Adventures in the TARDIS

Internally, it still cracks me up to think of Captain Grimwald when we came out to meet him while he was marching his way, along with his own army of guards, to meet us. The Captain truly expected to surprise us with his arrival which is why he was really caught off guard when we showed up to meet him instead. Moreover, Princess Celestia made it clear that her intention was to finally resume her trek to the main palace as originally planned before the whole Mon Amarie Inn debacle. Along with her is her own precession of guards, of which I am hiding among them.

Thanks to the Royal Canterlot armor I am wearing, which was worn by several guards across a bunch of generations, I now have the mental fortitude to restrain my outward amusement at Captain Grimwald’s initial reaction to seeing us. I have also empathically absorbed enough of the discipline of those who once wore this armor to fit in among the rest of the guards perfectly. This isn’t directly out of conscious training but subconscious movement. I think I even fooled the rest of Princess Celestia’s precession.

Wearing this is really helping me to calm my nerves as I absorb the proud and stoic nature of those who wore this armor before me. I also notice that it does not quell my fears completely. Those who once wore this armor had enough training to hide their true emotions and, to some degree, it really did weaken their fear somewhat. There is a pervasive sense of duty that subdues their fears but there are still times when they still panicked. This is particularly true when things do not go according to “plan”. If things are, the Royal Guards can remain stoically impassive in the face of pretty much anything, but if something does go enormously wrong that their training did not prepare them for then they often run about like a chicken with their head cut off because their prior training provided them pretty tight tunnel vision. Immovable and unshakeable within certain limits, but the opposite of adaptable beyond their rigid “inside the box” thinking.

I did not even need to think about how to march in formation along with the rest of the Royal Guards as we made our way to the Royal Palace. In fact, I get the sense that if I did think about it, flaws to my formation march would start to seep in. As long as I don’t question it, subconscious reflex mode will get me all the way there without flaw.

As we drew closer to our destination, a deep sense of dread grew in me. I did not outwardly show it, but I knew multiple forms of trouble lay at our destination. A lot is riding on the line with this mission, too. Perhaps even the fate of the world. Grand Vizier Dispatcher had some very sinister plans and he had enough time and influence to really make a serious impact. Beyond his timelessness and “vamponic” abilities, he could seize control of Celestia herself! If he does, he could threaten anypony else in the world never to have the sun or moon rise or set in their area. Either way would be devastating to that nation and likely the world as a whole.

Villains who want to take over the world sounds cliché, but it’s so scary to think how close this guy is to securing those results exactly. If he succeeds, the sun might as well never rise anywhere again because surely the world will become the epitome of joyless.

And then there is Princess Arielza. I don’t think she’d want to live in a world controlled by such a diabolical monster. It’s too antithetical to her own nature, and I love her enough to be deeply affected by that prospect.

I love her.

I love this nation.

I cannot let him win!

All of this simply reminds me of the consequences of failure and perhaps the likelihood that it will, for it is the home turf of our opponents we are marching to. They had plenty of time to secure things in their favor at their main power base. The only thing that does reassure me is the presence of Princess Celestia and the Doctor. In the latter case, I’ve glimpsed into his past enough to reveal how he tends to win even against overwhelming odds. In order to figure out precisely how he tends to do it may require a pony as brilliant as he is; otherwise, I’ll just have to trust him.

Brilliant plans, in order to succeed, requires every individual component of it to do their own part faithfully and successfully. To that end, I have my own part to play which is why I feel the pressure pressing down on my shoulders and sinking into the pit of my stomach.

Thank goodness I am wearing this armor or else I might not have been able to at least conceal my growing inward panic.

In addition to fear, a wave of nostalgia also passes through me when we cross the threshold into the Royal Palace. Looking about whenever no pony is looking at me, I can’t shake how familiar this place is to me which further assures me that I am, indeed, Grand Sultan Nanpour Alabaster. I had this huge and important role behind me and now I can’t recall it. By noticing the degree of memories that are missing, it suddenly feels daunting.

I’m still surprised how well the plan is going so far. I kept expecting somepony, along the way, to look at me with suspicion when they notice something is off about me. Despite all of my success with disguises before and for the reasons they tend to work, I’m still super nervous to be caught this time primarily because of how important it is for our mission to succeed.

But nope. That’s not what happens. No pony, not even Grimwald, gives me a second look. In fact, it seems to me that I am especially overlooked. Maybe it’s because of how similar I look and act among the other Royal Guards. There’s just something about our appearance and mannerisms that makes it difficult to tell us apart. Our helmets, which hide our mane colors, may be a partial contributing factor but I think that’s only the start of it. It’s weird, but with every glance I make to the rest of the Royal Guards out of the corner of my eye, it keeps making me think that we’re all just a bunch of identical clones.

When we do make it further into the Royal Palace, I squash down my final wave of panic and launch into the next important phase of my role. That is, I split away from the rest of the Guards. From this point forward, the rest of my mission is on my own.

There is a part of me that laments needing to ditch the Royal Canterlot armor in a hidden place in one of the rooms in the Royal Palace, but it simply makes too much noise for a stealth operation. This also means abandoning any physical or psychological defense the armor was providing in addition to the combat training it would have provided. My only consolation, now, is an internal promise that I will return that armor back to Princess Celestia’s forces if we manage to secure my return to the throne first as well as get rid of that which threatens our nations. I know where I hid that armor and made sure to keep a mental note of it.

It could be more ideal if I replace that outfit with something that wouldn’t seem out of place here, but there are drawbacks to that plan too. I am not planning on wearing a maid’s outfit even if I find one. I’m pretty good with disguises but I think I’d need to be a little extra prepared to make that situation work.

So, instead, it is better to hide entirely or at least blend in as much as I can. To that end, I keep weaving in and out of various rooms I meet along the way or hide behind anything else I can find like long curtains.

To help me access those rooms, I utilize a tool that the Doctor had provided for me, and that is his sonic screwdriver. Normally he wouldn’t consider loaning a tool this complex and versatile to any other pony but I just happen to have a knack for absorbing the talents of the previous owner of any tool I touch. Thanks to that, I subconsciously know how to wield this tool proficiently and certainly enough to bypass ordinary locks. To a lesser extent, I’m also absorbing his creativity, adaptability, and intelligence, especially if any of those traits specifically involve utilizing this tool. To that end, there is plenty to absorb as well because it seems he has often wielded this in his adventures and did so for centuries.

In one of the rooms I duck in for cover, I get an extra surprise.

“Psst! Hey! Swift Step, it’s me!” quietly calls out a familiar and young sounding voice.

No! It can’t be!

I look over my shoulder as I quietly call back, “Red Star? Is that you?”

Within this fancy-looking room, Red Star pops his head out of a closet he is hiding within and gives me a wave.

I trot close to him and whisper as forcefully as I can, “What are you doing here, Red Star? Also how did you get in here? Sneaking into the Royal Palace of our nation is no easy feat.”

“Answering your last question first, I’ve had training on how to be a good thief. You saw to that, remember?” Red Star quietly reminds me.

His answer causes me to thin my lips. Right now I’m going through a strong mix of emotions. Part of it is flattery and pride, but somepony I deeply care about has just snuck into a very dangerous situation right now, and he is a foal at that. That feels like it is putting even more pressure on my shoulders.

“Plus, I have to say, there are some advantages in being a foal,” Red Star adds. “We can fit into small places, for example, and tend to get overlooked even when somepony does spot us.”

“Okay,” I say in quiet tightness. “Let’s discuss motive next. Why are you here?”

Red Star suddenly looks sullen as he admits, “I’m here because of what the Doctor said. When you two told me to take off, I didn’t take off that far. I kept close enough to eavesdrop on the rest of the conversation.”

“Of course,” I say as I slap a hoof to the bridge of my muzzle and shut my eyes tight.

“And he said a bunch of things I would normally find incredible if it wasn’t so alarming,” Red Star goes on in the same volume. When he does, I open my eyes again, regard him, and lower my hoof back to the floor. “I mean . . . aliens from outer space? Wowzy-wow-wow! And not just one of them, but at least two. One of which is possessing the Grand Vizier right now which might explain why he’s been such a pain in the flank recently.”

Red Star’s expression gets a lot more somber when he goes on to quietly say, “What concerns me the most is hearing him tell you who you really are. I mean, that is kind of neat and all, but what if, by remembering who you were, you forget who you’ve become since then?” Tears rise to Red Star’s eyes as he asks me, “Does that mean you’ll forget about me too?”

“Red Star, no!” I reassure as I seize him in a tight hug. “I can never forget you! Not after everything we’ve been through together. Besides, I made certain important promises to you.”

“But you forgot about your previous life,” Red Star’s muffled voice reminds me. “How can you be sure it won’t happen again, except in reverse?”

“It won’t, Red Star! Trust me on this!” I reassure him firmly.

His response to that is silence. Since I am tightly grasping him, I can sense he wants to believe me, but the sheer degree of that which he could lose without me is too frightening to entirely ignore either. In a way it also explains his presence here. He’s here to remind me about his existence and he also wants to help. After all, if I fail this mission, he’ll lose me anyway.

At this point I understand him and his motives better, but I’m still stuck with a dilemma. What do I do with him? There’s no way I’m willing to risk the health and safety of a foal that I cherish here, but he’s here now so it’s too late to complain about that fact. Since I can also sense his determination to be here, which is motivated by a deep sense of fear and love, I can tell that I’d be wasting my time trying to convince him to leave on his own without overwhelming effort on my part to convince him and I just don’t have time for that right now.

Besides, even if I did convince him to go, I’d be too nervous to let him out of my sight right now. After all, the moment he leaves, he might get captured behind my back. It’s a miracle that hasn’t occurred already.

Also, note to self, when I get this Royal Palace under my control again, I need to find out how he snuck into this place and plug those leaks. If a mere foal was able to sneak into the main Royal Palace of our nation then that indicates an alarming lax of security somewhere. Sometimes it just takes a former thief to notice, and thereafter fix, all the flaws in security in this place.

I might not want to be too thorough, though, just in case I want to use some of those gaps myself. In that case, I can just construct my own secret passageways.

I gasp as I pop my eyes open.

Wait a second! What if I’ve already done that? Are there secret passageways in this Royal Palace that I could exploit? If so, it might be passageways that even the Grand Vizier himself might not know about.

Gah! If only I could remember!

In that case, is there a way I can jog my memory here? At the same time, is there a safe place I can stow away this foal for the time being?

Upon further reflection, one answer came to both questions. In a way, and for several reasons, it’s an option I didn’t want to exploit yet, but my back is to the corner now. I have to do this!

“In that case, I know of one way you can help,” I partially lie to my beloved friend.

“Anything! You just say the word!” Red Star beams enthusiastically.

“Come with me, and be sneaky about it,” I bid him. “Technically this is my Royal Palace but the majority of ponies here don’t know that yet. Until they do, they are under the command of the Grand Vizier and he’s not really our friend right now. As such, let’s not get caught.”

“You got it!” Red Star acknowledges with a proud salute.

Having made it to where I intended to go, at least for the moment, I hesitate before making that final knock on this door. Do I really wish to involve her? I feel conflicted. If I do involve her, how much should I explain?

“Coast is still clear for the moment,” Red Star quietly tells me as he keeps a vigilant scan of the hallway we just crossed through. “But that can change at any moment. We’re still exposed where we are standing, so whatever you’re going to do, make it fast.”

This situation is so crazy that, for a brief moment, I actually considered hiring Red Star to be one of my Royal Palace Guards because he really is keeping such a good vigilant watch over anything else in this hallway. It kind of does make sense to hire a thief to catch other would-be thieves.

Eh. Maybe I’ll consider that more seriously after he grows up and if he continues to show a knack for this. In the meantime, I need to make sure he gets a fair chance to grow up first.

With a final sigh, I gently rap on the door ahead of us which momentarily panics Red Star behind us. After all, until now, we had remained stealthful and sneaky.

Right after I knock, part of me swells with panic for multiple reasons. Part of me fears her answering the door, yet another part of me fears I did not rap on the door loudly enough to be noticed. If I knock on it harder, will it attract other unwanted attention in this hallway?

Red Star is certainly right about one thing. The coast is clear for the moment, but that can change at any time. The longer we stand here, exposed like this, the greater the risk is.

“Come in,” bids the sweetest voice on the other side of the door which momentarily makes me swoon.

“What are you doing, Swift Step?” quietly complains Red Star behind me. “I thought we were supposed to avoid attention?”

“We can trust this one,” I assure him. “Right now we can use all the allies we can get. I need a favor from her. Besides that, I could use some information too.”

Red Star looks partially reassured as he says, “Well . . . we’re here, I guess. She invited us in, whomever she is, so I assume that means the door is unlocked?”

Even if it wasn’t, I do have the means to bypass it right now. Still, he does have a point. If we are invited into the room then that’s an indication that she doesn’t expect us to be barred from entering.

To test this theory once and for all, I reach to touch the doorknob and attempt to open it. Sure enough, it does open. Upon discovering this, it flashes in my mind that I think this door is at least capable of locking. Considering the importance of the one inside, it wouldn’t even surprise me if there was a magical trap, or two, with this door as well, but since it is presently unlocked, it’s probably safe to enter for the moment.

Knowing who is inside gives a light indication that the door might be generally unlocked on purpose. After all, the one who dwells inside usually wants her guests to feel warmly invited.

I steel my nerves then enter inside. When I do, Red Star very swiftly follows after me since he wants to be concealed from anypony patrolling the hallway as fast as possible.

Once again a wave of nostalgia assails me. I have definitely been inside this room before. Not only is the decor familiar, but so is the scent of this place.

The scent of the one I love!

Venturing a few paces forward, this brief hallway within the room soon widens out to a larger chamber. There is a lot of feminine and royal decor to this place, but what captures my attention the most is Princess Arielza herself brushing her own mane in front of a mirror. She freezes in mid-stroke, though, when she looks back at me initially through the mirror with several lit lights around the rim of it. She gasps in shock then twists about in her stool to face me.

“Hell . . . hello, Princess,” I bid in a very failed attempt to remain calm and suave. Instead of that, my voice cracks up badly enough to cause me to wince.

“Princess!” Now it is Red Star’s turn to gasp. He immediately recognized her on sight. When that happens, it flashes through my mind that this mare isn’t merely familiar because of some posters hung up in various places of the city, although that is true too. Beyond that, however, she attempts to make a personal connection with her subjects with various appearances. Some are in public and some are in secret.

Here we are . . . beholding each other again and she thought I was dead. In a way it was true, so is this meeting symbolic of me coming back to life?

I guess, in a way.

I almost worked up the courage to speak to her again, but my words falter as I witness her lips quivering, a hoof nearing her lips in a subconscious effort to cover them, and tears rise in her eyes. When I see that, pain sinks into my heart to know that I had hurt her, but seeing me alive again is bringing with it a flood of relief as well. All of this reminds me of how much we love each other.

“Hi, Princess!” Red Star boldly broaches as he unknowingly, in his innocent naiveté, breaks the ice for the Princess and I. “I’m glad to see you again. I’m Red Star! Pleased to meet ‘cha! Listen, though. Could you do us a favor by not telling anypony else we’re here? If you can do that, that would be great.”

“Oh! I . . . certainly can,” Princess Arielza says as she quickly reads the room. I can tell she hasn’t learned all the important details yet but I can also tell she is adapting fast. For instance, I can see her scanning the clothing and condition of me and my companion. It probably tells her volumes. Her attention lingers especially long on my broken horn. Based on her reaction, I can tell she is not accustomed to seeing it that way which indicates, to me, that condition recently occurred before I was dumped off on the streets.

“Swell!” Red Star cheers. “Thank you so much, Princess. You truly are a sweet gal.”

Hearing that, Princess Arielza giggles then asks, “Did you think I was pretending to be sweet before?”

“Ah . . . I honestly did not know what to think,” Red Star admits. “You certainly seemed nice but I wasn’t sure how much trust I should put in royalty. After all, you might all be putting on airs.”

“How very wise of you, young colt,” the princess expresses with a nod and a gentle smile. “Some do. That’s pretty typical of the aristocracy.”

“The what now?” Red Star asks with a wince of confusion.

“The social elite,” the princess elaborates while correctly surmising which word of her last sentence confused him. “However, you should also know that, sometimes, such ponies do care for those that they rule and keep in mind, at all times, that we’re all just ponies who struggle to make the best that they can out of life.” She places a hoof on her chest as she goes on to say, “It is an honorable and worthy endeavor to fulfill the potential of our cutie marks to the best of our ability. If we do, we’ll leave behind the fewest regrets. Instead, we can bring joy and laughter as much as we can.”

“Sounds good to me,” Red Star enthusiastically agrees.

We’re all startled when we hear another knock on the princess’s door followed by a mare asking from beyond with a hint of concern, “Arielza, are you alright in there?”

“I am fine, Belidina,” Princess Arielza calls back. “There is no need for concern. I am in good compony.”

“Anything you want me to bring for your guest, then?” the lady beyond offers which leads me to believe it is probably a maid.

In response to her question, I quietly shake my head no at my wife.

“Not at this time,” the Princess calls back, likely in response to my non-verbal cue. “Thank you for the offer, though.”

“My pleasure, my lady!” Belidina calls back. “Well . . . if you have need of me later, I’m just a ring away.”

“Thank you. We’ll keep that in mind,” the princess replies.

With that, Belidina leaves.

“I want to make it clear to you two that she has my explicit trust,” Princess Arielza informs us. “Whatever you can tell me, you can tell her. Your secret would be safe with her too.”

“But there is danger involved and I’d rather not spread it to other ponies needlessly,” I tell her, finally finding my wits enough to do so. “Suffice it to say, there is a reason I disappeared for quite some time and that same force would prefer if I remain gone.”

“Dispatcher?” Arielza wisely guesses.

I nod as I confirm, “The same.”

“He changed recently,” Arielza notes further. “I’m not exactly sure how or in what way, but he feels more dangerous recently. More confident but for a chilling reason, I sense.”

“I see your intuition is as sharp as ever,” I commend her. “For indeed, he is not the same pony that he was and it might not entirely be his fault. Nevertheless, he stands as a clear and present danger and I don’t wish to spread that danger needlessly. In fact, that’s why I’ve come to you now.”

“Tell me how I can help!” Arielza presses as she leans forward in her seat.

“What I want from you, right now, is to watch after this little one,” I tell her.

“Wait. What?!” Red Star exclaims in shock.

“I want you to stay here with the Princess,” I tell him. “I trust her explicitly.”

“You didn’t even remember her last night!” Red Star reminds with a complaining voice. “I mean, not personally, at any rate.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I notice the fact that Arielza caught that fact as well. To the colt, I tell him, “Indeed, but circumstances have muchly changed since that time. Many revelations have come to me and that, in turn, has refined my opinions about whom I can trust. Of those, I know the Princess here is one of them. Stay here and she’ll take care of you. I know she’d do that from the bottom of her heart.”

“But what about you?!” Red Star argues. “You said yourself that you can use all the allies you can get. How is getting rid of me improving your odds?”

“I’m not getting rid of you, I’m keeping a foal I dearly love safe,” I correct him. “If I do that, then I can focus on the rest of my mission more easily. Grand Vizier Dispatcher has become so much more than a mere pony at this point. He is possessed by a monster with powerful abilities. Abilities such as hypnotizing others with his mere gaze and modifying their memories.”

Even as I explain this to Red Star, I know my wife is listening to this too; therefore, I am managing to explain myself to two ponies simultaneously.

“Which is how he caused you to forget your life here?” Red Star figures.

“Most likely, yes,” I tell Red Star. “Fortunately for us all, a more benevolent being from space has come to help us deal with another fellow alien, and this being is one that Princess Celestia personally trusts because of her prior experience with him. I, in turn, trust her so I trust her judgment in this ‘apparent’ pony as well. If she tells me we can trust the Doctor then I know he really does have the means and motive to help us. Now all that is left is for me to locate the Brass Sphere that the hostile alien came in and secure it before confronting Dispatcher. When I do, I’ll have help.”

“But you don’t know where that Brass Sphere is, right?” Red Star checks with me. “If we both search for it, we can cover more ground.”

“I think I’ve seen what you two are talking about,” Princess Arielza chimes in, which attracts both of our attention.

“Where?” I press with her.

“At the Grand Cathedral,” she answers. “It’s being revered as a new holy object. It’s probably kept there, too.”

“The Grand Cathedral. Got it,” I tell her. “Just in case, can you give me directions to it?”

“I’ll do better than that!” Arielza decides. “I’ll escort you there personally.”

“Really?!” Red Star exclaims brightly. “Then we can all go together!”

“No.” Arielza looks at Red Star. “You’ll be staying with my chamberlain, Belidina.”

“Aw!” Red Star complains foalishly.

“You are obviously somepony very important to my husband and he’ll be distracted in his mission if he brings you along. He said as much, and he meant it.”

Red Star mopes as he looks down.

“But don’t worry. I’ll take care of him from now on.” Arielza looks over at me. “In my compony, no pony else should question him anymore, but we probably should get him into a new outfit just in case.” She looks back at Red Star. “No pony will stop us from entering the Cathedral either. I might even be able to get others to join our search.”

“I guess that’s true,” Red Star partially relents.

“Just by being alive and safe, you’re doing your own part to protect our nation,” Arielza tells him. “Can you do that for us, young colt? Can we trust you with this most important and sacred duty?”

Red Star suddenly straightens and salutes the Princess as he boldly declares, “Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Call me Arielza,” the princess bids. “You might have noticed my chamberlain doing the same.”

“Actually, I did,” Red Star notes. “I thought that was unusual.”

“I prefer to waive formalities in favor of closer and more personal relationships,” Arielza expresses.

“Ah! Gotcha,” Red Star accepts with a wink.

The Princess stands up as she declares, “Let’s get you both into more formal attire. While we do that, you can explain to me further about what exactly is going on.”