The Fairy Flies

Even though she had some expectations, Airy had to admit to herself she was wrong; apparently they did have books.

As she hovered next to the window, she could see rows upon rows of books inside. It was pretty easy to guess from the books and the two griffon statues in front of the doors that this building was probably the library. There was no indication on whenever this was for everyone or nobles/rich only, but if Airy remembered correctly, the peasantry class in ancient times were illiterate, it was likely for the nobles and rich, rather than mere peasants... maybe some guards and the religious people were literate too, but that might be the extend of it.

Speaking of religion....

Airy looked around before flying up, until she hovered above the buildings around her. She had by random change encountered the library, but she had no idea what the religious buildings looked like in a city made of pure crystal.... or if there even were any.

The city was weird; at the center stood the castle, there were twelve main streets, creating straight roads from center to edges of the city. There were also side-streets in middle of the city, that if she was looking at it right (she'd need to fly higher to confirm, but she didn't wanna risk exposure yet), it looked like they formed a hexagram shape, aligned with the main roads perfectly.

Why a hexagram shape, instead of a circle she didn't understand, but the city structure made no sense. She had expected majority of shops and noble houses to be at the center, yet they were spread all over the place; even the library was closer to the edge than the center. It made no sense to her whatsoever.

With a huff, Airy took a look at horizon; the sun hadn't popped up yet, so she'd have plenty of time to check the 'Crystal Heart' the guards talked about earlier. Maybe they were unable to tell time properly as well, because she was fairly certain half an hour had passed, yet no increased activity or even a sign that the sun was coming up. For all she knew, it could be 3 in the morning, from the phase of the moon and stars above.

These ponies were so strange...

Shaking her head, Airy fluttered her wings a little, before she lowered herself to be level with nearby rooftops and slowly started to make her way towards the castle; she had at one point entertained the idea it was a government building, but no non-nobility would build such a waste of resources. Clearly, it was designed as a home for some arrogant king.

... Then again, if they were arrogant, she could use that to her advantage; feed their ego a little, turn attention to outside threats and she could probably convince the rulers that she knew a place where they could get a loyal army... or enough funds to build one.

As she arrived close to the castle, she could see a couple of guards pass by a row of stores. For a moment, her curiosity peaked, so Airy glanced at the two guards, watching to make sure they were far enough before she made a small detour, flying until she was hovering in front of the shop windows.

Peaking inside, she could see it was a furniture store, full of medieval wooden furniture. Moving on, she found a clothes store, a bakery and a small restaurant, before she came across a closed off blacksmith, glass maker and what looked like a ceramics store for pots of different sizes, as well a store that sold... crystals?

'Why would there be... whatever' Airy disregarded that though, as she stopped window browsing, before flying up so she was once again over the buildings, before she flew towards her destination. On the way, she saw a street full of empty stalls, so it wasn't hard to guess what the business district was. As she reached the empty plaza surrounding the towering crystal castle, she stopped as she took a look around, noticing a few guards walking by here and there.

Only a handful really, but enough to make her decide to be careful.

'Nothing I can't dodge easily' Airy though to herself as she lowered her altitude, till she was flying close to the ground. With a quick look around, she flew across the empty plaza; not a single guard turned their gaze towards her, passing without even seeing a softly glowing fairy.

Reaching one of the four pillars holding the massive crystalline structure together, she paused to look around. After a brief moment, it was clear that none saw her, although those wandering concerns disappeared as Airy laid her eyes on a glowing heart shaped crystal at the direct center of the small plaza below the castle, slowly rotating as it hovered between two spiky pillars, one from below and another from above.

It was absolutely beautiful....

Princess Amore stood still, as her eyes were closed and she took a few deep breaths to calm her troubled mind.

"Your highness, is everything alright?" Radiant Hope asked, watching as the princess opened her eyes and nodded, before continuing her way through the hallways, towards the castle entrance "Everything is fine, I was merely preparing for the task ahead" Amore spoke reassuringly, as Radiant and Sombra followed behind her, sharing a look of concern but not saying anything.

As they passed through the hallways, once in a while a passing guard saluted the three and the maids bowed as their princess passed them by. All too soon for Amore's liking, they reached the main castle entrance, guards saluting as they straightened their pose and the spears they were holding.

Nodding in return, Princess Amore took a deep breath, before slowly releasing it as she glanced at her two students behind her. She took note that both were still a little tired, though it was most likely a combination of late night studying and stress. Maybe she'd give them a night off tonight, they'd truly deserve it after weeks of exhausting every option they knew to revitalize the heart.

Her plans made, Princess Amore stepped forward, opening the doors with her magic as she stepped into the cold outside, walking down the stairs to the plaza... and stopping at the most curious sight before her.

There, at the center of the plaza, a small ball of light was hovering next to the Crystal Heart. Radiant gasped at the sight, while Sombra stayed silent, though a glance at his direction showed a flash of anger and suspicion. Princess Amore said nothing, as she silently walked towards the heart. As she came closer, she saw that it was a glowing tiny creature, silently watching the Crystal Heart.

"Hello there, little one" Princess Amore spoke, getting a yelp of surprise from the creature; it had been so mesmerized by the heart, it hadn't realized they had walked up to her "Please, do not be alarmed, I mean you no harm" Amore said softly as the creature hovered still, it's tiny appendages around itself as it turned towards her.

It was a curious sight, how it reminded her of the breezies; both were tiny, butterfly winged creatures, though this one was larger than the breezies, with solid colored wings, unlike the breezies who had transparent wings. She also didn't seem to be carrying pollen, flying by her own with a slight glow around her, nor did she have the antennae the breezies had.

The shape of the creatures body was also reminded her of minotaurs, except it's legs were straight and face was flat, like the monkey's she had once seen at travelling zoo in her youth. The creature's head had a long, silvery mane, while her wings were white with black edges. It was also wearing a dress of some kind, as well as black ribbon-like wrappings around it's upper and lower appendages... from what she could see (the creature was tiny, at most a size of foal's toy), the lack of fur must have been a reason for such clothing.

"H-Hello. I-I'm sorry if I was breaking any rules or laws, I just got curios a-about the glowing crystal and -" The tiny creature explained, her higher pitched voice conveying fear as it stuttered, only to be interrupted by Sombra "You'll address the Princess Amore with proper respect, creature" he said in impatient tone, causing another yelp to leave the creature.

"I-I apology, your highness, for any of-offense I might have caused" the creature spoke quickly, as it bowed it's upper body.

Amore send Sombra a disappointed glance, who took the hint to calm down a little, before she turned back to the creature floating silently, still bowing "It is alright. I am Princess Amore, ruler of the Crystal Empire. Now, who might you be?" she asked gently, as the creature nervously straightened itself.

"M-My name's Airy. I'm a Cryst-fairy" the little creature, Airy, introduced itself.

It was then when Radiant Hope spoke "What's a Cryst-fairy? I've never seen your kind before" she asked, not with hostility but curiosity. This seemed to calm Airy a little, before she answered "I'm not surprised, as i'm not from around here. The Cryst-fairies are born of the crystals, to guide and aid the vestals in the times of need" she explained, though it was lacking in detail.

Before Radiant could ask more, Amore interrupted their talk "While it is interesting to learn of our new.. visitor, we can continue this discussion later. For now, I must attend to the Crystal Heart" she spoke regally, before stepping next to the heart, her horn glowing as Airy flew a little to the side, allowing her to observe as Amore focused on the spell.

A stream of magic left her horn and struck the Crystal Heart, causing it to glow brighter, before it started spinning much faster. Amore felt the strength leave her, as she poured more and more of her magic into the heart, before it finally stopped and released a wave of blue energy that expanded, bringing with it warmth as the cold disappeared.

Amore gasped as the spell ended, nearly collapsing as both Radiant and Sombra were on her side in an instant, supporting her as she gasped for breath.

It wasn't until she had almost regained her breath, that Airy flew closer and spoke once more "Are you alright, your highness?" she asked, her tone carrying her concern "Yes, I am alright. Revitalizing the Crystal Heart merely drains much of my power" she said, as she straightened herself, no longer leaning on Radiant and Sombra as she slowly began to regain her composure.

Airy looked at her with concern, before glancing at the Crystal Heart that now glowed slightly brighter "Why would you use such a thing, if it drains you of your power? Would it not be easier to build a shelter over the city?" she asked, as Amore shook her head "The Crystal Heart once took but a tiny fraction of my magic to raise a barrier over a far greater distance than it does today. For decades, I used to cast the spell once a week, yet now it requires a daily recharge that drains me of strength" she explained.

Airy looked at her, before glancing at the Crystal Heart once more "But if it did that once with ease, why does it drain you so much? Is it too old? If so, can you make another one?" she asked with concerned tone as she turned towards Princess Amore, only to receive a shake of head as Radiant answered "The Crystal Heart is an ancient relic recovered less than century ago, so we can't just make another one. As for why it drains the princess so much, we don't know; we've tried everything in our power, but our magics have revealed nothing wrong... It should be working perfectly, yet it doesn't" she said in saddened tone.

Amore noticed a thoughtful expression cross Airy's face, before she placed one of her appendages to her chin and though for a moment. After a small pause, she turned towards the three ponies as her appendage fell back to her side and spoke;

"Why don't you just recharge it with your hopes and prayers?" she asked, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Sombra snorted, before speaking "And how would that help? Would you have us dance and sing a song, while wishing that sunshine and smiles protect us from the cold?" he asked sarcastically, getting a giggle from Radiant. As Airy seemed dejected at the reply, Amore send her two students a disapproving glance "Sombra, remember your manners; Airy is a guest of the Crystal Empire" she said, before turning towards Airy.

"Could you elaborate by what you mean by 'hopes and prayers' " Princess Amore gently requested, as Airy nervously shifted her appendages to hug herself again "Well, where I come from, the vestals pray upon the four Crystals, that gather the hopes and prayers of the people, so that the world is protected from natural disasters and decay" she answered nervously, only to receive confused looks in return.

"What is a vestal?" Radiant hope asked, finally stopping her giggling "I've never heard of magic working that way" she explained as she looked at Airy with skepticism.

Airy opened her mouth to reply, only to close it as she carefully though "Well, it's a long story and you'll need some context, so perhaps we should talk somewhere else? it's going to take a while to explain" Airy suggested, with Amore nodding in agreement "That is a good idea. Let us enter the castle, I believe we have much to talk about"

As Amore finished speaking, Airy turned her head to the night sky, just as the moon fell below the horizon and the sun rose, turning the day instantly from night to a day.

Princess Amore smiled at their tiny new visitor, Airy, as she sat on the table on a small pillow, which looked like a queen sized bed compared to her size. It had taken a moment to explain to her how night and day worked, as it appeared that in the world (yes, World) Airy came from, the sun and the moon did not move as they did in Equis. In Luxendarc, it appeared that the sun stayed still, while the world spun slowly, creating a cycle of night and day, while the moon rotated around the world, creating different phases of the moon.

She had explained to Airy that no, Princess Celestia did not move the sun; rather, she controlled part of the invisible force around the world, that controlled how the light of the sun, the moon and the stars appeared on the world below; in Celestia's case, The Sun, while her sister Luna controlled the Moon and the stars.

Once Airy calmed down, she asked why it was so, though Princess Amore could not answer; the task of raising and lowering the moon and the sun had been a task of the unicorns for thousands of years, draining entire bloodlines of magic before the twin sisters took over the task. It was however known, that if the sun and the moon were not raised and lowered, one side would begin to freeze while another would begin to heat up, slowly burning until both sides were either frozen or in flames.

Of course, no one had dared to test if that happened, but there was clear evidence, after the ancient unicorns refused to raise and lower the celestial bodies. She had explained, that there were ancient times when the celestial bodies had worked just as Airy described, though no one knew when or why it ceased to be.

Once they entered the castle, Princess Amore gave orders to gather the captain of the guard, as well as couple of clerks and the head of staff to the meeting room, which she led Airy to so they could discuss what she had meant.

So here they were, waiting as the clerks prepared their notebooks and papers, while they also waited for Thunder Shield and Swift Clean to arrive. After all, since Airy was a visitor from another world, she would need a place to stay, so Amore decided that she'd offer Airy a place in the castle. Her much smaller size implied that she didn't need as much room or food as a full grown pony, so there would be plenty of room for her.

All too soon, while Airy was testing the pillow she sat upon, Thunder Shield and Swift clean arrived. Swift was an old mare with light blue coat and a orange maid, who served as her head of staff, as well as one of the oldest staff that she had; forty years ago she had become part of the staff, after a recommendation from her own mother, who had been a mere maid at the time.

As both Thunder and Swift greeted her, throwing questioning glances at Airy, Princess Amore decided that it was time for introductions "Thunder, Swift, this is Airy; a Cryst-fairy from another world. Airy, This is Thunder Shield, my captain of the royal guard and Swift Clean, my head of staff" Amore made introductions, watching how they'd react to each other.

Airy was the first to respond, standing up and turning towards Thunder and Swift, before bending her legs a little as she bowed her head (what she'd later explain was a curtsy; a form of greeting) "Greetings" she said, before straightening her pose and looking as the two ponies.

Swift had a passive expression, revealing nothing as she simply nodded, while Thunder had a slight frown on his face, nodding before turning towards Princess Amore "Your highness, If I may ask, what did you need us for?" he asked in slightly irritated tone; clearly he didn't like an unknown entity near the princess, let alone without any guards present.

Amore simply smiled at Thunder's concern; he wasn't aware that she could sense the magical power of others, so he didn't know that because of her size and little magical power, as well as what looked like a genuinely good personality, she didn't view Airy as a threat, only as a curious and kind stranger from another world.

"I'll explain in due time" Amore replied, before turning towards their otherworldly visitor "Now, I believe it's time you gave a full explanation, as you mentioned before" she spoke to Airy, who nodded and sat back done, beginning her tale as one of the clerks began writing down what she said, while other started to draw a portrait of Airy.

As the time went on and Airy spoke, those who listened found themselves quite intrigued by her tale.

Airy came from Luxendarc, a world quite like their own, yet so vastly different. Since the ancient times, there had been four Crystals (not to be mixed with normal, unresponsive crystals and gems) that each governed the specific elements of the world; The Wind crystal governed the world's winds, the Water crystal governed the seas, the Fire crystal governed the fire and volcanic activity and finally, the Earth crystal governed the earth and all that was related to their respective elements.

It was at this point, when Radiant and Sombra began to ask more specific details about the Crystals and their history. Airy was more than happy to explain, as it was the duty of Cryst-fairies to help the vestals tend to the crystals and ensuring they (along with other worshipers, who were called Crystalists) prayed the the crystals and upheld their faith, so she was quite familiar with the collective knowledge of the past vestals, though she admitted she wasn't omniscient, only knowing what the vestals of the past knew.

The four temples were build around these crystals, which lead to the practice of Crystalism, which later evolved into the Crystal Orthodoxy; a world wide religion, practicing the worship of the Crystals. Vestals were the 'Priestesses, brides and servants to the crystals, weavers of prayers who ensure their eternal glow'. Their task was to tend and pray to the crystals, to ensure their stability; for without a vestal (or if improperly managed) the crystals could cause natural disasters, while outright abuse of them would lead to the crystals behaving erratically.

As the qualities for vestals were rare, they were carefully selected and trained since childhood. Because of this, the Vestals often lead seclusive lives, some living their entire lives in the temple and naive to the outside world, while they were tended to by the female acolytes that took care of the temples and the vestals.

The vestals also served as unofficial leaders, who relayed the teachings of the crystals through words, guiding the people on the righteous path. This didn't mean that they replaced kings and queens and other leaders; they merely served as an leaders of spiritual enlightenment.

Airy also warned that the vestals could project a shield around the crystals, to protect them from mortals who wished to abuse their power, though it would not protect them if a great darkness tainted them, in which case the winds would cease, the seas would rot (causing the fish to die and boats to erode), the volcanoes to erupt with uncontrollable wildfires, while the earth would sink and become infertile, eventually leading to plants and life to begin to die.

In such cases, the role of the vestals would be to draw upon the power of the crystals, to purify them and protect the world from darkness... though if need be, destroy the crystals: As long as the crystalline core survived, the destroyed crystals could regrow to their original size and power, though it would take the passing of thousands of years.

As Airy explained, the Crystals were powered by the hopes and prayers of the humans, the sentient species of her world that looked like her, except they didn't have wings or glow and were about the height of Princess Amore. The crystals themselves were old and massive, easily the size of five story houses.

At this point, it was Thunder who asked about the corruption such a world wide religion would have, as they basically ruled the world with their control of the crystals.

So it was at this point, Airy explained that it had actually happened once, until the head temple, which was build next to the Earth crystal was separated from the rest of the world, when what would eventually come to be duchy of Eternia was separated from the rest of the world, when the mountains rose and severed it from the other countries.

Before this however, an old sage who had foreseen the events to come centuries before had slowly begun to strip the orthodoxy of it's power, with the intention of separating the corrupt orthodoxy from the pure worship of the crystalists and the vestals, for the protection of the later.

And so, with the rise of the mountains the other temples eventually came back under their own management, devoting themselves purely to worship of the crystals, while the head temple still controlled the Earth crystal and the earth vestal.

Centuries passed, until at one point, head temple attempted a grand ritual, which was forbidden by the teachings of the vestals, at which point a former cleric turned templar called Braev Lee, lead an uprising against the corrupt Crystal Orthodoxy, remaking the country into Duchy of Eternia and killing the earth vestal. At this point, the old sage would withdraw from Eternia and ending his long task of ending the Orthodoxy's corruption, a plan a millennia in making.

It was then that during the next twenty years, the Templar would lead the country into Anticrystalism, as the grant marshal, with the goal of seizing the crystals and stamping out what he viewed as corrupt crystalism, unaware that among their ranks, corruption begun to spread and their intention of protecting the crystals being manipulated into destruction of the crystalism by sinister forces.

Of course, as Airy explained it, the other temples at this point were no longer corrupt, yet this did not deter Eternian forces as they killed the fire vestal, caused the water vestal to go into hiding and were about to make a move on the wind vestal, when a great darkness came and tainted the crystals.

It had been at this point, when she had come to the aid of the wind vestal, Agnes, who had gathered a group of heroes. Tiz; a sole survivor who lost everything when his village was swallowed by the earth, Ringabel; an amnesiac man and finally Edea, the daughter of the grand marshal, who had been taught Anticrystalism since birth, yet now saw how corrupt the organization had become, no better than the old Crystal Orthodoxy and decided to stand with Agnes against her own father.

Airy has been with this group of heroes from the start, as they went went on to save the desert kingdom of Ancheim and the home of the vestal, from the plans of the king and the Eternian forces working people to the bone, while extorting them for all the money they had and robbing those who went to the oasis for free water. Here, they also freed the Wind crystal from monster's grasp and awakened it, restoring the world's winds.

At Florem, a land of devout crystalists dedicated to purity and protection of nature, the Eternian forces had started to corrupt the populace, by turning them into narcissists who only cared about the outer beauty, instead of the inner one by using hair dyes made from poisons of giant guardian snakes of florem and spirit hairpins made from wings of local fairies, both of which carried toxic, addictive and hallucinogenic properties.

Here, they defeated the Eternian forces, thought it came at the cost of water vestal's life, who sacrificed herself to protect the wind vestal from assassins attempting to slaughter every crystalist in the region, a reason water vestal had been in hiding for years. Once they defeated the monster at the water temple and awakened the Water crystal, they continued their journey to Eisenberg.

Here, they helped the shield bearers defeat the Eternian backed traitorous sword bearers, who desired to wage war against all nations, putting an end to civil war which had been waged for years. Because the volcanic activity cut off all above land access to the Fire Crystal, they used a secret tunnel in the slaves mines of sword bearers, through which they reached the fire temple, defeated another monster and awakened the Fire crystal.

From here, because the Duchy of Eternia was surrounded by mountains only Eternian airships could travel, they went to Grandship: a massive ancient city ship in middle of the ocean, which was slowly sinking. As the citizens evacuated, the heroes repaired the core and claimed the ship, causing it to rise from the seas and fly.

At this point, the ponies around here amazed: a city sized ship that could fly? Both Sombra and Radiant were very interested in hearing how it worked, though instead of explaining all the technological things, Airy simply answered "ancient magics long forgotten". it would not be to her advantage to explain all things that these medieval peasants did not know about... not until she found a way to capitalize on them first.

With that, she continued her tale: Travelling to duchy of Eternia, where they fought their way through the armies to the capital, where the Eternian forces were abusing the Earth crystal for their own benefits. They put a stop to it by defeating the Eternian leaders, including the grand marshal: Edea's father. Once done, they freed the Earth crystal from the final monster's grasp and awakened it.

Once the four crystals were awakened, a holy pillar appeared. She had used her gem to gather it's light and purify the darkness, only for the five of them to end up in another world; it appeared, that in this one, they had all died before their journey began. As such, they went through the journey of awakening the crystals once more, this time aided by the Grandship from the start.

And thus, the cycle repeated itself. With each world, the events and even the people changed; who was alive, who was dead, even at one world, the Eternian forces were no longer villains. The group went through several worlds, until they finally reached the sixth world; it was here that the true evil revealed itself; Ouroboros, the god of destruction who wished to devour the worlds linked by the holy pillars and invade the celestial realm.

Princess Amore had been shocked to hear of such a monster, as were everypony else gathered; apparently, there was a endless amount of 'parallel worlds'. Airy had described it as like standing between two mirrors, where the reflection showed an infinite line of the viewer, except each version could look the same or vastly different from the viewer, including somepony else in worlds where the viewer did not exist.

It was this monster, The god of destruction Ouroboros, who had through his plans linked tens of thousands of Luxendarcs together, with intent to devour them for power and waging war against the Celestial realm, bringing death and destruction into the world of the gods and remaking all in his own image.

They had chosen to stand in his way, even if it meant sacrificing their lives for the greater good.

The battle between this God of Destruction and the heroes, now called warriors of light, had been fierce, until an immortal vampire (and co-conspirator of the old sage) they had befriended came to their aid, sacrificing his life and immortality, so the heroes could defeat this immortal monster... yet the foul monster chose to begin devouring worlds to restore himself, an act which caused the heroes to surrender, in order to stop him from destroying more worlds.

It had been at this darkest hour, that the prayers and hopes of those who lived in those other worlds gathered, as the countless parallel copies of the four heroes gave the warriors of light the power to sever Ouroboros' ability to devour worlds, before they finally defeating him. The Warriors of light returned home victorious, the links between worlds severed and the holy pillars disappeared.

As Airy talked, it was at this point that she spoke her lies, that the heroes had gone on to live their lives happily together, going as far as Edea and Agnes reforming their respective religious organizations and making peace between them, while Airy chose to return to the Crystals, her duty complete.

Except, the Crystals had a need of her once more; they had sensed, that a distant world among the stars could benefit from the help and wisdom of a Cryst-fairy, though it was not an order; such a trip would be one-way, so even if she returned, it would be centuries to gather the power for the journey.

Airy had accepted this task, to help a world in need, as she said her last goodbyes to the heroes she had traveled and befriended. After their last goodbye, the Crystals had whisked her away into the stars, to find those in need of guidance and help them the best of her efforts.

And that's how she had ended in the snowy wasteland outside the barrier.... according to her lies at the end, at least.

Of course, what none of those listening Airy's tale of "warriors of light" knew, was that she was simply quoting a modified version of the game lore; after all, it wouldn't do to reveal that Airy in the games was a servant of Ouroboros responsible for linking the worlds together and killing the heroes in each world, after fooling them into opening the holy pillars; the Eternian forces were corrupt villains, but the Templar knew the calamity Airy would bring.

The original Airy had died, eaten by Ouroboros after failing to defeat the heroes... and the Crystals never talked, with the ending being bittersweet: Ringabel returning to his world, while Tiz would fall to death-like coma, no longer supported by the Celestial within him. She had needed a way to explain how she ended in this world, so a little lie was perfectly acceptable.

She also left most of the advanced stuff unsaid, modifying the story so most of technological things were non-existent or simply replaced with "magic", like how ships could fly. There was a reason why she had chosen to become Airy; it was a role she could not deny herself, especially when Grogar could make it a reality.

it was fun, pretending to be caring and heroic, acting like she respected and cared about these ponies as she told her fake story. As she finished her tale, she looked at the ponies around her; pale expressions of shock and hidden fear, at the mention of Ouroboros and what he had planned to do.

Even the clerk, who had been drawing her portray had long since stopped, too distracted to finish drawing an outline of her; only the one writing down her tale seemed to have a mind present enough to work, though even she looked pale.

Well, she had weaved her web of deception; only time would tell what she would catch and entrap within her wicked lies...