around the surprised drake, completely blindsided by her one-eighty change in emotion. Spike blinked. Alright, just a tad bit excessive, but it worked. He raised a clawed hand and gently patted her on the head. “There, there.”

“WHAT IF I HAVE TO FAIL THEM SPIKE!? I CAN’T LOOK A FOAL IN THE EYES AND SAY THAT KIND OF THING!” she scream-wailed, obliterating the poor dragon’s eardrums. “I… I can’t do that kind of thing! I’m the princess of friendship! How can I look at them with a straight face and say it!?” Is the stress already getting to her? He thought.

“Twi… agh… that hurts… hey, Twi!” Spike said, rubbing a claw against his ringing ears. The alicorn continued to babble about all the scenarios that could go wrong, completely ignoring his attempts at communication. He sighed as the ringing subsided. He didn’t want to play that card, but panicky-Twilight was certainly an upgrade from panicky-sobbing-Twilight. He pinched the mare on her fetlock, drawing blood.

“A-AND—Ow! Spike, what was that for?” she questioned, staring at the droplet of blood escaping from the wound. Twilight watched as the dragon stood back up, before pointing to the clock. “You wanted to look at the… clock? That’s…” The gears whirled, and then clicked in her head. A terrible, terrible realization dawned upon the poor purple princess. “WE’RE GONNA BE LATE!”

Their luggage snapped to Twilight, and Spike had been knocked closer. The air crackled around the alicorn as she readied to displace herself and those around her. Spike laid flat on his back, “Twi, can you make sure to remember to include the anchor redundancy? I don’t want to—”

With a snap and an explosion of light, they vanished from the train car and landed in the grass just slightly off the main pathway. Twilight quickly cast a clock spell and nodded in satisfaction with the amount of time they had left. Reasonable enough to get to the school and meet with her ex-mentor, and enough to notbe too early. Unfortunately, not all were so happy at the moment.

Spike groaned in the grass, clutching his stomach. “Twilight, wh-hyyyyyy…?” He pressed a claw against his mouth, to stem the vomit. Before swallowing in back down. “You forgot the anchor redundancyyyy…!”

Twilight’s snout scrunched up and she looked away sheepishly. In her haste, she forgot to weave in that part (which was supposed to be included whenever transporting more than one object and living creature, to ensure the traveler's organs remain unshaken). However, her constant use of the personal teleport sort of caused her to use that particular setup reflexively. “Oops. Sorry, Spike.” She picked him in and began rubbing his belly in an attempt to soothe it. She saw a minor shift in his posture and immediately flipped him to face the other way. Living and taking care of Spike taught you a couple of things.

A small stream of green dragon fire erupted from his maw and harmlessly licked at the air. Spike groaned, “Unf… That feels so much better…” Twilight giggled before laying the dragon horizontally against her back. Grabbing their luggage, she trotted to the door, waving to nearby ponies who bowed. Two guards that had now been posted at the door saluted and then pushed the door open for their princess.

As Twilight entered the building, the wave of nostalgia that had hit her was overwhelming. The memories—both the good and bad—came to the forefront of her mind. Her first day here, the friends she made, her magical mishaps and subsequent breakdowns over assignments.

And she couldn’t forget the day she had met one of greatest friends, the little groaning dragon that was currently resting on her back.

It felt nice to come back and reminisce.

But she was not here for that. She was here to judge the incoming foals for this year’s entrance exams. The element of magic judging magic? What a perfect opportunity.

Ponies murmured and bowed as she continued trotting to the meeting area, the principal’s office. Twilight returned their gestures with smiles. The staff simply stared confused, unsure what to do as the alicorn carried her luggage behind her. Thankfully, the office wasn’t far and happened to be on the same floor.

Plus the two guards standing beside it helped to identify as well. The guards said nothing, besides from the raised eyebrow from the mare on her right. Most likely from the extra cargo she was carrying around.

The door creaked open as Twilight turned the knob and nudged it open. Inside she could see the current principal conversing with Princes—Celestia. Just Celestia. We’re equals now, believe it or not, missy. She thought, chastising herself for her constant slip-ups. It’s hard to break something you’ve been doing for years now… She set her belongings down off to the side.

“Twilight! I’m so glad you could make it.” Celestia called out, as she noticed her fellow princess coming in. They wrapped each other in a hug, momentarily forgetting Spike was still resting on purple alicorn’s back. He promptly tumbled off onto the rug with a grunt. “Oh, Spike! I didn’t see you there.”

The principal did a curtsy, and nodded, “Yes, it was sort of sudden for us to ask you, and we know how erratic and busy… your schedule can be.”

Spike stood up, brushing off some dust. “It really wasn’t a problem. The only thing we really had to do was help Rainbow Dash pack for something… she kept excitedly saying ‘Wonderbolts exclusive vacation’, over and over.”

Celestia’s motherly visage dropped for just a second to display an evil grin, which none of the other ponies (and dragon) managed to catch. “I see. I do hope she… enjoys wherever that is…” The alicorn stood up and walked to one of the shelves. She pulled out a stack of papers. “These are all of the applicants for today. I’ll give you some of them to look over, so you can devise a plan to properly test them based on their projected magical capabilities and measured thaum levels. I know it’s your first time, so feel free to ask the professors for any assistance or pointers. Then you can hand them back to me so I can look it over.”

Twilight gulped and nodded. “I… I see.”

The sun diarch rolled her eyes. “Relax, Twilight. I won’t fault you for any mistakes or changes I may make. I’ve been doing this for centuries, so I know how to best test them.” She smoothed out her alabaster fur. “Besides, I would like to see how you would test the foals. A fresh perspective is always nice. Be creative, don’t be afraid to branch out.”

Spike clapped his hands together. “I’ve got a couple of ideas! Maybe we could—”

The building shook as a massive burst of energy passed through the school. Celestia groaned as the energy collided with herself, being the only pony who could be deeply affected by the solar magic. Twilight propped herself against her fellow princess as the magical burst subsided. “I think my sister owes me an apology for my ‘gut feelings’,” Celestia hissed, shakily standing on all fours. Her horn flared a brilliant gold, and spinning compass appeared in front of the taller alicorn. Twilight recognized it as a tracking construct. “At the very least, I came prepared.”

She stumbled to the doorway and shoved it open. Upon exiting, she could see one of her solar guards galloping down the hallway, and the other dazzled and confused. Celestia wordlessly jerked her head at the befuddled pony and began following the other guard. Twilight blinked and set Spike to ride her back. As they joined the other alicorn in the chase, she spoke up. “Celestia! W-What’s going on?”

Celestia didn’t even bother turning her head to reply. She shook her head. “I’m not quite sure… but I believe that guardsmare may know more than us.” She summoned a shimmering barrier in front of the galloping pony. “Guard! Stop this instant!”

The solar guard yelped and collided with the shield, crashing to the floor. “Who… who did that?”

Celestia pressed her forehooves down and skidded to a stop. “I did. Why did you run off?”

The guard prostrated immediately. “Princess! I… I’m sorry. I placed a spell on my foal earlier to check for any outbursts, and it just detected one.” The mare remained in her position. “The last one became incredibly dangerous, so I left as soon as I got the alert.”

“You are Cascade Barrier, correct?” Celestia asked, and received a nod in turn. “Is your foal on school premises?”

“Y… yes, ma’am! I was planning on watching over her test today, so that’s why I originally signed up for your protection detail! Since… you would be overseeing the other half of the tests!” Cascade replied, snout no longer to the ground. “If you wouldn’t mind dropping the shield, I believe my daughter is in danger!”

“Very well. I would like you to escort us towards your daughter as well. I should be able to help her,” Celestia commanded, the alicorn’s regal aura radiating at full force.

The sea-foam pony saluted and broke back into her sprint as soon as the barrier dropped. Twilight bit her lower lip. There hadn’t been any other magical outbursts that felt like that… not since… not since her own outburst when she went to take her test at the school. I’m getting a serious case of Déjà vu…

Spike tugged on Twilight’s mane. “I think this school has to be a magnet for crazy strong magical accidents…” He steadied himself to match the movements of Twilight’s galloping. “Do you think she’s going to be like you? Y’know? Introverted bookworm with no concept of friendship?”

Twilight’s head turned to momentarily look at the drake. “Introverted—!?” She blinked and bobbed her head in agreement. “Okay, that I can agree on, but let’s not assume things about ponies until we get to know them.”

The guardsmare planted one of her hooves down as she rounded the corner, and shielded her eyes with the other. “Gah! That’s her alright!” Twilight could feel the heat already surrounding her and making her uncomfortable. Her mouth gaped open. Not to mention all the magic permeating the air…! The purple alicorn began raising several different wards, all aimed at protecting her and Spike from the heat and any possible backlash that could strike out. These outbursts can be incredibly unpredictable.

She rounded the corner to join the four other ponies. She froze and stared on at shock at the destruction in front of her.

The hallway decorations, floor, and part of the wall (along with the lockers nearby) had melted and turned into slag. The molten material pooling around a ball of fire. Neither her or Spike could feel the intense heat, but she could see the two guards struggling to even get near… what she assumed was that guard’s daughter.

She nearly choked from the magical aura it had been producing and gritted her teeth when a tendril lashed out and smashed against her wards.

Out of all of them, Celestia seemed to be the best off, slowly, but surely making her way through the chaos and what was basically lava. Twilight spied a crumbling archway, about to collapse over the other alicorn. She quickly batted away the debris, sending it flying through a window, shattering the blackening glass.

She watched the sun diarch’s regalia glow as runes lit up all around it, the enchantments battling against the intense heat.

She watched every agonizing moment as the alicorn trudged through the slag and the erratic energy. Trying to hear over the flame was impossible, akin to a perpetual volcanic eruption, and if her fellow princess had been showing any audible cues of physical exhaustion, she couldn’t hear anything until it may have been too late.

She watched as Celestia entered the core of the fireball. Sweat from the growing heat and her own worry trickled down her forehead, as each second felt like an hour. Each beat of her own heart emphasized to the sound of a drum. Her mouth was dry and—

The flames died out instantly, the magical pressure that had been exerted on her gave, and she breathed a sigh of relief.

Now that her view was no longer being meddled with by the outburst, she could really see the extent of the damage.

The section of the hallway had been completely annihilated, and portions of the outside were visible from the melted holes produced from the heat. Some lockers on the outskirts were bending over, and moving closer to the epicenter made them appear almost like a measure, each row displayed the damage—charred and melted—and the closest ones had joined in the molten soup.

Standing valiantly with her hair flowing majestically as ever, was her ex-mentor, Princess Celestia, holding a charcoal-grey foal in her forehooves. The clanking of metal caused Twilight to spin around to face squads of SRGs rushing in. They cordoned the hallway in a tight formation, while some quickly moved to check on the two guards collapsed on the floor.

One of them—wearing a white band and red cross—cautiously approached their princess. Avoiding the damage, the stallion reached out with a hoof, only to hiss and stumble back as he made contact with Celestia’s fur. She clicked her tongue. “Ah. I suppose my body is still trying to properly absorb the energy. Please do refrain from coming close without the necessary protective spells.” The medic nodded and lit up his horn to cast them.

Twilight and Spike, already equipped with the defensive wards, approached. “Princess Celestia, is… is she alright?”

If the mare could show any disdain for the mention of her title, she didn’t show it. “Yes. I quickly took in all the excess energy she had been gathering and put it into my own reserves.” She raised a hoof to silence Twilight. “And yes, I am not harmed in any way. I know I told you to never do something like this, especially as something as dangerous as a surge—especially something on the level of an outburst, but I already knew I could take this kind of magic.”

Spike’s expression turned thoughtful. “This kind of magic?”

The alicorn dipped her head. “Solar magic. One of the rarer elemental classes due to its…” She turned to face the rapidly cooling mess. “Destructive and unpredictable nature… it often is incredibly difficult for a magical creature to channel. I happen to have some leeway of course.” She motioned with her head to the mark on her thigh.

The same guard medic returned and reached out for the foal. Celestia gently placed the filly into his grasp. Once she was secure, he trotted off to rejoin the other guards. Twilight followed them until they disappeared into the crowd. “So… what’s going to happen to her? What will happen to the tests?”

Celestia sighed and began picking off bits of debris. “The tests will continue since that part of the school wasn’t affected. Her, on the other hoof? The medics will look her over for any external and internal injuries, along with that of the magical.”

“Will she still… test?” Spike asked tentatively, now just getting a good look at his surroundings.

Celestia shook her head. “I’m afraid not.”

Twilight gasped, “Are you punishing her for the damage!?”

“Nothing of the sort! It’s just that… I may need to dust off your tower again, Twilight.” The solar diarch raised her head, smile as bright as her namesake. “I’m going to be taking on another student.”

Chapter 3 - "A Solar Battery"

Sol Dilemma - Chapter 3

“A Solar Battery”

“I've picked up a ghost distress signal nearby.”

Valia perked up, posture straightening out. “Distress signal? Did they say what for?”

“Ye… no. I'm not sure if they omitted something… or it's because of the darkness in the area interfering with the message.” Data activated the transmat, an orange and white sparrow materializing. “Either way… we should go check it out.”

“Can it wait? I think I can still salvage this data file…” she responded, hands hovering carefully above the ancient server rack. It hung precariously over the edge, tethered to the ground by a thick, heavily frayed cable. If they had gotten here any later, the thing might have already vanished into the chasm below. She took a deep breath and stuck her hand in. With the precision of a trained surgeon, Valia unhooked the disk from the slot and pulled it out.

The warlock sighed and digitized the file for safety. It vanished in a swarm of white particles, depositing itself into her inventory. There was a loud creaking noise of bending metal, and the snapping of wires. With her instincts flaring, she leaped backward, away from the edge.

Looking up, she got to witness the server and some tiles suddenly drop over the edge. She held a hand to the ground, in anticipation of a larger collapse. When none came, cautiously, she approached the edge, meticulously closing in as to not to disturb the floor. As her hand gripped the floor for leverage, she peered over. She whispered a swear as she looked at the now suspended server rack. It was angled sideways by a rusted girder and four very resilient wires. That also meant the external access side was now…

This actually became impossible, I can’t get this out in time… the Tower is too far… those cords can’t hold it for long… She hissed in her head. Her ghost was too chunky to move into the rack to pull it out. Speaking of dead people…

Data stared at the precariously hanging object. “Ah, that was pretty close. Are you alright?”

“Fine. I can come back, but the hardware can’t,” she replied. “And it looks like I'll have to make do with what I got… trying to go to it now only looks like wasted effort.”

“Perhaps if we had a hunter… they are pretty nimble,” Data muttered.

“Maybe. I should've asked around for a hand.” Valia dusted her robes off, before walking to the parked sparrow. Wrapping her hands around the handle, she gently guided it outside. The mountainous region here was desolate, and crawling with Fallen, but had a treasure trove of golden age things if you knew where to look. “Who’s here anyway? Why would someone be out this far? There’s almost nothing here.”

“Not sure. But we’ll see in a couple of moments.”

The Himalayan mountain range was a name mostly forgotten, lost like so many others in the Collapse. When Valia had seen what it looked like in those better times, she vehemently agreed with the other warlocks that the name coined during the dark age would stick. That mountain range was beautiful, but this…? Calling them by the same name would be a mockery.

So it went down in the books as, “Skyrend”. A most fitting name. Characterized by the six ugly scars that ran themselves down the entirety of the mountain, it was as if the sky had been sheared into and gutted.

It was a popular theory among the warlocks that there was a golden-age experimental power facility embedded deep within the mountains. They suspected it had to do something with geothermal energy. Valia was here today to prove that theory. She was hoping the disk she found would be enough to support the claim. It was already looking good solely from the fact that there was a place in the mountain to even salvage something from.

As the pair exited the from the dilapidated entrance, the warlock ignited her hoverbike. Data vanished into Valia’s head as the start of the sparrow engines kicked up the dirt and snow. They thundered down across the mountain road, swerving around boulders and dangerous gaps in the path.

Valia frowned as she noticed the obvious missing space where part of the road was half an hour ago. Cracking her neck, the warlock revved the engine and activated the boosters. The space between them was closing now, the end growing ever closer. She squeezed the handles tighter and practically threw her body backward.

Angled up, they shot across the divide, trailing snow behind them. Valia landed on the other side with a grunt, sparrow dipping further than she was prepared for. “How much farther until we reach the signal!?” she called out, wind muffling her question.

Data murmured to himself in her head. “Maybe about three-hundred to… uh… the signal’s moved.” Valia could feel the look of confusion. “Two-hundred meters… northwest. I think something is going down, we need to hurry!”

“Understood!” She shouted, pulling back on the handles and shifting her weight to the right, creating a cloud of snow with her sharp maneuver. The engines roared from the stunt, close enough that they were melting the ice beneath. “Have Huntsman’s Sigil at the ready!”

As she catapulted herself in another direction, the wind whipped around her and her robes caught the air almost heroically.

Around a ridge, a Fallen Skiff came into view, jammed into a crevice. Valia left a steady grip on the left handle and raised her right hand.

An elegant steel rifle with wooden furniture flashed into existence, with intricately carved animals adorning the sides of the gun. She smiled as the metal reflected the sparrow exhaust beautifully, and aimed her favorite scout rifle’s reticle to head level. One unfortunate Dreg had the luck to be the first in her sights.

Three echoing cracks, and one violent removal of a head.

The now skull-less Dreg slumped to the floor, dead. A surprised captain and three of his subordinates approached the scene of their deceased comrade, weapons raised. Valia licked her chops and jumped off the sparrow. Her rifle pointed at the secondary fuel tank..

The Fallen never saw it coming.

Four mangled corpses, left in a glimmer fueled fire, the metal twisting and turning, distorting beyond recognizability.

It still had yet to breach through emergency primary fuel shell.

THOOM.

The chasm shook, displacing years of built-up snow and ice. Valia howled a swear and summoned a rudimentary towering barricade. It flickered constantly, a testament to her inexperience in using titan-styled light spells. “Brace yourself!” she screamed, as the mass tumbled into the clearing where the Fallen transport sat. The skiff was swept away in a frozen river, disappearing in a cloud of white, swallowed by the earth.

Debris slammed against the towering barricade, each impact sending ripples around its structure. Cracks splintered around it, threatening to give out at any moment. Unlike a titan’s true barricade, she had no way of telling whether or not her spell would give. All she could really do at this point was hope and pray.

The ground continued to rumble for another minute or so before the avalanche ran out of fuel. Sloppily getting to her feet, she stared at the expansive white before her. “So. Where's the signal now? Don't tell me they got swept away in all of that!”

Data hummed, as he examined the directions. “Hah… well, we don't have to go searching for them, but we did bury the location…”

“Damnit, why didn't you tell me?” she responded, holstering her rifle. Just like the disk, it too vanished in a shower of lights.

“You didn't give me a chance to,” he coughed.

Valia frowned. “Right. It shouldn't be too hard to dig them out.” She aimed her right palm at the snow. “Where are they?”

“Moment,” he chirped. Floating over to a small mound in the snow. “A little to the left here. I'll ping a marker for you.” A small red blip appeared underneath the ghost.

Valia channeled the solar light through her body and into the fulcrum: her palm. It coalesced into a beam of intense heat, melting everything in its path. Soon enough, a dripping tunnel of ice had been carved through, revealing a superheated steel door. The warlock curled her fingers in but kept the lower palm free of obstruction. Hand flush with the weakened metal, she forced light into her strike.

The metal bent inward and exploded, showering bits and pieces along with some sparks into the room. There was now an opening into the underground facility—albeit a tight fit. A second light-infused jab would fix that. Smoke curled around the entrance as Valia ducked her way inside.

“D-Don't come any further! I've… I've got a… ah… a gun and… and I'm not afraid to use it!” A shrill voice cried, shaking uncontrollably.

Valia rolled her eyes. “Relax. We took care of your little Fallen problem. They shouldn’t be bothering you two anymore.” She looked around at the old hallway. “Unless there are other pairs here…?”

The honey-yellow ghost floated down, shell shaking for a negative. “I… I’m the only one here… I’m actually… lookingformyguardianhereandIdidn’tmeantogetintosomuchtrouble!” She belted off, words incomprehensible.

Data buzzed. “I only caught, ‘looking’, and ‘trouble’, from all of that. Calm down, we’re all on the same side here.”

“I don’t really want to say it again…” she mumbled, hovering above a shelf. “It’s embarrassing.”

“You’re ashamed to not have found a Guardian sooner, correct?” Data queried.

The unnamed ghost sputtered. “W… What!? How did you guess!?”

Data chuckled and bumped a spine reassuringly on his fellow ghost. “All of us ghosts go through the same thing. It takes time to find the right match.”

“R-Really!? Oh. Phew. I honestly thought I was a worthless ghost. Especially since…” she admitted. “Since I almost got captured.”

Valia clicked her tongue. “That's said and done.” She ran a hand against a piece of cooled metal. “Why were you here?”

“I was pretty sure I found my Guardian! But I think I must've tripped some Fallen alerts and brought them here.” She zoomed over to a glowing console. “I've been trying to unlock this for some time now. I probably would have opened it, if they didn't show up to try and take me. I kinda started panicking… and locked myself out.”

Valia followed to look at her work. The screen displayed a red-maroon lock and an error message, saying to call for a technician or to wait a couple of hours to try again. She glanced at the side of the computer and smiled. This terminal had a maintenance panel that she knew how to abuse. Summoning a drill, she began unscrewing.

“Ah. Well, while she does that, I'll call for our jumpship to extract you two once you're done bonding,” Data said idly, reminiscing about past times. “Most recently resurrected Guardians perish on the journey to the Last City. Or the ghosts fall before they can accomplish their task. You were lucky we were here…” Data narrowed his one eye. “We didn't properly introduce ourselves, did we?”

The honey-yellow ghost smiled sheepishly. “O-Oh. I'm Amber.”

The warlock hiked a finger to herself, still splicing wires. “Valia Nore, and that’s Data.” The ghost did a bow to the best of his ability. “Pleasure to meet you… and… you’re welcome.”

The screen flickered to an opened green lock and the door beside it hissed, gas escaping from the millennium-old confines. Valia flicked her eyes to the information displayed on the computer. “So your Guardian’s in there? How're you sure it's the real deal?”

“Mhm. I know it… in my… er… processors? I've got a feeling. That's all I can really say.”

Valia nodded and silently read off the monitor. Caz Jo’arren. 26. M. Volunteer subject thirty-six. Cryo-chamber status: error. She watched the vault-like door crank open. Something rushed out and began the buildup of a warm feeling in her. It was unlike any fire she had ever guided.

She watched Amber hover over a shriveled, mummified corpse.

There was no anger.

Her shell disengaged and opened up.

No familiar hatred that could melt steel.

Brilliant light began to flood the small room, whirling around the room, something one could relate to a small tornado. She gasped and kneeled over, buckling from the raw power that was being exerted. As she sat on her knees, there was only one intense feeling that swirled inside of her: hope.

The light at the end of the tunnel.

The next sunrise after a long night.

She was about to witness the birth of a Guardian.

I flailed awake, gasping for air.

What…? What happened? I thought, eyes slowly adjusting to the brightness of wherever I was. I gently rubbed my eyes to wash away the weariness of sleep. When did I fall asleep? I tapped a hoof to my forehead, as I felt the dissipating effects of the sleep headache I had grown accustomed to.

As that faded away, I flopped flat onto my resting surface.

Even if I was pseudo-blind at the moment, I was certain I wasn’t sleeping in my home. The biggest takeaway being the bedsheet and the blanket, which were considerably starched and very uncomfortable. Mom abhorred things like that. If it wasn’t sufficiently fluffy or basically on the level of a pegasi cloud bed, it was back into the wash with fabric softener. And sure, that meant waiting extra long for laundry to finish, but I think it was well worth the wait.

I stretched my sore limbs out. Why am I so sore? Scratch that, why is it so bright? Wasn't it late afternoon… during… during… oh no… With a whip of my head, I sent the blanket flying off, and I scrambled out of the bed. However, my little stunt caused me to catch a hoof on the falling fabric and change my trajectory to that of the shiny linoleum floor.

I groaned, rubbing my snout as I used the side of the bed to prop myself up. My sleep induced haze had cleared up, most likely from the shock of smacking headfirst into the floor.

I squeezed my eyelids shut one last time, and stared at the place to where I had… been taken to. It was a clean white room, simply decorated with some color. There were two chairs and a small couch, along with… with an unused crystal monitor on a stand…

There was a curtain half-drawn around the bed…

The windows used hard plastic blinds…

The smell of medicine and antibiotics hung in the air.

I'm in a hospital. I blinked. Who… no… what am I doing here? Why can't I remember anything? What happened back at the CSGU? I froze. No… nononononono! Don't tell me I caused an accident and failed!

I heard the doorknob twisting, and before I could react, a pony stepped in.

She had a clean white coat, and flowy pink hair, tied into a bun. On top of that, she wore a nurse cap. “Oh. I was wondering when you would wake up. Your mother has been very worried about you. Also gave the doctor a fright when you wouldn't rouse, either,” she chuckled. She unhooked a clipboard from a nearby wall. “Do you still have any lingering effects? Headaches? Hornaches? Burning sensations?”

“I… uhm… no…” I pat myself down. “I feel… okay.”

“That’s great,” she murmured. “You have a couple of visitors coming soon, so I suggest you freshen up.” She pointed a hoof to a door. “That’s the bathroom if you don’t already know. Do you happen to need any help?”

“N-No. I can do it on my own… thank you… though,” I stammered out. She nodded and hooked the board back onto its original place.

She left without another word.

I glanced at the words written on the paper. Sunny Skies, it read. I guess she really isn’t one for conversation. I sighed and made my way to the bathroom. I could really use a shower or something.

I turned it on.

I jerked back in realization for my mistake at setting it to cold, only to tilt my head in confusion as the supposedly “cold” water pelted against my coat. It felt relatively cold, but I wasn’t bothered by the temperature.

At all.

This is weird. I turned the handle further up to test. In gradual increments, I kept turning the heat. Eventually, it reached the point where I was pretty sure a pony would be boiled alive if they stepped into the shower. The steam was visible as it rose into the air.

Strangely enough, it still felt as pleasing as any hot shower would be. I hovered a hoof over the knob, before deciding on turning it back to normal. As nice as this was, I didn't want to end up tripping over myself because there was so much steam.

Grabbing a bottle of shampoo in my magic out of reflex, I gasped as it almost flew out of my grip. The aura that surrounded it was… broken. It flickered and crackled, failing to form a uniform shape strong enough to make a proper hold.

Then it exploded, sending magical sparks around me. The bottle clattered to the floor, and I slammed onto the floor.

Groaning, I elected to instead use my hooves to clean up.

After that hiccup, I shook my body to dry it as best as I could and tentatively stepped out of the shower. There was a neatly folded stack of towels sitting on a rack. I took one and finished what my shake couldn't do.

I made an embarrassingly sloppy fold and placed the wet fabric next to the stack. Waiting patiently on the other side happened to be my mom in full armor, sans helmet, which hung off of her side. Bags hung under her eyes, which looked pink. A sign of sleep deprivation. There was another pony behind her… and I had to crane my neck up to…

Sweet Celestia, it’s Princess Celestia! My mouth hung open, and I began shaking in fear. Don't tell me the event I can't remember was enough to warrant the Princess’ attention! I turned to look at mom, still holding the droopy, tired expression. Did she miss sleep because she was defending me!? IS THE PRINCESS HERE TO TAKE ME AWAY!?

“Guard Cascade, I think I broke your daughter,” she giggled.

Mom just sighed. “...hey squirt. How ‘ya doin’?” she asked, trotting over to me and giving me a tight hug. “I should've been there with you. Helped curb the outburst before it got out of control.”

“I had another outburst? Is that why I can barely remember what happened yesterday?” I questioned quietly, returning her embrace. I looked to the princess, who smiled back at me. “I… I didn't do anything bad… did I? I didn't hurt anypony, right?”

“Besides nearly giving me a heart attack? No.” Mom had an amused look. “Well, you did also reduce an entire hallway to molten slag.”

“I… WHAT!?” I screeched. “I'm… in trouble aren't I? That's why the Princess is here, to take me away? I don't want to go to the dungeon, Mom!”

To my surprise, her royal highness was the first to laugh. “Hahahaha! What an active imagination, my little pony. The damage done to that part of the school was superficial. Honestly? Nothing but a little bit of magic and construction work, and it shall be like nothing ever occurred.”

“I'm not getting sent to the dungeon for annihilating public property?”

“Of course not! If we had to arrest a pony for doing that, we’d be up to our horns corralling foals,” Mom cut in. “And I'm pretty sure Princess Twilight would be in there for life, with all the damage she’s caused.”

“There is no need for worry, either. I abolished the dungeons almost eight-hundred years ago. I decided to replace them with rehabilitation centers so that we could help criminals change. The prisons did not exactly create the best atmosphere for that.” Her highness’s smile deepened. “I wonder why modern ponies still believe in them. Certainly confused my sister when she first came back…”

“I… really?” They both nodded. “Th-Then, if you don't mind me asking…” I turned to face the diarch, “Princess Celestia, what… um… are you doing here?”

She tapped a hoof to her chin. “Yes, I do wonder that as well. Perhaps—”

Mom coughed into her fetlock. “Princess.”

“Bah. You guards are no fun.” She sat on her haunches and tapped her forehooves together. A gilded scroll flashed into the open frog of her hoof, balanced perfectly on its side. Her horn lit up and a spellblade sliced through the wax seal. Mom raised a brow but said nothing, as she watched her unfurl the paper.

The princess mumbled some words, eyes quickly scanning over the contents. She smiled and curled it up. She presented it to me. “I prefer to see their reactions when they read this.” She said to my mom, who looked even more perplexed.

I carefully grabbed the scroll and opened it up. Deep breaths. In fancy golden letters, it read:

Greetings, Sol Dilemma.

I, the solar diarch of Equestria, Princess Celestia, have chosen you for one of the most prestigious positions available to a pony.

I do wish that the selection was done on mostly merit, but I can safely reaffirm that if that was so, you would qualify.

Instead, I have chosen you for your affinity, a connection to an element which I once thought impossible, disproven only by myself truly.

Know that I am not mistaken. A long time ago, I once found another who I surmised could do the same as you. I spent years cultivating her abilities and training her mind to attempt to draw it out. She was capable of great feats, but not the one I had been hoping for.

It also appeared that she had been led astray by my way, and she succumbed to darker desires. I shamefully admit that this would remain a black mark on my memory and my ability as a teacher. To which I vowed never to fail another, just like I did her.

Why would I be telling you this?

I believe for this position I am about to offer you, it should be built upon strong foundation, and secrets such as this—that could jeopardize the relationship I intend to encourage—I do not intend to keep. At least, not any longer.

A recent student of mine taught me that.

But I digress.

After the event of my fallen student, I vehemently believed I would never find a pony who could channel the same energy I could.

But now, it seems I was proven so very wrong in believing no other living creature could control the wrathful nature of the solar flames.

You are a smart pony, Dilemma, and I'm sure you've been able to piece it together.

I would like to ask you to be my personal student.

I looked up from the letter, mouth agape. I was opening and closing in an attempt to form words or any intelligent thoughts. “Uh… muh… wha… huh?”

I was feeling light-headed for some reason. Maybe I should just… sleep it off. I would probably think better after a good nap.

Yeah.

The last thing I witnessed was the princess saying, “Hm. I expected a different reaction.”

“I'm quite excited! Up until this point, I never really had anypony to relate with,” Princess Twilight said. “The only other student… er, tried to enslave a school.”

I think she might've noticed my bewildered expression because she immediately followed up with a reassurance.

“Hah, well, um, we’re on better terms now. Our talks get… progressively less awkward, that’s for sure.”

“Twi, she hasn't said anything for the past half-hour,” Spike pointed out. “You dominated basically the entire conversation—if we can still call it that—and rattled off on tangents. Plus, I'm pretty sure she’s acting like the way you did to Celestia back when you were her student.”

“W-What? Why didn't you stop me?”

He shrugged. “It was informative. I also thought it was kind of funny.”

“Spike!”

“What? You say some silly things even I didn’t know!” he retorted, arms spread defensively. “And I’ve lived with you for all my life! I know a thing or two.”

She sighed and shook her head. “I… nevermind.” She turned to face me. “So… aha… I apologize for that.” Princess Twilight did a double take. “Wait, you see me like that?”

“I… yes… you’re a princess. Mom always told me to respect the royalty,” I automatically responded.

Twilight nodded in understanding. “But that's fine. We’re a part of an exclusive club made of three ponies! That has to count for something, Dilemma.”

I tilted my head in confusion. “You’re still a princess, Princess.”

Spike laughed. “We can work on that later, Twi. For now, let’s show her her new place!” He stopped at the foot of the long flight of stairs and frowned. “Forgot about that. Twilight, why couldn’t we have had an elevator installed?”

“To quote a great pony: ‘Stairs are great. Stairs build character. Stairs are the steps upon which we have built our great civilizations. I really like stairs.’ I believe he was named Sombrero or something. Strange that I can’t remember.”

Spike huffed. “I think this ‘Sombrero’ should rethink his stance on stairs.” He followed the curve around the tower. “I hate stairs. They’re dumb.” The dragon complained the whole way up the flight, airing his grievances about stairs. I think I agreed with his sentiments. How did Princess Twilight do this every day!?

We reached the top, where both Spike and I let out a sigh of sweet relief. Princess Twilight, on the other hoof, rolled her eyes and loudly exhaled. “It wasn’t that bad.”

“Pfft. Whatever. Let’s just see what Celestia did to spruce up our ol’ abode!” he cheered, shoving the doors wide open. He gawked. “Okay. I was… huh. She worked fast.”

The room was round in design, surrounding a circular bed situated in the middle. A curved desk walled off most of the bedside, leaving a small portion open to climbing into the bed itself. Empty shelves lined most of the walls that didn’t already have a window or painting. Potted plants that complemented the accent perfectly were selectively dotted alongside the decor.

Even a coat of arms hung above the entrance.

But really, the most jarring thing was how modern everything looked.

The scene change from Canterlot Castle to high rise suite in Manehattan was pulled off so beautifully.

Spike whistled, “Moondancer should seriously regret giving this place up. It looks so… sleek. I think I prefer this to the castle, Twi.” He turned to face me, silly grin on his snout. “Do you need a number-one assistant, perchance?”

Princess Twilight gave him a light bop on the spine. “Oh, hush. Don’t bother her about this.”

He laughed and shrugged. “Offer’s still on the table, Dilemma, if you wanna take it. In the meantime, I’m going to go check upstairs. I wanna see how much Celestia changed.” He jogged to a transparent crystal staircase, mumbled something about stairs, and ran up. Twilight looked amused and began following him.

I was now sorta-alone in the room.

“I can’t believe all this happened because I was so worried about being magically inept.” I slipped out. I brushed a fetlock along the silky sheet. “I wonder how Princess Celestia is going to react when she learns I struggle with basic levitation.”

“You’re struggling with basic levitation?” A certain alicorn asked. My snout soured immediately as I spun to face a confused purple pony. “But… I saw what happened… no, felt what happened back at the school that day!”

“Princess Twilight!? I thought you were checking something upstairs?” I struggled out.

She began approaching. “Yes, just only to make sure Spike was behaving. He can get overexcited about new things.” She shook her head. “Enough about that. What did you mean earlier?”

If I feigned, would that work? No… not really. Princess Twilight is far from stupid. I wilted. “I… mean what I said. I haven’t been able to do any magic.”

She pursed her lips and paused. “Any magic? That doesn’t make sense. You were overflowing with it… and…” She lit her horn, a casting circle forming around her. Sigils lifted up and burned the same color as her aura. Her eyes became wider than I thought could be possible. “You… you don’t have any magic in you? That shouldn’t even be possible… I…”

With a crack of lightning and a flash of light, Princess Twilight vanished as she completed a quick-teleport spell.

Spike also happened to be coming down at the same time, holding a book. “Hey Twi, I just found your—” The sudden change in brightness caused him to hold up a claw to protect his eyes. However, that also meant turning his attention elsewhere for a split second.

And in that split second, he missed a step.

I watched him painfully tumble off the stairs, expressing his immense hatred with each impact on the ground. “Spike… are you okay?” I questioned. I trotted over to him, picking up the dropped book. I hoofed it back to him.

He took it back with a swipe of his claw. “I hate stairs so much.” He dusted himself off and fixed a small crease on the page. “I’m going to petition to the princesses to install elevators.”

I laughed just as another teleportation spell snapped behind us. This time, instead of just Princess Twilight, a concerned looking solar diarch had accompanied her. “Twilight tells me you don’t have any magic running through you… I trust my fellow princess but…”

She cast another thaumic observation spell.

And she received the same exact outcome.

“I couldn’t believe it either. A pony running without any magic in them… that doesn’t happen unless…”

Spike finished it for her, “Unless they’re dead, right?”

Princess Celestia nodded, “Yes, that should be the case, but I can feel the life force flowing through Dilemma.” She hummed to herself as she paced around me. “Maybe if I tried something…”

I felt the same spell used again for the third time. The difference being this time, instead of casting it, the Princess expanded her circle and began dissecting the internals. Twilight moved closer and began inspecting her work.

I watched as magic was ripped out of the frame and replaced with strange… fiery substitutes. Those seemed to be out of place, as they failed to properly conform to the spell’s confines. What is the Princess doing…? They writhed like tentacles, whipping out. Princess Twilight even backed off a little bit, certainly surprised by the erratic nature.

Then the princess aimed it at me.

The crackle of energy and beam of light was certainly enough to scare me. I yelped and instinctively tried to dodge out of the way, but I stopped in my tracks when a familiar aura surrounded me and held my body down. Struck by the spell, I hissed. It wasn’t uncomfortable but felt particularly intrusive as it searched.

Strangely enough, I even started to float off the ground.

It continued this way for ten more minutes, as I shifted in irritation. Eventually, the spell wavered and I was dropped to the floor, exhaling a sigh of relief on my descent.

I rubbed a sore spot on my side and looked up to see a speechless Princess Celestia. “I… I thought—that can’t be—it should be…” She held a hoof to her chest and took a deep inhale. As she breathed out, she bowed her head. “Impossible.”

“Celestia? Wh-What’s impossible?” Princess Twilight said as she placed a fetlock on her fellow’s shoulder.

“I considered it.” Her eyes looked back down to me. “I considered it, for just the briefest of moments… when I first saw Sol Dilemma… that it could be.”

“Be what?”

“That the magic that flows through her… is closer to mine than I ever thought it was.” She shifted to face the smaller princess. “I never taught you about this because I simply thought it irrelevant. There are multiple classifications and divisions in magic,” – Twilight whipped out a small notebook and quill – “spanning various trees and schools. However, magic itself on the otherhoof can be divided into two. Into modern magic, and primal magic.”

“Modern magic—or simply magic—is what we frequently use these days. Magic is conforming, obeying structure and law, calculable through math. It can be easily molded into a rigid constitution and utilized most effectively that way. Plainly said, it is predictable.” She raised a hoof and an orb of light dropped on top of it. She sat down and raised her other foreleg, summoning a ball of flames. “The same cannot be said about primal magic. It can be erratic, unpredictable, and most importantly, relies solely on thought and will. Most creatures have a level of primal magic in them, but it is often so negligible, most do not notice.”

She conjured an image of two famous ponies, the element of honesty and the element of kindness: Applejack and Fluttershy. “Interestingly enough, earth ponies and pegasi display levels of primal magic. They are minor things, such as an increased connection with the earth, or assistance with flight and the weather.” She paused. “Unicorns seem to lack that… special connection. Modern and primal abhor each other, and from what little research we do have, we know that modern magic won out in an evolutionary battle. If it was rare three millennia ago, it is almost non-existent now.”

“But what really seems to baffle those who search into the history of this magic, is how it managed to lose out. There was no reason for it to, it was certainly much more powerful than modern magic in raw strength. In all respects, it should have succeeded—yet here we are.”

Princess Twilight raised a hoof to catch everypony’s attention. “Is there any other material on this?”

The solar diarch giggled. “Of course Twilight. I must say, they’re quite thin and frail. Do be careful. You can find it in my chambers… on shelf three, I believe.”

She “eee’d” and warped away in a ball of smoke. Only to return seconds later, to grab an alarmed-looking drake from his seat on a pillow. “Sorry, need your help.” She nodded to us and disappeared once again.

“So is that why I couldn’t use my magic earlier?” I rubbed the underside of my barrel, getting a feel for my body. “I have primal magic?” I took a moment to think. “And that's overwriting my regular magic?”

The princess nodded in confirmation. “Yes. That would explain your lack of ability to use it. But, do not fret. Your gift of a primal power is nothing short of amazing… and to share the very same element as I? I would say my sister would be playing a trick on me.”

“Oh.” I had no idea how to respond to a compliment from the princess herself.

She lit her horn and unlocked the entrance. “I realize it's growing late, but if you would be fine with it, I would like to head to the training grounds together,” she announced. “Although, if you are feeling tired, there is no need to push yourself for my sake.”

I'm not feeling that tired. I had a nap in the early afternoon, after all! “I would love to!”

“Are you certain? It is completely understandable if you wish to rest. I am not trying to guilt you in any way,” she reassured. She stopped and looked to the ground, briefly mulling something over. “Let me try this. As your princess, I implore your next answer to be one of the heart, no lies.”

I briefly looked to the left, briefly considering lying to her. Before I squash that down faster than it came to mind. “Well… I’m sorta tired. But not tired enough that I'll tumble off to rest if I close my eyes.”

“Very well.” She stood up.

“We’re not going to teleport there?” I asked.

“It would certainly be faster, but I think you should get a feel for the castle.” She trotted to the door. “If I'm not mistaken, you were led directly to your room and nothing else?”

I gave my confirmation in a hesitant nod. “Princess Twilight did make a small detour to give me a brief overlook of the royal archive. Other than that, I only really know of the guard’s area… maybe the barracks? All because of my mother… being a guard and all.”

“Ah. I was hoping to have an excuse to spend extra time, but alas, I've been beaten to the punch.” She gave a quiet laugh, “I suppose we’ll just have to make the most of our time.” She walked to the edge of the top flight, craning her long neck back at me. I “oh’d!” and shot up to catch up with the princess.

“Is it safe to assume you want to test the extent of my magic at the training area?”

“Yes. I want to see what you can do, and where we should start from in your training and study,” Princess Celestia replied. She stared at the daunting walk back down the steps, and my obvious disdain for them. “You can ride on my back if you wish.”

My eyes widened and my mouth gaped further than I thought even possible. The princess had suggested something that baffled my young mind. Scratch that, would've baffled anyponys’ mind.

I returned her stare with an incredulous expression. Then she did something else that sent my image of her reeling off the rails. She snort-giggled in the most un-princessly manner. Which then broke out into full-belly laughter. I was at a loss for words. “Whaaaa…?”

“Oh my, you…! You remind me so much of Twilight back when she was my student! The resemblance is uncanny, it’s hilarious!” Her laughter was infectious, and I joined in with her soon enough. She wiped a tear from her eye, the remnants of our hysterics dying off. “I'm not all that different from the common pony, my student. I suppose my long life and position have seemed to elevate that to one of a goddess. I must tell you, I am far from one.”

“I-I mean… you’re—”

She stopped me there. “The princess of the sun? Co-ruler of Equestria? The dawnbringer? I have many titles, Sol Dilemma, but they are just titles. I am just an old mare with a lot of magic. It certainly took Twilight a long time to realize that. Which is something I hope to remedy with you.”

“Oh…”

“So don't be afraid of a simple backside now.”

Reluctantly, I gave her my okay.

As I was hoisted up, I managed to catch the faint smile of elation before it disappeared behind her prismatic mane. I wonder what that’s for? Probably nothing. As we made our way down, I couldn’t help but go back to our talk on magic earlier.

“Princess?”

“Yes, Dilemma?”

“So earlier… you implied that you also had primal magic? But I’ve seen you pull off those complex spells! Didn’t you say the two don’t mix?”

“They don’t. Over my long life, I’ve had practice in using it like modern magic. It was… an arduous process, but incredibly rewarding once I managed to master it.” She bashfully looked off to the side. “Though… I must admit, I was quite jealous of my ex-student for quite some time. Her gifted affinity with modern magic… catapulted her through spells I took years to overcome.

“So all of your spells… they’ve all used primal magic to power them?” I gasped. “Doesn’t that mean all of them are really powerful!? Are you going to teach them to me!?”

She grinned. “Very astute, my student. But not so fast. Remember how I said that primal magic can be… quite unruly?”

“How it’s erratic...”

“So I would prefer to teach you control before we do anything regarding something as advanced as spellcasting. It’s clear I need to reteach you the basics. Primal levitation is very different from what you’re used to.”

“Really…? I wanted to cast all the cool spells!”

“When you’re ready for them, you will. Foal steps, Dilemma, foal steps.”

As the conversation tapered off, I switched to observing my surroundings with a newfound curiosity—everything looked so different from this height. Tapestries didn’t look so tall, stained windows appeared to actually form events rather than the skewed images I perceived, even the height of the halls didn’t give off such a daunting impression. We passed by guards (some who I recognized) and castle staff, with a wave of a hoof and a smile.

I like feeling tall.

“Sister! I was wondering if you could—” The speaker spotted me atop the princess’s back. “I am not interrupting anything, am I?”

“Not at all. We were just making our way to the training grounds.”

“I see. I can spare some time to join you for the walk.” The princess nodded and continued her timely gait. “You know, ‘Tia…” Princess Luna started, “This is the third student you've taken on, you greedy mare. Leave some prodigies for the other princesses!” She winked an eyebrow at me.

Princess Celestia rolled her eyes. “Perhaps you should also become much more proactive in searching for one. I hear a ‘gut feeling’ is also helpful.”

“You and your mild bouts of clairvoyance! If half of them weren't useless or farces, I would actually listen!” she fumed. Her voice suddenly turned to mimic her sister’s, “Oh, Lulu! Tomorrow, there shall be an attempt on my life by my favorite delicacy! The horror! The horr—”

“We get it,” the ever-regal solar diarch groaned.

“Of course you do.”

“So what brings you here, Lulu? Or did you come here just to embarrass me in front of my student?”

She snickered. “That was simply a positive addition to the conversation.” Her expression hardened. “No, I just wanted to talk about an anomaly I encountered during my nightly patrols. I wished to catch you before I headed to night court.”

“Anomaly?”

“Mhm. There… has been a dreamer.”

“Oh?”

“My duty as the mistress of the night is to ensure that rest is pleasant. But… this dreamer… has been out of reach for the longest time. I have met evasive ones before, but this pony…” She sighed. “I'm at a loss. All I can do is watch them suffer, while I sit around completing nothing. It is… depressing.”

“Have you tried any of the more invasive procedures?” Princess Celestia asked, having stopped to face her other. “That can be quite the touchy subject, but it is better than doing naught.”

“I've tried one of them. That caused the dreamer to wake up instead.”

The solar diarch clicked her tongue. “We can discuss this later. We both have things to get to.”

Princess Luna had a forlorn, but understanding countenance. “Yes, yes, we can continue this later. I am also certain that the topic is not for everypony’s ears. If that is all, you can see me at court.” She gave me a curtsy. “Sweet dreams, Sol Dilemma, I wish you a fortuitous practice.”

I hadn’t even noticed we arrived at the grounds.

Carefully, Princess Celestia lowered herself to the ground, giving me a safe distance to jump off of. I stared in awe at the surroundings. “Did we go outside?”

“Nope!” she beamed, eerily similar to a hyperactive filly. “This has been a personal project of mine. Before I was crowned as a princess, I traveled most of Equestria, and in my journey, I came across the most efficient way to improve control.”

Princess Celestia had cultivated a zen garden room in the castle.

“I made sure to take in as much detail as I could. As much as I needed to recreate the same calming atmosphere the original had. But the habitat that Canterlot provided… was not suitable. So I improvised with a pocket dimension spell, bolstered with some of Starswirl’s mirror research.”

A curved tree was the off-center of the garden, left in a calmly flowing pond, which itself moved throughout the entire room. Finely-cut wood bridges connected the islands carved out by the pond. In the southern portion of the room stood a proud pavilion.

“I was left with a room in which I could freely mold to my needs. I nursed the right temperature, magicked the correct soil, ordered, imported and personally planted each plant from Neighpon.”

Poofy bushes dominated some areas of the impossibly soft-looking grass. Small reeds poked out from the banks of the pond, rustling ever so quietly. Flowers in constant bloom dotted the roomscape with their shades of pink and white.

“But something was missing. So I conjured the illusions of the neighponese mountains. I added the sounds of nature to wrap it all up.”

The wind blew, loud enough to be heard, but not strong enough to disrupt. Animals warbled and chirped, adding a background alongside the sounds of flora.

She crossed the midpoint of the bridge and patted a seat next to her. She beckoned for me to join her. “It's quite lovely here, isn't it?”

“Yes! It's so pretty.”

“It's quite peaceful, wouldn't you agree?”

“Yeah...?”

“Dilemma, I would like you to clear your mind. I want you to mimic the garden as best as you can. Do not care about anything else besides this right now, alright?”

“A-Alright.” Listening to her instructions, I took a deep breath and eased my expression. Any other thought became irrelevant, any other worry became meaningless. The only sounds I could hear were my soft exhales and the trickle of water.

I wasn't sure how long I was waiting. Be it minutes or hours, I laid still.

The world could burn, and I wouldn't notice.

Even the sudden noise from the princess failed to startle me. “The thing about primal magic is that it should never be used the same way modern is. Doing so would put you and anypony around you at risk.”

Inhale.

“Picture it not a force to tame—which is impossible to accomplish—but rather, something to befriend. It is a part of you, therefore it is you. You do not control yourself like a disobedient pet, now do you?”

Exhale.

“Your focus should be on building a… ‘relationship’ of sorts, with your primal magic. Bridge the divide.”

Inhale.

“For now, I simply want to draw out your thaumic resonance. If your mind is clear, this should be of no difficulty.”

Exhale.

“A moment of emotional instability often gives off the strongest measure. Try and think of something that could cause that.” I could feel the pressure of a wing laid over me. “Do not worry. I'll be here to drag you back before you go too far.”

Inha… inhale.

I thought back to the times when things went wrong. Whenever I lost control of a situation and let my emotions take the better of me. I shuddered and almost broke myself out of the serene trance I placed myself in.

Exhale.

“Take your time. We're here not to rush anything.”

I absently nodded and tried again.

The anger and sadness of failures. The air sparked.

The fear and longing for acceptance. A hiss of condensed energy echoed.

“That’s it, keep going.”

Inhale.

Remembering exactly what happened at the school before I had been knocked unconscious. A slew of emotions came rushing forth. Solar magic roared alive, free of its cage.

“I want you to hold this for as long as you can. Will it to remain this way.”

Unable to properly send her a confirmation, I stuck to simply abiding by her orders. Which was difficult on its own. My concentration was wavering. I wasn't aware how tiring it was at trying to keep magic flow constantly going. It felt like at any moment would be my last.

Grasping the intangible… was… hah…

I collapsed, solar magic dispersing into the air.

I looked up to see the pleased face of a sun princess. “That was beautiful, Dilemma. I'm more than certain you've earned a rest.”

“But Princess Celestia, I barely managed to hit a minute,” I groaned, “and I'm already tired and sore! I mean, that wasn't even any real spellcasting!”

In a motherly tone, she replied. “Foalsteps, my student. Master mages are not made in a single day. The more we come back to practice, the better you shall become at control.”

“O-Okay.”

“We can take a break and try again later.” She waved a hoof at the pond. “At the meantime, would you like to try some of the water? It's quite refreshing.”

I still can’t believe it’s been a month since everything happened. Who knew that outburst would lead to so much change in my life? Learning that I have basically extinct magic running through my mana, living in the castle as the student of the princess…

A satiated smile took my face. It’s like a dream.

“Congratulations, Dilemma! You seriously went above and beyond. Really. You smashed my expectations into… uh… oblivion,” Dapper cheered, clapping his hooves together. “Er… Dilemma?” He waved a hoof in front of my eyes. “Equus to Dilemma…?”

CRASH

“HEEEEERE'S MAVERICK…!” announced a certain pegasus. Our heads snapped to her, right as she barreled into the both of us. We were sent tumbling further into the hall, stopping short in front of a pair of stone-faced guards. “Hah-hah! That was epic.”

“Why must every time I see you, Maverick, I end up getting hurt somehow?” Dapper complained from his position at the bottom of the pile.

“Pain builds character!” Maverick shouted, smiling all the while. She dusted us off with her tail and propped us on our hooves. “Up and at ‘em soldiers! We have a party to attend!” she saluted at us (and also the guards), and began marching down the hall towards the ballroom.

I reaffixed the saddlebags and quickly sped up to keep pace with the filly. Trotting a safe-ish distance behind her, Dapper spoke up. “So it takes you a whole week to actually find time to celebrate becoming the princess’s student? What took you so long? Don’t tell me she already dumped a bunch of homework on you!”

“No! That would be scary,” I huffed. “It’s just that everything got really busy after her request to become her student. Moving my stuff to my new castle room, getting situated in this place, and the Princess wanted to get started right away with my magic training.”

“Training? What kind of training?”

I bit my lip. I didn’t want him to know or misinterpret anything about my inability to control my magic properly. “Well, she wanted to start off with teaching me methods to help better my control over magic, so… so the harder stuff gets easier!”

“Huh, really? That’s pretty cool. Most of the teachers at the school can be so boring!” he explained. “Well, all except Missus Hopper! She always knows how to make the boring stuff fun. It’s crazy.”

“I heard ‘boring’, who’s bored? We can’t have that before the party!” Maverick jutted in.

“Nothing. We were just talking about our teachers.”

Maverick “pfft’d”, and rolled her eyes. “Really? That’s boring.” She caught her tongue. “Wait. OH NO, NOW I’M THE BORED ONE!” She looked like she was about to scream.

Dapper stuck a hoof in her mouth. “We’re in the castle, Maverick! Show some tact!” He gave me a deadpan stare. “Is she like this every time there’s a party going to happen? This is pretty crazy.”

“Yeah… but it’s usually only for her friend’s parties.” I shook my hoof side-to-side in a “so-so” manner. “You should’ve seen her during my last birthday party.”

“I don’t think I really want to.” He gave me a confused tilt. “Wait, you mean us? We’re her only friends.”

Maverick pushed the hoof out of her mouth. “I’m still here ya’know. Stop talking like I ain’t.” She had a sudden look of realization on her face and brought Dapper closer. She whispered something into his ear, while he nodded all the while.

“Um.”

“Sorry, uh, gotta go.”

“Both of us.”

“Yeah.” They finished at the same time. And ran off in opposite directions. I wonder what that was. For the first time in an entire week, I was alone—except for the guards, but they were on duty and didn’t really count.

I guess I was just going to have to go to the party myself.

The castle itself was quite large, so much so that one could get lost if they really didn’t know where they wanted to go. That’s why one of the first things Princess Celestia had me do for homework (or schoolwork? I lived in the castle now, after all) was commit the layout of the castle to memory and quiz me on it. That way, I didn’t accidentally starve to death in a broom closet or something.

The ballroom that had been set aside for my party was on the east wing of the castle, furthest point, overlooking the rest of Canterlot.

I was currently halfway there.

The castle still seemed to have a level of charm to it, still grandiose as the day I saw it. That would probably wear off the longer I woke up inside its walls.

I hummed to myself as I practically skipped to the location. I was pretty excited about it, considering most of my week had been mundane. The nightly sessions where Celestia trained me for controlling my newfound abilities were nice and all, but being young and impatient, I really wanted to do the things I’d watch the guards do, what the battle mages whipped out or even some ease-of-life spells.

Anything was better than doing the breathing exercises. But I understood the necessity. I was lucky that part of the school had been empty, the students all sent home because of the tests. I didn’t want the knowledge that I had injured anypony, under my control or not.

That was a weight I didn’t want to add onto my already loaded back.

I sighed, laying a hoof against the door. I pressed against it, trying to open it. I cocked my head and tried again. This time, it worked, and opened up…

…to an empty room.

What?

I glanced at spotless hardwood and darkened interior, moderately brightened by the window panes. I closed the door in disbelief. I was pretty sure I had gone to the correct room… right?

I checked the plaque layered on the door itself, reading “E-2”. That was the room the princess had given me the invitation for. Or maybe it was E-3? The Princess’s squiggly writing was hard to tell sometimes. I grabbed the paper out of my saddlebag and squinted.

Just to double check I wasn’t insane, and incapable of reading fancy equuish, I pushed the door open again—

“SURPRISE!” A chorus of voices rang out. A loud pop, followed by a larger bang, sprayed confetti everywhere.

Being a naturally flighty pony, I jumped in surprise, yelping in fear. My horn flared, and I could already feel the primal magic pouring out. I tried to stop it but failed miserably.

To my chagrin, it didn’t come out as a molten fireball. A ring of… heavenly light poured out around me, solidifying into a swirling vortex. Sitting in it made me feel… so good. Like my fears were washed away, any wounds cast upon me would vanish immediately… I felt alive.

“Wow! That is the first time I’ve ever seen anypony cast a spell like that when they get startled!” A bubbly voice spoke up. “That’s going in the picture books. Snap!” A flash of light told me somepony used a camera.

Princess Celestia was the first to approach. “Dilemma… where did you learn this? This is… an incredibly advanced healing spell… I haven’t even seen something like this before…”

“Where did you learn this? Healing spells are only ever taught to trained unicorns, misuse by an ill-prepared pony could cause damage to the body… trigger cancer cells to proliferate faster than the body can remove them… generate tumors… the list is endless.” Princess Twilight cataloged. “And I’m analyzing the structure of the thaumic weaving, and I’m at a loss for words…”

“Twi’ at a loss fer words? Gosh, that’s somethin’ I’d never thought I’d hear, ” an orange pony piped up.

“Snap!”

Another orange pony walked up, with hair that looked like flowing fire. Her horn lit up, and she cut a vicious gash on her fetlock. My eyes widened in shock at the self-induced affliction. So did a couple of other ponies in the crowd.

“Sunset, darling! A… ah… oh my, where’s my couch?”

“Sunset are you crazy!?”

“Trixie does not approve, but wants to see what happens… what a strange predicament.”

“Sunset” trotted past the narrow-eyed princesses and stuck her hoof in the circle. We all watched in amazement as blood flowed back into the cut. White energy swirled around the wound and scattered shortly after to reveal there had been no laceration. She barked a laugh. “That’s an awe-inspiring spell.” Her horn flashed briefly. “No restorative damage, fixed to the peak of perfection. It feels better after than before.”

She spun around and gave a toothy grin. “Equestria’s made you ponies delicate. Try spending some time on the other side with me.”

“Sunset, we don’t just cut ourselves open, waltz into an untested spell field, and hope for the best!” Princess Twilight shrilled. “The consequences—!”

“Bah.” She flicked a hoof noncommittally. “There’s no progress without risk.”

A lighter purple unicorn leaned from the group. “Sunset, that was a lot of risks, and a lot of undefined success. I agree with you, but I like to know my chances. That’s why we have testing procedures and processes.”

“Too long, it could—” The vortex vanished, spell starving itself as the magic stopped flowing. “There you go! At any moment. Who knows if we could reproduce the same spell again? It’s clear this thing could basically revolutionize Equestria’s (and maybe the world’s) medical facilities!”

“Trixie agrees. She didn’t understand a good half of the spell sequence… or whatever happened right there, but the benefits do outweigh the negatives.” Oh, I remember her! She’s the stage performer. Her shows are pretty neat.

“That’s not the point, Shimmer, Lulamoon! Sure, it’s great we found out it could basically knit flesh back together incredibly fast, and much cleaner than the best surgeon on the planet… but it’s the way we came to that conclusion!” the lighter purple unicorn shot back. Her tail whipped back and forth, a clear sign of agitation. “We care about you as friends! Putting yourself in harm’s way—”

“ENOUGH,” Princess Luna’s voice bellowed. “We came here to celebrate Dilemma’s position as my sister’s student. Not to tear at each other like a vicious pack of Timberwolves!” She stomped her hooves. “Do so at another time, at any other place, I could care less, but not here! Act like the responsible mares befitting of your stations!” Her lips curled. “Oh stars, that felt good.”

The room was deathly silent now. Even the jukebox seemed to shut up for fear of its life.

Sunset wilted. “I… I apologize to everyone for my… thoughtlessness. It seems my time on the other side has had a great deal in influencing my way of thinking.” She curtsied to me. “You as well, for causing such a scene at your party.”

The ponies all said their apologies. Rarity, unfortunately, still looked passed out on her couch. Hoof held on her crown.

I raised my foreleg and pointed to her. “Should we…?”

Pinkie shook her head. “She’ll be fine. Give her… two minutes tops. Tops. Tops!? That reminds me! I’ll be back everypony!” she shouted, vanishing in a pink blur out the side door. The other ponies paid it no heed as they began conversing amongst themselves.

The side door burst open again, however, it was two foals instead of a mare. “Did we miss the surprise!?” Maverick asked, scanning the already-spent party favors.

Dapper slapped his face. “I told you to take the left two turns ago.”

Some of the ponies chuckled while the some greeted them. I joined up with my small group. “So does anypony know why there are so many ponies here?”

Maverick jumped up and down. “Oh! Uh, Pinkie told me that a party couldn't be a party with just four ponies, so she invited her friends to spice things up.”

“We’ve got heroes here. Everypony else also has a background of some merit, it kinda makes me feel inadequate…” Dapper murmured.

Maverick rolled her eyes. “Don’ worry. We're here for ya’.” Her stomach rumbled. “Whoops. Forgot I skipped breakfast.”

“Why? Isn't that the most important meal of the day?”

“Yeah. But I wanted to eat all of the new foods here! So I saved space in my belly for all of them!”

“Only you, Maverick. Only you.” I tittered.

Her eyes lit up. “Do you want to try talking to the other party goers!?”

Dapper chuckled awkwardly. “I mean… I dunno. W-We really don't have to.”

“It'll be fine.”

Maverick pushed along the stammering colt to the first set of ponies, consisting of three unicorns and an alicorn.

“—did you remember? I caught a glimpse, but I really couldn't see it too well.”

“I stared at it for a good long while, Starlight, and I still couldn't understand it. We could probably pull it from my memories… but I don't know. The intricacy of weave is beyond me.”

“We can— Oh. Hello!” The lighter purple pony greeted. “I guess we didn't really get a chance to introduce ourselves. I'm Starlight Glimmer.”

“Greetings, I am the Great and Powerful Trixie Lulamoon! I was hired for the entertainment today. I hope I can knock you off your hooves with my grand displays of magic.”

“Sunset Shimmer. Pretty sure I made quite the first impression, huh?”

Dapper tapped my shoulder. “What did she do?”

“Cut herself open and then healed it with a spell.”

Maverick looked stupefied. “That’s so hardcore.”

“See, look! Somepony does appreciate the things I do.”

Starlight coughed. “Don't encourage her.”

Princess Twilight dismissively shook her head. “So what brings Dilemma and co.?”

“We’re here to establish friendships! Well, that's what I want. I'm not sure about Dapper or Dilemma.”

I did have something to ask Princess Twilight. “Princess…? This is your last day at the castle, right?”

She had an awkward smile on her face. “Just Twilight is fine Dilemma! And yes, I'll be heading back to Ponyville after today.”

I nodded and placed my saddlebag on the floor. I opened the flap and rifled through it. I carefully unwrapped the golden gem from its protective cloth and lifted it out. The ballroom lights reflected off the immaculately shiny surface, creating a brilliant sheen.

I heard a sophisticated gasp. “Darlings, I just had the strangest dream that Sunset stabbed herself! I also saw the most beautiful jewel…” Rarity said, sitting up. She turned to face us and spotted the dodecahedron. “I think I'm still dreaming.”

Princes—Twilight closed in on it. She spared a glance at her friend. “No, this is real. Tangible. It's also so finely cut I would deem it a magical conjuration. But it's not.” She laid a hoof on it. “I can feel the magic inside. What is this? Dilemma... you're just a bag of mysteries… what are you showing me this for?”

“I heard you're one of the best magical researchers in Equestria… I saw some of your theorems and postulates, along with your analysis on many different schools of magic.” I paused. “So if anypony could crack it, you could.”

“This is a magical artifact?”

“I think. It's sort of like an enchanted safe without any doors.”

“I-I see.” She grabbed it in her magic. “Where did you acquire it?”

Almost automatically, and in the most nonchalant voice possible, “Mom says they recovered it in the crash that orphaned me.” The alicorn and the two unicorns looked uncomfortable. Starlight, however, has a look of understanding drawn on her face. “It's fine. I was way too young to even remember them. I have a loving family anyways, so I think it's good enough.” It's not. It never will be. There will always be a hole that can never be filled.

The group nodded in understanding. I could tell Starlight was skeptical about my statement.

Twilight smiled. “I'll be happy to look this over for you. Would you two be willing to help me?” she asked the two ponies on her left.

“S-Sure,” Sunset faltered a little.

With zero hesitation, Starlight agreed. “Certainly.”

“Hey, everypony! Guess who's back with all the food!”

Maverick perked up from the conversation and locked onto the trays of delicacies being carted in. Her wings flared out and her glare hardened.

I know that look.

She was a mare on a mission.

“Sister. I think before today, I have never seen a foal who could so gracefully match you all those years ago.” Luna stopped to think. “If we slapped on an illusion spell, nopony could say she wasn't exactly like baby ‘Tia.”

The solar diarch chuckled. The pegasi general’s younger sister certainly lived up to her name. “It was certainly quite the event to watch.” She lifted herself up from her seat and scooched it closer. “I do apologize for not setting up the meeting earlier. I have gotten swamped with Dilemma’s acclimation. Have you had any luck?”

“It's understandable. And to answer your question, no.” She sighed and conjured a pillow for her head. “Their defenses have remained stalwart as ever. Only one of the invasive spells managed to accomplish anything. Even then, it was at the cost of twisting… twisting it into a nightmare.”

“...” Celestia had feared it coming to this. Even three years after her return, her sister still blamed herself for all her crimes. She had the right to feel guilty, after all. But her younger sister served her time, and all those she wronged had forgiven her.

“And so what? What separates me from her, ‘Tia? All Nightmare Moon was… was just a mask. I was still me.”

It still seemed those wounds wrought a millennia ago still seemed fresh as the day they had been cut. Celestia wrapped a fetlock around her sister’s. “You've paid your dues, Lulu.”

“I… I know.”

The elder sister moved to envelop her sibling in a tight hug. There was no sobbing. No tears shed. Just a tight embrace between family.

“Did you learn anything about our mystery pony?”

Luna audibly choked back a sob. “No, and that's what frustrates me the most. I willingly inflicted harm on another sentient creature and got practically nothing out of it. Just fragments!”

“What did your fragments depict?”

The dark alicorn slumped. “I never bothered checking. I-I cried myself to sleep, ‘Tia… I thought… I thought I was going back.”

“That’s alright, Lulu. It’s in the past,” she murmured, embrace never faltering.

“H-Here. I saved them. Let me look it over.” Her eyes glazed over as the spell activated and her consciousness was whisked away. Only moments later, life returned to her eyes and she gulped in lungfuls of air. She hacked, toppling out of Celestia’s grip.

“Sister!”

Luna held a hoof to stop Celestia. There was a fire brimming in her eyes. “I’m fine. But that dreamer? They’re our key, ‘Tia. I saw them. I saw legions of those nasty Tartarus-spawn... and they were there. The dreamer has answers we desperately need.”

Chapter 4 - "Cracking an Enigma"

Sol Dilemma - Chapter 4

“Cracking an Enigma”

“What brings you here so late at night, Guardian?”

She briefly considered not answering. Valia frowned. “Nightmares. The usual.”

“If you do not mind me asking, what troubles you?”

She eyed the person who approached her. “Them. It’s…” The warlock began, only to be interrupted by a raised hand.

“You do not need to speak any further, it pains you to do so and I already know. It’s your fireteam, isn’t it?”

“Of course. It’s always them in some shape or form.” She cracked her knuckles. “Sometimes I get regular dreams. Sometimes I don’t. I honestly dislike chancing it. I don’t have to sleep. I don’t need it.”

“Rest is good for the mind, warlock. Your body may no longer follow that of a mortal’s, but your mind is still fragile as one.”

“Is it worth seeing them every night? Feeling the guilt clawing up my spine as I twist and turn in my bed?”

“Perhaps. Perhaps not. You must learn to overcome this. Guardians become stronger in the face of adversity, never weaker. The same goes for humanity. That is how we have survived great cataclysms and that is how we will continue to do so until we have all died out or triumphed over them.”

“This isn’t a great cataclysm. It’s just… guilt of—”

“Being the only survivor? You are not the only one to feel this way, warlock. Many have come before you bearing the same things. They all survived. You shall too.” He paused. “The only difference with them is how they got through it. As humans, we all have different ways of coping. Find yours.”

“But how?”

“Remember who we are. When you were brought back, you signed an unspoken agreement, took an invisible oath; to protect not only the Traveler, humanity, and the last city, but to also purge the darkness with your light. No matter how far you must travel. No matter how many stars you must blur by, the darkness shall not escape the wrath of your light.

“It is our responsibility to do what we can with the gifts bestowed upon us by the Traveler, so as not to waste the lives lost as humanity fell from glory and the wolves descended to feast.

“Whether you stand vigilant because of the former, or march on because of the latter, know why we struggle to fight every day. Know why we wrap our wounds and suck in the pain. Know why we choose to meet the fiends upon their field of choice. We have been chosen as the sword and the shield, warlock. Never forget that.” The person looked to the left. “Do excuse me, I have other things to attend to. I hope I was of assistance.”

Valia’s expression did little to change, but she nodded. “Thank you, Speaker. I appreciate your… advice.”

His head bowed and he walked away, robes billowing in the night breeze. The warlock watched him disappear around a corner. She slumped against the bench, robes compressing into a funny shape.

Memories of the battle seeped into her mind, dancing like hungry flies amidst a decaying corpse. She could make out each detail so vividly, down to the finest speck of dust. If she so pleased, Valia could recreate the entire scene frame by frame. The assault, the infiltration and the fall.

The three witches stood at the forefront of it all, cackling like the disgusting hags they were.

The solar energy burned within her. Demanding vengeance and blood to sate the fury and pain. A wicked smile gleamed in the moonlight.

Valia found her reason to move on. Until the perpetrators lay under her heel, or her fire burned to its last ember, she would not rest. She got up to head back to her dorm.

In the distance, the flickering image of a blue alicorn watched.

“You took on that request pretty quick, Starlight,” Sunset commented, nursing a glass of hard cider. “It’s not because you both happened to be orphans, right?” Starlight remained quiet, absently shooting glances at the crate Twilight had procured for the artifact. “Look, I— never mind, going to shut up now.”

Sunset sent her an apologetic look and went off to her room to rest, still holding onto the glass of cider. Starlight followed shortly after, quietly shutting the door to her private room.

Twilight sighed. Sunset had been progressing at leaps and bounds, turning away from a she-demon (figuratively and literally) to a much more tolerable pony. Twilight did agree that she acted much more human than pony at times, and it showed. She tended to be arrogant, abrasive at times and often did things that made others very uncomfortable. Such as today. She thought to herself. But could they really blame her for that? She lived in exile for an undetermined amount of time, amongst alien creatures who lived differently.

Who wouldn’t adapt to survive? Perhaps somewhere in human society, what she did would've been praised by her set of friends, most likely for her quick thinking and “sound judgment”.

She wrapped a foreleg around the hoofrest. Aside from Dilemma melting down the economies hallway, and Sunset’s stunt, it had been fairly okay in comparison to her usual weeks. Though… most of the problems weren't differences in customs and disturbing gestures—Dilemma’s outburst was much more in line with the norm.

Twilight thought back to everything this week. It was actually much milder than the highlights made it out to be. Preferably, she wished for days like these, where problems weren't so time consumingly annoying. I missed the days where I could take a good novel, lay down, and read peacefully.

After sorting out Dilemma, she had freshened up and immediately returned to judging the incoming foals. Luckily enough, she had been spared from being the one to let them know whether or not they had been accepted. But she could discern those who had a slim chance of getting in.

She returned over the next couple of days to continue judging the other foals. After the last day for acceptance ended, she dropped by her parents’ house to say hello and catch up.

Then the next day, she had been given a request from Celestia to contact Pinkie and help set up a party for her student. To which she attended, befriended two more foals, watched a filly devour a buffet of sweets with the voracity of a certain pink pony, and had an overall great time—disregarding the hiccup when Sunset cut herself. That reminds me, be sure to look into that healing spell.

The week ended with her boarding a train back to Ponyville.

There had been no resurfacing of long-time villains seeking revenge, world-ending catastrophes, strange happenings that involved one of her close friends and the creatures of their world, or friendship problems that somehow spiraled out of control (that maybe also endangered a bunch of ponies at the same time).

No, it was an actual normal week.

That felt strange to say. Since her type of normal happened to be “save the world every other Tuesday”, rather than the normal in what she assumed happened in normal pony’s lives.

Normalnormalnormalnormalnormal. She groaned. Twilight briefly considered if her ex-mentor had thoughts like these. But tapped a hoof against her chin and then immediately threw that idea away. No way could Princess Celestia ever regret taking on the mantle of diarch of Equestria! She slapped herself. We had lessons about this Sparkle, pull yourself together. Celestia is just a mare. A really powerful and old mare, but just a mare nonetheless.

She stared out the window, watching trees blur by. I’m going to go insane before I even hit Cadence's age. She propped her tired head on a hoof.

The gentle clacking of the train and the tracks mimicked a calming lull, almost sending her straight to Luna’s realm. But she could not rest. At least, not for now. There was too much to do, too much to see to. If she fell asleep now, who knows how much she could forget while she dreamed?

Her adamant will and years of training under the moonlight hardened her ability to resist the siren song of the Sandpony. She sluggishly trotted to the refreshments counter and began magically heating the cup of her favorite sleep-resistance potion.

Otherwise known as coffee.

Sniffing the bitter aroma, Twilight moaned in satisfaction. Nothing could ever replace her favorite drink. Nothing. She began sipping from the mug while looking over the manuscript copies she obtained from Celestia’s personal library.

She asked herself about how she managed to gloss over these. She had gone through many of her ex-mentor’s collection in her free time, reading through material that wasn’t even available in the royal library. She considered the notion that Celestia had placed an ignoration-type spell on them, purposefully hiding them from prying eyes.

She remembered the short discussion they shared, on how uncontrollable primal magic could be. Perhaps as a young filly, Twilight might’ve done something regrettable that could’ve been prevented had she not read the text. She was impulsive, and still so much so the same today.

Habits were hard to break.

The alicorn took a look at the papers in hoof and picked them up in her aura. Sunset had been Celestia’s first student, and she wondered if the mare was quite possibly the reason the manuscripts had been barred until today.

She walked to Sunset’s door and knocked. She sipped her coffee, as she heard fumbling through the door. It creaked open slightly, and a cyan eye peered from behind. “Wondering how I’m still awake? Jet-lag, etcetera, etcetera… come on in I guess, even though you basically own this entire train car.”

“Jet lag?”

“Right. Ponies are basically cavemen compared to humans, technology-wise.” She stopped. “Cavemen, caveponies. Same stuff. Jets are these crazy things that fly without any magical support. It was pretty scary, knowing the only thing between me and the super-soft ground was some thin sheets of metal and a whole lot of monkey science.”

“Monkey science? Sunset, you’re speaking nonsense again,” Twilight responded, visibly confused. “Not all of us have spent… uh, let me… thirty years, in another world, to understand their colloquialism.”

“Thirty? That’s super wrong. I only spent four years there, enough to get to senior year.”

“Senior year—ugh, the point is, you’ve been gone longer than you’ve thought, Shimmer. I hadn’t even been born while you were still Celestia’s student.”

“Wait, really?” She looked worried. “When… how old is Red Caper?”

“Thirty-six years and eight months. Hatter is still alive, but he’s pretty senile.”

Sunset recoiled. “Wow. Impressive that you know that off the top of your head, but… I remember Celestia reading that to me as a foal when it was fairly new…”

Twilight cautiously approached, hoof raised and ready for a consolatory embrace. “Sunset, don't tell me you were an orphan too.” Twilight snorted in slight annoyance, “If you say yes, I'm going to cry, act a little upset, and demand as to why fate seems attracted to orphans.”

Sunset looked appalled. “No! No. I guess it kinda looked like that, but I'm not parentless or anything. I had a mom and dad, but they weren't amazing or anything. They were… just kind of there. They did enough to let me know they existed, but didn't do anything more than that.” Sunset had a small frown crease her face. “I don't think I even know their real names. Celestia was more a mother to me than my real mom.”

“Sunset…”

She shook her head and held up a foreleg to stop Twilight. “Nope. None of that pity stuff. I got over it years ago. They're probably dead now or something,” she murmured. She walked over to her nightstand and took another swig of the cider. “A better question to ask… how does the mirror portal work? It's already clear to me it bridges two things together. Whether those things are different realities, dimensions, or even a different point in the universe we reside in… it can do its job.”

“Time also happens to pass slower on your end, evidenced by your physical appearance and your experiences.” Twilight began pacing back and forth. “I've studied the theoretical design via Starswirl’s notes, in which he only meant to make it as a fast travel system. But something went wrong along the way.”

“I’d like to think the targeting sequences and protection wards interfered with each other since everything else about his planning and calculations were perfect,” Sunset added.

“Yes, you’re—hey, don’t change the subject with my favorite wizard… and also my favorite research project of all time!” Twilight fumed. “Deflecting the problem regarding your parentage is not a healthy way of coping!”

Sunset rolled her eyes. “Usually that works. I guess you’re getting savvy with me.” She attempted to take another drink from her bottle, but Twilight snatched it away with her magic.

“Will you stop that?”

“I don’t really want to.”

“Sunset, you're acting like a foal… what's wrong?” She asked, concern in her tone.

Sunset had a guilty look to her. She turned away, obviously showing that the eye-contact was making her uncomfortable. The unicorn remained silent, staring at her piles of travel luggage and commodities. She absentmindedly commented. “I wonder why I even bothered to bring any of my clothes. I completely forgot ponies are nudists.”

“Sunset Shimmer. Talk to me. I’m your friend and the princess of friendship. This kind of thing is a really big deal for me,” Twilight urged. “Please.”

She looked torn between telling her the truth and shutting up and staying adamant in her approach. Her mind warred with itself, laying the benefits of spilling her thoughts, and the drawbacks of doing so, against each other.

With a drawn-out sigh, she caved into her demands. “I’m jealous, alright?”

“Jealous… of whom?”

“Gah, Twilight, for all your brilliance, you sure do fall short on these kinds of things,” Sunset hissed, with small hints of vitriol in her voice. “It’s Dilemma.”

“...”

“There it is. The look of understanding. But not really. You graduated from her tutelage. While I… I never did.” Sunset snatched away the bottle and flicked the cap off. “Yeah, my parents were terrible. Yeah, it was more like they filled a biological imperative rather than attempt to raise me.” She swirled the contents of her bottle around. “So when Celestia took me in and began filling the hole that my ‘parents’ left, she became something I’d never have before. An actual mother.

“Sure, I began trotting down a path less galloped after a couple of years, but that’s not what I’m talking about. I saw her as a mother, Sparkle. So it hurt so much more when I fled and was left to fend for myself in this strange new world. It hurt even more when I finally had the time to set aside and come visit, only to learn that she had taken on another student.

“Twilight. I saw Dilemma… and I reacted accordingly.” She took a swig. “Humans have a funny way of dealing with problems. Violence, lashing out, self-depreciation. Man, I could list it all out and we’d be still be here while Luna lowers her charge.”

“You’re jealous of Dilemma because it looks like Celestia replaced her with you.” Twilight looked confused. Face scrunching up as she began asking herself question after question. She thought back to when they first met, and when they truly established a working relationship. Some things didn’t add up. “So why weren’t you mad about me?”

“Ah, okay. I see how that’s getting to you,” she murmured. “Thing is, it was easier because, first things first—” She had automatically raised a hoof. “Right, no more fingers. Whatever. First thing, you were older than… than Dilemma when we first saw each other, harder to picture you in my hooves. Secondly… your… your affinity is magic… not fire, like mine. Dilemma, she’s got a solar affinity. The foal is much more like you in terms of personality. She's closer to how Celestia pictured her perfect student.

“And I could already see the doting look on her face. It hurt to see how easily I was replaced.” Sunset looked on the verge of tears. “I suppose you wouldn't ever know that. Not on a deeper level like me.” She threw her forelegs into the air. “You've got an amazing older brother and a sister-in-law. A mom and a dad who care for you and made sure you were happy. Me? I thought I had a mom.”

The quiet that filled the room was disgustingly thick. For the second time in her life (Twilight honestly didn’t even expect to hit a second time) she had no idea how to react. Sunset had placed down her bottle and was now looking back at her with a look that demanded, “got a comeback for that?”

“I…”

She harrumphed and stood straight. “So why were you here in the first place, Twi? I don't think you arrived just to talk about my problems.”

What did I come here for? Twilight looked at the neatly stacked papers, which she must’ve subconsciously laid down. She had several questions about the primal magic papers. Right. Grabbing them in her magic, she turned to face Sunset once again. “Originally… my visit was to ask if you knew anything about these,” she said, floating them over to the unicorn. “It was an objective reason, but it seems you have a penchant for being able to throw ponies onto tangents.”

“At least this is easier to talk about,” she commented. “These are the research papers Celestia had on primal magic. But there’s also the spellbooks. Did you get those as well?”

“Spellbooks? She had spellbooks with primal magic?”

“Figures she wouldn’t even show those to you,” Sunset scoffed. “The spell matrices slightly differ for each element, but they often remain the same. Using primal in a spell is a sorta big no-no if you don’t know what you’re doing.” Twilight had eagerly brought out her magic notebook. “Most of the primal spells boil down from the basic structures, but then it’s left to the discretion of the pony. The spell books are more like guidelines or starting points than anything.”

“Let’s say two ponies have the same affinity, so pony A may do it one way, while pony B does it another, and they both end up with a fairly similar result?” Twilight looked up. “Is that correct?”

“Mhm.”

“Interesting.”

Sunset began describing the roundabout story on how she had been selected for her skills and primal fire affinity.

When asked how she found out, she noted how it was difficult to do certain spells early on in life, before one of her teachers noticed something was off. Her following experience had been her juggled through medical professionals until the princess had taken an interest. She had been sent to the school nurse, who then sent her to an expert at the hospital, who referred to a court wizard, who finally brought it up to the very top.

After her spiel, the unicorn began talking about the finer points glossed over by the manuscripts, scrolls, and books containing all things primal.

Twilight drank it all with glee.

“Hey Twilight, do you know where your Rainbow Dash is? I haven’t even seen her since I came back, and she wasn’t among your friends at the party,” Sunset asked, as their conversation began dying off.

“What’s got you thinking about her?”

The unicorn bobbed her head. “Just thinking about my Rainbow Dash. The group tends to stick together like glue. So I thought it was kinda odd when she was missing.”

“Well, she went on a Wonderbolt vacation two weeks ago. She hasn’t really written back since,” Twilight replied. She hadn’t bothered to look up, too focused on recalculating her findings based on the information her friend had given her. “Anything else you can give me on primal magic?”

“Nothing you shouldn’t have read already in those papers.”

She nodded. “I still have to get through the third set, and finish up four and five, so if that’s all,” the alicorn mumbled, fumbling for the door handle, “I bid you a good night.”

“Twilight, it’s morning.”

“It’s in place?”

Starlight nodded. “Thaum-locked and wards are set. We are a go for basic reaction tests.”

Twilight nodded and slipped her goggles on. “Okay. Let’s take this slow. We have no idea what this thing is capable of, and the material used couldn’t be identified by the compare spells or by visual analysis.”

“I’m going to start the temperature test,” Sunset said, securing the strap on an enchanted helmet and as she stepped out from behind the protective glass. The unicorn turned back to look at Twilight. “Ready?”

The alicorn lifted her notepad and a crystal recording device. “Ready.”

“Activating the array; slow exothermic reaction.” Sunset’s horn began glowing brighter as the seconds passed. “Gradual increments… surpassing normal room temp. We've hit the point where a pony would start feeling uncomfortable. No change from my end. Twilight, Starlight, anything?”

The other unicorn glanced at her spell. “I don’t see anything worth mentioning.”

“Er… so we can cross off our other theories regarding what material makes it up.” Twilight bit her lip. “We could try further temperatures, we’re prepared for it. I suppose it may just be a crystal. If it is, we shouldn’t actually note anything until we get past melting points for various other substances.”

The two nodded. “Alright. I’ll load in the control.”

Sunset backed off and downed a mana potion. Wiping the excess off with a hoof, she rolled her shoulders. “Ready whenever you are.”

Twilight let what she was carrying gently down on a table and prepared a shield spell. The purple semi-sphere reminded her so much of that day when Canterlot had been thrown under siege. It was crazy to think they were close friends now. Starlight slotted a standard crystal obtained from Rarity and another obtained from the Crystal Empire.

“We’re all good to go.”

“Mhm.” Sunset lowered her head and aimed her horn. Fire swirled around inside the bubble.

“Temperature climbing. Remember, we need to hit above or around four-thousand.”

“Yeah, uh-huh, lemme concentrate.”

The roar of the inferno could be heard from beyond the bubble, flames dancing along the interior of the shield, scorching and blackening the sides.

The caster grit her teeth, but remained strong in her resolve. It continued this way for another minute or so before a lavender alicorn raised her hoof.

“Hey, alright, hold!” Starlight called out. “We’re getting a reaction from the crystals!”

Twilight magically wiped away the burns and inspected the table. The standard crystal had… well… just stopped existing, while the CE crystal had turned into a molten pool of glowing liquid. The mysterious crystal Dilemma had given her, however?

Well.

It just sat there and laughed at them like the intense heat was meaningless. She trotted over to Sunset and tapped her withers. “You can stop.”

“Did… hah… did it melt?” She asked, head woozy from the spell.

“Nope.” Twilight scribbled into her paper. “It’s completely fine.”

“I JUST DON’T GET IT,” Twilight screeched. “HOW IS THIS THING UNHARMED!? WE SCANNED FOR PROTECTIVE SPELLS OF ANY KIND AND THERE WERE NONE.”

Five fun-tastic days of testing had gone by and the magic squad had gone through many different experiments.

After the failure of eliciting a reaction from the crystal, they began trying other methods to discern what it could be.

They attempted an endothermic test, but that did nothing either. They did a drop test from various heights (even one from the top of Canterlot). The “anomaly” as Twilight had gotten used to calling it, survived without a scratch. The group then proceeded to try a stress test of various weights. Twilight had even managed to get Ember’s father to help out.

Not surprised at this point, the thing was not cracked in the slightest, and even managed to embed itself into Torch’s tush. He requested that he might try eating it. Reluctantly, the group agreed and attached a recall spell on it.

He was unable to crack it with his teeth. To his astonishment, it broke the ones he bit it with. The unicorns and alicorn had been horrified. Torch just shrugged it off, saying they would regrow and make him look tougher.

He ate it whole and immediately fell into a bliss-induced coma.

Ember came by the next day to see how it was going, found her father, asked what happened, and also volunteered for the test.

Twilight supposed that day was the strangest time she ever had to call the other princesses for help in utilizing a long-range mass teleportation relay. At least they could note off that dragon stomach acid did nothing to it.

Rainbow Dash came back the following night, wide-eyed and mumbly. She kept going on and on about praising the sun and how her everything was sore. She refused to comment on what she did during her vacation. With her back, Starlight suggested they try impact experiments, from simple bucks to a collision bolstered by a rainboom.

The prismatic pegasus was quite eager to join in and even more willing when they offered her “cool armor”. Although trying to fish for information about her vacation while she was elated were deflected by looks of fear and uncontrollable shivering. They ignored that and proceeded.

Surprise, surprise, Rainbow Dash was the one sent to the hospital for a serious concussion. The cause was because she hadn’t activated the absorption spells like instructed, and not because she smacked into the anomaly. Despite that, if you were to ask a completely irate lavender alicorn, she would tell you otherwise.

In one case, they attempted at cutting, sawing, drilling, surgical scalpels, fine-edged spellblades, Tempest’s enchanted dagger, Celestia’s Edge of Dawn, and Flurry Heart.

They returned empty-hooved with broken hopes and tools. Also, a crying foal.

Exhausted, the once-motivated crew of scientists unanimously decided to skip this portion of testing.

“I suppose now we can try other ways of getting to the magical core.”

Sunset perked up, a mischievous smile stretching on her features. “How many licks will it take?”

“I'm not even going to bother anymore with your obscure human references,” Twilight groaned.

She stuck her tongue out. “You're no fun.”

Starlight narrowed her eyes as she rotated the anomaly in her aura. “Twilight, what did Dilemma tell you the day she gave this to you?”

“I believe it was… ‘I think. It's sort of like an enchanted safe without any doors’, is exactly what she said.” She paused. “And… ‘Mom says they recovered it in the crash that orphaned me’.”

The purple unicorn winced at the last part. “I see. So have we tried anything besides brute-forcing our way through?”

Sunset shook her head while she drunk from a glass of water. “Nooope. Usually, we want to find the easiest way through a magical artifact, but it seems we can’t do that.” Sunset finished her glass and laid it down. “So let’s do what we do best.”

“So it’s a safe of some sorts?”

“That’s what I can assume from the connotation Dilemma gave me. She’s not exactly wrong either…” Twilight said. “I can feel that there is something in there. Now the question is raised, how do we get into it?”

Sunset tapped a hoof. “Remember what Dilemma said. ‘A safe with no doors’. So a locked object consisting only of walls? I may have a solution.” She moved over to a shelf and withdrew a book. Higher-Tier Destruction Magic. “Rainbow Dash showed me this really cool show called Myth—”

Starlight murmured something as she moved past, placing the anomaly on the top of a table. She grabbed an enhancing glass and hovered it over.

Beneath the shell of “crystal” was a web of interlacing lines, connected to each other like artificial synapses. They pulsed every so often and rearranged themselves into new patterns, growing ever more complex. Different bars of varying width appeared on the lines themselves, however, they remained static and simply followed the lines as they shifted along.

Sunset was a little peeved that she had been abruptly cut off but brushed it off. This was nothing to get worked on over.

Twilight was interested, she had never seen Starlight so focused on one thing before (aside from the fact that she basically started a cutie-markless cult in the past). The alicorn motioned for Sunset to join them. Crowding around the glass that mimicked the usage of a microscope, they too saw the intricate beauty of the dodecahedron.

“It’s like a computer encryption,” Sunset started, “Those are practically impossible to crack, as there’s an infinite number of combinations but only one right key.”

Twilight blanched. “Then how are we supposed to open it!? We can’t shatter it open, now we can’t even open open it!”

“Relax, Twilight,” Sunset assured. “I didn’t say it was completely impossible. The difference is that we have magic and humans were limited to the technology they had. And what do we have in this room? Experts in magic.

“We have a pony who finished an uncompletable spell! We have a pony who’d mixed dozens of spells together to travel back in time! And we’ve got the only pony who’s the only capable computer expert in all of this planet.” She smiled. “So girls… let’s do this.”

They all let out wide grins. It was time to make the anomaly a conformity. Twilight rushed straight out of her basement floor and to the nearby library. As she began picking out books, she had to berate herself for ignoring such a fundamental aspect of her very being. The alicorn had focused so much on figuring it out scientifically and getting riled up by so many of its quirks, that was pushed to the back of her mind.

She was regressing back into old habits and tunnel-visioning. She was lucky to have friends to catch her.

With her cargo in tow, she made her way back into the lab. Sunset and Starlight were sitting patiently, determination oozing from their stances. “Alright, I've brought everything I had regarding magical code breaking, infiltration, lock breaking, algorithms, and thievery.”

Sunset picked out a book from the stack. “Twi, what does Love on the Horizon have to do anything with this?”

The lavender alicorn turned a shade unlike her and swiped the novella away. “It's… its got… the main character… uses his magic to rob banks… and… and…”

She rolled her eyes. “I should really get you laid sometime. I mean like, you're a princess, shouldn't be too hard.”

“Sunset!” Twilight cried out.

While the two bickered over setting up a date, Starlight remained objective in her approach.

Flipping quickly through the books, she ran her analysis spell on them to pull the important and relevant topics. Satisfied with what she got, the unicorn read through them. Ideas and concepts poured into her head as she pieced together what she needed.

She obtained the conductive chalks and began sketching on the designated floor.

A simplistic image of a lock was the first to be drawn, surrounded by a lined circle. Triangles quickly began overlapping each other as time passed, forming an eight-pointed star. A triad of ovals looped around the center, ending in spiked bands.

Another bubble, and another spiral. Starlight drew lines with varying spaces in between them on the exterior of her rings, laying another to close them off.

Symbols and numbers found themselves being carved, a raised hoof for power, a pendulum for balance, a melted shield for weakening, an arrowhead for piercing, an eye for seeing, a skeleton key for unlocking, a wavy dagger for betrayal and a cloak of shadows. Calculations were made as she dropped dots on symbols.

They were focalization points for the magic to find form and meet.

Now all she needed was a power source to activate the runes. She cleared her throat at the other two, who stopped what they were doing and sheepishly walked to her.

“Hardwire’s theorem… The triad law…” Twilight whispered, looking over her fellow’s work. “Law of rings… that… no, this can work.” A flash of light had the anomaly appear in the center. “I'll begin. Get ready, everypony.”

“Wait! Let me add something.” Sunset dashed over, drawing strings of math and ones and zeros. “There. We aren't dealing with something normal here.”

The alicorn nodded. She took a deep breath and steadied her stance. Magic from her surroundings was drawn into the horn and moved to the runes laying beneath her. They burned a vibrant purple as Twilight’s massive supply of magic poured in.

“We’re getting a reaction! Twilight, don't stop!”

The dodecahedron glowed, lines stopping and shifting. The faces of the shape lifted from the base. The core began glowing brighter and brighter. It reached a blinding status, forcing all in the room to shield their eyes.

Twilight stopped feeding the spell, which was now moving of its own power.

Suddenly, it all stopped. The runes died, and the light receded. Sunset blinked, dazed. “Is it done?”

Sitting in the center was not a crystal.

Flat, shiny, smooth, and black, it was encased in a stainless steel frame. The edges were blunted by rubber stoppers.

“Inside the crystal was a tablet!?” Sunset screamed. “We waited with bated breath for this!? I… wait. This was with Dilemma when they found her…” She lifted it in her magic and brought it closer. Turning it on after she found the power button, it flashed to life with a diagram of a spaceship. Entire chunks of the thing had been highlighted and flashed in red. A hologram showed a massive red gash on the stern. Obvious warning signs blared across the screen. The key thing, however, not a single bit of the tablet was displayed in Equuish. “That can’t be possible.”

Twilight looked worried. “What does this mean?”

The group, now drained of their excitement, stared at each other with confused looks.

Perhaps if they spoke common, as was the norm in the Last City, they would’ve seen the engraving written on the bottom of the console, written: SOL DILEMMA CONTROL PAD. Along with SHIP DAMAGED. CONTROL PAD LOCATED FAR FROM MAIN COMPUTER. TRACKING BEACON ENGAGED.

Author's Note

Shorter chapter this time.

Hope that isn't too big a deal.

Chapter 5 - "Ghosts from Our Past"

Sol Dilemma - Chapter 5

“Ghosts from our Past”

Celestia smiled as she trotted down the hall.

Her sun shone brighter than ever today. The birds sang their approval as they moved from treetop to treetop. The breeze wasn’t too strong or too weak, hitting the sweet spot that many ponies enjoyed—including herself. Not a single cloud carrying heavy rain hung in the sky.

It was one of those rare days where it was simply perfect.

These were in fact, hard to come by. Surprising in a land where weather was controlled, that most didn't get to witness things like these. Usually, an event that threatened their country often ruined it. So when Celestia woke up feeling twenty years younger, she had all the guards on standby.

She had come to associate something perfect as too good to be true. Something was always going wrong somewhere. Her sister had done the same, so the entire castle had an atmosphere of caution hanging around for the morning. Not exactly the best thing for staff to wake up to, but it was necessary lest they get caught unprepared. They had been lucky in the regards that previous attacks on Canterlot were relatively casualty-free, but, Celestia didn’t want to test her chances.

Her relief and surprise were inconceivable when the guards received word from the emergency network—something she set up recently due to the frequency of disasters they faced—that nothing actually happened. Lulu, on the other hoof, was actually upset, having gone and armored herself up. She had complained she never got a chance to use any of her gear outside of ceremonies (which she terrified half the populace in her nightmare moon-esque panoply). So when she had an opportunity that didn’t end up resolved faster than she could put it on or didn’t somehow bar access to it, she gladly leapt.

She wished she had a recording crystal when her little sister had shown up for breakfast. Donning a full set of armor, combined with a pouting face as she ate standing up completely destroyed her sides.

Her worsening expression only bumped it up to near comical levels.

The diarch noted to expect a prank in the coming days.

Strangely enough, Dilemma had been absent for the morning meal. Celestia had chalked it up to being exhausted from the constant training, but she hadn’t been working her too hard, now was she?

Perhaps she was still on the mindset for teaching Twilight. Sunset… Sunset was well in her expectations for a normal filly. Her fellow princess blew those out of the water. She tapped a hoof on her chin. She did teach her a certain way for over twenty-two years… it was likely those habits from those times were bleeding over.

She spotted a maid dusting off a couple of decorations. Celestia approached. “Good morning… Crystal Clear, was it?”

The pony nodded and bowed. “Correct as ever, your highness. Did you happen to need something?”

“No, no. Well, do you know anything about Dilemma’s status at the moment? She hadn’t shown up for breakfast.”

“I wouldn’t know, but Impeccable should. We just passed by each other not too long ago,” Crystal informed her, polishing the vase off to the side.

The alicorn smiled and thanked her for her time. She should really get the schedule of which staff was assigned to the parts of the castle.

She was giddy. She couldn’t possibly… integrate herself into Dilemma’s life… like she could with Sunset’s… but she could try. Perhaps interact with her long enough, but take a different approach as to not appear as an untouchable pony standing above the rest. She failed with Twilight… but she had a second chance here. A doting aunt could always work.

A darker part of her mind said she could always attempt at overriding the position Guard Cascade— N-No! Don’t think like that. Such, such horrible thoughts. Just focus on waking her up. Think about this at a better time.

Down the hall was another maid, pushing a cart-full of towels and laundry. She hummed a song as she paused in front of a door, picking up the basket left by it and placing the clothes on her train. She caught a glimpse of the approaching diarch. “Hello, princess! May I help you?”

“You’re Impeccable Sheen, correct?”

“Yes. Is there something specific you want from me?”

Celestia gave a soft grin. “In a sense. You’re the maid who looks after Dilemma.”

“Mhm. She’s a lovely filly.”

“Had she woken up today? I missed her at breakfast.”

Impeccable shook her head. “No. I dropped by to deliver her food not too long ago. Her bedroom door was locked again so I just left it on her balcony table.”

Celestia raised a brow. “Her door was locked again? She keeps it locked?”

“Only when she goes to sleep. Otherwise, it’s open for me to go in and clean it up—she keeps it very clean, by the way, much better than Princess Sparkle,” Impeccable noted. “I believe she’s still sleeping if you wanted you to check on her.”

“Maybe I will.”

She gave her goodbye and began trotting to the tower. It was an invasion of privacy, but Celestia had a right to be worried. She couldn’t… she couldn’t take the chance that perhaps something had gone wrong. That the filly was doing something behind her back.

The diarch couldn’t handle a repeat of Sunset.

That memory, in particular, caused her to pick up the pace. She passed by a set of guards who immediately joined her. She wanted to wave them off, assure them and herself that an escort was unneeded…

She would push that back. She hoped that maybe this would just be a false alarm and Dilemma just preferred to sleep with her doors shut. She began preparing the master unlock spell.

Practically flying up the steps, she landed on the balcony outside the door. She released the magic on the door, returned with a click of the lock. “Stay out here,” she whispered to the guards.

She gripped the door with her magic and slowly pushed it open. She peered inside, gasping as she witnessed the state the room was in. Books and papers were scattered all over the floor, tables had been shoved out of place, and the bed was a mess.

In the middle of it all lay a whimpering foal, tossing and turning. Her voice jumped from high pitch squeals to low murmurs, all the while sharing dialogue with a mysterious stranger.

She’s having a nightmare. She glanced around the room again. A deep, terrible one, enough that her magic is acting up in her sleep.

“Please, please, don't! Haven, you can't do this…” she choked out. “Nononono! Haven! HAVEN!”

Celestia’s ears flattened against her skull at the sound of the pained cry. Her student’s face was screwed in one of agony. It was the face of somepony who lost something dear to them. She was tempted to wake her up… but… Lulu told her something about deep nightmares. You can't wake them up without the proper magicks.

It was best to consult the expert. She leaned her head out of the door. “No pony comes in or out without my authorization.”

“Ma’am, yes ma’am.”

She closed it, and with a flash of light, teleported to her sister’s chambers. The magically darkened room was nothing special, but she was always a little unnerved by it. But to say that directly to Luna? Oh, she would never let me live it down. The fireplace crackled as it provided the only ambiance for the entirety of the section. The solar diarch found her counterpart sitting in front of it.

“Lulu, you're brooding again.”

“I do not brood!” she defended. “I… I am simply admiring the craftsmareship of this… this wall! It’s a beautiful wall. Yes.” Her armor clinked as she shuffled closer to “inspect” the wall.

Celestia coughed into her hoof. “Sister, this is serious, I need your help. I believe Dilemma is stuck in a deep nightmare.”

It seemed as if all sound was sucked out of the air. Even the fire sounded like it devolved into a pile of embers. Luna was immediately on her hooves and in her face. “Deep nightmare!? Those still exist!? Take me to her, now.” She straightened up. “I shall not let any of my subjects suffer from those… monstrosities!”

A clap of thunder later, and the two found themselves standing outside of the room. The solar alicorn lightly bowed her head to the guards, which they acknowledged with a salute.

“Open the gates, guards! I shall step first into the fray!” Luna dramatically bellowed, nearing the levels of the royal voice she had used so long ago.

The pair pushed it open, and her sister calmly trotted inside. Celestia chuckled and shook her head. She managed to catch a brief glimpse of a terrified look from the guard on her left. Impossible for the normal pony to spot… but when one has been alive longer than most modern civilizations, you tend to notice a few things.

The entrance clicked shut behind her. Luna was already standing above Dilemma, horn ablaze. Her fetlock was wrapped around the filly’s, preparing for a contact dream spell. A circle appeared around her target and blasted itself with light. Her sister’s body became stiff and her eyes fluttered to a close.

Regal as ever, Celestia watched from afar. Minutes later, Luna stumbled back, eyes wide. “So you've been under my snout this whole time. I can't believe it.”

“Lulu, what do you mean?”

“I mean what I mean. The dreamer, it’s your student! The dream imprint is identical!” She threw her forelegs in the air. “And I finally figured out why I couldn't access the dreams. They're memories disguised as dreams. Or, might I say memory fragments. I should've seen it sooner. I just simply assumed their mental fortitude was beyond comprehension…” The dark alicorn paced the room. “

“My student… is the dreamer?” she glanced at the filly squirming in her bed. “Has she been lying to everypony this entire time?”

“I… do not know. It is never safe to assume around these kinds of things. Same reason we do not try criminals based on dream evidence.”

“We can stabilize the memory fragments and try to enter, right?”

“I am very uncertain. Memories do not scrape my realm. Perhaps, since she is in a state of slumber and they take the form of dreams, it could be done. I have never encountered something such as this on a magnitude of this scale. There is a high likelihood of failure and the consequences are untold.” She sighed and rolled her shoulders. “...but it can be done. Just give me a while to set up the wards and cantrips.”

Celestia meekly nodded, mind reeling.

Was she glad that her newest student hadn't turned down the same path Sunset had? Certainly. How did she feel about her student being the dreamer Luna talked so much about? She didn't know.

She comforted herself by repeating that it must be a misunderstanding. That the life the filly had lived wasn’t one of subterfuge. That this entire time, she wasn’t fooling everypony with carefully masquerading lies and tricks. That she was truly well and through, a pony who simply had a powerful connection to the sun. She reasoned with the evidence… she had no control over her abilities… could be a simple ploy… she was recovered as a newborn from a crash… changelings pull the same tricks… She couldn’t have already failed…

Forgotten memories of an orange filly with a mane of fire, playing in her room.

Failure.

Days where they would sit together and read fairy tales.

Failure.

Pride soaring whenever she overcame difficult spells.

Failure.

Berating her for wrongs and praising her for her rights.

Failure.

Nights spent mulling over problems together.

Failure.

Aspirations of motherhood…

“—‘Tia! ‘TIA!” Luna called out. “Are you okay!? You wouldn’t respond! I only left you for a couple of minutes… what happened?”

“Nothing, nothing. I'm okay… just… just start the spell.”

“...‘Tia, if you want to talk about something, I’m here—”

“We can start the spell,” Celestia said.

“Sister. Anything you need to talk about, I'm here for you.”

“We can start the spell,” she insisted.

The younger sister gave her a stare that indicated she wanted to say something… but chose not to. “...stay close.” Luna guided her to the side of the rune. “Don't wander off, no matter how authentic everything looks. You can trap yourself in it and we won’t be able to back out until it finishes completely.”

Emotionlessly, Celestia replied. “I am no foal, sister. I know better… and I have no intention of leaving prematurely.”

The lunar diarch breathed quietly. “Very well. Hold on tight, sister. I have the smallest inkling of how this could go.”

The matrix expanded and burst into a spray of stars, glazing them in a bubble of the night. It held before it collapsed on the both of them, stars swirling all the while.

Valia swatted the snoring Guardian on the head. “Wake up, idiot. We’re going to be late.”

“Huh? Whazzit?”

“We’re going to be late.” She exhaled loudly and grabbed his head. She jerked it to face a clock. “If you don’t wake up, we’re going to miss the general meeting. Maybe… I should just leave you here, Haven already left.”

“Gimme… gimme, fivvvee minutes—”

Valia rolled her eyes and summoned a handcannon. She locked it in place on her partner’s head and pulled the trigger. Amber immediately woke up, startled by the loud noise. She noticed the irritated look Valia had been giving off and the body on the bed turning into wisps of light. Seconds later, Caz was lying face-first on the floor, energy still wreathing off his form. “Well. I’ve got a killer headache now, so, thanks.”

The warlock bent on her knees to level her face with the hunter. “Wake up normally like the rest of us and I won’t have to wake you up via bullet,” she chastised. With a wave of her hand, the door opened and she walked out.

A minute passed, and Caz peeked his head from the room and noticed her… already at the end of the hall. Caz sprinted up to catch with his teammate. “H-Hey! Slowdown! Seriously, how do you walk so fast for a warlock!?” he cried, still fixing his armor into place and wrapping the cloth on his neck.

Valia sent him a glance as they left the dormitories and entered the courtyard of the Tower. The auditoriums were located on the eastern side, past the libraries. Guardians moved around the place, performing normal everyday antics. Killing each other, playing dumb games, testing their parkour skills over the ledge, and trading guns.

A lot of options became available once immortality was thrown on the table.

Although, some things remained unexplained, like the spontaneous dancing that occurred at random times. It baffled researchers and Guardians alike. Those questioned about it explained that they just wanted to dance for no reason. She spotted some Guardians clapping and rooting for a dance-off.

She had gone through it a couple of times. She didn't think much of it, however.

Past the grand archives and in the interior corridors were the entrances they had been searching for. She pushed it open and unceremoniously made her way inside. She spotted a certain exo waving to them from a bench. She excused her way past the many standing around, eventually sitting next to her other teammate.

“So Lev hasn’t started yet?”

“Nope. He’ll probably be up in a little while, you guys haven’t missed anything.” Haven smirked and punched Caz in the shoulder. “I’m surprised you managed to get this sloth to actually leave his bed.”

“She shot in me in the head!”

“Ah. Classic.” The titan smirked. “I’d think you would get the message not to irk Valia by now, ya’ runt.”

The hunter blew a raspberry. “Meathead.”

“I’m a robot, you dunce,” he quipped. “Try again.”

“Well, maybe—”

Haven noticed the hush that was slowly falling on the crowd and spied the man standing by the podium. He tapped on his friend’s shoulder, directed a finger at the soon-to-be-speaker, and pulled him down to sit. “Let’s finish this later.”

Once everything was relatively quiet, the man chose to speak.

“Glad you could all make it!” a voice shouted. “We’re about to do something that has never been done before. Never in the history of the Guardians have we tried something so… bold. In fact, we’ve got Shaxx trembling from sheer anticipation!”

The crowd cheered, laughing.

Lev motioned for them to shush. “Zavala has been kind enough to give me the reins for the operation. So, settle down.” He gestured to his ghost, who activated the inert holographic map. “You’ve heard the stories. The Citadel, the survivors have called it. The nesting grounds for one of the most major Hive networks in the known solar system. Feared for being completely impenetrable. Feared for the scores of Hive laying above and beneath.”

He paused. “We’re going to storm it.”

“I understand if any of you want to back out. This is serious business, and many have been lost leading up to this point. I’m sure we’ll even face casualties out there. So, if you want out of the juicy stuff, feel free to walk.” Heads turned to see if any were willing. Silence continued to hold the amassed group of Guardians before it roared in approval. The man standing on the podium waited for their cheers to die off.

“It’s not going to be easy. Oh, hell no. But it’ll be worth it. If… no, when we succeed, we’ve had avenged our fallen. We’ve shown that humanity doesn’t take kindly to being kicked onto its shins.”

“We’ve shown the damned Hive what we’re made of.” Several titans banged their chests and threw their balled fists into the air. He pointed to the screen as it changed.

“We’ll be running strikes along Magmaridge, The Sidewinder, and the Ocean Observatory. We want to draw as much attention as possible for our six volunteer fireteams to infiltrate the Citadel.”

“The coordinators on the field will give you the rundown, but I’ll give you all an idea of what you’re committing yourselves to.” The Guardian paced along the platform. “Magmaridge strike teams, your goal is to cause all-out war with the nearby Cabal forces and draw the attention of nearby Hive. Then, force them to fight each other. Sidewinder strike teams will have the most allocated forces. We want the Hive to believe that’s where we’ll be staging our faux siege. Hold out as long as you can. We’ll begin airdropping fortifications and ammunition. Ocean Observatory strike teams, you are to hit the external defenses marked on quadrants nine to forty-five. Proceed once done, but be prepared to evacuate at a moment’s notice.”

“Our goal is to cause as much damage as possible and force the Hive to spread their forces thin. It’ll make it easier for our infiltrators to do their jobs.” Lev nodded to the groups in question. “The Vanguard has already shipped the VEs to your rooms. The activation codes will be sent to you via Ghost once you’re ready to deploy.”

“The north will have fireteams PBJ,” he moved his face closer, “Our… Our name should be cool, and Predator move in from the charges planted by Cayde’s hunters. The south will have Helljumpers, Swansong, and Dawn proceed from an atmospheric jump. Specific details will be assigned on-site.”

“I’ve sent the locations for your teams to meet up at. But for now? Get some naptime in. We won’t be resting for a long while after today.”

“It’s getting harder to control…”

“Do we have the eradicators primed?” Valia asked, inputting information on the tablet.

Data shifted in the air to mimic a nod. “They’re currently stored aboard the Dilemma’s vaults. We just need to enter the final sequence, give the command… and boom they go.”

The warlock hesitated, then halted entirely. She lowered the device. “So this really is it. We’re about to make history.” She hooked the tablet onto her robe chain and secured it. “I made sure to read up on the info we have on the Citadel. It's… not much.”

“Oh?”

“All we really had was this small block of text on the possible leadership that may or may not be outdated. It mentioned something about three wizards. It read more like a fairy tale than an actual combat report.”

Data blinked. “That's all?”

“Sadly,” she murmured, as the remaining four of their party appeared over the horizon. “Looks like we should prepare the ship for launch.”

“On it.”

The world around them blurred into digital sparks, as they transmatted from the floor of the hangar and into the cockpit of the Sol Dilemma. She sat in the pilot chair and pressed the palm of her hand onto the screen. It scanned the print. Several monitors that lay dormant flickered alive, filling the space with a holographic glow.

“Engines are warming up smoothly, all flight systems running nominal performance, no errors, no leakage among any of the lines, communication arrays are good to go, core running peak efficiency…”

“Main engines ready. Secondary engines ready.”

Valia hovered over the comms switch. “Do we have clearance from the ATC?”

“Skies are clear, fireteam is onboard, we’re good to go.”

The ship rumbled as it began to rise. Engines roaring as it began lifting tonnes of reinforced steel and computer equipment.

Unlike most Guardian jumpships, the Sol Dilemma was in actuality a repurposed deep reconnaissance research vessel. In comparison to its smaller brethren, the craft was a behemoth in size, large enough that it could support two small strike fighters on the tips of its wings. It was meant to house a crew of ten different men, their research tools, and years of supplies, after all.

Originally, it had been found floating amongst the mounds of space debris in Earth’s orbit. Without coming in for a close inspection, many would simply pass it off as part of the junk. The warlock had come across it during one of her expeditions, damaged, but usable.

She brought it to their resident expert. Amanda had been like a kid in a candy land when Valia dragged the thing into her workshop. After a couple months of retrofitting, the thing had come out as a symphony of iron, bristling with guns. It packed enough firepower and combat systems to make any titan cry out in joy.

However, that also meant the ship was absolutely horrible at tight maneuvering and close-quartered combat. So for most of the time, it had been relegated for missions that involved extended operations in further regions of their solar system. Places where regular transports lacked the fuel reserves to make the return trips.

Which were very rare occurrences. So much to the shipwright’s dismay, it spent months on end collecting dust.

The only reason why they were using it today was because of Haven, who suggested they deploy the dummy AI and have it work as a mobile fortress. Mostly to help keep the skies clear of enemy fighters. The idea sounded plausible.

So while they jumped from the back of the ship through the loading bay, it would be floating around providing air support for the forces below.

The Vanguard gave it the green signal, and here they were.

Valia reclined in her seat as they made a steady ascent into the atmosphere. It would be half an hour before the Dilemma was above the drop zone. She had already done all the background work she could… her gear had been prepped the previous night… perhaps they could go over the attack plans.

Lev did say it was to be given on-site, but it seems the Vanguard changed that. She grabbed the tablet hanging off her robe and brought it up. It had been emailed to them in the early morning. She missed it and would've never realized it if Caz hadn't notified her. Valia found the file and opened it up.

The plan detailed their insertion point, the path to the objective, and the location they were to activate the eradicators at.

It also noted that they were on a timer. It would only be so long until the Hive realized that the real threat was moving in their own base. If they took too long, they would be overwhelmed and all their hard work would bear nothing.

The map included in the dossier highlighted a specific path for the group to take. It was the fastest calculated route according to the drones, and they would meet the least amount of resistance.

If time not being on their side wasn’t pressure enough, a great portion of the operation depended on their success.

Void Eradicators were a special type of weapon.

Outlawed by the Vanguard because of their sheer destructive capability; they were meant to be a throwback to the nukes of old. A single explosive designed to destroy miles of land in a blink of an eye. The only difference? Nuclear bombs irradiated the earth for years to come. Eradicators encased an area in a perpetual state of nothing for the same duration.

Valia saw firsthand the damage they could do. Known as VE spheres, they looked exactly like static nova bombs… scaled up to three million. It had already been deteriorating, receding and revealing the initial blast crater. Sediment layers had been carved out for the entire world to see.

The Citadel was a structure that extended beneath the surface, corridors and rooms that stretched for miles. For the mission to be called a success, the entire area must be covered by the blast.

Fireteam Dawn was heading to the deepest part of the Citadel. The heart of the entire network to plant both of the eradicators. One would be enough to finish the job, but it was smart to always carry a spare in the case of technological problems. If both of them happened to go off without a hitch? No skin off the Vanguard’s backs. Extra big detonation and one less VE in circulation.

There was a loud “CHUNK” and hiss as the Dilemma moved into a VTOL state. The continuous roar of the engines dulled itself.

Valia perked up. “We’re here.”

“I’ll activate the AI, you can go ahead to the loading bay.”

The warlock nodded and got off her chair. She calmly walked through the corridors, arriving in the room where her two teammates waited.

“So tell me again why we’re going into the spooky necromancer tower rather than bombing this thing to kingdom come?”

“We’ve tried. Why do you think we’re being sent in?” Haven held a hand to his forehead and groaned. “You asked the same thing yesterday.”

“I did?” His face soured. “I don’t remember that.”

“The reason why we aren’t bombing the Citadel is that of the extensive external shielding network they have established.” She tightened the strap on her glove. “Besides, even if we get past that, they just vaporize anything we’ve tried dropping on them.” She hit the button to open the ramp. “However, this only tells me you want to back out. Scared, Jo’arren?”

“N-No!”

Haven barked a laugh. “Then man up, Glowstick! Guardians show no fear!” he said, jogging to the edge. “Well, at least I don’t!” And he jumped off.

“Hmph. Typical titan. He forgot that I haven’t even grabbed the eradicators yet,” Valia scoffed and laid a hand on a glowing panel. A terminal spun around from the wall and a transmat conduit appeared from behind it. She brought up the storage unit and selected the boxes for the respective bombs. Two plexiglass cubes each half her height landed to her right. “Caz, if you will?”

The hunter jogged over and let Amber hover out. She scanned the stack and digitized the VEs for storage. “That’s it right, we aren’t forgetting anything?”

She nodded to her remaining teammate. “We may go,” she said. Walking to the edge of the ramp, she snapped her fingers for her helmet to materialize. The warlock took a deep breath… and jumped. For just a moment, a brief second, the world had lost all sound. It was just her and the clouds, grayed and fluffy, encompassing the sky. She was in a state of weightlessness. Free of pressure.

Then gravity kicked back in, and it all ended. Valia tucked her arms in and sped up, shooting through the air. From high up, she could vividly make out the battles being waged below.

Dawnblades tossed their sun-forged swords at rows of enemy forces, Strikers wrestled with ogres, Nightstalkers tethered countless Hive together for their comrades to mow down…

She could see Red Legion Harvesters and Threshers duking it out with Hive ground forces and their Tomb ships. Goliaths rumbled across the earth, retaliating against the supposed aggression. She smiled as she saw glimpses of fireteams snaking through the undergrowth and provoking each side, prolonging their fight.

The beauty of teamwork shown as bright as any beacon.

“AI is set. Sol Dilemma is ready to begin its assault,” Data announced in her head. “Passing halfway mark. You should prepare to slow down.”

The ground was coming up fast. All she had to do was time her jump correctly to cancel out the fall. Well, it wouldn't matter if she broke her legs and died from the impact. However, immortal as she may be, that didn't mean it hurt any less to die.

She exhaled and let the light lift her. Shielding herself from the whiplash, she gently hovered to where Haven was waiting. He spun a Hive knight sword around.

“What took you guys so long? I had to stomp the welcoming party all by myself!” he jeered.

“You forgot why we were coming here in the first place. To infiltrate and plant bombs. You jumped without letting me grab them out of storage.”

Haven froze and dropped the sword. “Oh, uh, yeah. Whoops.”

“Whoops does not even begin to cover it.”

Three bursts of air and their hunter joined them.

“Team’s all here. Let’s not waste any more time.”

They walked to a wall slathered with red paint and a small stitch where a suggested shaped charge would go.

“Watch for traps, the Hive may not be crazy about them like the Fallen but they still like to be sneaky with them,” Valia warned.

“Keep your eyes peeled for explodey boys. I got my ass blasted into last week because one of them snuck up on me,” Haven noted. “Which you totally should have caught, Glowstick.”

Valia paused. “Explodey… boys? Do you mean cursed Thralls?”

“Yeah. Some of the titans I meet with call them that. I think it's a much more fitting name if you ask me.” He waved his hand to the side. “It's quite accurate. Since they explode…”

“Just… I don't… just knock the wall down,” she interrupted.

He chuckled and pulled his fist back, solar light wrapping around his arm. “Aye, aye, Captain.”

The wall exploded in a shower of sparks as the team rushed inside. The unfortunate patrol that happened to be in their way was immediately gunned down. “We need to head south, quick! Take the largest tunnel and wind our way down!”

Boots thumped against the chitinous floor of the Hive base, the footfalls mostly muted by the organic material. Fireteam Dawn proceeded in a line formation, with their titan leading the charge and their hunter holding the rear. Weapons were raised and barrels flicked to any sign of possible movement. Ambushes from foes lying in wait was a tactic the Hive loved to employ.

“Have you seen anything yet?” Caz whispered. “Paranoia is going to get to me.”

Valia shook her head. “The hostile radar isn’t picking anything up. As far as this thing is concerned, we’re alone. Haven, see anything?”

“Besides the ugly interior decorating and all the creepy worm things in the walls?” He snorted. “No. Emptier than Zavala’s bar.”

“He has a bar?” Caz asked. “Since when?”

The titan smirked under his helmet. “My point has been proven.”

Proceeding further into the depths, a low hanging fog began to roll in. The dim, green light of the interior facilitated that infamous eerie feeling associated with the Hive had settled in. It was a good indicator they were leaving the safety of the surface. Lights, please.

Data appeared and activated his scanner to act as a makeshift light source.

The other two ghosts flashed into existence shortly after, both activating their respective scanners.

The jagged edges once invisible became apparent, flaring to life in exaggerated shadows. It was as if they had willingly stepped into the mouth of a great beast, with hundreds of razor-sharp teeth ready to slice them if they made the slightest wrong movement. Which in itself was not wrong, they had willingly entered into the Citadel, after all.

The relative lack of uniformity on the hastily constructed ground showed how much of the place had been tunneled straight from the earth. It also showed how recently erected the path they were taking was. Specks of dirt and gravel were dragged under their feet as they proceeded as a group. It certainly took off the edge of things, however, the entire atmosphere would most likely change once they entered the older tunnels.

They turned a corner and ducked into the low-lying hole. Constricted by the tight space, they were forced to get on their knees and crawl through. Caz had to shimmy backward as he followed along, scooching on the ground. He bumped into Valia, impossible for him to have seen Haven stop.

“Hey, uh, what’s the holdup?” he questioned. “I’m starting to regret going in like this and my legs are cramping.”

“Exit is blocked!” Haven announced.

Valia peered over his shoulder pauldron. “I think you mean to say: there is no exit. You led us into a dead-end. Caz, get ready to back up.”

“No, I can read a map, Val.” He gestured with an open hand. “I was going the right way the entire time. I think the Hive must’ve recently sealed this entrance.” He grinned and cracked his knuckles. “So I’mma do what I do best.”

“Haven—”

“I’m gonna make my own door.”

The warlock screeched, hands snapping up to stop him. “Haven, we’re in an enclosed space! REMEMBER WHAT—” She reacted far too late, however, as a pseudo hammer of Sol collided with the obtrusion. The fiery eruption that occurred roared back into the group, scorching the titan and ripping up Valia’s armor. It also sent Haven flying back, knocking into his group as if they were bowling pins. I am going to grill his ass about this later! Not now. We’re wasting time.

She heaved the two males off of her body, pressing them into the wall. “Ow, hey, watch the cloak! I ironed it this morning!”

Valia gave pause. “Why? Just ask Amber to fix it while it’s digitized… gah. The countdown started already, we need to continue moving.” She looped her head out of the newly formed hole. “Caz, ensnarement runes, two o’clock.”

He responded with a burst from his submachine gun, rendering the trap useless until it was manually reset.

Suddenly, the ground beneath them burst and multiple thralls crawled out. It looked like if someone kicked an ant hill filled with the things. They hissed and clicked, scrambling for the party of Guardians. One had managed to close the gap, lunging at the group with its claws drawn.

The thrall met a gauntleted fist. It was sent flying back into its compatriots with a caved skull. A round of shots made short work of the small ambush.

They continued unobstructed and would continue to do so until they reached the first landmark. It seemed the decoy attacks were working.

The floor transitioned from rough, uneven ground, to a plated, diamond pattern. Unnatural looking columns spiraled high into the ceiling. Two summoning circles lay by an inert gate, which arced all the way to the cavernous roof. Their first landmark had been reached. It also signaled the last chance to turn back. Once they went through, they had to commit to the very end. Not like any of us plan to back out anytime soon. We were given a mission, and we’ll see it completed.

They were standing in front of the locked entrance to the southern relay, the first step in bypassing most of the walls and security systems laid by the Hive. The scouts also said the place was supposed to be a wasp’s nest.

Haven looked up from his sights. “How much time has elapsed?”

“Four minutes since the breach.”

“What’s our estimated time to failure?”

“Hive response time is often two minutes… adding the distractions…” Valia stopped and quickly calculated the amount in her head. “We should take no longer than half an hour. Any longer is pushing it. I don’t want us getting caught in the blast. Data, could you set a group timer with interval pings for every five?”

“24:59,” the ghost said, having spoken it aloud and displaying it on the HUD.

“Good. We can begin the summoning ritual. Fireteam Swansong should be along any moment.” She stepped onto the plate and flinched from the glare the symbols gave off. “Forgot how bright these can be in the dark.” They spun intricate lines around themselves, green mist pouring out of the magical engraving.

“—epeat, This is Swansong-One coming in. How copy?” a voiced asked, cutting through the silence.

“This is Valia Nore from Fireteam Dawn. You’re coming out choppy, but we can hear you.”

“Ever since we entered, the Citadel’s been messing with our comms. I don’t think the material here is very frequency-friendly,” they sighed. Gunshots cracked in the background. “We apologize for our… absence. We encountered some resistance back at our entry point. We’ll be there shortly.”

The air crackled and the smell of ozone became overpowering. The sound of a vortex whipping their surroundings filled the expanse. A massive Hive knight stepped out from the portal, black chitin gleaming. Each stride it made shook the earth, countless pounds of armor lumbering their way. Behind it, the knight dragged a vicious looking serrated greatsword, which scraped and tore up the floor as it moved.

“Well, he's pretty big,” Caz said, breaking the shock of the situation.

“No shit. It's the gatekeeper. The scouts said we needed to kill this guy in order to enter the actual relay,” Haven replied, loading the rocket tube onto his launcher. The purple lights lining the chassis whirred to life. “Power weapons, everyone. Let's tear ‘em a new one!”

The bigger they are, the harder they fall. This will be fun. "Let me handle this one," she said to her team. Valia unsheathed her blade and Caz brought out his sniper rifle just in case. The warlock twisted her blade in her grip and charged. The gatekeeper roared and swung its weapon, crashing it into the floor, hitting nothing but the ground, as she danced out of the way. It groaned in frustration as it attempted to dislodge the sword from its place in the ground. Valia took this chance to clamber onto the blade and bridged the distance by running on the giant’s arm.

She jumped and with surgical precision, drove the blade straight into the glowing green slit of keeper’s helmet. She snapped the hilt back to activate the storm edge.

In a deep octave, it screamed and recoiled back, scrambling to evict the lightning rod in its eye. A clawed hand arced its way to the face where Valia hung onto. She pivoted the blade and threw an uppercut. It cleaved through the unprotected flesh beneath, searing the skin to match the exoskeleton above it. She slapped a solar grenade into the wound and jumped off.

The warlock placed it back into its scabbard, charge used up in her last strike. Clean kill. She sprinted back to the safety of her party.

The gatekeeper stumbled back, scratching at its face ever so desperately to remove the intrusion. It screeched as its hands were blasted back by a rocket. "Nuh-uh ugly. That shit's stayin' in there." The smaller bombs hiding in the payload buffeted it back into a wall, causing dust to fall from the ceiling.

A round of fire announced the arrival of the other Guardian party.

The solar magic finally collapsed the shell containing the spell and everyone watched as fireworks sparked from the inside of its head. The knight collapsed to its knees, fires dying out. The layer protecting the face had melted off and revealed a bulbous, pulsating organ with thick orange veins running along the surface. It was obvious to see where Valia had plunged her sword into, evidenced by the long hemorrhage.

“I commend you on your swordsmanship skills, Valia Nore. Breathtaking movements,” a thick accent commented from behind her. “It is unfortunate that your opponent was so… unpleasant to look at.”

She turned around to see a hunter with a snow-white cowl. The curved portion of his visor looked like a beak.

“I apologize. I am Crane,” he gestured with an open palm to two other similarly armored Guardians, a warlock and another hunter. “The one with the frills is Swan. The other is Ibis. Although Ibis refuses to use a sword like the rest of us. He is ruining our theme.”

“Bah. I stuck a bayonet on my shotty. I think that's good enough. Besides, the enemy has never disagr—”

“19:59.”

The gatekeeper slammed their arms into the ground. The semi-intact mouth—partially melted on one end—opened up to the best of its ability and roared. Gas poured onto the floor and made its way to the summoning plates. All runes activated almost instantly and the portal that had frozen during its “death” reactivated.

Caz reacted by emptying the entire sniper magazine into the knight. The literal railgun launched thick rods that bored into the exposed organ as if it was nothing more than pillow fluff. They came out the other end rammed into the adjacent wall, slick with alien blood.

Valia grasped the shroud of her rifle. “Pleasantries can be conducted later.” The first acolyte made their way through the open gate, chittering. “For now, it looks like the hornets aren’t too happy about us kicking their nest.”

Crane chuckled and pulled out a stout shortsword. “Guardians think alike as always. Nothing beats the rush of battle.” He leveled his sword with the amassing army. “Let us begin.”

Swan stepped up. “Please, let me start this off. I’ve been aching to do this ever since we stepped in this hell-hole.” A swirling ball of void energy appeared in her palm. “I’ll give you necrotic worms a taste of what’s to come!”

She hurled the nova bomb at the approaching force, who all began breaking formation to run away. The initial blast tore out a large chunk of where they once stood. The resulting seeker bombs birthed from that explosion moved to finish the job. As the dust began to settle, the Guardians wasted no time as they sliced through their foes.

“We can ignore them! Just get through the gate!” Ibis yelled, smashing the butt of his shotgun into an acolyte.

Haven cleared a path as he smashed them aside, pummeling Hive left and right. “Here goes nothing, see you on the other end, Glowstick!” he shouted, waltzing into the portal.

They followed in his wake of chaos, shooting anything that dared come close. As they closed on the objective, the group collectively hesitated. It wasn’t new for a Guardian to run headfirst into a Hive constructed portal, but those usually never had anything good on the other end.

But they had another waiting on the other side and a clock slowly ticking down.

“Enough. Let’s do this!”

They jumped into the unknown, weapons drawn.

Arriving, they were ready for the worst.

Haven was simply just standing there, quietly fixing a part of his gun. “So, uh, yeah. There’s nothing here. The relay just so happens to be down the hall, I checked.” He hiked a finger at the end of the hallway that produced an oppressive glow.

Crane huffed. “We must hurry then. Our friends on the surface are counting on us.”

Their silent footfalls were the only sound as they walked towards the objective. Trigger fingers lay ready in the slightest case something was off. As they emerged into it, they could see the entire space for themselves. Multiple balconies spun along the walls, encompassing a pedestal squatting in the middle. Pillars with the middle directly chopped out, shriekers acting as living replacements. Clumps of iridescent orbs hanging from the ceiling pulsate with energy.

But the most interesting thing about the place, perhaps, would be all the black-clothed acolytes sitting in the balconies, all clicking and hissing in their language. Hundreds upon hundreds of them sat in rows. It looks like a lecture hall. They all faced a wizard adorned with a tattered blood-red robe.

In its palm, it held an amorphous dagger that could pass for a sword if a Guardian wielded it. The handle itself was jagged and thorny, almost uncomfortable looking to hold. The blade was heavily serrated on one end. Void light wrapped around in wisps, covering the blade in an ethereal fire.

The alien conversation slowly began dying off as heads turned to face the intruding party. Hostile hissing began to echo around the chamber. An oppressive air slowly began to fill the room. It was an all too familiar sensation of choking… smothered by an evil that plagued their galaxy. They had entered an area teeming with the darkness.

Death here had an aura of permeance.

“I guess this is when the fun really begins, huh, Glowstick?”

“14:59.”

A flash of light appeared next to Valia, Data, who promptly scanned the wizard. His shell expanded and closed as he analyzed the information and compared it with his libraries. He turned to the pseudo-raid party. “Yir Lakûm, Advent of the Three. Wanted by the Vanguard. Alive is preferable.”

Caz snorted. “Alive? There are dozens of Hive here if you haven’t noticed, Data! If we aren’t the ones that don’t come back alive I wouldn’t be surprised!”

“Then let me surprise you, fellow hunter,” Crane whispered as he brought out his blade once more. “We will succeed. There is no other option we can take. They stand between us and our objective.”

The first thralls began touching the earth as they clambered down from the walls. Four large doors spread out evenly among the walls opened up to let the acolytes flood out. It was a veritable army against a small squad of six.

Yir Lakûm simply hovered above her pedestal, creepily smiling as she stroked the weapon in her grip. Without warning and with an ear curdling screech, Yir kinked her arm up and threw the arm holding the blade skyward. A reverberating hum filled the room as a crescent slash shot through the air.

It collided with Caz and sent him careening back where they started from.

“Hey you wrinkly bitch, only I’m allowed to bully Glowstick!” Haven loosed a rocket, aiming for one of the arches. It exploded in the air and dislodged the apparatus, missing and falling behind Yir. It did, however, manage to crush one of the four doors and many Hive. “Fuck it. That works too. You’re next!”

And with those words uttered, both sides charged.

“I’m losing grip…”

“T-T-F?”

“Six minutes. We need to keep going. We took too long dealing with the Hive in the relay. Left here,” she mumbled, nearly breaking into a sprint. “Caz. Amber’s connection is telling me you aren’t looking too good. What’s wrong with your shields?”

“N-Nothing.” That’s a whole bunch of lies and I know it. “I think Yir fired a funny spell at me. I’m a little frosty feeling, but I should be okay. Don’t worry about me though. We have a mission to accomplish.”

“Caz, if you aren’t feeling okay, we can slow down. Your health is vital to the success of the mission.”

“I’m fine. I’m fine. We need to get this done fast,” he insisted.

“If you say so,” Valia replied, unconvinced. “However, I won’t hesitate to stop us if you suddenly keel over. Keep that in mind, Jo’arren.”

“Oooh. she’s breaking out the last name…!” Haven teased. “Yeah, same here, Glowstick. Can’t rib you if you die on us.”

“Listen, guys, I’m fine. No need to pester me about it.”

The warlock scoffed. “We’re just looking out for you. You’re practically family to us, Jo’arren.”

Fireteam Dawn arrived at the last step, the chute they would need to take. They climbed methodically down the slope, careful not to accidentally slip down. Accidentally announcing their position… asdiaetusaf wuiisadkl nmbvdlfiow uytxczasfoi slak lksadiowioe lkasdn…

“...planting, cover…”

“Do you have the screws…?”

“...here…”

… asdqwoiernvcbhj. Asoieqaou sadjkwq logyu sda asdlo, abnvbo pooawr ptyuwe ncbxiu. Qweiuyuq xcvmh asdpo uitu lasd asld qweoioeqw ghaoi asdlvzc nmbmher alwlk…

“Movement…!”

“...watch it!”

“...in place!”

“Stand back…”

“...out. Go…!”

“NO!”

“Celestia, get closer! The entire thing is destabilizing! I’m not sure if I can hold it together any longer!” Luna whimpered. “I can try to get to the end, but I… I can’t guarantee that!”

“hAvEN! I SwEaR YOu ACTivaTE tHAt TRANsmAT BeACon and i’Ll GuT yOU!”

VaLIA hearD the beep AS thE COMMAnD weNT thROugh.
“iF oNe OF uS hAS To GeT aWAY frOM ALL of THiS, I PRefer it’d tO BE YoU!” He hiSSED oUT. “THeSE WoUNDs ArE FAtal, VAliA. I CaN fEeL IT. SeRapH cAN feEl it. yOU CAN feel IT.”

“I CaN SAve YoU, yOU sTUpiD rOBOt! HAnG oN aND lET me recaliBRATE the BEAcON!” she scrEAMed. “dROP thE DAMN barrIER! leT ME OUT!”

“sOmEONE needs to STAY beHINd and re-ArM tHE bOMbs. I’m already DYING. i Won’T MaKe iT bACk aliVE.”

“HaVEN! ThE ThREE wITChES arE STILL thERe! It’S SUIcide!”

“wE’ll FAil And aLL oUR haRD WOrk would BE fOR nothING. Caz would’ve died for nothing,” hE muMBLed, deLIriUM staRtiNG to SetTLE iN. “and LiKE I saID, DYing AlreADy. jUSt Let A TItAN have HIS last FIght.”

sHe WatchED from BehIND the SCReen of LIght as HE shAMbLED to THE firST boMB. hE PusHED oUT tHE AcTIvATIon panel and started punching out THE lasT sEQueNce. The warlock could only continue to observe in horror as he moved around to the last one. Seraph had been ahead of him, requiring the confirmation from the Guardian. He slammed his fist on the switch and watched both of them light up with unstable void energy.

“VOID ERADICATOR MINOR SYNC SUCCESSFUL. HARD SYNC WITH: VE 1-6 and 9-12 SUCCESSFUL,” the voice droned out. “ONE MINUTE REMAINING TO DETONATION, PLEASE EVACUATE TO SAFE DISTANCE.”

Haven popped his helmet off and laid it to his side. He slumped against the bomb and slid down to his ass. He grunted at the sudden feeling of hitting the ground.

She could clearly see from behind him the angered faces of the three witches, closing in on her last teammate. They were dazed and moving slowly, but each inch looked so agonizing. She banged her solar-charged fist on the barrier. Each action was futile, however, failing to even leave a dent.

Haven let out the goofiest grin his metal face could manage. He gave a sloppy salute. “It was a pleasure working alongside you, Valia, even if you were a stick-in-the-mud.”

Seraph nodded. “It was an eventful seven years of partnership. Data, Valia, please do not fret over this. We knew what we were signing up for when we took this mission.” The ghost formed a smile with his shell. “We have done many things together and I say I do not regret a single moment. I shall see you both where the light goes when we perish.”

“I’m not a wordsmith like Seraph here, but I agree,” he coughed, fluid spilling out. “WAIT! I totally forgot, please, Valia, burn my computer when you get back.”

Seraph chirped. “No need to worry. I installed malware on it that would destroy everything if we didn’t come back in time to disable it.”

“Oh. Well.” He smiled. “I’ll see you on the other side, eh, Val? I’ll say hi to Glowstick for ya’.” He stuck out his hand with a thumbs-up. Content with his goodbye, the titan let his head fall slack against the casing of the bomb. The whirring of his cooling fans and processors slowly powering down. He was going into a hibernation cycle.

The air around her began turning to small pixels, the particles whipping around her at breakneck speeds. The transmat unit had locked onto their ship and was preparing to leave.

“pLEasE, PleAse, dOn't! HaVEn, yOu cAn't do tHis… I… we already lost Jo’arren!” SHE chokED OUt. “Don’t do this Haven! NoNOnONo! Haven! HAVEN!”

Everything became white.

I gasped awake with an incredibly painful headache. Everything around me was so blurry and I felt so dizzy. I wanted to throw up and didn’t want to at the same time. I groaned and rubbed my eyes.

As everything came back into focus, I could see that my room had been completely trashed in my sleep. I seriously wish this would stop happening. Looks like I have to start cleaning again before the maid gets here. I threw the covers off and hobbled off the bed. I winced and clutched my head in pain as the headache pulsed. I sighed. I can't get anything done with this annoying headache stopping me every now and then. Time to find where the thing got tossed in my sleep.

I wonder where I threw that bottle of medicine to? I grinned as I spotted the white capsule tucked by a heap of books. Stretching my limbs, I eagerly trotted up to it and grasped it in my hoof. I blinked as I realized something was off. My room shouldn’t be this dark... I craned my neck up, even though it hurt to do so, to see what didn’t appear right.

I gasped and stumbled back as my eyes came into contact with my mentor’s. They were filled with hurt, confusion, and sorrow. There was probably a whole ‘nother slew of emotions hidden beneath that, but that’s what I could immediately tell off the top of my head. I slammed my chin—ouch—to the ground as fast as I could manage. “P-Princess! W-What are you doing here? I… I apologize for the mess, I… I usually have this cleaned up a-as soon as I wake up!”

“I came here out of concern, Dilemma,” she said, betrayal tinging her voice. “Please do not confirm them.”

Huh? “W-What do you mean, Princess?”

I heard another set of hooves behind me. “You could tell us what you’ve been hiding this entire time.”

“H-Hiding?” What are they talking about?

The lunar diarch snorted in anger. “Your dreams, or should I say memories!? Stop playing games! The façade is up, Sol Dilemma…! Or should I more rightly say, Valia Nore?”

Author's Note

Terribly sorry that I was late on this one.

Also, hah! Some of you thought the ghost would be introduced in this chapter! Nah, it's just fragments of the nightmare/memory that have been plaguing Valia ever since she lost her friends.

Chapter 6 - "In Deep Water"

Sol Dilemma - Chapter 6

“In Deep Water”

Valia sighed, angling the flight stick down. She rested a hand on a switch and slowly pulled towards her, killing power to the forward thrusters. A ratty forest slowly cascaded around the glass canopy. Her body jolted as the landing gear came into contact with the sandy ground of the clearing. She closed her eyes and took a shuddering breath.

The Phosphorous hummed as its stealth engines died down.

She eased the grip on the controls and leaned into the seat. Through her countless months of research, she had gone through multiple codexes and logs, analyzing years of information; all in the search for a simple retreat that could offer a reprieve from everything.

Most spots that she had discovered in her travels that were suitable candidates were often not of Earth. That was too much of a hassle already to deal with. So the warlock went through what little she could scrounge to find spots on the home planet that were peaceful enough to relax in. It was also preferable that they were unsullied, but that in itself was nothing but a myth.

She had been hopeful for the first year of searching. That enthusiasm, however, began to wane as she began going through her list faster than she even predicted. Crossing off names and places two or three at a time. A pattern sprung up fairly quickly; something that each of the locations had in common… none of them happened to exist anymore. Once grand mountains, ravines, and canyons reduced to hollow shells of stone. Forests and jungles burnt to a crisp as the forces of darkness made their conquests across Earth. Lakes, seas, and oceans turned to sludge, robbed of their crystalline beauty.

So after countless hours of venturing to places that no longer stood on Earth’s surface, a certain level of sluggishness set in. What point was there to continue a fruitless search? Her time could be better spent elsewhere, studying and searching for lost relics. The only thing that was left driving her was the want for peace.

It was relative in the Last City. Perhaps peace was ensured solely out of the fact that people were in dire straits. What good would it do to hurt your fellow neighbor while the darkness hung over your back like a silent executioner? But then, could it really be called peace…? If you call living behind a set of walls waiting with bated breath for the ax to fall… peace… that would be depressing.

Even the walls couldn’t protect everyone when the Red Legion arrived. She huffed and allowed her body to lay further slacked against the chair.

That’s what their situation was. Depressing. Hopeless. It manifested into a low lying cloud. It was invisible to the naked eye, but to those who could see it, it was unbearable. It was smothering every thought. Valia wanted out.

It didn’t help that she spent considerable lengths of time wallowing in it after she was placed under watch and house arrest.

Certain Guardians had been known to do… rash things after traumatic events. A suicide watch of some sorts. She probably waltzed into their radar shortly after her talk with the Speaker, spouting about guilt and death, radiating enough anger to manifest her powers. Any normal person would’ve realized the red flags and set up the necessary safety nets. He would probably be the direct reason why she had been placed into it. There weren’t any hard feelings between them. All he really was doing was trying to help. There shouldn’t be any. Holding grudges against the dead and against someone like him. She clenched her fist. Now he’s gone. Couldn’t even help him when he needed it most. And we call ourselves Guardians. Pathetic. Valia glanced at a part of the wall.

There was no sign of the damage that had been originally inflicted on it, but she knew what she had done. It was hard not to forget. In a fit of rage, she had held her palm flat against the metal and ripped it apart with sheer concussive force, punching a hole and sending superheated shrapnel careening through the air. And why had she done such a thing? She had freaked out all because she had a passing memory of Caz, and being in his personal jumpship hadn’t helped.

She gripped her wrist tightly and exhaled.

Her patience had been reduced to a hair-trigger during that time, lashing out anyone trying to approach her and proving to be a general danger to those around her. So the Vanguard had done the smart thing and made sure she stayed in her room, electing her ghost as the warden. They attributed it to a “stage of grieving,” apparently something everyone could experience, seasoned warrior or not. She had once passed a glance at it in a medical journal but dismissed it out of irrelevancy. What good would that be for an untouchable immortal such as herself? I wouldn’t know whether or not to laugh or feel sorry for myself. I suppose we are not as invincible as we appear.

Data had also done the smart thing and bottlenecked the amount of light she was receiving; enough to get by but not enough to cause any significant fluctuations outside of making someone feel toasty.

The feeling of powerlessness, however, had its negative consequences. The nightmares returned without any mercy, harassing her in her sleep. The small mental resistance she had begun to build up c-crumbled… a-and… and…

A flash of Caz’s face frozen in eternal agony. Haven’s mangled form, laying against a steel case.

I’m… I’m str-stronger than this… she feebly reassured herself. But deep down, in the recesses of her mind, she thought otherwise. Almost subconsciously believing it so.

Her failure to stop the three witches was the biggest proof of that.

She gulped, her breathing picking up like a rolling snowball. The warlock’s heart began drumming a song that drowned out any other noise. It started getting harder and harder to breathe. Which was strange, as the air pressure hadn’t changed and the helmet hadn’t suffered any critical malfunctions in a long time. However, it was still getting harder to breathe, for reasons simply unknown. The world swirled around her as lines and colors blurred in a nauseating pitch.

Valia tumbled to the floor, collapsing to her knees. She gasped and shot out her arms to catch herself before she could hit the floor, her gloved hands meeting the steel floor of the transport.

Raising a shaking hand, she scratched at the sides of her helmet, desperately searching for the emergency release switch. Her gloved finger found purchase in the groove and she pulled down. A hiss of air and the locks disengaged, releasing the seal on her head. Without a moment’s reprieve, she slipped it off and tossed it into an adjacent chair, hitting the seat with an audible poomf. Despite her attempt at freeing her from her “confines,” and attempting to delay it, nothing changed in the slightest. The walls twisted and screeched in an impossible manner, inching ever closer.

It looked like it was inevitable that she would have to leave the ship early.

“D… Data,” she wheezed, “t-transmat us outside! Please!”

The feeling of the shifting state of matter and watching the process happen was torture to her own eyes. How cruel was it so that a device crucial in a everyday life had transformed itself into a constant reminder of her inadequacies as a Guardian. Despite that, there was no way she was going to be able to make it outside in this state. And to give up something that made life infinitesimally simpler? Her old mentors would’ve kicked her in the shins for that line of thinking.

She collapsed into the detritus, clutching her sides as the transmat finished and dumped her outside. A concerned ghost darted out not moments later.

“Valia! Valia, hey, you’re alright. You’re alright,” Data reassured, watching her shivering form. At this moment, he wished he had appendages for physical consolement. “Deep breaths, Val. You’re okay out here.”

The trees rustled as a gust blew through them. Leaves gently fluttered to the ground and the world continued to spin. The warlock clenched her eyes and slowly, but surely, steadied her breaths to an almost normal level. She laid there, simply breathing.

“I am most certainly… n-not. I’m… I’m broken, Data. I’m a shell of my former self. I can’t even look at a Hive wizard without having a breakdown, real or fake. I now have hair triggers that render me a quivering mess. I used to command respect with my very presence. N-Now? I don’t know. I thought I was getting better but... I’m not.”

The ghost continued to float there, seemingly at a loss for words. The wind blew again and his single blue eye danced. “You’re only human, Valia.”

She lifted her head, ragged clumps of hair trailing along. “What is that supposed to mean? Am I not good enough to be a damn Guardian?” she replied, crushing the dirt beneath her fingers as she flexed them in, small amounts of solar energy began baking the earth. But as soon as the flare of anger appeared, it washed away almost immediately. She collapsed back into the ground, jostling the decaying plant matter. “Maybe… maybe you’re right. What good would a broken warlock be? Maybe I should just stay here and sleep forever.”

“Val. This isn’t you. C’mon.” He floated closer and stared her down. “Where’s the strong, analytical woman I fought together with from all those centuries ago? The swordswoman who struck fear in the decaying hearts of her foes? The no-nonsense researcher and archivist?”

“I don’t... know. I’m beginning to consider the fact that she was left behind in that mission, alongside her partners,” she whispered.

Data looked appalled. “Val, no…”

“Your hesitation tells me I’m correct. Why don’t you just leave me and find a better Guardian? There are dozens out there that could… work better than I am now.”

In the best way he could, despite the lack of facial muscles, he looked rightly offended. “I would never do that! We’re bound for life and destined to die together. We’ve fought through the thickest and the thin and you want me to go!? I would never turn my back on you, just as I know you would never turn your back on me! I spent years dodging bullets and running from the darkness to find my Guardian! To find you! And for you to say such a thing… Val, that hurts. Has our time together meant nothing?”

Valia made no attempt to respond to his question. She could feel the guilt clawing at her heart and mind, howling at her very soul. He deserves better.

“Fine. What about Caz and Haven? Don’t you want to avenge them? What happened back at the tower? Was that all just a farce?”

“I do not know anymore.”

“Stand back up; finish this for them, if not for me.” He spun around to face deeper into the trees. A path curved around the overgrown foliage, just barely visible. The occasional reflective sheen shot back as Data’s eye made contact. “We made it this far. Don’t you want to see it end?”

Yet again, the warlock made no reply as she laid curled in the dirt, her breathing almost a sleeping lull. Her once strictly-made hairdo undone and cascading beside her like liquid copper. I owe it to them that much, don’t I? Where’s your fire, Valia? She gulped and shook the dirt out of her gloves as best as she could. Running a hand through her hair, she righted herself on her knees at a steady pace. She carefully lifted her cloak as to not let it catch and felt the golden wings resting on her back unfurl.

She placed her hands on her lap and took a hearty inhale. The air here tasted fresher but was tinged with a hint of… something. It felt wrong to breathe it in. But one couldn’t exactly be picky anymore. It was of much better quality than what someone could get in the Last City. So it already had that running for it.

Valia gently creased her eyes open, finally getting a real look at her surroundings.

This place was one of the last locations she had listed in her studies. It was a fairly remote dollop of land sitting in a vast, gray ocean. A quick glance and a person could easily dismiss the thing. Small, unassuming and in all honesty, the plainest looking island one could describe. She could recall the day she saw this in vivid detail. The scowl that ran along her face showed her absolute disgust. Data had convinced her not to skip this choice, noting how something may not always be what it seems.

How correct he happened to be was beyond astonishing. Past the underwhelming exterior and further into its relatively small forest was a hidden gem of beauty. Valia and Data had only seen things like that recorded in aged documentaries. It was nothing but legend.

Yet here they were, standing in what was basically myth. In her wildest dreams, even she could’ve never expected this. There was no place in their solar system, known to anyone, that looked as awe-inspiring as this picturesque landscape.

Then it shattered everything when they saw a decrepit jumpship and contrasting elegant shack—which looked to be cobbled together from intricately melted stone and metal. I wasn’t the first one there. Someone beat me to the punch. Sitting calmly beside all of that was an awoken, cross-legged atop a fairly large boulder, calmly sipping from a cup of tea.

Yet by chance, she had found a boon. Shaw Gayle. A man who knew all that transpired with the H… Hive. H-He’s the one who’s going to let me end this.

Deep breaths. Calm yourself. She cracked her knuckles and snapped back to reality.

Valia pushed herself up with a bit of her light, causing her garments to flutter as if they had been touched by the wind. In a sense, they had. She brushed the last of the dirt clinging to her clothes and joined Data in staring at the path.

“You alright now?”

“Perhaps. Let’s get my answers. Maybe then I can finally rest. Maybe then...” she answered wistfully.

If everything was relatively fine before, it certainly got worse from here.

I wheezed. The shouting, whatever Princess Luna had yelled to me, only served to worsen the headache that pulsed through my head. I clutched my head in pain and scooted backward until I felt my rump meet resistance with something. That’s probably a bookcase… at least, I think it is… Considering I had just woken up, that also didn’t really help my case.

My thoughts and senses were too numbed to act properly right away, a consequence stemming from the fitful nights of rests I had been subjected to for months on end; I could barely even register it as higher-level cognitive function after just waking up! In fact, I only managed to move around through sheer willpower and the muscle memory embedded through slogging through my daily routine. Disappointing the princess also happened to be high on that list as well. And being truthful to myself, regardless of the current company, I really wanted to go back and crawl into bed.

Five more minutes sounded really nice.

I rubbed my glazed eyes and blearily looked into the towering frames of the two ponies before me. I was lucky to have even responded to them earlier in words that could’ve been comprehended! Now here I was getting shouted at, early in the morning with an intensifying headache that made it harder to think, accompanied the dregs of sleep clinging to my being.

I really hoped my automatic reply hadn’t been one that angered either of them. Although I was pretty sure the response probably did, considering that Princess Luna looked absolutely livid. I gasped as I felt myself scooped up in an aura, sharply levitated to face the alicorn herself eye-to-eye.

Weightlessness notwithstanding, the very sound of her magical grasp sounded so much clearer… and all the more deafening. Each ripple of mana flowing through the simple levitation spell was like a clap of thunder and every minute movement a crackle of fireworks. Altogether, it was a veritable symphony of loud noises, tailored specifically for me.

“What are your plans here!?”

And the shouting.

I hissed in pain and doubled over, collapsing onto my side as best one could locked in the air. The spark that blossomed in my skull had incapacitated me with a single burst. Perhaps even if rational thought was beyond me at the moment, I knew this was the worst I had ever experienced the headache to be. In all the previous mornings, in all the previous coming-to’s, in comparison, never were this debilitating.

I writhed and thrashed in the air, teeth clenched in agony.

Please… please let me down. It hurts so much. Please. I tried to say. I wanted to say. I wanted to beg. Stars danced in my vision and an inky blackness snaked its way around the edges. I could see the world in focusing and feel almost as if my eyes were glazing over from shock. Stop, please. I don’t want this. Please let me go. Pleasepleasepleaseplease. No more! No more!

In my state of agony, I thought I heard something. A voice. It was a voice! It said something… something… something. What did it say?

Was it from either of the princesses? But that… that would be impossible. I couldn’t even hear anything above the cacophony. Maybe it had come from them and I simply hadn’t realized it. Maybe… maybe… maybe?

Their mouths hadn’t even moved a muscle.

Who had said it…?

Then who? Who spoke? Who whispered into my ear? I stopped moving for a moment as it dawned on me. And I can think again. The pain isn’t as bad as before. This… this… what is this? Thevoice sounded so familiar. I heard it somewhere and once before. Somewhere… but where? Who am I thinking about? It sounded like an old friend. Comforting and pleasant to be around. A feeling of nostalgia!

But that doesn’t make sense. I don’t have any old friends to think about. The only two I ever had were Dapper and Maverick! That can’t be possible. Yet it was. Somehow. And also… what made me so okay with this voice in my head? Telling me things and whispering sweet honeyed words?

It was like a whisper on the wind, so silent that a breath might just blow it away, but audible enough to make out the words.

That… that sounded…

It spoke, filling my head with ideas.

That was my voice.

Something in me absolutely demanded that this state of weakness was wrong, that it should never be. It whispered how it was unbecoming, that it was not part of who I was as… as something. It spoke ever so resolutely that I needed to get up and defend myself and my honor. But from what? I wasn’t in any inherent danger. But that didn’t matter now. A fire in my very soul licked at my heart, spurring everything else into motion.

It spread like any flame would, except this one proliferated as if its very life-force could be extinguished at any moment. Maybe it wasn’t wrong. Maybe my life could very well be in such mortal peril, such to the point I wouldn’t even realize it.

But what was happening to me at this very moment, having myself flayed open and laid out for the whole world to see, was so inherently wrong. I knew it was wrong. Something needed to happen, now or never, to defend everything… I… believed in?

No matter. I didn’t want to be seen in such a fragile state.

Tears dripped from eyes, turning everything I could see into a blurry mess. I just wanted the pain to stop. I… I wanted to be alone. I didn’t want to be seen like this!

I had to do something to protect my integrity.

I just had to.

No rhyme or reason.

It was a must.

I screamed as I could feel the ever familiar energy roar to life around me, burning in a protective bubble of energy. Solar energy whipped out in long lancing tentacles, threatening to raze anything alive in the room. It felt so liberating to unleash such pent-up strength, to feel the power flowing through me was almost as if this was my natural state.

Everything felt so right. For a moment, at least.

I could feel something prodding at the back of my brain, letting words and definitions trickle in. They were simple and fairly out-of-context, rendering themselves utterly useless. What is that? What… does it want? I couldn’t sense any outward malicious intent, nor anything else that would intend harm.

And just like the blazing fire… this felt even more… right. Like it belonged with me. Perhaps, it wouldn’t hurt if I opened the proverbial floodgates.

I gasped as I felt it crash through. Concepts and ideas I had never even known about began to shape themselves, offering so much knowledge. Whispers in the wind carried images of places and creatures… Objects and scribbled lines suddenly had context, strings falling into place to link everything together… or most of them did. Some strings fell short or simply withered away without anything to connect with.

It was fragmented.

Broken.

It was only a single piece of a larger puzzle.

I wanted more. So much more. I wanted to feel it complete. Whole. But to ask for something like that… to want for more… it felt like greed. Was it greed? Was it okay to want more? I didn’t know.

I would find myself content with what it readily offered. Not to mention as it was a momentary reprieve from the intense headache, something else also followed. A feeling of nostalgia stemming from somewhere, almost like wiping the dust off of a book that you read so much after finding it tucked away, hidden and growing old. Almost suddenly, it’s no longer about cowering. I feel so light, so dainty that the slightest gust may just take me with it.

It feels… so… nice.

I blinked and I’m greeted back to the waking world, white energy hanging at the ends of my vision. I can see the superficial damage left by the solar outburst, several wards that had been invisible glowing with the same power they absorbed.

My head started hurting again. I frowned as I hoped to escape that. I tapped my hooves on the ground, blinking in confusion as to why I’m back here. It’s getting harder… to th-think.

Princess Luna snorted, her demeanor almost devolving into laughter. It seemed she found whatever happened, hilarious. “Well. That certainly worked spectacularly for you, didn’t it? What shall be your next move, I wonder?” Th-That last bit sounded like mocking.

“W… What…? What happened? Princess… princesses!?”

“Do not tell me you plan on falling back into this routine. I am not as so weak-willed as to succumb to such a thing.” She placed a hoof forward menacingly. “I certainly enjoyed it when you tried something… far more rash.”

For the first time in a while, Celestia sighed and spoke up. “Please. I believe it is not too much to ask for your simple cooperation, Valia. We are not your enemies here, nor would we ever wish to be,” the solar diarch finished. She sounded so… tired. However, her approach was far calmer and reassuring then what Princess Luna had been leading with. What are they trying to do?

“Princess… I don’t understand what’s going on.”

“All we want to know is why you have lied to countless individuals over the course of five years and chose to hide among us here –” She waved a golden-clad hoof in the direction of the rest of Canterlot “– in Equestria. Perhaps, I could understand wanting to run. The horrors in your homeland certainly are not something to take lightly. But what are your goals? What do you wish from us? Why did you bring those things with you?”

“I don’t—huh? Lying? Hiding? Things?” I gave her the best confused look I could muster, hoping to bridge my point across. “Is… is this a prank, Y-Your Highnesses? It-It really isn’t funny!”

“You think this is a joke?” The lunar diarch barked out a laugh. “So it seems we do have to continue this in a difficult manner! Very well. I shall enjoy every moment until you decide to collaborate.” She advanced. Each hoofstep she made in closing in seemingly caused the light to flee from the room, gradually plunging everything into darkness.

I reciprocated each one by moving back, distancing myself from her approaching form. Then I gasped as I felt something brush against the furs on my flank and felt a solid surface.

My behind smacked into a bookshelf. I have nowhere to go… I looked to the dark alicorn, who wore a wicked smile. She looked ready to smite me where I stood. And she’s coming closer! I don’t want to d-die! I shot glances to both of my sides, distressed to see that to get to the exit, I had to attempt to go past Princess Celestia. Even if could make it—impossible in its own right—where would I go? What would I do? I whimpered a low whine that conveyed my emotions. I had no more choices; out of options. I curled up into a ball, shut my eyes and covered my ears. When I first saw the royalty, they were like pillars, strong, and beacons of hope! But now, everything had become a twisted mockery. I had never seen Princess Luna like this before! She had turned from a pony into something else; a wolf, almost.

If a wolf could wield immeasurable power to shift the cycle of day and night.

From behind my eyelids, everything got a lot darker. I cracked an eye open to see what was going on. The lunar princess had lowered her head, flush with my own, her own eye staring back at mine. “What did I just say?” she whispered, voice low and an edge of danger permeating every syllable.

I yelped and smacked into the furniture behind me. “P-Please… p-princess…! I… I really don’t kn-know what you’re t-talking about!”

“What did I just say!?” she roared. “My sister and I have meticulously crafted a safe haven for the creatures under the Equestrian banner, promising protection for all those who pledge to us! I take the safety of my subjects very seriously and as of now, you are a possible threat to that safety! You’re more than well equipped to do harm and from what I’ve gleaned, a dangerous individual! You clearly aren’t from around here, so I won’t hesitate; either you drop your pathetic act masquerading as a foal or I will resort to much more violent methods! Tell me why you are here! What are your goals involving the country of Equestria!?”

“I… I don’t know! Y-You’re frightening me, P-Princess!” I looked to my mentor with tears streaking down my face, hoping for a way out of the madness. “Princess C-Celestia?” She only stared back with a blank look, impassive as a statue. I yelped as a hoof harshly gripped my snout, turning me back to face the furious pony in front of me.

“I am speaking to you! Do not think you can weasel your way out of this one!”

“I… I r-really d-don’t know what you want!”

“My patience is thin, Valia Nore! No more games!” she bellowed, stomping a hoof. Valia N-Nore? Why does that sound so familiar…? “Why do you choose to dance around this? Have you no fear for your wellbeing!?”

“Princes—”

I didn’t get to finish whatever I had planned to say as agony lanced through my jaw. I didn’t even react as I bounced off the floor and smacked into a table. My mouth was wide open and my heart beated in my ears. My snout hurts… I tentatively raised my foreleg and placed it on the area in question. I could feel a warm liquid trickling down my face and the taste of something metallic. I brought it up to look at what had found itself on my hoof.

My pupils dilated as I registered what it is.

Blood.

My blood.

I… I…

I’ve seen blood before, small dots that came from scrapes and when from when I brushed my teeth… but…

I’ve never been struck before on purpose and had blood come out.

The realization was sobering as adrenaline ran through my veins and my fur stood on end. I looked back to Princess Luna with the hoof hanging in the air. She looked shocked, surprised that she had even done such a thing, but that quickly wiped itself away and her snarl returned.

“I know you’re not a foal, Valia Nore. I know that you’ve faced far worse than that. I know you took down a monstrosity the size of a tower,” she growled. “Now drop the act.”

The lunar diarch growled, a noise I don’t think I would’ve ever expected to come from her, and something I would never want to hear again. But that wasn’t what I had focused upon, no. It was something else entirely.

Almost as if after Princess Luna had uttered those very words, all the sound from the world had been sucked out. It was the words she had spoken, all two of which glaring at me with the strength of the sun. It had the power to render me frozen in shock like a foal caught sticking their hoof into a cookie jar. Even the pain, the sore spots—possibly bruised areas—on my back, and the red mark on my cheek that beat with my every thump of my heart. They screamed at me to respond, to do anything but stand there, frozen. But that pain was so easy to ignore, it was so negligible in comparison to what revelation arrived at the forefront of my mind, that I could simply brush it aside and consider it later.

The dark alicorn spoke of something I kept tucked away whilst I slept, accessible only to me.

She mentioned the hyoo-mans. She mentioned the dream memories. She mentioned the name, Valia Nore. I can’t believe I missed all of this.

She knew.

They both knew. One of my deepest secrets—something I’ve planned on keeping to myself for a very long time—had been blown straight into the spotlight, I dragged alongside it.

I wanted to ask how much they knew. But that would be confirming, wouldn’t it? What did they want from me, anyway? What did they want to know about the dreams?

How long had they known I’ve been having them?

My mouth hung open and I looked to their waiting stares. Standing in front of me were both of the regal sisters, Princess Celestia, my mentor, and her sister, Princess Luna. Two of the most important ponies to have ever existed stood in front of me. Two paragons of society. Two ponies who moved the celestial bodies of our planet as daily jobs. Two sisters who quested together and struck down countless villains, oh, so long ago.

And both of them happened to be in my room.

My messy, messy room.

Asking me questions and demanding answers about a secret that should’ve never even slipped out.

All the while as my broken nose bled.

“Do you plan on answering, Valia Nore? Or must I accept your silence as a resignation of sorts?” Princess Luna asked, twirling her hoof and idly staring at it. That was the one she struck me with.

I just… couldn’t take it anymore. I wasn’t the warrior they were claiming me to be. I wasn’t trained to handle pressure like my mom or to have the steeled nerves like the hyoo-man from the dreams. I was just… me.

A silly little filly who had yet to turn six. Who enjoyed reading books and staying inside. Who had no motivation regarding

So I did what any reasonable foal my age would do when presented with mass amounts of pressure, stress, and frightened by things completely out of their control. Repeating my first action, I whimpered, laid down, covered my eyes, and began sobbing.

It was a steady stream of tears at first before it transformed into a flood.

I let out my grievances, pouring all my sorrow and stress.

“D-Do you think this will deter me!? Such a pathetic thing to do! Where is the honor I witnessed, Valia Nore?” she murmured, sounding as if she was appalled. “Pretending to be a weak, helpless foal. Hiding behind the mask of fear and tears. Absolutely despicable.”

Tears continued to streak down and mat the fur on my face.

It was easy to hear the spell being powered up above me. That only caused the stream to fall faster. I don’t know what I did to deserve such treatment. I woke up today, thinking it would be a great day to talk to my friends and do some studying, maybe, even read a book. I was nice to everypony who deserved it and helped around the house!

Instead, I’m crying and bleeding on the floor, threatened by the ponies who I held such high regards for.

“Luna, that’s enough,” Princess Celestia called out. “I can’t stand by and watch this go down.”

The spell being cast sputtered out as the mana flow was cut off. “S-Sister! What is the meaning of this!?”

“I suppose I am the weaker pony, Luna. Perhaps it is wrong for me to succumb to such a thing…” She paused. “...but my bleeding heart can’t take such a sight. I can’t watch you beat up a crying filly who doesn’t even lift a hoof to do anything in retaliation.”

“Don’t you realize this is what she wants? This is nothing more than a ruse!” Princess Luna shouted. “Now let go and let me finish what I’ve started, sister.”

“Luna, violence hasn’t been our answer for millennia,” she murmured. “And actions fueled by such intents lead nowhere for any of us. Believe me, I should know.”

“Then what do you expect me to do? Attempt to make her talk simply by shouting empty threats!? What have I been doing this entire time if not backing up my claims!?” she yelled. She stopped to briefly consider something. “And if you suggest mind magic, I will strike you as well!”

“Yes, that thought has crossed my mind, but I am well aware of the inefficiencies it accompanies.” She rubbed her temple with her fetlock. “Have you already forgotten the new procedures I had you remember that we’ve put into place since your banishment?”

There was silence. “I… perhaps… hmm,” she mumbled out, slowly coming to realize something. At that moment, just a single moment, I dared to look. It was hard to see as I shivered, sniffled, and sobbed, trying to form a coherent image through the tears, but I barely managed to catch the lunar princess in deep contemplation. Or at the very least, she no longer looked like she was going to banish me to the moon.

“It seems the simpler method had slipped both of our minds. Would you like to remedy this oversight?” she asked.

“It would certainly make this easier,” Princess Luna sneered. “I’ll get right on setting it up… and I may just know the perfect pony for the job. Don’t take too long, sister.”

I watched her storm out the door, slamming the door upon her exit. I yelped in fright from the sudden loud noise, burying my head further into my hooves. I took a shuddering breath as I peeked out from behind my hiding place as another shadow cast itself over me. A brief flash of Princess Luna stood in the forefront of my mind. This time, however, it was the calm visage of my mentor, who calmly picked me up in her forelegs.

She cradled me and affectionately nuzzled the crick of my neck.

“I have lived for a long time, Sol Dilemma, a very long time. I have seen many things in that long life. Good things. Terrible things. Some… some things that still haunt me to this day,” she whispered. “However, in that long life, I’ve learned and expanded my repertoire of knowledge in leaps and bounds. Do you want to know something, my student?”

She used my name! Not… not Valia… I gulped and sniffled. “W-What w-would that be, y-your Highness?” My voice sounds funny. Was it because of my nose?

“How difficult it is to fake the tears of a foal,” she said, smiling. “I believe you. You’re just a little filly caught in the crossfire of something grand. Bigger than all of us, it seems.”

Twilight grabbed the tablet with a hoof, staring at the piece of hardware which shouldn’t have even been here. Considering the fact how old it must be—going off the deduction of five years if Dilemma was to be believed, as old as the filly herself—then this very thing, sitting in her grasp, simply could not have existed. Sunset standing right next to her could attest to that.

Even what was displayed right in front of her was unbelievable. A crisp display of a three-dimensional object suspended above the computer screen. To have magic replicate such a feat required a sharp mind and hours of work to whittle down the details. Yet, she could sense not a fraction of magic flowing through the thing, already supporting the fact that it ran and operated on other sources.

She shook her head and stared at the supposed gibberish present.

Five years ago, the mirror portal hadn’t even been open properly for something like this to slip through. Perhaps if it was a year and a half younger, then maybe, just maybe, it would make sense.

But as of now?

She wasn’t even sure how far this diamond dog burrow went! What were lies and what wasn’t!? Deep breaths, Sparkle. Deep breaths! Y-You can think this out rationally! Just start listing things. Listing is good. She took a deep inhale and nodded to herself.

F-First of all, they had been given a crystal with such intricate spellwork and design that took three of Equestria’s greatest minds to break! One of them even happened to have training from a completely different reality! There was nothing here that could even pull off the level of mastery required to weave such a thing!

Second, there was the unanswered question of how Dilemma could’ve come across such a thing! Were they really recovered in the crash as she said? Or was there something else at play?

Then… then, there was the spell that Dilemma first cast at her own congratulatory party! It was common for unicorns to reflexively cast spells when frightened, that was something she could attest to. They often were spells that they used often or one that was so easy to remember that it could be done with a clap of a hoof. But to reflexively pull off a spell like that!? That was—

A soothing wave cascaded over her very being, almost as if she had fallen into the softest pegasi downy, surrounded by the balanced aroma of vanilla. The calming sound of a candle crackling late at night, with the occasional turn of the page, played in her ear. The toasty feeling of laying by the fireplace, curled up so snugly in a blanket, comforted her senses. This, wherever she was, had to be heaven.

“Sunset, you overdid the spell.”

“I did not! I checked the modifier and…! Oh, she’s drooling. Yeah, ah… okay. I probably did overdo that part.” Sunset delivered a weak jab to the side of the downed alicorn’s belly. To which, she only received mumbling and slurred whispers. “She’s down for the count.” The unicorn sighed and shot an apologetic look to her compatriot. “Alright. Sorry. Didn’t mean to make her comatose. I guess I just overcompensated for her alicorn constitution.”

“You certainly did,” Starlight mumbled. She made a face as she stepped over the growing puddle coming from their friend’s mouth. “Her brain is probably flooded with magic stimulation. She’s dead to the world. Completely. She’ll probably be up in ten minutes, though.”

“But we don’t want to wait that long now, do we?” Sunset sighed and rolled her shoulders. “Resuscitation spell?”

“Resuscitation spell.”

Starlight hummed as she began to cast the spell. Lowering her head, she zapped the twitching alicorn and watched green sparks dance along her fur. As she waited for the spell to bypass the natural wards, she turned to face the only other conscious pony in the room.

“So, I’d like to ask what those numbers you added were about.”

Sunset blinked. “Oh, that? It’s a spell sequence that I’ve been working on in my spare time. I had to swap out a couple of things to make sure it didn’t interfere with what we had set up, however,” she replied. Starlight raised her brow in response. “Just because I don’t have magic on the other side doesn’t mean I can’t experiment. I may or may not have considered how cool it would be if I could create the ultimate hacking device. So that led to one thing, and another, and another…” she trailed off. “What brought this on, if you don’t mind me asking?”

“Well, it’s mostly from how strange the weave looks, far more angular and blocky then what I’m used to. Has the spell you were building worked out for you?”

“Yes and no, that’s the thing. It’s strange, to say the least. Magic and the modern form of coding don’t seem to mix as effectively if I were to use the archaic format of ones and zeros. Something of which I don’t understand why it’s receptive to this but not that. It’s also been an arduous process of trial and error, piecing together and learning what can and doesn’t work,” she noted. “And I can’t say I’m too pleased about it, either. I haven’t exactly studied the stuff since it’s mostly irrelevant.”

“So what purpose does it serve?”

“Those –” Sunset pointed to three different sets of brackets, “– are all different sets of encryption and decryption methods, all condensed for usage in a thaumic system. I thought it would’ve been wise to give the cantrip a sense of direct—”

“AHHH!” Twilight screamed out, breathing heavily and looking around with wide eyes. “W-What happened? Why is my face so sticky… and why am I laying in a pile of drool!?”

“You were having a breakdown down, so I… took the liberty in sending a calming spell your way…”

“She overdid the modifier and practically flooded your senses.” She craned her neck to look over her friend. “And I’m fifty-percent certain some of that isn’t just saliva.”

The alicorn blinked as she realized the implication her friend was suggesting. Twilight screeched and burned red, her horn flaring in a brilliant purple-white. Not a second passed before the mess on the floor and her matted fur vanished without a trace. One look at the room and somepony could say nothing had happened. She took a breath and looked up. “Can we agree to never speak about this?”

“I don’t have any qualms,” Sunset quickly responded.

Starlight coughed. “Neither do I.”

“Then it’s settled,” Twilight said, “we forget this incident ever happened.”

All of the ponies nodded as a hush took hold of them and they exchanged awkward glances. A minute passed as they all stood to face each other still choosing to remain quiet. Sunset was the first to break the silence. “So, about that tablet,” she blurted out, levitating the device to hover in the middle of all three of them. “It’s… impossible for it to be here, right? Are we sure something didn’t slip through the portal without us noticing?”

“Yes. Celestia made sure to keep the portal under constant supervision, with both automated and actual guards to watch over it. The only reason I can assume why you managed to even get as far as you did before was that it still happened to be in transit. Most of the regular surveillance units were still transferring,” she said, shaking her head. “I checked over that list after I came back the first time and there weren’t any instances of recorded travel or anything coming through.” Twilight glanced at the floating object. “Tablet or otherwise.”

“This doesn’t explain anything then,” Starlight pouted, inspecting the tablet up close. “No other recorded race in the history of Equus has ever come close to rivaling the level of technology displayed by the humans. And Sunset, you told me what happened when you tried bringing technology through the portal, right?”

“Right, yeah.” The unicorn nodded. “The laptop short-circuited itself and practically exploded. I tested a couple of cheap stuff after that to make sure it wasn’t a fluke,” she said. “That PC wasn’t cheap…” she silently added right after.

“That’s another mystery then. From what I’ve gathered and from what I can assume from all of this, I have two theories; one, there’s secretly a race of ancients lost within the annals of time. Advanced enough to understand things like this and build it in turn. Or two—as much as it pains me to say it—we’re not alone in this universe as we think.” She bit her lip. “I know that makes me sound crazy conspiracist, but it’s the only two that make logical sense.”

Sunset looked perturbed. “Glimglam, you’re suggesting that aliens are real. Actual alien-aliens. From outer space.” She shuddered. “Out of everyone I know, you have to be the last one I would’ve ever expected to say something like that!”

The unicorn shrugged. “As I said, it’s the only viable explanation. Unknown language, unknown make, and unknown origin. Besides… what is that supposed to be?” she said, looking at the spaceship. “You can’t tell me you think it looks like something else entirely.”

“That’s absurd! Starlight, I’m sure it may look like that right now, but we can’t start jumping to conclusions and assuming something like that! Certainly, it may look like that due to the strange writing, but I’m sure that can be explained,” Twilight cut in hotly. “And, and...! Just because all of those variables are unknown doesn’t mean that can be the only deduction we could make.” She trotted over to a crystal with a carving of Spike’s face on it. She tapped it once and it hummed. “Spike, could you please go and get me the language book? You should know which one I’m talking about.”

There was a scrabbling of claws and something falling. “Uh, yeah, sure thing, Twi. I’ll be there shortly!”

“Okay, I accept that it may just be a language I’ve never heard about, but how do you explain the design?” She shot a hoof out. “How can you explain the material that it’s made of? What about how it was built? Can you explain to me why it does what it does? I’m sure it’s meant to be something more than just a simple three-dimensional model of a spaceship.”

A brief spark of the alicorn’s horn ran an analysis spell over the tablet, picking out exactly what it consisted of. A book slid out of a nearby shelf, grasped in the Twilight’s aura. It flipped open and rapidly blazed through pages, briefly stopping at some before continuing onto others. As the last page turned, Twilight’s face took a frantic appearance. She flipped back before pausing somewhere in the middle, hovering on a couple words as her eyes flicked to compare with the device.

She slammed it shut and the alicorn wore a wordless look. “I… I can’t accept that. The metals might j-just be undiscovered! I won’t accept the theory of aliens until we have solid evidence, not… not these possibilities.”

“Twilight. Have you ever considered Cookie’s cutter option? Sometimes—”

A pattering of paws against a crystal floor interrupted her as Spike came down carrying a stack of books. He gasped and teetered for a moment before righting himself. “H-Here you go, Twilight! All volumes of the Comprehensive Guide to Equus’s Languages!”

The alicorn gawked and rushed over to help him. “Spike, how did you carry all these!?”

“With... hah... much difficulty!” he replied, out of breath. He sighed in relief as the weight was lifted from him and he bent over to catch his breath.

She looked them over. “The abridged version would’ve been fine, Spike.”

Annoyance flashed on his exhausted face. “Seriously? Ugh. Well, if you need me, I’m going to go lounge on the couch,” he responded, sluggishly stumbling up the steps. “...maybe pass out, too.”

Twilight, without missing a beat, cast another spell. All three books simultaneously lifted into the air, repeating the same thing she performed on the book prior. The reaction remained the same as well, copying the first one down to the flipping of a page.

It ended in a similar fashion with a frustrated shout from the princess of friendship. “It… I just… no! I refuse!” she screeched. “I am a mare of magic and science, and I vehemently refuse to believe that!”

“So what do we do?”

Twilight looked down. “Confront the only ponies who may know something about this. We need to pack up our findings and record what we have because we’re heading back to Canterlot. We need to report this to Celestia and Luna… and quite possibly Dilemma.”

I watched the world go by atop Princess Celestia’s back, staring back at the various maids and butlers who all sent concerned looks my way. My eyelids drooped and I yawned. I had mostly gotten over the prior event involving Princess Luna with some words of consolation from Princess Celestia, promising to make sure nothing else would happen to me. I took each word with great weight; I trusted her after all. So if she said I would be okay, I would be okay.

I rubbed at the itchy spot on my nose, hidden under gauze and bandages. After our uplifting chat, she opened up first aid kit stashed away in one of my room’s drawers and began tending to my wounds like Mom would. I told that to her and her smile grew wider. That made my smile grow, too.

We passed the first guard checkpoint.

I… I remember this. It had been a while since that day, but it was certainly a memorable one. Mostly because that had been the day I met my first friend, Maverick. We’re heading to the guard section? Why are we heading there?

Regiments of guards trotted past us, either in armor or not, running exercises and drills. Passing ponies saluted and continued with their day.

“C’mon stallions! Put your backs into it! My nan could do this all faster than you sorry lot!” A passing sergeant shouted. I watched them carry away logs while marching.

We stopped in front of another guard checkpoint, this time, there were far more than just a pair of guards, and instead of a pronged gate, it was a shimmering white opaque barrier. Heavily armored ponies patrolled the upper levels, all holding a mix of ranged weaponry. They noticed our arrival and everypony turned their attention towards us. I peeked out from behind her mane to gaze at the threatening entrance to the building.

“Princess Celestia, your sister is already inside. But, as I’m sure you already know, we must check both of you before you’re allowed to proceed,” a plume-topped guard said, approaching. “Protocol and all that. Shouldn’t take long.” I could hear armor shifting and several bolts being loaded into crossbows. I shrunk back reflexively. Just where are we going that requires this much security?

“I understand. I was the one who instated them, after all,” the princess replied with a layer of mirth. “You may begin.”

My vision was awash with a rainbow of colors, magic flowing all around me. Some of it remained fairly superficial, brushing against my fur, but some were far more invasive. Some pricked against my skin, while others sent chills down my spine. It ended with the final spell coaxing out the princess’s and my own primal magic, the solar-infused element crackling in the air.

The ball of raw magic dissipated shortly.

The ponies standing on the battlements eased their stances and lowered their weapons. There was some quiet scribbling of a pencil as our arrival was most likely recorded. “You’re cleared. Have a good day, Princess,” the same guard called out. “You as well, Dilemma.”

“I wish you the same, Brisk,” Princess Celestia said. “If you would, Sergeant.”

The barrier fizzled out and dropped. A steel gate lowered itself and we entered the interior. It was decorated sparsely with banners and barred windows. Gleaming eyes bobbed around in the dark, most likely the thestral guards roaming the compound. The aura that this place generated… I couldn’t help but shiver at how… dark everything felt. Maybe it was because of the choice of how the lighting fixtures were placed on the walls, spaced far apart and scantily available.

It looked like the kind of place they would send a bad pony. Are these the dungeons!? I thought the princess said she abolished them?

A thestral guard trotted up to us and saluted, before beckoning to follow. Not even bothering to wait or to see if we got the message, he slipped into the darkness, his form occasionally highlighted by the flames. The solar diarch was unfazed and kept a healthy walking pace behind the pony. We turned down a hallway and I tightened my grip as the princess was led down a flight of stairs.

I brought my head to see Princess Celestia stop in front of two lunar guards. They gave us an idle glance and pushed the door open for her to enter. As she stepped in, the doors immediately shut with a shuddering boom. Several glyphs started humming in unison, hovering above the door. Those were anti-magic runes of the highest order, with several other reinforcement runes… what was this place…?

“Ah, I think that’s your sister, your highness,” a voice I never expected to hear, said. “Is that you, your grace?”

“Yes, it is. I’ve brought the pony in question along as well.”

A unicorn stepped out of the only open door. Her helmet was off and I could clearly see the bored look of professionalism masking her emotions. I knew who it was. Cascade Barrier, with her swirling sea hairstyle, and aquamarine coat, stood right in front of us.

Better known as my mother.

My mom’s expression cracked immediately as she laid eyes on me or to be specific, my bandaged snout. She rushed over and plucked me off of Princess Celestia’s back—who looked amused and… sad, much to my confusion. She brought me close to her chest and hugged me tightly.

“Dilemma, are you alright!? What happened!?” she cried in alarm. “Is that why I’m here? To interrogate the pony who did this to you? I’ll show them Tartarus for this!”

“I’m okay, really,” I whispered, “It’s not a problem.”

“It’s my problem! Some pony out there hurt my child and I—”

“I did it, Guard Cascade,” Princess Luna interrupted. “I struck your daughter.”

Mom looked woefully conflicted and confused. “You were the one to hit Dilemma? But why…? Was it because this was a training incident? Why would Dilemma be here then? My line of work is not something foals should be eagerly prancing around, daughter or not.”

Princess Luna shook her head. “No. It was no incident. I did it on purpose.”

If her face was any confirmation, mom only continued to spiral into confusion. She couldn’t put two-and-two together as to why her liege would ever consider smacking a foal. “To discipline her? Why—”

“None of the sorts,” the lunar diarch declared. “Interrogator Cascade, meet your interrogatee. I hope you can remain collected and professional during the session.”

“I’m… being interrogated…?” I asked aloud, eyes wide. “...by Mom…?”

“I’m interrogating my daughter!? What for!?” she yelled. “Excuse my language your highness, but this is my daughter we’re speaking about! This is a tier two interrogation you’ve asked me to conduct on a foal! What could she have done to warrant something like this?”

“I asked myself such a thing,” Princess Celestia said. Princess Luna sent her a harsh glare but said nothing in response.

The dark alicorn turned back to face my mother and I. “And conduct a tier two interrogation you shall. My orders are final and this is no joke,” she said, coated with an air of finality. “We’ll be joining you in the room to ensure Valia tries nothing.”

“Valia?” Mom asked.

“Something I hope will be explained shortly, either by myself… or your daughter.” Princess Luna straightened out her regalia. “I trust everything has already been prepared?”

“Yes,” Mom replied through gritted teeth.

“Then we may begin,” she said. “Please step inside the interrogation room.”

Mom tugged on my mane as lightly as she could. “C’mon. I’ll… I’ll try to be fair. Whatever you did to get yourself here…”

“It’s okay, Mom. I know you won’t r-really mean all this,” I said, trying to reassure her. She gave me a kiss on the forehead instead of saying anything, however.

The second door was opened and I was situated on an uncomfortable steel chair, placed in front of a wide, spotless steel desk. Three identical boxes had already been laid on the table, each one emanating a different magical signature. Mom took a seat directly in front of me, while both of the princesses chose to sit on both of her flanks.

It made for a very intimidating atmosphere as I was stared down by three different ponies.

Mom reached under the desk and pulled out several items. I could feel my forehooves forcefully brought onto the top of my desk by magic. They were laid straight out and a pair of cuffs locked them into place. I winced out how tight they felt. Then something slipped itself on my horn.

I cringed in pain as my flow of magic was abruptly cut off. I coughed and choked on the air as the shock pulsed throughout my body. I nearly collapsed and slammed my head onto the table, but that most likely didn’t happen due to how I was sitting. I struggled to even look up. I gasped as another opaque barrier cut across the room, dividing the space between us. A small window remained open for me to see them.

“At three-twenty-six PM, the interrogation has begun, conducted by Interrogator Cascade Barrier, supported by Princesses Celestia and Luna, against Sol Dilemma for an unknown crime,” Mom droned out, but in her eyes, I could see conflict warring within her. “By accordance of protocol five-eight-one, we are required to ask preliminary questions to ensure all equipment is in working order.”

Princess Luna cleared her throat. “First question, what is your name?”

“S-Sol Dilemma…” I managed.

I heard a soft click and glow of three green lights. The princess scowled.

“How old are you?”

“F-Five, your highness.”

Click, green lights.

“What species are you?”

“Uh-uhm, p-pony…” I paused to think. “Unicorn.”

Click, green lights.

“Are these defective?”

Mom shook her head. “I had them swapped out for new crystals and checked the enchantments.”

Click, green lights.

“Very well,” she muttered, “we can start the actual interrogation.” The princess slid Mom a stack of papers. It was quiet as her eyes darted across the papers. I could hear the paper being flipped as she finished reading. This repeated until she looked back up.

“Each and every question asked is monitored by a lie-detection system. Answer truthfully. In the case the system performs inadequately, I am trained sufficiently to act in its place.” She tapped the paper stack on the desk and met my gaze. “What does the name, ‘Valia Nore,’ mean to you?”

“It’s… It’s a hyoo-man…”

Whir, yellow lights.

“Unsatisfactory answer. You’re hiding something,” Mom pressed.

I gulped. The princesses already know. Mom might as well. But… should I really? I promised to myself that this would be my burden and my burden alone. However… everything is coming apart at the seams. What do I have to lose? “Uh-uhm… s-so… for the past two months, I’ve been having dreams. It started ever since my first outburst. Each dream I have… it’s about this hyoo-man named Valia,” I said with difficulty. “E-Each one doesn’t really seem to be connected in any way aside from sharing the fact they all center around the hyoo-man. It-It’s sort of like reading a b-book, except somepony flipped all the pages and chapters around.”

Click, green lights. “...”

“They’re always centered around her. No other hyoo-man. S-Some of them a-are really scary,” I said, a memory of gore and viscera surfacing to my head. “Th-They can be really graphic. It-It’s sort of why I’m hesitant to do certain things now. I don’t want the Hive to come crawling out of the shadows to… to get me. S-So really, I’m much more scared when I’m awake. Since I can’t h-have nightmares anyway.”

Click, green lights. “So—”

“A-And, they happen each and every night, no matter what I do. I even t-took advice from Princess L-Luna’s books to try some methods to get rid of them… but those d-didn’t work either,” I whispered. “I wake up with painful headaches that make my mornings miserable a-and every time Mom asks about the headaches I lie to her about it and say it’s just the after effects of the surge and I keep telling myself that I don’t have to worry Mom about it and… and… because it’s my problem I have to keep it to myself… and—”

I felt my head tucked into a bone-crushing hug as I descended into a sobbing mess.

Click, green lights.

“Sh-sh-sh, Mommy’s here,” she calmly said. “Just let it out.”

So I did.

I cried my heart out.

I cried until it hurt.

All while Mom held me close.

Soon enough, I had stopped and just let her hold me. It was quiet now, nopony dared to breathe.

“Why?” Mom asked, breaking the silence.

“W-Why what?”

“Why did you say it was your problem? Why did decide that you would face this by yourself?”

“I… I was left with it… and I’ve gotta sh-shoulder it all on my own… that’s what you always say… at least.”

Click, green lights.

Mom snorted. “That’s not what I meant. This is something else entirely.” She poked me in the ribs. “You’re just five years old. No filly should ever have to carry the burden of something this bad. If you think I would disown you because you’re experiencing these things without reprieve, you’re still far too immature to understand. But what I am is angry.”

I looked away.

“I’m your mother, and I’ll be here to help you every step of the way. I’m an adult. I can’t claim that I know everything, but I know much more than you do in real-life experience.” She stroked my head. “And I’ll be here to protect you. Scary invasive nightmare dreams or not.”

Click, green lights.

“So, Luna, is that enough for you?” Celestia asked, her eyes flicking very briefly to her sister. “I checked everything, just so you know. Everything here is working in perfect condition and there were no defensive spells to tamper with any of the devices.”

“...”

“Luna?” Celestia tried again. She moved to completely face her now. The diarch lowered her head level with her sister’s own. She examined her features. The alicorn in question looked... lost.

Rather, aloof, seemed to be the better word for it. Reflected so clearly in her eyes, she could see the gears turning in her sister’s head as she worked to understand something. Regret was most likely bubbling its way up into the surface of her mind, gnawing so heavily on something within her. Gnawing at the mistake she made...

Teasing her right now would appear to be in bad taste.

Celestia sighed. It’s all damage control now. She had allowed herself to make such a mess of things, barely before she and Dilemma could even form a proper bond as mentor and mentee. She took a knife and drove it taught between them. Her actions hadn’t been so bad, however, her student—if she still wished to call herself that after today’s events—would never look at her the same way again. The foal would most likely remember her participation... or lack thereof during this... traumatic event.

She could only imagine what Dilemma must’ve been thinking as she towered over the foal, almost as if she was judging her soul to allow ascension into the fields of Elysium.

The alicorn was not entirely in the right mind during so, she realized that much, but, there was no denying she should’ve been on guard. She had been alive longer than most modern civilizations and confronted scenarios that numbered in the tens of thousands! I should’ve realized when the fabric had been pulled and the ice in my heart had begun flowing. Celestia shook her head. Somehow, she had spectacularly failed, worse than her performance with Sunset.

She befouled what was supposed to be an innocent relationship.

It had already been too late to have stopped Luna from abusing the poor filly, as she had only shaken the fear once she realized genuine tears began flowing... but to let the interrogation continue without intervention? How foalishly wrong and dense could she have been? Immensly, it seems.

And with that, her last thought petered off. It was unnervingly quiet now, aside from the rise and fall of their breaths. She closed her eyes.

There happened to be quite a bit of could, should and would have in her thoughts. The diarch t’sked. One cannot traverse an ocean merely by glaring at its waters.

How was she to fix this...?

“Princess Celestia, Princess Sparkle has arrived and is requesting to see you. She’s being quite adamant about it, despite our claims that you are quite preoccupied. Mages Sunset Shimmer and Starlight Glimmer have accompanied her as well,” a voice reported over a spell-crystal. “I’m not sure what to do. I can’t exactly turn her away like I would a noble.”

Strange. What could Twilight want? “Let her in. Escort her party to us. If she has made her way from Ponyville to speak to us face-to-face, then it must be important. Twilight Sparkle is not one to take things of great magnitude lightly.”

“Very well,” the voice answered. “Let ‘er in! Get them an escort to interrogation block A!”

It wasn’t long until the doors began unlocking and three mares stepped in, confused as to why they had to come here. Starlight looked the most upset as her ears flicked and her tail was taut. Behind them was a cart full of neatly stacked briefcases and boxes arranged to fit perfectly into the grooves.

As they moved and pushed their belongings in, the exit slammed closed. Each of the ponies, well versed in magic, stared warily at the glyphs.

“P—er, Celestia… what are we doing in an interrogation cell?” She looked to the lunar diarch sitting on her haunches. “An interrogation cell that has both ruling princesses present?”

“We were conducting what Luna considered something very important, although recent events have proven that belief otherwise,” she informed her. “We were just finishing up.”

“Oh, well I hope we didn’t cause any trouble.”

“No, you did not.” Celestia raised a brow as she stared at their cargo. “Although, Twilight, may I ask what brings you here so urgently… with such things?”

“Oh, uh, you see,” she said, pulling out a tablet, “We found this in the crystal Dilemma had given us to crack.” She turned it on and the display generated the holographic image. “We were wondering if you had any clues of an abandoned or long forgotten race that could’ve achieved technological advancement of this scale. Considering you and Luna have been around for quite some time, I hoped you had seen something in your long life to help us out. We even brought our research for you to analyze.” She sheepishly turned to look at it. “We tried to condense it as much as possible, haha…”

Luna stared, momentarily breaking her statuesque appearance, before returning back to eagerly staring at the floor. Celestia sent her a pitying look, and decidedly took up the responsibility of observing the strange, quite possibly alien artifact. She rotated it and scrutinized each detail before moving away.

Eventually, the alicorn shook her head. “No, I cannot remember anything in regards to this. A race that could pull off something such as that? I have never met any in my travels. This kind of thing may be beyond what Equus could accomplish… and from what I have witnessed today, I am certainly far more open to things than I have been ever before.”

The lunar diarch tilted her head but still remained silent. She seemingly looked worse off than from before.

“Did you say you received this from Dilemma? She tasked you three with opening a crystal?” Celestia asked.

Starlight nodded. “Yes. I believe Twilight took it out of scientific curiosity and challenge. Safe to say it was far more a challenge than anticipated.”

“A new puzzle piece reveals itself and several more slots open up…” Celestia muttered.

At that moment, a certain pair of unicorns chose to leave, Cascade trotted out of the interrogation room with Dilemma on her back. “She’s awfully tired, been through a lot today it seems. I’d like to tuck her in if that isn’t a big deal. And I’m expecting an apology, your Highness. Even you’re not above smacking foals so hard you break their noses.” The filly atop her back yawned. The guard noticed the small congregation and stammered. “Er, ah, your highness! And, uh, friends.”

From the corner of her eye, she could see her sister slinking away, shadows slowly wrapping around her form as Luna moved into a vacant room. She watched as her sister settled into the embrace of the darkness, all left of her presence being a pair of eyes. Dilemma and Cascade never noticed the sudden absence, however, two of the three newcomers had. Her most recent ex-student was not one of them.

“Oh, there’s no need to bow, guard! I don’t really care for frivolities like that,” Twilight spoke, waving her hoof.

Cascade bowed despite that. “Well, sorry, I do. Part of my job and all that.”

Sunset raised her hoof in the air. “Are we just going to ignore that she mentioned that Princess Luna assaulted a foal?” Starlight shrugged and looked to the offender. Even shrouded, Celestia could see her visibly wilt as she fell under both of the mare’s gazes. It’s getting to her more than I thought it would.

Twilight frowned. “I suppose I can’t stop you. Anyway… wait. Is that Dilemma?”

“Yes?” Cascade questioned. The filly peeked her head out. The three friends eyed the injury and the stained bandages.

“Oh, P-Princess Twilight! H-Hello!” she exclaimed. “What are you doing here?”

“Actually, my friends and I came here to talk with the other princesses, but I suppose this involves you too. Princess Celestia?”

The alicorn snapped out of her thoughts. “Oh, yes, here.”

The princesses exchanged the device and hoofed it to Dilemma for her to examine.

“This is what we found inside that crystal of yours,” Twilight said. “I never really intended to show you since… well, please don’t be offended, but I didn’t think you could help with our investigation considering this was from when you were barely an hour old. But it looks like we hit a dead end and you’re here already, so we might as well just show you.” She sighed and her posture slumped. “I honestly don’t want to accept what Starlight offered as a theory, but…”

The filly gasped. Dilemma gingerly grabbed the object in her hooves and stared at it. She began whispering things as she looked at the screen and the text written on the sides. She ran it along her foreleg to feel for the material. “This… I know what this is!”

Every pony aside from her looked surprised at what she had just announced. None more than the research trio. “You do!?”

“Y-Yeah. I saw it in one of my dreams. Valia was using it once.” She pointed to the “bottom” portion of the console. “This right here says ‘SOL DILEMMA CONTROL PAD,’ and the flashing text says, ‘TRACKING BEACON ENGAGED.’”

Sunset blinked. “You’re a robot?”

Chapter 1 - "Long way from Home"

Sol Dilemma - Chapter 1

“Long way from Home”

I’ve always wondered about my past.

Ever since my parents revealed what little they knew about my brief history on this world, it’s had a profound effect on my life. Mostly on the fact how it haunts my every waking moment—a specter hanging on the fringes of my vision.

I’ve gone great lengths to properly conceal my outward feeling on the subject. It turns out I can be impulsive, and my best bet was to… ignore the situation. Place it on the backburner, as someponies would say. For the sake of my parents, they did not need to know. This was a burden I decided, I would be carrying alone. An invisible pressure that belonged to me, and until I wiped the dust and grime covering the window to my history, would stay until the day I died.

Okay, a little dramatically overbearing, but that’s certainly what I felt.

And I wasn’t really sure whether or not my developing five-year-old psyche was up to the challenge. Nopony should ever have to bear the weight of something of this magnitude, let alone a foal who had yet to even go to school. Yet here I was, Dreading over the facts that I would never see my birth parents, my would-be home, or understand why I was orphaned in the first place.

Believe me, it's not like they didn't try, but the investigators didn't exactly put too much value in me anyways. It was a quick sweep of the available familial records and they were done.

Did it sting when I found out how little effort they put in? Yup.

Did I think they should've tried harder? Definitely!

Could they have actually done what I was thinking of? Tartarus, no.

I may be a foal, but I was far from uneducated and ignorant. I wouldn’t hold it against the ponies leading the investigations that the choice of giving up would be far easier.

My case was neigh-unsolvable. A recently birthed foal left in the flaming wreckage of what my rescuers recounted as a downed airship, with no identifiable bodies or clues that could give the slightest hint to my enigmatic history. I had no traceable DNA or MI records to connect to any equestrian relatives, and nopony claimed me as immediate family either. Trying to contact foreign countries about me seemed too much of a hassle, so that option went out the window pretty quickly.

The cruelest thing about the entire fiasco was my name. The rescuers thought it would be paying homage to my possibly deceased parents—since nopony in their right mind would abandon a barely day old foal—so after identifying the only thing they could in the crash, I was dubbed Sol Dilemma.

But…! After long and hard sessions of mental debate, I find I don't really blame them. I mean, I get a constant reminder of my past anytime anypony uses my name. Granted, the name was admittedly really cool, and I wasn't fazed too much by it. So… that's a win, I guess? I could still be bitter about what had happened, though. The name was pretty fitting too. It was my “sole” dilemma.

And it wasn't like I was destined to be left to spend my foalhood in an orphanage. After I was put up for adoption, one of the guardsmares who had custody of me during the short investigation adopted me faster than the Wonderbolts could do the Stormhead Circuit. She was absolutely smitten by me!

Well… that’s what she likes to tell me anyways. Mom always made time to take care of me and give the appropriate amounts of attention and love a growing filly would need. She sat by my bed while she regaled me with stories from her line of work, both the silly and the serious. Her voice was there to calm and place me to rest, the gentle tone and melody lulled me to sleep. Her concern and care were genuine to its core.

Her husband—my father—found it difficult to resist my foal-like wiles, and succumbed.

His job always allowed more leniency and flexibility, so whenever mother couldn’t make it, he made sure to remind me that I was his daughter, despite the lack of blood relations. Some bonds just happened to be that strong. We would play games, he would read and teach me many different things, often focusing on skills that could be applied to everyday life. He said that his father, a great stallion, acted as his guiding light, a stable rock in the storm, and he planned to follow in his hoofsteps.

And I most certainly returned their feelings, the same, powerful love a family shared. It was unconditional, they were the ones who held the most importance in my life.

So of course, fate had decided that happiness was not meant to last. One fateful evening, a conversation had escalated into an interrogation about my past, and once I was given that knowledge, it shook something loose inside me.

A nagging voice in the back of my head repeated it’s mantra; “Until you've found your kin, and you find your closure, they will never truly be your parents…”

Such a cruel and vicious line of thought.

So here I was, left with my burden. A weight I chose to foolishly bear alone.

…

My dad likes to think I'm an alien foal who fell from the stars and crashed here.

Sometimes I like to think that too because it makes everything so much simpler. To think that fate has something waiting for me, hidden in the shadows of space. That there is life beyond the confines of the planet, free-thinking, and sentient beings...

Hmph. That’s just foalish thought.

Everyponyknows aliens are just stories.

I blinked my eyes rapidly before sitting upright. Stretching my limbs, I unraveled myself and hopped from the bed to lightly part the curtains. Behind them revealed the dark blue sky, tinted ever so lightly by the peeking sun. I snorted. Turning around, I lazily trotted back and jumped into my resting place. Pulling the covers over my head, I grumbled as I tossed and turned, attempting to go back to sleep. Why can’t I ever wake up when it’s actually morning?

I let out a huff of frustration and slumped against the pillow. My head shifted to the side and my eyes landed on the small chest tucked away in the corner. I shook my head side-to-side as I contemplated my many attempts to understand the objects held within. I had the time to go and look at it. Might as well try again. I sighed and rolled off the bed, taking my blanket with me. With a soft “WUMPH!”, I wriggled my way out of my fluffy cocoon, balled up the fabric, and with a jerk of my head, tossed it back onto the bed. Hehe, that rhymed.

I walked over to the chest and placed my horn against the lock. The runes glowed a bright yellow before they transitioned to a soft green, and an audible click echoed through the room. Pushing the lid open, I carefully levitated the three items out of my box. These three objects were given to me shortly after my parents told me about my puzzling past, and they believed I deserved to have the remnants—the last remaining connections—to it. My rescuers recovered them from the crash and gave them to my mother. Mom told me how they decided it was best that she’d kept it from her superiors, lest I never get the chance to see them again.

And, I’m also pretty sure they felt terrible, just like me, after our shouting match a couple days prior. So I guess they wanted to reassure themselves, and quite possibly me, that all was fine and our trust was still there.Win-win for all of us, I guess. Although it seems I benefit the most from the exchange.

As I held all three in my magical grip, I levitated the objects of interest closer to me. The first two were glowing dodecahedrons with a smaller dodecahedron held in its core by a… web of some sorts. Both were neigh-identical, save for the obvious color difference. One glowed a brilliant yellow, shimmering like the sun itself. The other was a calm, white light, shining like Luna’s moon. It was obvious physical observation was moot. They looked the same, had no imperfections on their structures, weighed the same, hay, if it wasn’t for the two colors I could’ve easily mistaken one for the other.

What purpose did they serve? Were they simply more than valuable gems, with sizes and cuts that made them impossible and coveted? Maybe a family heirloom? Or perhaps, a secret power source for a weapon that could end the world!? I was at a roadblock, ending at the same questions and theoretical conclusions, every, single, time.

Okay. Maybe except that last one. Hehe.

With nopony to actually confirm it with, all they did was sit, look pretty, and glow. They may as well be fancy looking night-lights. But with a connection to my past, they were far too important for me to just leave them alone in the open.

Interestingly enough, the two also happened to hold a level of familiarity and out flowed a feeling I couldn’t properly describe. It was filled with something, that I was sure of. For now, I was going to refer to the stuff filling the shapes as, “magic, but not magic”.

So by that conclusion, if it could be filled, then it had to have been open at some point, and if it had been open, there was some way to extract whatever was inside. This was just like a vault! Except, the vault has no doors, and is completely impenetrable. Also, somepony threw away the key.

The more I tried to understand the two, the longer they continued to baffle me.

The third was confusing in its own right.

It had no obvious physical connection with the first two, being made out of an entirely different material, and shaped like a flattened donut. Kind of like those records I see that DJ use! Except, it still happened to retain some level of spherical… rotundness.

Actually, it’s more like a frisbee than a record, now that I really think about it. Spinning it around, it was obvious to tell which side was meant to face down. The top side had ridges and a shiny-camera lens in the middle. The bottom half was completely flat, smooth, even. There were small nubs made of rubber, set in a triangle pattern that was probably there to ensure friction and prevent sliding.

I thought that was pretty genius.

Beside my praise for the use of rubber, my biggest problem was figuring out how to do anything with it. There was no obvious user interface like the newer cameras they were coming out with. The surface was void of any buttons, and I already attempted pressing anything that looked like a button. I wondered if it—

BOOOOOOOOMMMM!!!!!!!!!!!!

My heart leaped out of my chest and my weak concentration on the frisbee-record shattered. I instinctively moved one of my hooves over my chest and took deep breaths, before remembering what I lost grip of. With my butter-hooves, I fumbled the object, juggling it in an intense game to keep it off the floor.

With a grunt, I landed belly first on my carpet, with the frisbee-record grasped in my hoof, held precariously on its side. I took a deep breath and gave myself a little shake. What in Celestia’s multi-colored mane caused that? I levitated the…

Discus…

Yeah! Discus, next to my other treasures.

Trotting back to the curtains, I forced them apart with my forehooves to see the sun halfway past the horizon, and the dying effects of a sonic rainboom. I stared mesmerized by the sight. There was only one known pony who could pull off something of that magnitude!

“I remember when that mare first broke the speed barrier. She scared the entire population of Canterlot, I swear!” somepony chuckled from the doorway. I flinched and spun around. A coat that rivaled the clearest sea and a poofy sea-foam mane leaned against my door frame. Not my mother—stop that! S… She’s my mom, and I don’t have to have a blood relation for her to love me.

I put on the best fake smile I could. “Morning, mom! Did the rainboom wake you up too?”

Mom smiled and trotted over. She nuzzled the side of my face, and I returned her gesture of affection for the sake of keeping appearances, “Good morning, my little dilemma. And yup. Now that I’m awake-awake, I’ll get started on breakfast. What’d you think that little tummy of yours wants?”

“Hmmm… pancakes!” I cheerfully replied. At least I didn’t have to fake my smile there.

“Pancakes it is then! Blueberry or chocolate?” she asked, already halfway to the door.

I bit the bottom of my lip. “Uhm, blueberry!”

“Okay. It should be ready in half an hour, freshen up and be ready by then, alright?”

I looked back at the spot where the rainbow burst had originated. “Mom?”

She stopped, head turning towards me. “Yes, hun? Did you need something?”

“I… I just wanted to ask if you know why” – I shifted to point at the rainboom – “that happened, so early in the morning? W-Well, y’know, because you’re a guardsmare, and stuff!”

Mom stood still, and an almost unnerving silence seeped in. “Well… You know that mare; Rainbow Dash, always stubborn and sometimes foalish. It shouldn’t be anything to worry about—it should be nothing to worry about. Just…”

I watched her trail off, shaking her head and walking away. Her hushed voice made things hard to hear, but I could make out, “Check with—” and, “Speak to later—” out of her mumbles.

As I entered the bathroom, I wondered. Maybe if I showed it to my friends, maybe they could help? I splashed some water on my face, as I brushed my mane, tail, and teeth, I thought about the consequences of showing them. Which, there were almost none, aside from the fact they could accidentally break it. Perhaps a new set of eyes would be good!

In a happy mood, I trotted back into my room and moved towards the table. Pulling the chair out from the desk, I leaped up and sat down, eyeing the discus. There had to be some way to use it. At the very least…

I picked it up with my hoof and brushed the side with my other, free hoof. I rotated it in my grip, scrutinizing each and every detail. Maybe if I could…

I noticed the slight depression on the side.

With an eagerness I didn’t know I had, I pressed it. The plating pushed itself in, and I waited for something to happen. I laid onto the tabletop and rested my muzzle flat against the surface. Seconds went by and nothing happened. Confused, I picked it up again, attempted the same process. I tried this three more times before setting it down. What did I do wrong? What was I doing wrong? Did I have to hold it down or something? Why was this so confusing!?

I slammed my hooves onto the table (with zero effect, thanks to my amazing foal-strength), and my nostrils flared in anger. I jabbed my hoof at the side of the discus and sent it sliding across the top of my desk. Realizing the stupid mistake, I reached out and grasped the area where the button was. Just like last time, the button pushed itself in and did nothing. I yelped in surprise as I thought I lost my grip.

Except I didn’t. The spot where I pressed into previously, partially slid counter-clockwise into the device. I gasped quietly, startled by my discovery. I recentered the discus and stared at the opening I managed to create. Carefully hidden behind the shielding, was the set of buttons I had been looking for.

A smile crept onto my muzzle. Wedging the tip of my hoof into the opening, I followed the pattern of how it opened and pushed it back completely. I was rewarded with the shield clicking into place.

With foal-like wonder, I began my excursion. Holding the discus with my magic, I looked at the buttons. There were three in total, a funny looking almost-circle with a line going down the middle, and two hay dog reminiscent buttons horizontally placed side-by-side. I pressed the circle one first.

I sat patiently waiting, staring at the—

Hah! I gasped, nearly dropping the discus back to the ground. The discus projected a silhouette of a mare, striped with vertical and horizontal lines. Slowly, color began to move up, until I could tell the mare’s coat color.

Charcoal gray. Just like mine!

Her mane and tail flashed into existence, coming to rest as it flowed down her head. I grabbed a lock of my own mane and stared at the startling resemblance. Both of us shared the same two-tone shade of fiery-orange I had known all my life. I watched mesmerized as the details were added in. The lifeless gray eyes transformed into the embodiment of an inferno, as blazing orange found its way into the irises.

I watched as an invisible breeze moved her mane, and she stood ever confident. She looked like me! Except… she didn’t. The way she held herself spoke volumes, a certain fire burned behind her gaze, and an aura that demanded respect hung around her. Plus she’s also an adult and taller than me.

Just… who was this pony? My sister? My aunt? My… mother?

I reached out with a hoof to touch the image before me. I flinched and snapped it back as the image hazed and lost coherency. The image cleared up, and instead of her bare coat, she now donned a gray, almost black, robe, with elegant gold embroidery stitched across it. The flowing design looked like somepony captured the essence of a dying fire, the golden wisps of smoke curling along the edges of the garment.

The clasp above her chest held a beautiful gemstone, glowing with the radiance of a new dawn. Similar stones rested in the wings that hung from her back. Those three sets of wings stood at attention, set in a way that they did not hinder their wearer, but still retained a stylish look. Two chains held snug against her flank, and attached to one of them was a book with a spiked sun for a cover.

She wore a matching quartet of greaves, all carved with the same design. Shortly after, a white and gold helmet materialized over her head. The fins were swept back and then moved to point outwards. A black visor encompassed the rest of her face and muzzle.

In short, her attire was breathtaking.

And I absolutely just had to show my parents this mystery pony.

Holding the discus snug in my magical grip, I galloped through the hallway and down the stairs, all without missing a beat. The image flickered ever so slightly as the wind whipped around it. I carefully tucked it away in my mane, I wanted to surprise both of my parents.

“Dilemma! Food’s—Oh! You're here already.” Mom paused as I trotted to the dining table. She flipped the last of the pancakes onto the plate with her magic and brought the stack to the middle of the table. “Breakfast is served!”

As a growing pony with a ravenous appetite, I levitated half of the stack onto my own plate. As I prepared to drown the food in a flood of syrupy goodness, an aquamarine hoof calmly pressed down on the bottle. I looked up from my meal to stare at an unamused gaze.

“Dilemma, what did I say about food portions?”

In my head, the voice whispered once more. You’re not my real mom. You’re not the boss of m—stopitstopitstopit.I whipped my head away to hide my look of hurt and anger. Not to look weird, I quickly belted, “Only grab what you can reasonably finish.”

“Mhm. Take things slow, one at a time. Once you finish the first one, you can grab another if you're still feeling hungry.”

Agonizingly, I let Mom take the plate as she grabbed the two other pancakes and transferred them to her own, creating a stack that towered over my previous one. Mom caught my glare as she drizzled the syrup above her pancakes.

I looked up and down incredulously, “That’s not fair! Why do you get to have all those pancakes, while I only get one!?”

“It’s because mommy is a grown-up mare who needs all the carbs she can get. Guarding is very energy intensive, hun,” she said, shoveling a whole forkful of the fluffy goodness into her snout.

I mumbled quietly and focused on my own food. As I diced up the pancake into bite-sized pieces, I could hear the sound of hooves trotting along the staircase. I watched as a sandy-colored coat and a neatly-combed dark brown mane half-trot, half-fluttered on the trip down. Secured tightly to his side was a peach saddlebag. Stitched on its front is a yellow thunderbolt with a pair of feathery white wings; the symbol of the Wonderbolts.

“Is that breakfast?” the pegasus calls out.

Mother, with her mouth full, replies with a muffled “mhm”. I stare at my father, a look of fierce contemplation on his face.

“Ah, buck it, I’ll—” he grunted as his snout was smacked from the underside by mother’s hoof. Idiot. How can this be my father? I frowned at the voice’s thought. I watched as he was sent reeling back from the blow, rubbing the spot where the initial strike made contact. “Right. Right. No swearing around the foals—Gotcha.”

“Remember next time, please? I know she’s smart for her age, but she’s still a growing foal.”

He harrumphed, pulling up a chair with a plate in tow, “It’s just crazy y’know? Dilemma here can hold an adult conversation better than most ponies I know! It’s easy to forget to treat her like a baby.”

I looked up every now and then as my parents idly conversed about their morning. At least, I think they were talking about their morning. I was paying most of my attention to finishing the rapidly disintegrating pancake sitting in front of me, and the rest to how I would introduce my mystery mare.

There didn't need to be any theatrics, just a simple, “follow me, and I'll show you” and it would be done and over.

But why did I feel hesitation? Why did my resolve falter? I was just showing them some random pony right? Not random. Somepony so incredibly important to my past. Gulping down the remains of my first serving, I decided to tune in on their chat.

“—so that’s why I’m being called in for today. It’s worrying, I know,” said Dad, twirling the utensil in his hoof. Oh. I… just missed something super important, didn’t I? “Well. I need to be heading out now if I want to make it to the HQ in time.”

My snout still facing the plate, my eyes trailed to Mom. Her eyes were full of worry, and her mouth curled into a frown. Just what did they talk about to get Mom riled up like that? Wait, Dad’s leaving?

I still have to show them the image! I shot up in my chair. “W-Wait! I need to show both of you something important!”

Dad didn’t even spare a glance as he moved piles of papers and books into his saddlebags. “Can it wait, Dilemma? Daddy’s really busy and needs to leave right now if he wants to make it to the meeting on time.”

The voice attempted to say something, but I quickly flattened its generically negative response. I stammered out, “B-But this is really important! Can’t you just stay a little bit longer? I promise it’ll be quick!”

I gave him the best puppy-dog impression I could muster. Widen those eyes, tremble that lower lip, and cock that head. It was an age-old tactic that melted the iron-resolve of even the most withdrawn pony. Luckily for me, my father had neither, and his defense crumpled like tissue paper against a rampaging hydra.

“I… I suppose I do have time. But, hah –” he shot a “please help me” look to Mom, who shook her head “– it has to be quick, alright?”

I nodded vigorously and led him to the living room. I repeated the exact same process to Mom, who still had a mouthful of half-chewed pancake, wearing a peeved expression. I guess Mom just really likes eating. As Mom sat down next to Dad, I pulled out the discus. The displayed image flickered back to life, and the three-dimensional model glowed once more. This time, it appeared to be simply wearing the robes sans helmet.

Mom blinked, leaning in. “Dilemma, was that one of the trinkets I gave to you?” I nodded. “This… who is this?”

Dad didn't know what to say, judging from his scrunched facial expression, trying to process what was going on. His eyes darted between me and the tiny pony model standing on the coffee table. “I’d hazard a guess and say this pony would be close family… considering how similar she looks to Dilemma…” He bit his bottom lip and shook his head. “Sweet Celestia… this really is important.” Dad crossed his eyes for a moment, tapping a hoof to his chin. “I've been using ‘really’ a lot.”

Mom had gotten up, lying near the table’s edge. She quietly rotated the discus in her magic, examining both the object and the model, which flickered ever so slightly. “In all my years that I've studied both ancient and modern magical orders, I've… I’ve never seen anything like this before.”

Dad blinked, as Mom got up. He waved a hoof in the air to gesture, “Go on…”.

“No unicorn order has ever constructed robes like this, and the quality of the design is… nothing short of immaculate perfection. I… this… just…” she said, shaking her head in denial. “All this does is answers some questions, while creating a hundred more.”

“H-How are you sure it's a magical order? What if it's just a lone sorceress?” I asked.

“That could be a possibility. But I have a gut feeling that this mare was a battle mage. A pony of the highest caliber, who led others into situations with impossible outcomes… and came out victorious,” Mom said, trotting over to a bookshelf. “You can tell by the way she holds herself, and that fiery look in her eyes. But, still, with all of that, it perplexes me. This mare looks like somepony who would’ve left their mark on history.”

She pulled out a couple of old looking tomes, ranging from thin to “bigger than my head”. She lifted the discus in her magical grip, and with a flash of her cyan magic, replicated a still replica of the discus and the mare.

“Well, revelations aside, I’ll see you all later. I think Spitfire will understand that I had a…” he glanced at me, sharing a soft smile, “…family emergency. Take care, my little dilemma.”

And with that, he gave me a kiss on the forehead, ruffled my mane and trotted out the door. We both watched as the door clicked shut behind him. Mom turned back to the books.

Mom had gone full analysis mode, muttering thaumic jargon under her breath. I watched in curiosity as she completely reorganized the bookshelf in search of… whatever she needed. She sent a look my way, before returning to her work. “Dilemma, I’ve created a copy of the image so you can take… whatever this is back. I'll be in my study looking through some things, alright?”

She gently placed the discus back down onto the table before trotting upstairs, her stack following close behind. I snatched the discus and held it in my hoof. I sighed, pressing the circle with a line coming out of it, the glow faded and the mare vanished in a flicker of blue lines. I stuffed it back into my mane. I didn’t know that the discus would have such a profound effect on Mom. I briefly wondered “why?” and absentmindedly playing with my bangs. Does she think she’s responsible for finding my parents now that she has this clue?

The voice whispered a silent, “yes”.

I shook my head and snorted. Mom could do whatever she wanted, and if she wanted to help find my birth-parents I wouldn’t object. I paused. But if she does start wearing herself ragged… I’ll stop her. She may not be my biological parent… but… she’s…

There was a rapid series of knocks at the door. I blinked myself out of my stupor and eagerly trotted to the door. There was only one pony in all of Canterlot who would dare knock like that.

I carefully cracked the door open. I seriously did not want to be on the receiving end of another bone-crushing hug from Maverick. She may still just be a young filly like me, a pegasus—and definitely not an earth pony in disguise—but she had an absurd level of all-around body strength.

I spied another eye from the crack in the door, a glittery silver iris staring back.

“Hi, Dilemma! I came by today to see if you wanted to go to the park… Do you?”

I bit the right side of my lip and thought about it. I had a breakthrough today with one of the items today, and I felt like I was going to be on a roll! But then Maverick had personally come over to invite me to go… and Mom always encouraged me to go out more, since she vehemently agreed that exercise was good for the body. Plus, I did say I wanted another opinion with my stuff. Wait, maybe I could…

“Hey, Dilemma? You’re doin’ the ‘deep-thinking’ stuff again,” she said as she poked me through the crack. “You told me to stop you whenever you did that. So, uh… stop!”

I looked away blushing. I can't believe I just went off on a tangent there. “Yes, sorry, didn't mean to do that.”

“S’ kay! That's what makes you special, cuz’ you're so smart and stuff! But I still want to know if you want to go!” she replied, nudging her tiny snout in between the space. “If you don't want to go, that's okay. Big brother always says reading is important because that's where all the smart-pony stuff is. If you want to be a smart-pony, that's cool!”

“N-No! I’d love to go. I just need to look at some stuff. Before we go, that is!” I quickly blurted out. “Do you want to come in? I won't be long.”

“O-K!” Maverick half-shouted. I flinched back in surprise. I unlatched the chain lock and pulled the door open. Oh no, wait… I was then immediately tackled by a gray blur. I wheezed as the air was literally squeezed out of me by the world’s strongest filly. Ten seconds of torture drawled on, and she released her vice-grip.

I collapsed to the floor, gasping for air. Maverick trotted into the living room like her strength was no big deal. It’s… it’s probably normal for her, isn't it? I wonder if there was a prominent earth pony in her heritage? “F-Feel free… to… h-hah… make yourself com-comfortable…!”

I struggled to my hooves and shakily made it to the stairwell, Maverick, staring at the strewn books and rifling through them. Her murmurs about the lack of pictures quickly put the search through books on low priority. As I began climbing up, Maverick joined me, combining walking with small flutters of her wings, “So Dilemma, what’re you up to?”

“I… I want to test something. I made a major breakthrough earlier today and I want to see if it’s really that easy.”

Maverick’s mouth made an “o” shape, and she nodded. “Oh! You’re like those scientists… who study sciency-stuff. You’re pretty smart, Dilemma!”

I blushed and looked away. “T-Thank you. You’re… a great friend, Maverick.”

She giggled-snorted. “Bwaha! Of course I am! I’m gonna be the bestest friend ever!”

For some reason, chills ran down my spine when she uttered those words. Almost as if Maverick had spoken a challenge to a demon for her very soul. I anxiously looked around to see if anything changed. Maverick looked cheery as ever, and the sunlight that filtered in from the windows remained bright. Maybe I’m just being paranoid.

I ushered Maverick into my room and went to the chest. She stuck close behind, watching it go down. Levitating the two crystal-dodecahedrons onto my desk, I pulled out two chairs for the both of us to sit on. Maverick jumped into hers, body shaking from what I assumed was restrained excitement. “What’re these Dilemma? They’re so… pretty.”

I took a deep breath and shrugged. “Honestly? I wish I really knew. My mom gave them to me a couple of days ago, and I’ve been trying to figure them out since.” I stared at them, checking for any imperfections running along their design. Rubbing against every single part of the surface, checking for the same depression that had been present in the discus.

“So uh… Dilemma, why’re you… doin’ that?”

I blinked. Yeah, this did look kind of weird without any context. “Oh! I forgot to show you. So my breakthrough earlier today,” I placed the crystal back onto my desk, and pulled out the discus, “I figured out how to activate this.”

Maverick watched with foal-like fascination as I pressed into the depression and slid back the cover. “Wow! That’s really cool! Whasit do?”

My lips curled back into a smile. “This!” I pressed the “on” button, and the mystery mare returned with her dramatic entrance. My friend’s reaction, however, was less than so. She stood still, shock running along her face. We both sat in silence, and I looked around as the atmosphere quickly turned awkward. I didn’t break her now, did I?

“She looks just like you!” Maverick blurted out suddenly. I “eeped” and almost stumbled off my chair. “And she reminds of Castere, the grand magus! Except,” – She pointed a hoof at the discus – “she’s real-er.”

“W-Well. So since this thing opened up when you pressed against the side, I was thinking that maybe these two also followed the same principle! It’s a little far-fetched, but it’s better than nothing. Do you want to help me?”

She gasped and placed her hooves on her cheeks, “Do I!?”

Maverick grabbed the yellow one and immediately set out to work. She rotated it in her hooves, while her feathers brushed along the exterior, copying what I was doing not moments ago. She probably did it better, since pegasi wings were sensitive to the point they could feel the minute changes in the air. I wanted to save my magic for later, but it looks like I’m getting nowhere.

“Hey Mav, I’ll be using my magic now, and it’ll take a lot of my concentration, so try to be quiet, okay?”

She nodded in understanding, leaning back and forth as she examined her crystal. Taking another deep breath, I closed my eyes and surrounded the white one with my aura. I quickly compressed it, attempting to see if there were any places that could be pressed to unlock. Sweat formed on my brow as I continued to prod it, and I could feel the mental exhaustion setting in.

I spun it in my grip and screwed my eyes further shut. I could feel every different ridge, no matter how small. I could sense every bump among the surface, decorating it in amazingly intricate patterns that were almost seemingly random. I couldn’t believe it! Today must’ve been my lucky day because it seemed everything was going good… I had figured out the discus, and now I was figuring out the dodecahedron!

Maverick cheered me on. “You can do it! I believe in you!” Thank you, but I thought I said I needed to have my full concentration on this. Nevermind.

My breathing had become labored now, but I could feel it! If I could just hold out a little longer… there… there was a pulsing feeling. I pulled on it. It resisted, conflicting with my magic. N-No! I’d come so far… I refuse to be stopped here by… my lack of a mana pool!

And with my remaining strength, I tugged with everything I had left. It refused to budge. I choked. My world spun, and Maverick said something. I think she was worried?

My brain was throbbing and my throat felt parched. There was a “thunk” in the background, as I most likely lost grip on whatever I had been holding.

Those were the early warnings of magical exhaustion, something that happens whenever a unicorn burns through their natural mana reserves faster than they could recover. Since I had such a small pool, it didn’t take a genius to know that my little stunt had quickly eaten it up. I should’ve seen that coming, and I shouldn't have pushed my body beyond it’s safe limit. I was smarter than that. Better than that.

I wasn’t sure if it was me, but I heard something that sounded like glass shattering, and a rush of air.

If I was a better state of mind, I would’ve realized sooner how I had lost the corporeal feeling, and I had become a disembodied blob of energy, floating in a massive black expanse. That same feeling from earlier now flowed around me, coalescing around my being like a blanket.

It was warm.

Is… is this it? Is this how I open it!?

It was powerful.

It feels so familiar…!

It was angry. The blanket that hugged me was set ablaze. It was a fire hotter than any mortal could conjure. It was a fire of the heavens, the power of the sun wrapped around me in a furious inferno.

And it boiled with a wrath unmatched and untamed.

GYAAAAAH! IT HURTS! STOP, P-PLEASE!

I had snapped back to my body, and I screamed as I collapsed to the floor, writhing in pain as the anger of the sun coursed through every fiber of my being. I could hear shouting, screaming. Dull thuds in the distance told me something was happening.

Whatever it was, it didn’t matter. My world had become fire.

Maverick didn’t know what to do. She could only watch in abject horror as her friend thrashed about on the floor. She had tried to get close to her to maybe calm her down, but any attempt to do so got her smacked on the cheek, and a mark of singed fur. She gingerly patted the spot that had been scorched by something.

In fact, trying to get close to her now was a challenge, as she was heating up and turning her own room into a sauna. Maverick began backing off when it was getting too hot to stand next to her friend. Her heartbeat had turned into a war drum, each strike louder than thunder. Her mind had almost shut down completely.

What was she to do? She shook her head slowly, backing into a corner. Worry marred her cheerful attitude. She should’ve stopped Dilemma when she started looking tired and started sweating up, she should’ve stepped in. The pegasus dropped to the ground, hooves over her head. She didn’t know what to do. This was all too much. She wanted her big brother. He always knew what to do.

W-Wait!

She had… she had to call her friend’s mom! She was a unicorn, and she would know what to do! Leaping into the air, she jumped to the door and spun the handle open, cartwheeling unceremoniously into the adjacent wall. Coughing, she jumped into the air.

She raced through the hallway, cutting sharp turns, and nearly nicking her face on a corner. But she couldn’t stop now. Her friend needed her, and she needed her mom to help! She spotted the doorway to where she needed to go. She didn’t know why it was the right one, but something in her told it had to be. She had to trust it. It was her friend’s life on the line.

She skid across the wood, pushing up the rug as she flapped her wings to slow down. She right herself, and quickly began slamming her hooves as fast as she could against the double doors. She kept going until they opened, and a concerned looking mare looked out.

Maverick didn’t need to say anything as she watched the mare’s ears snap in the direction of Dilemma’s pained screaming. There was a bright flash of light and a small bang. Maverick rubbed her eyes and blinked rapidly to dispel the spots in her vision.

She sighed in relief as her mission was accomplished. Her wings were sore, she had never gone that fast before! She weakly galloped back to Dilemma’s room. In her haze, she never even realized she had flown down to the ground floor, and made turns so tight they would’ve been almost perfect right angles. She crawled up the steps, huffing.

Dilemma’s door was wide open now, and a blue glow with what looked like sunlight going through a clear ocean, rippled across the wall. She peered inside and saw Dilemma’s mom combatting a roaring flame. A flowing dome of water was suspended over the adult unicorn, the surface rippling as wild energy slammed against the barrier. A similar shield surrounded the walls of the room, quenching the growing flames.

Steam was quickly turned back into water and chilled to be used again. Maverick watched in wonder as the guardsmare made her advance, slowly moving to the other end of the room. The pegasus pursed her lips. Just where was Dilemma?

N-No. Hold on…!

The roaring flame was Dilemma.

It was hard to tell, as the foal’s body had been wreathed in solar flames—but Maverick knew better. She could recognize her bestest friend anywhere! And she only felt shame and guilt as she watched, unable to do anything. Was she really the bestest friend when she couldn't even lift a hoof to help?

Maybe she wasn't really as great a friend as she thought she was.

She was too distraught to realize the magical combat had died down, and the flames that once lapped at the interior of her friend’s room had all since been choked out. A shadow cast over her as she buried her snout in her hooves. “Mav, what’s got you down like that? I hate to see a good filly like you all upset.”

“I… I don't want to talk about it!” She squeaked from her position on the floor. “I'm a bad pony…”

“Mav, what's that supposed to mean? You're the nicest filly I've ever had the pleasure of meeting.”

“But that's just it, Missus Barrier! I should've stopped Dilemma before she got hurt like a good friend would!” Maverick wailed. “A-And now she’s hurt because of me!”

Cascade Barrier scoffed. “So that's why you're upset? Alright, that makes my job way easier.”

“H-Huh?”

Cascade’s glare softened and she scooped the pegasus filly into a hug. “Look. I'll be blunt. There was nothing you could've done that would've helped, aside from grabbing an adult. Now that, was the best move you could've made. Dilemma won’t blame you for not doing anything, this wasn’t something you could’ve easily stopped. You’re aware of outbursts, right?”

Maverick looked up. “Y-Yeah? Big brother talks about them sometimes. I’ve had one.”

“Dilemma here suffered from an outburst, as you can tell. Although it’s an outburst I didn’t even think was possible.” Cascade sighed, “Somehow, Dilemma managed to create a magical outburst without any mana left in her system.”

“Isn’t that bad? To have no mana in her body?”

Cascade nodded. “It is! A unicorn without mana can suffer dangerous side-effects, from damaging their natural reserve to harming their ability to cast magic. Outbursts also require some mana, as the magic within the pony harmonizes with the body. Except for Dilemma, who singlehoofedly defied everything I knew, and displayed such a powerful outburst with nothing left in her pool!” Cascade smoothed out Maverick’s mane before letting her down. “So it’s not your fault. If anything, blame the bad timing and circumstance, but not yourself. Besides, hindsight is twenty-twenty. You didn’t know she was going to do what she was going to do.”

Maverick said nothing but gave a slight nod.

“And I’ve been waiting on Dilemma’s first outburst for years. I would’ve been worried if she never had a single one—bad timing aside,” said Cascade as she began picking up any scorched objects. “Besides, your friendship isn’t going to deteriorate over such a thing. In fact, Dilemma may blame herself more than you. Just stick with her, and she’ll stick with you.”

“O-Okay!” Maverick shouted with renewed vigor. “I’ll strive to be a better friend, and be there to stop her next time!”

Cascade giggled. “I suppose you got part of my message.” Her eyes drifted to the not-so-blank spot on her flank. “And I think somepony may want to talk to their older brother about celebrating a certain right-of-passage.”

“Whu-!?” Maverick’s eyes widened as she spotted the cutie mark. “I GOT MY CUTIE MARK! DILEMMA LO—Oh. She’s…” Her eyes drifted to the ground before she got up and plopped herself next to her sleeping friend. The filly sent sidelong glances to her mark and then returning her attention to Dilemma. Cascade cringed, as she realized the implication and the realization of what she caused. Not your smoothest dance move there, Cascade. However, the mare was pleasantly surprised when Maverick wrapped her daughter in her signature hug.

The unicorn smiled and watched the display with a certain warm fondness in her heart. Those two will be great friends, that I’ll be sure of. With the burnt pile in her magical grasp, she slowly and quietly tiphoofed out of the room, shutting the door silently. Standing alone in the hallway, she stopped and thought aloud to herself.

“I just don’t understand. Outbursts from unicorns are magical in nature. So why didn’t any of the fluctuation soothing spells do anything?” she muttered to herself. “How did she even manage to cast a high-tier fire spell? It felt like the sun was right next to me.”

Everything about her daughter was a mystery. First the hazy circumstances of her birth, her weak magical abilities, and now an affinity with fire that didn’t even use magic! Today chalked itself up to be one of the craziest mornings Cascade had ever had the pleasure of experiencing. Was she to also report this to her superior? She held a hoof to her forehead and rubbed it. “I need some tea. I’ll think about it over some tea. Scratch that, I may as well make an entire teapot and chug it.”

Celestia was not a happy princess.

Despite everything, she never was a morning pony. Far from it, actually. If she didn’t consume the necessary amounts of caffeine to kick-start her mind, she’d be walking around her palace brain-dead.

It was just out of sheer habit that she got out of bed to raise the sun. She set up the spell array to slowly bring her namesake over the horizon and planned to return to bed, to be later woken up by her attendant carrying the royal gallon of coffee.

Celestia preferred to keep this routine. It was simple, it was efficient, and it kept it her happy and totally not ready to banish the element of loyalty to the moon. She could vividly remember the pegasus’s smug grin and declaration of “totally worth it”, and “this was the best prank ever, and you should see your face”.

Even worse, Celestia annoyingly encountered the problem when you tried to go back to bed after waking up, yet, you simply couldn’t.

Celestia had a high tolerance for many things. Try to blanket Equestria in eternal darkness, sure. Almost lose her kingdom to a mad god, alright. Embarrassingly get defeated in her own castle by a changeling queen? Alright, okay-ish. She still had her ego bruised from that one. Woken up in the most annoying way possible because of a prank? Rainbow Dash was coming off lucky. Try laughing now when you have mandatory community service for a year.

So now she sat at her desk, sorting through last night’s paperwork and this morning’s fresh batch. The door to her study opened and in trotted her sister. She looked up to meet Luna’s worried gaze. “I just got a report from the Wonderbolts, ‘Tia. They’re investigating some strange anomaly in the western region of Equestria.”

Celestia blinked and shook herself awake. “Anomaly? What kind? Please don’t tell me it’s Discord again doing something silly. We’ve had enough false alarms this past month. If my mane and tail weren’t magic, I swear by the stars they would be gray.”

Luna shook her head, eyes hardened with a serious look. “Initial reports tell us it involves heavy amounts of dark magic.”

Celestia stiffened at the mention. “Are they-Are they sure?”

The moon diarch pulled up a chair and placed the folder onto her sister’s desk. “Honestly? It’s too early to tell, but usually the wide-range scanners are never wrong. I personally make sure to reinforce them and maintain them monthly. I wouldn’t hold my breath for a mistake, ‘Tia.”

The ever-graceful sun princess slammed her head repeatedly onto her desk. Her specially constructed mahogany table was enchanted for one of these specific reasons. A minute of cathartic face-to-desk later, Celestia straightened herself out and grabbed the folder in her magic. She rifled through the contents, and some scout drawings of the possible individuals. Her face contorted in confusion as she looked at the unfamiliar sight. Cracked chitinous exterior, bipedal form, tattered fabrics and unusually shaped triangular head. She pointed to the drawing. “Do we know what these are?”

Luna squinted and scowled. “I wish. They were spotted at the areas of interest, moving things, but nothing bigger than themselves or anything that looked dangerous outright. We haven’t attempted contact yet, since most of them spook the tartarus out of some of the ponies.”

“Haven’t attempted contact?”

“‘Tia. Look at me, I’m not a speciest pony, but nothing good usually looks like a deceased changeling thrown through a blender and sewed back together, hauling things through a forest at midnight.”

Celestia clicked her tongue and made a face of agreement. Luna has a point there. “I’ll send this to be processed by the royal guard and the EUP. I don’t want any unsuspecting pony to be coming face-to-face with these… anomalies.” She flipped to the last page, frowning as she noticed how little information they had on the situation. “Is this all?”

“Sadly, yes. The report was made last night and sent directly to me via thestral courier.” Luna admitted.

“We can’t act until we get the whole picture. I don’t want a repeat of Ramjey.” Celestia said, staring at the possibly sinister image of the mystery creatures. If she was paying any attention, Luna visibly cringed at the name. Celestia rubbed her fetlocks against her eyes. “I can’t believe it isn’t even early afternoon and my morning has already degraded like this.”

Luna giggled, and patted her sister’s back with an outstretched wing. “Oh hush ‘Tia. It’s not like this is uncommon.”

Celestia pouted and splayed against the chair. “Buuuuut whyyyy…? Why can’t I just have a normal morning?”

“Then life would be boring, dear sister. You know what the ponies say.”

The alabaster alicorn huffed. “Variety is the spice of life, blah, blah, blegh! What if I desire a boring life?”

Luna rolled her eyes, before moving to get up, “Then you wouldn’t be the diarch of Equestria.” She chuckled one last time and opened the door. However, she did notice a certain package wrapped in a thick white paper. Grabbing the box with her magic, she jiggled it tauntingly in front of her elder sister. “Ohhhh, ‘Tia-aahhhh…! You know what time it is…!” she glanced at the stamp before almost crying from laughter. “And it looks like it’s due in a weeeeeek…!”

The dark alicorn stared at her sister’s face and collapsed to the floor in a heap of laughter. The wide-eyed, mouth to the floor expression was priceless. “N-No! It can’t be, I…” Celestia shot a glance at the calendar, and back to the box shaking around Luna. “No…! NOOOO—”

A wave of solar energy passed through the room. Any regular pony may have dismissed the burst of energy, however the two present knew better. Luna stopped laughing immediately and locked eyes with Celestia.

“Lulu…”

“Yes, I felt that as well. Are you sure you aren’t having problems again?”

Celestia blushed and looked away. “That… That wasn’t me! It was something else!”

Luna sent her an accusatory look. “Right.”

“I’ll have to look into that. No pony, not even my dear ex-students could exert any magical connection to the sun.”

The moon diarch tilted her head. “Not even Sparkle or Shimmer? They were very gifted individuals, from what I observed and know.”

“My bad—let me reiterate. They did not have anything close to my level of connection. The ability utilize the solar energy and manifest it physically. That kind of feat was beyond them, as the strain both magically and on the body was too much. I doubt even Twilight could do it despite her position as a fellow alicorn.”

“That’s… worrying and interesting. Do you want me to mobilize my thaum-hunters?”

Celestia pressed a fetlock to her chin before shaking her head. “Have them on standby, but don’t send them out. It may spook the individual. Besides, I’ve got a gut feeling I may see them very soon.”

Luna scoffed, tail flicking in anger. “OH! Here she goes again with the ‘gut feeling’. Do you know what happened last time you did this? I had to regrow my entire coat!”

Celestia flinched. “I said I was sorry, Lulu.”

In the most dignified way possible, the younger sister stuck out her tongue, and one-eighty’d to face the exit. She slammed the door as she left. Celestia felt a pang of worry and excitement. One for her cakes that would most likely become mush by the time she arrived, and the possibility of a pony who shared her solar affinity.

She sighed and took the box with her levitation. How did she miss this? Now she had to organize the CSGU’s entrance exams in a week? A tuft of blue hair was stuck the near tape. She picked it up and ran a DNA spell.

That mare is dead.

Author's Note

Well here goes, something that's been on my mind for a while now.

There really isn't enough destiny anywhere, and despite the weirdness that is the game's sequel, I do think that there should be more destiny ff's out there.