Despite it being late into the night, there were still plenty of treants awake and working. Tempest sat leisurely outside the underground caverns, on top of what she was told, was an enchanted rock. Despite the cold desert night, she was warm, the rock made sure of it, it's enchantment building an invisible bubble of warmth around her. The many treants, fairies, and knights that called the caverns home would enter and leave constantly, a perpetual conga line of movement, though none would speak to her, or even go near her.

Word had spread about her behavior from the training, and none of the thralls were neither impressed nor pleased with her. Despite this, Sugar Hoof had ordered that she not be hurt, and everyone obeyed loyally, as much as they'd prefer to be rid of her entirely.

Tempest Shadow, once a commander under the Storm King, was now a general in the Life King's army. Teach combat to Sugar Hoof and his elite soldiers, in exchange for his expertise in healing magic, that was their deal. She didn't know how long that could take, the soldiers understood with speed that creatures less than a year old probably shouldn't be able to understand, it was their master she was worried about.

It was clear to her after only 50 feet of running that 5k marathon, Sugar Hoof isn't a warrior. The poor stallion was left huffing and panting almost immediately, and what's worse, is that the knights he summoned let him win a race that they weren't even having. Anytime one of them got too close to Sugar, they'd slow down. If Sugar had to stop, they'd go as slowly as they could without alerting him to their intentions and make sure that he would inevitably wind up back in the lead.

After the race, Sugar was left huffing and heaving on the ground, caked in sweat, while all of his knights looked like they hadn't even moved, no sweat, no hard breathing, nothing. It was clear to Tempest that Sugar Hoof wasn't much without his magic.

The sound of fluttering wings and treants trudging hid the noise of metal scraping against the sand expertly, Tempest hadn't realized someone was approaching her until it was already too late. Greg stood out from everyone else, his armor gleamed in the moonlight.

"Hey," He said, "You looked like you could use some company." He reached behind his back and pulled out a bottle of red wine from a sack. Tempest had seen the Storm King's Wine Cellar, as paltry as it was, though she was never permitted to drink any.

"I doubt the treants just gave you a bottle of wine, how did you get it?" Tempest asked.

Greg smiled, "You'd be surprised what you can do with the right connections around here," The metal griffon laughed, "Just a little bit of helping out, and I've already got them building me a pretty luxurious suite around the upper part of the cavern."

Tempest got off from the enchanted rock, a look of shock and concern on her face, "Who did you talk to? What deal was made? Didn't anybody ever tell you to avoid putting yourself in debt?"

The griff laughed, "Relax, a few harmless odd jobs around the caverns," He gave a salute, "A little service to the crown, nothing major. They'll probably just have me help with... digging or something." Greg didn't look concerned.

Tempest's shock had worn off and her concern had lessened, "But, who? Who would make a deal like that anyway?"

Ring after ring after ring was thrown out into a pile on the floor. A big problem with resistance items, they had to be perfect, or they'd be significantly less capable of resisting whatever magic it was being built for. That's why most shopkeepers switched to using machines to fashion the items, instead of making it the old fashioned way.

The ring hovered in my magic as I twisted the metal into the briar-pattern that shadow magic required, If the metal was off by even a centimeter, I'd have to start again. Each ring held a large hematite gem in the center of it, heavily enchanted, to prevent magic from moving away from it's source.

The door to the chamber opened quietly and slowly, as Birch entered with as much ease that a tall tree could. The treant knelt to the floor as I worked.

"Master, I'm sorry to bother you, but there is news from the other kingdoms." He spoke, softly.

That didn't sound promising, "What news do the other kingdoms bring?" I said, not looking away from my work.

"We've received multiple documents from Griffonstone, Zebrica, Abyssia, and Saddle Arabia. Zebrica is requesting aid after an earthquake ravaged their coast, and the other three want to set up trade agreements."

I knew I would eventually have such offers, of course. It's only natural when one kingdom has a lot of wealth or a big enough army, that the other kingdoms would want to start a relationship with it. This gave me a good opportunity to set up a system where I could test the intellect and free-will of my thralls in a safe environment.

"Birch, have a meeting room built behind the throne room with a conference table and... 8 chairs around it." I instructed.

"Yes, master." Birch bowed.

The ring I had been crafting had nearly been done. I put on a monocle and got a closer look to make sure I got the details just right. "Perfect, I got the metal just right on this one."

"Master, if I may ask, what's our stance on foreigners?"

This question came out of nowhere and hit me like a brick, "What do you mean?"

"Some of the documents ask about immigration, and our border policy. I'm not really sure what to tell anyone." Birch looked concerned at this notion.

I guess this is just the type of questions someone who owns a kingdom has to answer. "Immigration? No, we haven't set up a sustainable infrastructure yet. As for a border policy? The desert itself is pretty good at warding people off."

"Yes, master, I'll send this information to the guards along your borders at once." The treant rose and began to leave.

I wasn't even entirely sure what he meant by 'my borders' We're surrounded by water on every side except for one. The only side that borders another place was Equestria.

Rune upon rune and enchantment upon enchantment was cast on the ring, causing it to shimmer and spark in a rainbow of hues. After It was done, an iron and hematite ring glistened brightly in the green lighting.

"One ring of shadow resistance, crafted and enchanted to perfection." The ring slid onto my horn smoothly and was melded into place once it reached the base. In an instant, I could feel the shadow retract, vacating from my mind and hooves as it returned to the source it pollutes, my heart. Once someone learns shadowmancy, there's no true way to remove the stain it leaves, but with this, I should have a clearer mind.

Almost immediately, I felt happier and held my head a bit higher. After a long day of work, it was finally time to relax. Maybe I'll even eat some physical food for a change.

Author's Note

Tell me what you think of me continuing this story, now that I no longer have the pressure to finish it immediately.