The Forgotten Race

Twilight smiles as the girls decide to let Rarity keep the figurine and ask for more some other day, watching as Galad starts to make his way towards the town and looks at her friends saying, "Come on girls, let's not be late and miss the Princesses arrival!" She then stands up and trots after Galad, trying to catch up to her newest friend.

Applejack notices Twilight trying to catch up to their newest friend, noticing that he has an unpleasant frown on their face, then quickly goes to stop Twilight from upsetting him further. She catches up and places her hoof on Twilight's withers and softly says, "Hang on for a moment sugar cube, ah think it would be best to leave Galad be for a moment. Ah don't know why, but he seems to be upset over somethin'."

Pinkie then starts to hop past them saying, "Then I will just have to cheer him up and make him laugh!"

Twilight grabs Pinkie with her magic and pulls her aside, then turns to Applejack and asks, "Wait a moment Pinkie, why do you think he is upset Applejack?"

The farm pony then looks briefly at him and turns her head back to Twilight and says, "Well, did ya notice how he avoided telling us anything upsetting or sad aside from the war with the insect ponies, then he makes a figurine to make us feel happier? Somethin' tells me that whatever it is that's got him upset, is either really sad, really bad, or both. Ah suggest we give him a little space now until he's ready to talk to us again and tell us more, maybe he'll open up to us in time."

The curious unicorn sighs and hangs her head a little saying, "Now that you mention it Applejack, yeah, I kinda did notice how he sighed when he saw where Ponyville is at, then when he talked about the war, their history with Discord, some crime they committed in the Crystal Empire, and how he got quieter after he mentioned some grand city called Erebor, then he just refused to tell us how we came to be on our own. Whatever it is that has him this upset, I think that you are right. For now, maybe after a little time, he will cheer up again and we can talk to him about when the party could be."

Pinkie sighs for a moment before cheering back up again and says, "Okey dokey then, let's go celebrate Princess Luna's return instead!"

Galad continues to think back about the day the dwarves lost their home of old and continues to walk as the others continue past him and absently follows them thinking, 'With all that we have done wrong, I wonder if we'll ever be able to atone for some of it...'

With Celestia and Luna on the chariot to Ponyville

Celestia looks at her sister and gives her another big hug and nuzzles her head against hers saying, "Oh I'm so happy that you are back little sister, I have missed you so much."

Luna hugs her sister back and says, "So art we Celly, perhaps we will have a chance to speak to Galad and thank him for his part in freeing me."

She releases her and returns to her regal posture saying, "It is possible, though I think that we both will be busy with greeting everypony." with a slight giggle at the end of it to accentuate her good humor.

The slightly shorter princess looks back at her sister and smiles softly saying, "We still want the ponies to enjoy our beautiful night, how art we going to do that when they sleep?"

Celestia smiles and says, "Who says they don't already enjoy it? Yes, they work during the day to make a living, but it is the night they are very grateful for."

Luna cocks her head slightly and asks, "Why is that sister?"

She then answers, "It is because they can let their worries fade away as you watch over them while they sleep during the night, recovering their strength and energy for when they wake up. So they do enjoy your beautiful night, it is the only time of day where they can truly be worry-free. You also get to watch over them through their dreams, protecting them from the nightmares they suffer that keep them from sleeping soundly."

The shorter princess smiles at her sister and says, "We never thought of it that way...thank thee, sister. We shall be vigilant in doing my duty for our subjects."

Just outside of Ponyville with Galad

Galad lets the girls go on into Ponyville as he wanders into the field, still thinking about what can be done to atone for their sins. Feeling a little annoyed at no ideas coming to him yet, he releases a frustrated sigh and looks towards the forest. Hoping for an idea to hit him, he scans the forest until he spots a group of two timberwolves hanging around the edge of the forest. He sets his pack down and retrieves his shield with his left hand and hammer with his right, then goes to investigate it.

The two goblin scouts sit on top of their timberwolf mounts right at the edge of the forest, looking at the town of ponies when one of them looks up to the black changelings with light blue wings, dark grey fin atop their heads, and big bug-like blue eyes hidden in the darkness of the canopy high above them and says, "Something this way comes on two legs, what we do?"

The changeling looks down from his place at the mounted goblin and answers back quietly as his lisp affects his speech, "You foolsss! You have been noticcced, attack it and bring it back unconsciousss. The preparationsss are not yet finished."

The scout then nods his head and commands his mount to take off towards the creature, his club raised high and squeals, "ATTACK!"

Galad watches the two timberwolves charge toward him and he runs toward them in turn, putting his shield in front of him while still closing the distance between them. He then stops suddenly and brings his shield over to the right, then swings it hard to the left to bash the heads of the timberwolves first and exclaims, "YEEAAAHH! Take that ya filthy goblins, I was hoping there'd be a few things left to make a fight enjoyable!"

A few moments later, with the princesses

Celestia hears an unusual squealing noise coming from somewhere, hoping that the cheering crowd doesn't notice it. She discretely looks around for where it is coming from when she hears a faint, but recognizable voice in the far distance followed by a commotion. To keep the crowd's attention on them, she nudges Luna with her elbow and whispers, "Let's keep the crowd distracted until the distant commotion quiets down, we will investigate it after the celebration. I am going to be displeased with that dwarf if this celebration is ruined by his antics."

Back to the fight between Galad and the goblin riders

The goblin riding on the first timberwolf squeals with alarm as his mount shatters into pieces and scrambles to his feet, barely having time to duck a swing from the creature's large weapon. Enraged, the goblin uses both arms to swing his club overhead, aiming for its head.

The dwarf jumps to the side, letting the swing hit the dirt instead. He uses this chance to get rid of the other timberwolf by swinging his hammer upwards at an angle, crushing the timberwolf's head and causes it to break apart.

The goblin watches as the other scout's mount falls to pieces while the creature spins around, using the hammer's momentum to then bring it down upon the shocked goblin's head. He feels the green blood, chunks of brain, and skull splatter against his skin, causing him to turn around and run towards the forest while squealing in fear.

In town during the celebration

Twilight looks around, finally noticing the squealing coming from the distance and looks around to find it while thinking, 'I wonder where that noise is coming from, I should check it out to see if Galad is okay.'

Back to the fight

Galad runs after the goblin with a grin as it looks back at him, then suddenly stops and brings his hammer back behind his head. He then puts his full arm strength into the overhead swing and hurls it end over end towards the fleeing goblin's head.

The goblin's eyes widen with fear as he runs as fast as he can to escape the creature, abandoning the club weighing him down. As he looks behind him, he sees the creature stop and bring his hammer back. He watches as the hammer is thrown towards him when he runs into something hard and stops to look at what it is. Seeing a tree in front of him, he gulps worriedly then turns his head around to look behind him and takes a closer look at the hammer quickly flying towards him. Everything seems to slow down as he watches the hammer turn end over end slowly, having gold designs carved into the sides, a braided silver and black leather grip with a round blue gem on the hilt. As the hammer's silver head comes into view, he watches as light glints off of the corners and edges. While the sparkling effect mesmerizes him for a moment, he notices something unusual on the end of the hammer. He looks at the image before him, a stone tower behind a hammer with the handle hanging down and recognizes it instantly and starts to squeal, "WAIT...THEY'RE STILL AROU..." just before the hammer strikes and turns his vision black.

The changeling on the other side of the tree watches as the goblin's head explodes into bits of brain, blood, and bone, causing her to look away and vomit. As she wipes her mouth, she looks at the other changeling and quietly says, "Let's get out of here, I really didn't need to see that.

He looks back up to her, fighting the urge to hurl himself, and says, "I agree with you there, we need to report thisss to the queen. She will know what to do with thisss information, let'sss go before that thing ssspotsss usss." He then takes to the air as his companion joins him.

Galad makes his way towards where he killed the last goblin and leans over to pick up his hammer, pausing for a moment as he hears a sound similar to the fluttering of insect wings. He then looks up into the canopy for where the sound is coming from, slowly relaxing as it fades away into the distance. He then sighs and shakes his head thinking, 'I sure hope that those damned insects aren't involved with the goblins...but if they are, the lives of these ponies' peaceful days are numbered. Perhaps I should let the princesses know of what I heard.' He then makes his way back up to where the timberwolves' bodies are and collects the two glowing gems, hearing a brief humming sound as he moves to place them in a pocket. He sets his hammer down and looks at the two pieces in his hand, picking one up and takes a closer look at it. As he looks at the two glowing fragments, he notices a pattern where they could fit together. He then holds them with his fingertips and lines the two up, watching with amazement as the pieces fuse together and a very soft voice sounds from the strange crystal fragment.

The crystal releases a brief pulse of magic as it senses that two pieces have finally been connected by a being and whispers into the air around it with a feminine voice saying, "What manner of creature assembles two pieces?"

He listens to the gentle chiming female voice coming from somewhere around him and answers it, "A dwarf does eh....miss?" then waits for the voice to answer back anxiously.

The female voice replies curiously, "I know of many beings that encountered my children, some of which are vile creatures that found a way to enslave them. There are even fewer that try to study the fragments within, while others fear and avoid both. If you are willing to listen, I shall grant you a gift after fulfilling my request."

Galad listens to her and thinks for a moment before saying, "What is it you wish me to do?"

She then answers, "I ask you to locate the green gems inside the enslaved children. Once you find all 5000, crush them into a very fine powder and I shall guide you to where it is needed."

He then looks around again trying to locate her, and cocks his head saying, "Well I know that we dwarves collected many of them during our hunt to root out those foul goblins, do you know where the others might be located?"

The voice sighs and says with a sad tone in her voice, "Unfortunately I have no idea, I lost contact with them as they were enslaved. What are those two creatures you slew? I recognize their presence when in my forest, they are indeed vile."

Galad answers her saying, "They are goblins, can you tell me where I can find more of them so we can rid this world of them once and for all?"

She sighs again and says, "All I can say for certain is that they have a network of caves somewhere in this forest, how deep they run I do not know. My senses are through the plants and creatures of this forest, as I rule over this forest while another being similar to me works to protect the ponies that wander in occasionally. However, the other has not spoken to me in some time and the magic left behind in their continued absence is waning gradually. Though she is far younger than I am, I find myself missing her company."

He cocks an eyebrow curiously and says, "Perhaps I could look into her absence and find out why she is gone if you would like."

The spirit feels a little happier at hearing the offer and says, "I would appreciate that greatly, kind dwarf. I have encountered your kind before long ago, they took many trees from this forest as well as hunted its denizens." Her anger starts to rise as she thinks about the past and her anger comes out in her voice as she says, "They showed more respect than those wretched, stinking creatures you called goblins. Those things mindlessly destroy and kill whatever they want, I want them out of this forest by any means necessary." She lets out a sigh and calms herself down saying, "It was a pleasure to meet you, what is your name?"

Galad then says, "I apologize if the ancestors of my race have done anything to your forest in the past that earned your anger against us. What can be done to make amends? My name is Galad, and I hail from my mountain home of Hammerdeep."

She continues to be a disembodied presence and floats around him feeling no anger towards them and says, "Your people have not wronged my forest or I in any way, you dwarves showed more respect towards nature's balance than those goblin pests. I have no reason to feel anger towards your kind. Please call me Everfree, it is one of the many names I go by these days. I should be going now, you have a couple of tasks to start on. Fare thee well on thy journeys Galad, I shall keep an eye on you whenever you are around this forest." She then departs and creates a form for herself in a tree a fair distance away, making sure to watch what he does.

He blinks a couple of times and closes his hand around the faintly glowing crystal, then sets his shield down and puts the crystal into his other hand. He then leans down, picks his hammer back up, and puts it back into its place on his belt before tying it down with a small leather strap. He returns the crystal to his other hand and bends down to pick his shield back up, then starts to make his way back towards his pack when he spots Twilight sitting down on a distant hill near Ponyville. Hoping that Twilight didn't see the fight or the two corpses by the trees, he picks up his pace and swiftly jogs towards her.

Twilight sits near Galad's pack and looks at the strange bodies lying on the ground, then casts a small spell to clean up the pile of puke beside her, wishing she hadn't seen that creature's head explode like that and asks with a frown, "Is everything okay? I saw you throw your hammer at the creature that was running away from you, why did you take that creature's life Galad?"

Galad sighs and says, "I killed it because that was a goblin, they kidnap their victims and do horrible things to their prisoners. This world would be a much better place without them in it, they are like those horrid insects we almost lost our home to... they breed and breed, then swarm a location to kill and kidnap its inhabitants." he then sets his shield down by his pack with a sigh then says, "I need to move those bodies further away so the townsponies don't see or smell them."

She watches him as he retrieves a pickaxe from his bag and starts to head toward the first body and asks, "Are you alright Galad? You seem upset about something that happened." then follows after him.

Galad bends down and grabs the goblin's foot saying, "Could you grab the goblin's club Twilight, its right beside it and looks like a large stick." then starts to drag the corpse toward the tree line to dig a hole and throw it in. He then sighs and says, "I will be fine after a little while, remembering what we did in the past, how Erebor was lost to us...it still causes us all to feel such sadness and emotional pain at what we have lost. Let's get these pests buried and return to the celebrating, shall we? I'll make ya all some more figurines after a little while."

Twilight looks around for the club, locates it, and grabs it with her magic. She can't help but wonder what happened that is so bad that made the dwarves isolate themselves from the world and asks, "Could you tell me when we came to be on our own?"

He continues to drag the goblin's corpse towards the treeline and says, "Yeah, it was right after we helped the Crystal Empire 2500 years ago. We parted ways after we got back to Hammerdeep, you all were disgusted with how warlike we became, then took your entire population with you and left to be on your own." He then tries to distract her onto a slightly different subject and says, "I wonder if your princesses' heads will explode when we tell them their real history, what do you think will happen?"

She follows him into the treeline, keeping a wary eye out for any creatures coming their way, and says, "I think that Princess Celestia may be the most shocked, and I have no idea how Princess Luna will act after finding out our history."

Galad stops at a tiny clearing in the forest and lets go of the goblin's foot, taking his pickaxe into both hands and starts to carve out a square for the goblin.

Twilight sets the club down and uses her magic to help Galad dig a hole deep enough to hold the two goblins saying, "Would you mind telling me how rune magic works while we bury these bodies?"

He smiles and continues digging saying, "Rune Magic is powered by the moon or a dwarf's inherent magic, and we also have a special way to write things at night. The way we write at night are called Moon Runes, though they are a closely guarded secret...I will tell you this. To be able to understand the writing, it depends on what phase the moon was in when the runes were written. What that means basically is that you can't read runes that were written during a waning crescent on a waxing crescent, it must be during a waning crescent moon. Some of them can be written to only be read during a specific season, and month as well as a certain stage of the moon."

She continues to move dirt out of the hole and asks, "Is there a certain way or a special quill required to write these runes?"

Galad nods his head and continues to swing his pickaxe and says, "They are a special language all their own, however, I would not know where to begin teaching you. Aye...for the Moon Runes, there is but you need to be on the best terms with the dwarves to be taught that closely guarded secret."

Twenty minutes later

He finishes putting the dirt back into the hole and stomps on it to make it harder for other ponies to tell that a grave is here. After packing the dirt down then scattering a few leaves and bark from the bodies of the timberwolves over it, he exits the forest saying, "There, now that both bodies are buried, no one will know they were there. Though I will have to tell your princesses about them though, but I can wait till later today to do that when the celebration ends." He looks over to Twilight and sees that she isn't too pleased and nudges her shoulder with his elbow and asks, "What is bringing ya down Twilight?"

Twilight sighs and says, "Well, it troubles me how you called those two goblin creatures pests and think that outright killing them is the right thing to do..."

Galad drops his pickaxe, then moves in front of Twilight and places his arms on either side of her shoulders saying, "Look at me Twilight, those two goblins were most likely scouting out the town for an attack. They kidnap prisoners and rape, torture, and treat them like slaves. When their prisoners stop being useful, they kill them and feed them to the other goblins or the other prisoners. If you want me to prove it, give me a little time to find one of their caves and I will take you down there with a few other dwarves so you can see what they do first hand."