To Save our Legacy

“Well, looks like we hit the nail on the head, huh?”

Izzy nodded cheekily, both our sights set on the oldest of the pegasi princesses as she tested her birthday gift while hovering back and forth all over the Royal Palace’s gardens; the topmost one, that is. A left and two rights from the throne room from where Queen Heaven ruled over the remaining pegasi of Equestria.

As it happened, another birthday came up before summer made way for the dropping temperatures of autumn. In light of this special day, Haven had invited us all, her eldest daughter’s closest friends and family, to celebrate Zipp’s birthday back at their palace, an opportunity I would take them up on to finally visit the pegasi city, something I’d been putting off for a good while now. I had caught glimpses of it on TV back at the brighthouse, and whenever Pipp would post online while visiting for a concert or a meeting with her fans. She’d already promised a fully customized tour for all of us, although it was mostly meant for me since the rest of the gang had already enjoyed the pleasure of visiting the city. Granted, it was originally as wanted criminals, but they were still visiting nonetheless.

But, before we could delve into its wide alabaster streets, we had a little surprise for Zipp, which also worked as the only bribe enticing enough to her to get her flank out of Maretime Bay and back to her home. Zipp really, really loathed anything and everything royalty-related, and much preferred to stay well away from the place where royal activities took place, even if that also kept her away from her mom. But, she was a grown pony, it wasn’t our place to tell her how to deal with her stuff.

However, for this particular surprise, Haven had enlisted the help of several ponies and, oddly enough, precisely one human. Izzy was tasked with getting the necessary measurements for creating a fitting piece of headgear. She’d decided to use Zipp’s aviator sunglasses for the task and had accidentally misplaced them afterward, concluding in a short scuffle between the raunchy unicorn and a very pissed-off Zipp who berated Izzy about her whereabouts. The sunglasses had been found in the end, and we had managed to keep the surprise secret, but just barely.

Meanwhile, I was tasked with providing remote assistance to the two main players of our little act, the twin geniuses Syntax and Boolean, lead software engineers for the pegasi crown, responsible for a big chunk of the pegasi's most recent technology; technology that could be found practically everywhere if you looked around the city.

And, of course, they were huge fans of me and my work. I was forced to threaten them with shoving my crotch in their muzzles if they didn’t stop bowing before the Prince of Knowledge. It had worked… for the time being, but you know what they say about software engineers: always be wary of threatening them with a good time.

Both engineers had been commissioned by Queen Haven to come up with the gear her daughter was now sporting, a heartfelt effort from a concerned mother to make her support for her daughter’s likes well-known in addition to aiding her in her endeavors. it was a kind gesture, which Zipp more than welcomed if her joyful laughing was any indication.

Using Izzy’s measurements, the twins and I… well, mostly the twins if I’m being honest, had come up with a small but considerably advanced piece of gear to aid Zipp in her detective endeavors. Multichannel holographic state-of-the-art spyglasses and a small single-propeller deployable spy drone, both with matching colors thanks to Izzy’s creative mind.

Zipp’s reaction to her surprise had been joyful, especially considering that the gift had come from her mom, who would much rather have had her eldest focus on her royal heritage and future duties. Lots of tearful hugs and words of gratitude were exchanged, and Zipp couldn’t wait to try everything out… so, enlisting the help of our friends, a small hide-and-seek game was arranged around the gardens, where the white pegasus used the opportunity for a test run while the twins stood in the sidelines, making sure everything worked flawlessly.

“I’m gonna go check in with them.” I left Izzy’s side with a pat on her head, or at least I would have if her telekinesis hadn’t trapped it there.

“Ugh.” With a stronger pull, I managed to free myself. “Clingy unicorn…”

“Bite me.” She swiftly replied, making me snort at the fact she was the one with a habit of biting.

The twins observantly stood nearby in front of a hastily assembled folding table over which both their laptops were opened and running diagnostics.

Ears twitching at my approaching steps, their eyes left their respective screens to meet mine and, in unison, flexed their forelegs in a bow.

“Aaaa ta ta ta!” I only had to point down my groin for the twins to sheepishly relent and resume their previous posture. “Everything working fine?”

Clearing his voice, Syntax motioned to me to see his computer screen. “Diagnostics show everything’s working as intended; we only had some minor last-minute bugs to take care of, but the code is already fixed in dev, we’re just waiting for the new binaries to compile.”

As is accustomed to happen with twins in Equestria, both siblings sported the same color sets but inverted. Syntax wore a dusty gray coat with a two-toned crimson and copper mane and tail, while his twin, Boolean, possessed the same colors but reversed, the red of his coat giving way to a rusty copper over his chest and belly areas as well as around his fetlocks. Both possessed the same dirty golden shine in their irises. Aside from their inverted color patterns, Syntax could only be distinguished by his oversized glasses while Boolean could be identified by the way he tied his slightly longer mane in a ponytail.

It should go without saying, they also tended to finish each other’s sentences.

Syntax continued. “The glasses’ response time falls within established parameters, and the…”

“...drone’s adaptive command directives are assessing the princess’ commands accordingly, incrementing the users’ interface use efficiency by thirty percent.” Boolean finished as if they were a single gestalt being.

“Did you manage to integrate the modifications for the gyroscope I proposed?” I inquired, referring to my contribution to the new gadget.

“Oh, you bet we did, sir! It works wonders to keep the drone stable with only one propeller. It would’ve been a hasste to fit it into the holster with more than one, otherwise.” Syntax energetically replied.

Wincing at the ‘sir’ part, I decided it best to leave the twin geniuses to their work and again distract myself by watching Zipp trying to find Sparky in the middle of the mass of bushes and flowers that scattered around the grounds of the gardens. With normal vision, it might’ve taken her a while to find him, taking into consideration Sparky’s scale colors. Through the infrared vision though, a fire-breathing dragon stood out like a sore thumb.

“AHA! Found you, little guy!” Zipp yelled while dive-bombing towards some bushes around the eastern end of the gardens, emerging with a giggling Sparky secured on her forelegs. She used the chance and took the little dragon for a slow ride around the place. Sparky flapped his tiny wings energetically, too young still to carry him through the air, but his instincts for flying were already kicking in.

“Her sparkle is so bright!” Izzy loudly observed from where I had previously left her.

“Hehe, yeah, I guess it is.”

With Sparky found, the improvised game was finally over, not that it had lasted much in the first place. As the rest of the gang made their way back to us, Zipp swooped down in front of me, albeit gently as she was still carrying the baby dragon on her back.

“I can’t thank you guys enough for this, it’s amazing!” Zipp thanked us for what must have been the hundredth time.

I waved my hands dismissively. “None of that, Zipp. Those guys put in most of the work and your mom provided the money. It’s them you should be thanking, not me.”

“Still.” Zipp refused to give in. Standing in front of Izzy, she shared an apologetic nuzzle with the unicorn. “I’m sorry for giving you a hard time over the glasses. It was fillish of me.”

“Awww.” Izzy returned the gesture in earnest. “You’re one hundred and thirty-three percent forgiven!”

“That’s an oddly specific percentage.” I gave Izzy a side look. “May I ask why that amount?”

“Reasons…” She cryptically returned without uttering another word.

Before I could comment on her randomness, the rest of the group caught up to us.

“Okay, guys. Who’s ready for the ‘Princess Pipp Patented City Tour’?!! Oh, why do I even bother asking? You’re all shaking in your horseshoes!” With Zipp’s test run over, it was time for her little sister to take the lead. We had adjourned with Queen Haven for now, agreeing to her invitation to join her later for the party she was throwing for Zipp, complete with the blowing of candles and all that, meaning we had the rest of the morning and the afternoon available for sightseeing.

After leaving Zipp’s new gear with the twins for some additional finishing touches and both figurative and literal polishing, Pipp dragged us all with surprising strength back into the palace and down the impossibly tall elevator down to the upper level of the pegasi city. Haven offered to dragonsit Sparky while we were gone, something about missing the old days she mused to us. It only took a bit of convincing for Hitch to relent and agree to it.

“Okay, so!” Pipp flew in front of us, practically trembling with barely restrained excitement. “Since I know this city like the back of my hoof, I’ve taken the liberty of designing the perfect tour to maximize our exposure! First…” She pulled out a folded map from her meticulously combed mane. “...we can head over to the upper market district for some shopping. Then…” She pointed with her hoof over the map as she went over the plan. “...we can head down to the middle market district for some window shopping… ugh, everything’s just so expensive down there…” She scowled grimly.

‘Says the princess with an unlimited budget under her wing.’

“Then!” She proceeded. “We can go over that dumpster fire thatZipp likes to grab lunch at…”

“Hey!” An indignant Zipp protested.

“Oh, come on, sis! You can throw the junk they sell into the palace fountains and it would literally float from all the grease in it!”

“Then thank hoofness I’m in possession of a perfectly toned and healthy body, so I can treat myself with some junk food every once in a while.” A very confident Zipp raised her snout in the air.

Yeah, that hit a nerve, betrayed by Pipp's twitching eye.

“Does she have a toned and healthy body?” I whispered to Hitch standing by my side.

“W-Why are you asking me?” He had the nerve to act surprised, at which I only blinked twice. “Ugh.” He rolled his eyes and made sure to avoid my gaze, making Sparky giggle on his back.

“You and I will have some serious words later, sister.” Pipp threatened with narrowed eyes. “Ahem. And finally!” She cast one final leer toward her sibling. “We can head down to the lower district and visit the eastern viewpoint. You can see the entire city from there. It’s a spectacular view if I do say so myself.”

‘It must be. I believe I’ve counted over sixty-eight selfies taken there… and that’s just from the last week alone.’

“Sounds great, Pipp!” Sunny agreed to the tour with as much energy as the petite pegasus had radiated in her explanation.

“What’re you ponies waiting for?! Get those flanks moving already!” Izzy, who had seemingly teleported herself all the way to the stairs, ushered us to get a move on.

As the ponies amicably yapped among themselves, I lost myself taking in the views of the metropolis surrounding me. I can honestly say it might as well have been the most amazing city I’ve ever laid my eyes on since I arrived in Equus, even more than Canterlot if I may be so bold. Because it was that city that Zephyr Heights reminded me of. It shared its golden and white tones, albeit missing its purples and blues. Since it was located considerably higher than the late capital of Equestria, a few stray clouds sneaked their way between the tall buildings, providing a mesmerizing aura. Teams of pegasi patrolled the skies and got rid of anything that would block any pedestrian road, lest somepony end up tripping or bumping into another.

However, for all its radiant magnificence, what struck me most were the details that hit me closer to home.

Gigantic digital screens loomed over the streets, attached to practically every available wall and roof that could adorn them. Ads, news broadcasts, even some of Pipp’s most recent social media posts; all that and more were being constantly projected everywhere, giving the city an air of Times Square that the pony city of Manehattan could only have dreamt of. I had only visited New York a couple of times back in the day, but the resemblance was undeniable.

Just as I had envisioned when the project was established back in the day.

“Breathtaking, huh?” Zipp, noticing my silence as I took in as much of my surroundings as possible, bumped her hip against mine with a knowing grin.

“It’s amazing, Zipp. Leagues better than what I could’ve imagined.” I answered honestly.

“And now that we can fly, it only gets better.” She spoke enthusiastically but sighed melancholically after. “I miss this place, I really do.”

“Then why don’t you visit it more often? You don’t need a pegasi-pulled chariot like we do.”

“I know, and I should, but…” She bit her lip and spoke no further.

“You should give your mom more credit, Zipp.” I softly chastised. “She’s making an effort to give you your space.”

“Yeah, she is.” Uncertainty permeated her every word. “I guess it’s more of a reminder than anything else.” She forlornly took in her surroundings as we entered the commercial district. “I love it back at Maretime Bay. There, I can be Zipp, just Zipp, free to do whatever I want. But here…”

“You’re crown princess Zipp Storm, heir to the throne, and you’re expected to act as such.” I finished for her, knowing well where her worries came from.

“Just, look at me!” She quickened her gate and splayed herself in front of me. “I’m only a ‘princess’ ‘cause of the family I was born into. I have no interests, barely any skills, and I definitely DON’T have my sister’s talent for dealing with the public. I’m awkward around others, I don’t enjoy dealing with that kind of stuff. I…” Her angry tirade died as her words failed to emerge. Her sight returned to the numerous ponies walking and flying over and between the tall buildings. “This,” She waved her foreleg all around the place. “This is my family’s legacy, and it’s one I’m supposed to uphold, to ensure that it endures and prospers, especially now that the three tribes are friends again!”

“Zipp,” I closed the distance between us. Our friends were already way ahead of us, unaware of our little conversation. Not wanting to prolong this further, I asked her the important question. “Is this about you not wanting to, or is it about you not feeling prepared to take on the mantle of your mother?”

“W-Well, I…” She bit her lower lip, unsure of how to approach the question. “I guess I’m…”

“No, Zipp.” I cut her off, catching her by surprise. “That’s not something you can answer for me right now. You don’t know what you want, and you can’t bring yourself to choose without thinking only about yourself.”

Seeing her ears dropping, I gently grasped her head with both hands, forcing her eyes to meet mine. “I told you then, and I’ll repeat it now: nopony, not your mom, nor your sister, nor the noble houses, no one can decide this for you.” My grip hardened a bit. “And if your choice means another pegasi sitting on that throne, even if it means the end of the royal line, so be it.”

Her eyes widened as if I had just uttered the biggest of heresies. “There’s always been a pegasus on the throne! How can you ask me to even think about such a thing?!” She pumped her wings anxiously.

“Ah.” I chuckled lightly. “Zipp, that way of thinking has brought down more kingdoms than I care to remember. Let me tell you something….” I came up with a small example as we quickened our pace to catch up with the rest. “The country I was born in, Spain, is technically a kingdom, in that it’s ruled by a monarch, a king called Felipe the Sixth… or rather, was when I was last on Earth. Yet, the king, and by extension the royal family… don’t really govern the country. However, they still serve roles as the country’s main representatives on the international stage, which effectively made them our chief diplomats. The king’s actual role is referred to as ‘Head of State’; he commands the armed forces and is called into politics only under very specific circumstances, like reforming the constitution or major things like that. The country itself is what is known as a ‘representative democracy’.

Zipp cocked her head in an open invitation to continue. “Spain has political parties that each campaign on major issues, members of which get elected to our parliament in elections that the public votes in, from which are appointed ministers to oversee government departments, along with a prime minister, whom we refer to as ‘president’ due to an odd quirk of tradition, and blah blah blah. If my friend was here, he’d talk your head off for hours about the British government; Christ, he nearly bored me to tears sometimes.”

Zipp listened with rapt attention, unconsciously dodging passersby ponies as her full attention was set on my explanation.

“In short… don’t mistake my proposal as a radical approach; just don’t forget there are many, MANY different possibilities and, if I’m being honest, Equestria is in urgent need of some of them.” Having finished my speech, I didn’t want to sour the mood on her special day. I reached out with my hand and playfully tussled her mane. “But, we can bust our brains with that another time. Today’s your special day and, by the looks your sis is giving us, we’re due for a greeeeat time shopping. Doesn’t it just sound peachy?” I voiced with as much enthusiasm as her tired visage reflected.

“Hey, slowpokes!” An antsy Pipp waved from the entrance of what resembled a mall, right at the end of the avenue we’d been traversing. “We’ve gotta hoof it if we wanna stay on schedule!”

And thus began our amazing, exhilarating, wondrous endeavor of visiting each and every store within the three-story building. Well, clothes and beauty-themed stores at any rate, but still, a man suffers when faced with such a fate.

Zipp had made clear that she didn’t want any gifts, claiming that us being with her on this day was more than enough. Still, against her protests, our friends had given her a small present each, Izzy and I sharing ours in the form of her new equipment.

But her sister would have none of it and was more than willing to drag her disgruntled sister up and down the place, its marble floors and golden decorations mirroring the city’s standard patterns. And by dragging, I mean literally dragging. As in, dragging her by her two-toned tail. We managed to amass a healthy number of viewers, all of whom had turned their attention to the high-pitched screeching of a pegasus’ barrel and chin dragging against the spotless floors.

My own definition of a city tour would include visiting historical sites and places of tourist interest instead of spending two months’ worth of royal stipends on dresses and accessories, but I took the chance to browse some winter clothes since the temperatures would soon begin to drop. My ol’ jacket was definitely alright, but I needed sturdier clothes since winters in Equestria always tended to bring heavy snow. I wondered how it would turn out without the pegasi’s interference. Just as it did back on Earth, I reasoned, but who knew? This place somehow always found a way to surprise me.

Learning of my predicament, Pipp introduced me to one of the top-class tailors specialized in stallion wardrobes. I preferred to omit that, due to my unique physique, the fact that whoever made the clothes was specialized in one particular gender was irrelevant.

His name was Oddity. Oddity Trend. I almost had a heart attack when my brain made the wrong connection with an old friend. Still, he seemed like a nice fella, considerably less flashy than the unicorn fashionista I’d gotten to know very well. Thank goodness Pipp was there to pick up the pace for her.

Not wanting to disappoint the princess, he attentively noted all my requests and advice and, leading me to the back of the store for some privacy, took my measurements in a matter of moments. Since it was a big custom order, it would take him a while, but when I expressed regret that I lived away from the city for a prompt collection, he offered to have the complete set of clothes delivered to me at Maretime Bay in a surprising display of mercantile prowess. It always felt great when sellers didn’t give me weird looks or outright refuse service to a non-pony. I had grown used to it, but it always felt nice nonetheless.

“HEY!!”

Just as I was about to pay for my purchase, Izzy caught me with my hands in the proverbial cookie jar. She had proclaimed herself my personal seamstress and graciously whipped out some simple spare clothes for me soon after my arrival in their time period, and would do so again in earnest if the need arose. Her crafty skills had made fine work of them, but they were not sturdy enough to withstand the brunt of winter.

It took me a while to ease her anger and bribe her to let the poor stallion be, but now he would be met with a glare every time he crossed paths with Izzy.

That mare could be a handful sometimes.

While I was making my purchase, the rest of the gang headed to the only store able to awaken a minimum of interest in the birthday pony: ‘Nicker’, or as my fellow humans would recognize, Nike. Since anything Zipp bought that day would be covered by her sister, or by whatever funds were left after her own shopping rampage, the alabaster pegasus came out with a new set of sport horseshoes, a new pair of flight goggles, and leg warmers for her early workouts in the chilling mornings and late nights when she was in the mood.

“Not a single dress, or a new perfume… or even a simple necklace, ugh,” Pipp muttered in defeat as our group got back together with our purchases covered.

“It’s my birthday, Pipp. Deal with it.” Zipp jabbed with her muzzle held high.

“Oh, I’m going to deal with it alright. I’m going to deal with those abominations you call leg warmers when you least expect it…”

With the sisters bickering back and forth, we used the chance to further explore the mall. It was exactly what you’d expect from such a place: a huge open space in the middle with plenty of resting areas, around which three stories of shops, restaurants, and even a cinema on the opposite end from the entrance were built. Glassy roof, tacky decorations… it had been a long time since I’d felt such a familiar emotion. Ten equestrian years had passed since I’d left Earth before entering stasis, and scarce were the chances that I could experience a piece of my old home. It was no Puerto Venecia, but it still brought me a comforting sense of familiarity in what was still an alien world to me.

With our first stop completed, it was time to head down to the middle level and find ourselves a place to grab some light lunch, since tonight’s royal feast promised an abundance of delicacies I was more than looking forward to sampling.

Zipp’s single bag and Pipp’s seven were filled to the brim, of course, all of which were handed to the big strong stallion entourage to deal with. Equestria’s reverse gender roles had a funny way of working in some particular situations. Absolutely exhilarating…

Now considerably more loaded, Hitch and I were reduced to acting as the group’s pack mules, while the four mares trotted in front of us, taking in the sights and chatting amicably about their recent purchases. The sheriff and I, however, from our vantage point, were more interested in another piece of the scenery…

“… Left to right?” I proposed without missing a beat.

“Left to right.”

I started first. “Okay. Seven point five. A bit too small for me.”

“Agreed. Seven point nine.”

We passed to the next. “Eight point two.”

“A solid ten.” He graded without hesitation.

“Of course she would be a ten for you.” I elbowed him in the ribs with a cheeky grin.

“I’ve no idea what you’re talking about.” He refused to acknowledge my teasing, but couldn’t hide the subtle blush on his cheeks and ears.

“Sure you don’t. Okay, next. Nine point five. Earth ponies always have great flanks.”

“... Dude, I can’t, I just can’t. I’ve known her my entire life, she’s practically a sister to me.” Hitch complained, wincing and averting his gaze.

“Fiiine. And finally, nine point seven, I mean…” My hand gestures were self-explanatory.

“I concur, nine point three.”

“What are you colts scheming back there?” Pipp called to us over her shoulder, her eyes narrowing.

“I was explaining to Hitch how he should be on the lookout for any greedy tendencies Sparky might develop, since if left unchecked he could unleash a growth spurt and cause him to grow up to ten times his size in less than a day. I’d rather have a roof over my head when the winter hits us.” I calmly explained without giving a reason to suspect.

“W-Wait, h-he can?!” Hitch loudly asked in deep shock.

“Mhm. Happened to Spike once, but I wasn’t there to witness it, so…”

Satisfied yet considerably stunned, the mares bought my lame excuse and resumed their friendly bantering, not without one lingering knowing look from Izzy. Another self-explanatory hand gesture got her giggling naughtily.

“What’s so funny, Izzy?” Innocent Sunny wondered innocently.

“I’ll tell you when you grow up,” Izzy answered nonchalantly to the earth pony’s bewilderment.

Soon enough, we’d taken another elevator down and arrived at the middle level, a bit more residential-themed than the upper concourse, but still with a fair number of street shops to browse from.

A series of hardware stores caught my attention. Through their window displays, I caught sight of the pegasi's latest technological advances, at least the ones related to daily use. Most if not all of them resembled Earth’s own brands of technological gimmicks. I was aware that the ponies had taken my own devices as a base for developing theirs all those years ago, but their striking resemblance brought back one of those strange phenomena I was made aware of soon after my accidental arrival in Twilight’s Castle.

For a pony, many daily utensils and conveniences were shaped to fit a human more so than a pony. Cutlery, doorknobs, shopping carts, medical equipment, machine controls… heck, even their weaponry. The kinds of things which, without needing to necessarily alter their function, other more fitting shapes would better accommodate a quadruped such as a pony, especially for those without a horn.

Now, the size and shape of phones, headphones, laptops, remotes… perhaps I was biased by the fact I came from another world but… I don’t know, it always seemed a bit weird to me.

Following Zipp’s directions, we took a sharp left and stumbled upon a small viewpoint that served as a side street too, partially concealed from the hustle and bustle of the main road it led to. From there, a stunning view of the city below as well as the sharp barren mountainside could be enjoyed, its tall buildings climbing over the puffy clouds, shining in a blinding golden light depending on where you looked. A faint scent of grease permeated the place. My nose pinpointed its origin in a small fast-food joint, its sheltered terrace making use of the space provided by the viewpoint where a couple of pegasi enjoyed their early meals sitting comfortably.

Pipp’s muzzle scrunched up in disgust. “Ugh, I can almost feel gravity pulling harder on my poor body...” Her snarky comment reflected her opinion of Zipp’s choice of restaurant perfectly.

“Must be from all that makeup you’re wearing.” Her sister punched back, motioning with her wing to the passing waitress as the rest arranged a few tables and chairs to fit us all.

“I’m not even wearing any makeup!!”

“I genuinely can’t tell anymore, Pipp.” Zipp snorted. “You always wear so much that I’ve internalized it. You look the same to me now regardless of how much makeup you use.”

As Pipp took great offense and continued with their sisterly scuffle, the rest chuckled and waited for the waitress to return with the menus. Lunch with a show? I couldn’t complain about that.

“A pleasure to see you once again, Princess Zipp.” The waitress saluted the embarrassed pegasi who disliked visibly royal manners and hoofed us the menus. It was a junk food local, so the dishes were what you would expect from such a place. I ordered the carrot dog, a house’s specialty according to Zipp. Carrot was never my favorite vegetable so I made sure to load it with as many toppings as the menu could offer.

“Damm,” Zipp noted, stunned at the sight of the monstrosity I had ordered once the waitress returned with our meals, making hers pale in contrast. “You wanna roll down the rest of the way or what?”

“You’ve got us draggin’ your stuff all the way from the mall. Let a guy eat his fill, princess.” I jabbed at her in mock anger.

Lunch was spent with friendly chatter, the royal sisters talking for a long time about how life was in the city for them and their subjects. They’d been living here until very recently and had a lot to share with all of us who were eager to learn, especially a certain orange-furred mare.

I finished my meal like a champ, earning applause from my companions which I gratefully accepted with a bow. As much as I would have preferred to lie down and take a nap, there were still a couple of places to visit, and Pipp wouldn’t have us lazing around on her special tour, no sir.

The lower level encompassed most of the residential portion of the city. Due to its particular characteristics and location, all the buildings were conceived as apartment buildings with, curiously enough, special entrances on different floors that a flying pegasus might make use of instead of the main entrance at ground level. How the previously flightless pegasi thought to make use of them, I couldn’t begin to guess, but they were now littered with citizens ingressing and egressing the structure via the aerial landing zones, leaving their homes with a mighty flap of their wings.

The viewpoint the sisters had mentioned was located all the way to the southeastern end of the colossal city, within the lowest point of the district we had been traversing. It was a popular place for the city’s residents to lounge about, and now too for the couple of earth pony and unicorn tourists that eagerly soaked up the pegasi way of life for the first time in ever.

We were rewarded with a complete view of Zephyr Heights, substantially different from the one you could get from atop the palace, which from where we stood could be easily discerned towering ridiculously high above the rest of the buildings. Its golden shine outmatched that of the city under it, almost as if it were serving as a lighthouse for those soaring above the clouds.

For once, it was the rest of the gang’s cameras that endlessly clicked with a hundred photos taken and not Pipp’s, who regarded them with a knowing grin. I chose instead to just enjoy the view and take it all in without the aid of technology, feeling a sense of pride in such an accomplishment of a city Zephyr Height had turned out to be, for it was meant to be one of Equestria’s greatest projects in which my work and that of my colleagues would be exhibited for the world to see. A new, reinvented, all-species-friendly Equestria. One of the three planned that would be constructed in key spots around the country, and hopefully, around the world as the other nations began following our example.

A shame it wasn’t meant to be…

One building in particular caught my attention our collective viewpoint of the city. It didn’t particularly stand out from the rest, but its domed, glassy roof and quadrangular shape made it somewhat distinctive, more so due to the fact that there were several cranes lifting heavy cargo inside the building through an opening in the glass panels on the ceiling. It was a shape I had seen several times before.

“Hey, Zipp?” I called the pegasus standing nearby. “That building over there,” I pointed with my finger. “Is that a station of some sort?”

All the ponies followed the direction of my finger. “Ah, yeah.” Zipp affirmed with a chuckle. “That’s the old abandoned station. I used it as my personal hideout before I stumbled on Sunny and Izzy.” She fondly recalled from their first adventure together.

“Oooh, what’re they doing with it?” Izzy inquired after noticing the construction equipment around it.

“Well, we’re steadily getting more and more visitors, and not everypony enjoys the long hike up, so my mom ordered for it to be renovated and ready to welcome new arrivals. They’re going to set up a cable car system linked to another smaller station at the base of the mountain.”

“Can we visit? I wanna take a look at that mural Sunny mentioned.”

“Um,” Zipp was hesitant to comply with my request. “I’m not sure if we’re allowed there, with all the renovation going on…”

“Thank goodness you’re a princess then. They aren’t going to say ‘no’ to you, I reckon.” I turned slightly towards the younger sister. “And perhaps we can actually visit a place of historical renown for a chance, hmm?”

Ignoring Pipp’s scowl, I led the group away from the viewpoint and back into the city; that is, until I became completely lost and sheepishly allowed Zipp to take the lead.

The cranes I’d managed to glimpse were only a diminutive part of the whole renovating effort the workponies were immersed in. Pegasi flew up and down the scaffolding littered all around its exterior walls, fixing cracks, smoothing surfaces, giving it a healthy coat of paint…

The interior fared no better than the exterior. After a few moments of bribing the site’s forepony, we were granted a short visit inside, wearing the appropriate headwear, of course. Izzy barely managed to dodge my flying smack for laughing at how oversized the hardhat fit me.

“You melon-headed ponies…” I muttered under my breath.

As teams of pegasi and a few hired earth ponies worked tirelessly fixing tiles, cleaning up debris, widening stairs, reinforcing columns, and building the scaffold for the future cable car system, the forepony led us to the opposite end of the station, where in times past ponies would wait to catch a commercial airship leading to anywhere in Equestria and perhaps even beyond.

“Okay, colts! Got the Princesses here wanting to get a look at that mural. Bring it down!”

At his command, two pegasi flew up and untied the knots keeping the protection screen in place over the glass mural. Falling down with a loud FLOP, the midday sunlight painted the interior in a myriad of colors as it went through the stained glass.

“There’s a couple of pieces missing. The guys back at the history museum are working on fixing them and adding them back as fast as they can.” Zipp informed me, motioning towards a few missing parts of the mural, including the central lower piece which would have depicted an earth pony if its sisters were any indication. A pegasi with golden wings and a unicorn with a golden horn were displayed holding their sights high toward the central upper decoration, which was a bigger depiction of Twilight’s cutie mark surrounded by a myriad of carved shapes and colors. Above the pegasi, a representation of the Pegasi Crystal was etched in the glass; a broken fragment over the unicorn’s head seemed to fit a missing Unicorn Crystal, while the central one would be more of the same with the earth pony.

It must have been assembled not long after I’d gone into stasis, as the Unity Crystals were clearly displayed in it. And before the eventual breach between the three tribes, there was that uncertain period of time in which even Discord himself had trouble remembering what had happened. That meant the work of art in front of me must have been at least seven hundred years old. Just like me.

Sunny trotted to catch up with me and pressed herself against my side. “When Zipp first showed it to us, we thought there was only a unicorn and a pegasus crystal. Both had always been depicted as the ones possessing true magic, leaving us earth ponies to be the odd ones out, not special in the slightest.”

“But that turned out to your advantage in the end.” I managed to speak after regaining my voice, still mesmerized by the colorful display in front of me.

“Mhm.” She agreed. “Nothing special meant nothing to fear. We were the weak ones, so we had to fear and be ready for anything.” I felt her press her barrel against my side further. “Thank hoofness it doesn’t have to be that way anymore.”

While relishing in her closeness, the admittedly impressive sight of Twilight’s cutie mark painting the hall in whites and purples made my stomach churn rather uncomfortably. After Celestia and Luna had stepped down and passed her the throne, her cutie mark, and my sigil, had taken over from the sun and the moon as the… let’s say the ‘symbols’ of the nation. Some discussion even arose between the noble families over whether the Equestrian flag, depicting both alicorn sisters, should be changed to accommodate the symbols of a new era. Symbols proudly displayed, symbols of everything we had accomplished, and what was left to accomplish.

“At least this one came out right, Twi…”

“Hmm?” Sunny’s ears flicked as they almost caught my mumbling.

“Nothing.” I eased her wondering. “Guess I’ll have to come back when it’s reassembled. Can you give us a rough estimate on how long it’ll take?” I addressed the forepony who patiently waited for us to finish, albeit a smidge bothered with the time we were taking away from his work.

“A month at the earliest, and probably two until its sister station is completed down the mountain… we then need to run tests on the new cable car system. After that, we can safely fix the mural before we officially open the station to the public.”

Noticing his hardening tone, although quickly correcting himself after a side look to the pegasi princesses, I decided we’d taken up enough of his time. “Thank you, sir. We won’t trouble you further. Come on, guys.”

Once everypony had thanked him for his time and we had returned the headgear, we began our march back to the palace, changing our original route to visit other places that caught our eye on our way up. I witnessed the pegasi’s vertical gardens where they cultivated anything and everything the city required, far away from the dangerous ground level. We also caught sight of several cloud harvesters, which the pegasi used to collect water from the dense cloud fields that completely masked the town if you were to look from the base of Zephyrs Peaks. They resembled giant turbines, which gently moved the surrounding air, forcing it through several cooled micro-thin steel-weaved nets responsible for catching and condensing the water within for later use.

Albeit more discreet than Canterlogic’s Factory back at Maretime Bay, several technological companies hosted their own manufacturing centers through the periphery of the second level, making use of the metals and other minerals the mountain provided to assemble their products. When searching for the location, this mountain range proved to be ideal for a self-sustaining city, as within its entrails run deposits of most of the materials that would be required after its construction. The pegasi had done an outstanding job in making use of them, especially considering their expertise in construction was historically limited to where clouds were concerned.

On our way back we traversed numerous streets, significantly emptier of pedestrians according to the sister's words since pegasi could now opt for a shorter flight to reach their destination. Some traffic signs were being assembled in key areas to regulate the sudden increase in air traffic. Everypegasi seemed happy and eager for another beautiful day in the city, and the few tourist groups we kept stumbling into eagerly shared the sentiment.

“Well,” Zipp called to us as she stopped in her tracks right before the stairs that would take us to the elevator used to reach the palace. “I guess this is it. I mean, we could stop by the history museum, but I don’t think you guys need to learn more about Equestrian history.” Zipp gave Sunny and me a knowing look.

“Can we please take a rest? My back is killing me.” Hitch wailed after having carried with me the mare’s, although practically the sole mare’s purchases, wheezing and panting as if he had just run a marathon.

“Wow. You’re worse than a little filly.” I teased the sheriff, eliciting amused giggles from the girls and a dark scowl from the huffing stallion.

“*GASP!!*” Pipp made us all jump from her sudden outburst. “Ideaaaaa~!!” She chanted in her singing voice, sending her sister a look the alabaster pegasi quickly recognized, and feared judging by her reaction.

“Absolutely not!” Zipp flared her wings in protest.

“Absolutely yes!” Her sister rebutted. “Look at these poor stallions.” She pointed with her wing at our ‘sorry’ state. “It’s the least I can do!” She placed both forehooves over her chest in a sign of sympathy. “And perhaps you’ve forgotten, but I still care to remember you owing me a proper pampering session!”

“… Are you seriously still fussing over that?! We nearly DROWNED that day, and all you car-”

“Yes! Well, ahem.” Pipp rudely interrupted her sister. “Follow me ponies, let the wonders of the royal treatment soothe aaaall your pains and worries.”

“Hmm,” I mulled loudly, gaining the pony's attention. “A ‘spa chapter’, huh? Took the author long enough to fit one of these in…”

Just as I expected, five tilted pony heads snapped to regard me with profound puzzlement.

Pinkie would’ve been so proud of me.

Labeling it as more ‘human nonsense’, our little group began the ascent back onto royal grounds, where Pipp once again took the lead and showed us the way to the royal spa deep within the palace’s lower levels, but not before summoning a couple of guards to take our (but mostly her) purchases back to our temporary quarters.

I took amusement in the deadpanned expression of the pegasi guards now relegated to the undignified task of carrying our stuff up the palace stairs. “Should’ve gone to college instead, huh?” I teased the bored guardmare, who for a moment flashed me daggers before her gaze relaxed.

“I… can’t let my mom know that she was right all along.” She flatly responded, earning a hearty chuckle out of me. I didn't even ask her name.

The spa was exquisite and was clearly surpassing in my mind the closest approximation I’d ever encountered, which was a spa in a hotel in Germany. Well, and the twin’s spa in Ponyville, of course, but I ended up avoiding that place eventually since every time I stepped foot in it the twins hammered me with the chance of working there as a masseuse. I have a college degree, for Faust’s sake! I don’t do massages!… to the public, at least.

Still, this spa had a more… oriental-themed presentation, its heavily charged atmosphere reminded me of the time I visited the Neighponese archipelago on a diplomatic mission.

‘Celestia, I miss sushi.’

Taking a deep breath of the steamy atmosphere, Pipp ushered the ponies straight into the hot bath. I remained behind in search of a place to store my clothes and get a towel... and some privacy for the procedure.

Just as I was to remove my shirt, I noticed a purple blob through the corner of my eye.

“… Are you gonna stand there waiting for me to…?”

“Yes,” Izzy answered curtly, cutting me off with a playful flick of her tail, making no sign of moving to join the others.

“Izzy.” I pointedly looked her up and down. “When was the last time you got drilled?”

She wasn’t deterred by my straightforwardness “Ugh, waaaaay too long ago.” A pervy smile split her muzzle, her tail now mischievously wagging back and forth.

“Hmm,” I muttered pensively. “I wonder if the staff here offer some kind of treatment to help you?” Turning on my heels, I waved to one of the employees who was passing by. “Excuse me, my friend over here is in dire need of a good buMMMPH!!”

A very flustered Izzy reached with her levitation, and both gagged me and pulled me away from the bewildered stallion. “Hehehe.” She flashed him a nervous grin. “Don’t listen to my friend here, the steam goes right to his head, you know?”

Leaving the stunned employee behind, Izzy dragged us both to the other side of the room, quietly so as to not bother the rest of the personnel further.

She freed me once we had reached a safe distance and, taking a deep breath to lessen the embarrassment lighting her cheeks, gave me her deepest scowl.

“Serves you right.” I ignored the leer she was giving me and bumped her flank with my knee. “Get a move on, you horny hornhead.”

With a loud huff, she did so in an exaggerated manner and joined the rest of the now-soaked ponies, leaving me with my desired privacy. Undressing down to my underwear and tying a towel around my waist, I followed the unicorn’s hoof steps to the hot bath. Leaving the towel near the edge of the pool, I entered the water one foot at a time.

“Nnnnngg.” I couldn’t keep the relieved groan inside once my body had sunk into its steamy depths, immediately noticing the effect it was having easing my aching feet and back.

“So dramatic…” Pipp muttered with a roll of her eyes from her place across mine.

“For your birthday, Pipp, I’m gonna get you one of those granny carts and save my back a lot of trouble. Nnngg.” I moaned again.

“A… granny cart?” I saw her head tilt over the mist.

“You don’t have those here?” I responded with another question. A myriad of shaking heads was my answer. “Huh, I guess that’s another thing I’ll have to introduce here.” I blabbed to myself.

A peaceful silence fell over the room, only broken by the sounds of the staff going around the place, submerged in their chores, and the occasional trickle when somepony’s hoof disturbed the water. By the way the staff addressed the youngest of the princesses and how they seemed to know what she would require before she even asked, it was evident that Pipp was more than just a casual visitor.

I let my thoughts wander as my muscles were slowly unknotted by the warm embrace of the water, lazily spinning around Izzy as she floated belly up in front of me, lost in her own thoughts, as I was lost in mine.

The absence of an essential part of the experience broke my concentration. “Wait.” I strained my neck to look behind me in search of a button. “Where’re the bubbles?”

“Over there, big guy.” Zipp extracted a wing from under the water and pointed it towards a smaller tub across this one, over on the opposite side of the room.

“Oh.” I had half a mind to leave the hot bath and try that one for a moment, but my aching muscles went into an uproar at the prospect of the slightest exercise. “Meh, I’ll try it later. How much time do we have, Pipp?”

“As much as we want, of course. I mean, it’s our private spa.” She answered with a smug undertone.

“Damm, we didn’t have one of these back in Canterlot Castle.” I recalled from my days as a permanent figure within the gold and alabaster building.

“You can visit anytime you want. It’s meant for royals after all. Hear that, Huffy?!” Pipp called for the same stallion employee I had used to mess with Izzy.

“Copy that, your Highness.” He answered from within a supply cabinet in search of towels for our little group.

“Do I get a flashy membership card or something?”

A devious smirk showed me her pearly white teeth. “Oh, that won’t be necessary. Your face is quite… recognizable.” She worded it in a teasing manner.

“And what about us?” A slightly jealous-sounding Sunny demanded.

“Oh, for you guys I can surely get membership cards, hear that, Huffy?!”

“Copy that, your Highness.” The stallion tiredly replied in the exact same manner.

“Excellent.” Satisfied, she fell back to the edge of the pool, slightly curved to accommodate a pony’s neck, and reached behind her for a couple of cucumber pieces to place over her eyes from the plate the staff had left there previously.

A painful groan reached my ears from the left side of the pool, where Hitch tried his best to massage his own aching shoulders. “Any chance I get a massage in here, Zipp?” He asked the pegasus resting closely beside him.

‘Ah, baby steps Zipp, baby steps…’

“Sure, right behind those curtains there’s a couple of massage tables.” She pointed with her hoof towards a pair of sliding curtains masking off a portion of the spacious room. “Just head over there and they’ll attend to you shortly.”

“Thank-you.” And with that, the sheriff exited the bath and, after a good full-body shake, disappeared behind the curtains, falling flat onto one of the massage tables.

“I swear, stallions these days are a bunch of cryfoals…” Pipp once again spoke under her breath, earning a blank, somewhat harsh look from her sister.

Since my sight had returned to the oriental-themed patterned ceiling I didn’t notice Sunny scurrying along the pool's carved seats, only realizing when I felt her forehooves over my right leg.

“Hmm?”

“I just happened to remember you owe me a full body massage.” She calmly announced.

Her sudden comment called for a moment of careful thinking. “… Um, no, I don’t,” I answered in a similar manner, recalling our conversation at her smoothie stand the day of the Crafts Fair.

“Yes, you do.”

“No, I don’t.” I pressed on. “I didn’t get a smoothie, so there’s no paym- ugh.”

But Sunny remained impassive to my protests and, in a swift move, scooched up and rested her haunches over my lap, facing forward to the pool's center.

“I’ll be generous and only ask for my back and shoulders, if you’d be so kind?” She haughtily commanded, tilting her head upwards and relaxing her shoulder blades. The rest of the ponies could only watch, bemused at her particular attitude.

“Okay then.” I cracked my knuckles and flexed my fingers. “Listen up, my fuzzy friends, for I shall take the chance to deliver a master class in pony massaging.”

I had gained my friends' full attention, as well as that of some of the spa’s employees who discreetly ceased their activities or modified them so they could remain close to where I was to deliver my lesson.

“You see,” I began, digging my fingers into Sunny’s shoulder joints, feeling the cramps I was expecting to find and eliciting a shudder from her. “As quadrupedal mammals, your neck is subject to a continuous force holding your head upright and leveled, transmitting that force down to your shoulders and chest muscles.”

Slowly kneading her stiff muscles under the damp fur, I moved inwards towards her spine, feeling each individual vertebrae from the upper neck down between the shoulder blades. Sunny tried her hardest not to make a loud spectacle of the session, but the foreign feeling summed with the immense relief on her back was enough for concealed moans and whinnies of pleasure to escape her muzzle.

“You ponies have BIG heads compared to the raw size of your body, and you also possess a relatively low center of gravity.” I went on, moving my hands up where the neck connected with the head near her ears, kneading with my thumbs deep into the joints. “That becomes a considerable straining effort that needs to be countered by said body parts, so you don’t end up walking balanced on your forelegs, rump high in the air with your muzzle dragging on the ground.”

I saw Izzy snickering at the image of Sunny’s scalp brushing my left cheek. The mare in question had stopped paying attention and was now completely immersed in her happy place. It looked like I was doing a fantastic job, which, to my dismay, meant the chances of being asked for an encore were high.

I’m just kidding; you wouldn’t find me complaining about a repeat performance of this any day of the week.

“So, along with the haunches and knee joints, those areas are the ones in direst need of attention when you are massaging a pony.” Finishing going over her pectoral muscles under her fluffy chest, which would’ve been highly indecent had she been a human woman, I brought back my attention to her neck, but with a different procedure in mind. “And yet, sometimes, stress is suffered for so long that the joints are forced to sit in the wrong position, making the discomfort a continuous ordeal.”

Sunny, still lost in her own little world, failed to notice my grip becoming firmer between her neck and left shoulder joint, where I had noticed a particularly stubborn cramp resisting my ministrations.

“Those issues require a… different tactic.”

Pulling hard on her neck and shoulder, Sunny’s pleasured hums were immediately silenced by the resounding SNAP of her joints releasing the accumulated pressure.

“Eeeeeeeeeeee…”

Freezing up in shock, she breathed out a high-pitched squeal, almost on the brink of becoming subsonic, and slowly slipped away from my lap until submerging herself entirely, her shrill squealing becoming bubbles under the water. Our friends and the staff alike stared, both mesmerized and horrified at me.

“Dude, you killed her!” Zipp alarmingly cried.

“I killed her backache, you mean.” I calmly replied, carefully rubbing over Sunny’s shoulder where I had released the pressure explosively. Having run out of breath, her orange muzzle breached the surface, followed by the rest of her head, now wearing a face of profound relaxation.

“Better?” I asked the mare floating over my lap.

“Mhmm…” Came her drowsy reply, eyes half-lidded on the verge of falling asleep.

Securing my arms under her to keep her afloat, I let her remain in her happy place and turned to address the now unashamedly attentive spa employees. “You wrote that down I hope?”

Having been caught, the ponies snapped to attention and resumed their tasks, whistling innocently. Yet I was positive they had learned a thing or two.

A hoof tapping on my shoulder alerted me of Izzy’s presence who had floated to my side. Giving me her best puppy eyes look, she silently pleaded for the same treatment.

“Later, okay?” I replied, petting the damp fur on her chest fluff.

“But, whyyyy?” She whined, redoubling her efforts in trying to break my resolve.

“’Cause you’d start moaning and grunting so loud they’d end up kicking us out before I can even begin.”

Flushing in embarrassment, Izzy’s attention suddenly found something under the water worthy enough to catch her full attention, yet made no comment to refute my prediction.

Yeah, she reminded me enough of Pinkie to safely draw some conclusions….

As it happened, some loud obnoxious moaning came without Izzy’s intervention, easily discernable from where Hitch was enjoying his massage. Judging by how he was voicing it, whomever was working on him was breaking him apart and building him up again from scratch.

Without missing a beat, I used the chance to tease him. “Make sure to wear a condom, Hitch,” I called loud enough to reach where he was resting. “You already have one baby to take care of, you don’t need a second one!”

“Shut uuuuup…” Came his slurred reply, eliciting a chuckle from the rest of us. Although I didn’t miss the somewhat bothered look Zipp was giving the curtains masking whatever was happening behind them.

Once the sheriff was done with his treatment, and refusing to acknowledge anything that might or might not have happened behind the curtain, we treated ourselves to a short sauna session. The ponies looked mesmerized at how the sweat formed over my skin, every droplet revealing where a sweat gland was located.

“Weird, huh?” I uttered, laughing at the looks they were giving me.

Nodding in unison, the conglomeration of curious ponies watched Pipp move an exploratory hoof over my shoulder to touch where the highest accumulation of droplets had gathered. Well, that would have been if I hadn’t playfully snapped my jaws at her when she was about to, surprising her with a yelp and making her fall over her sister in surprise.

“Alex!” She cried annoyingly, slapping the back of my head with a wing.

Not wanting to cause a ruckus, we all settled down and spent the rest of the session in peaceful silence until the heat became almost unbearable and we had to leave the sauna. Another quick bath to clean off the sweat saw our trip to the spa over. Pipp wanted to head back with her mom and lend a hoof with that night's birthday celebrations, and Zipp wanted to tag along to make sure her sister wouldn’t go overboard.

I offered to dry them quickly instead of wasting time with the mane dryers, making use of my gauntlets and a quick spell to summon a warm breeze which got their fur dry in an instant in a similar fashion I used to dry my clothes.

And fluffy, so overwhelmingly fluffy. I couldn’t resist.

While I was occupied hugging the stuffing out of Sunny and Izzy, Zipp and Pipp were forced to include an emergency visit to the palace’s mane stylist. Their expressions were far from happy. Hitch, not caring much about his adorable look, headed up in haste to search for his baby dragon, antsy after having spent so much time away from him.

My two favorite mares and I remained behind, enlisting my help to smooth their fur to the best of my ability. Once they were satisfied with their appearance, a couple of guards offered to show us the way to one of the palace’s lounging rooms where we would be met by Her Highness once she was done supervising tonight’s preparations.

“So, do you collect sneakers?” I addressed the spring-green pegasi guard on our right, whose name I learned was Thunder Flap.

“Mhm, it’s a hobby of mine.” He answered with no small amount of pride.

“And you want how much for mine?” I pointed down to my own shoes, which were more of a pair of boots than sneakers per se.

Tilting his head in thought, he analyzed them carefully, almost tripping over his own hooves after having lost the notion of what was in front of him. “Phew, that was close…” He breathed a relieved sigh. “I… don’t know, I’ve never seen a pair of sneakers like those…”

“They were custom-made and are way over seven hundred years old by now.”

I could see his sparkling eyes widening in wonder, his muzzle almost burying the spotless floor. I swear I saw a strand of drool hanging from it.

‘Damm, he sure is into it.’

“Thunder!” His partner, a sky blue guardsmare by the name of Zoom Zephyrwing, harshly chastised him. “Focus, for heaven’s sake!”

“B-But, Zooooom…” The stallion whined but was only met with a harsh glare from her partner, ending his short bout of nerdy excitement and reverting back to his standard guard face.

The lounging room was small compared to most of the palace's premises. Cozy, and clearly meant for small private reunions. Members of the castle's staff entered in a hurry after the guards had taken positions outside, quickly taking note of any refreshments we might desire while we awaited the Queen’s arrival. Asking for a few light drinks, we fell back on the biggest of the two couches and patiently waited for the rest to rejoin us.

“So,” Sunny began, making herself comfy over the couch we shared, laying on her belly and resting both forelegs over my leg. Her beautiful eyes searched for mine, flashing me one of her sunny smiles. “How are you liking Zephyr Heights?”

I rested a gloved hand over her back. “What can I say? What I caught on TV didn’t do it justice. It’s simply amazing.” I answered sincerely.

“It certainly has a more welcoming atmosphere when they aren’t chasing you in the middle of the night,” Izzy recalled their impromptu escape from the palace with a dreamy look and a goofy smile. “Ah, those were the times…”

“Izzy, that happened only three months ago.” Sunny flatly clarified to the unicorn resting over my other side.

“The times indeed…” Izzy wasn’t deterred by Sunny’s comment, her longing eyes peering into the nothingness.

With a nicker and a shake of her head, Sunny let the unicorn be. “Izzy’s right. Now that we can visit more calmly, and not as wanted criminals, it is truly a wonder to experience.”

“It also kinda reminds me of home,” I added to the surprise of both mares.

“Home? You mean back in the past?”

“Mmm hmm.” I shook my head no. “My home world, Izzy. It reminds me of Earth.” I explained further.

“It does?!” Sunny incorporated a bit, her tail shaking excitedly at the prospect of learning more about my old home.

“It's closer to what a modern human city would look like.” I satisfied her curiosity, smiling at her eagerness to learn something new. “The humongous screens, the shops, the malls, the food, the architecture… I don’t know. Those whites and golds are way flashier than what you’d find in a modern metropolis, but at times I could almost feel like I was back on Earth...” Now came my time to become homesick. “Although, considerably less populous here than there.”

“Are you kidding?” Izzy exclaimed, perplexed at my last comment. “There are TONS of pegasi everywhere! How can this be NOT populated?”

I couldn’t help but snicker at their ignorance. “The most populated city on Earth, Tokyo, has over thirty-seven and a half million humans living within the city’s limits.”

Both mares became paralyzed in the adorable way that ponies are accustomed to doing when learning of something shocking, eyes wide and muzzles hanging open in bewilderment.

“So, yeah.” I gently closed Sunny’s jaws with my finger. “I can certainly enjoy the fact that I’m not completely surrounded by other humans to the point of asphyxiation.”

“Wow…” Izzy mumbled, vigorously shaking herself out of her stupor, making her headband jingle behind her head. “And what about your home? I mean, the place where you lived?”

“Well, I lived most of my life in a little town on the residential outskirts of my country's capital city.” And by tiny I meant a couple tens of thousands of inhabitants, nothing to do with Equestrian towns with barely a few hundred ponies residing in them. “It was a nice place, quiet for the most part. Kinda posh if you compared it to the more working-class districts to the south.”

“Is it like Maretime Bay?”

“In a sense, yeah.” Sunny’s tail gave a happy flick at the news. “Although it wasn’t located on the coast. Quite the opposite actually, dead center of the peninsula. Which was a royal pain if you wanted to spend a day at the beach.”

Sunny and Izzy wrung as much knowledge about my old home as I could provide, their enthusiastic tirade only momentarily interrupted by the castle staff bringing our desired refreshments. Hitch joined us sometime later, Sparky riding on his back in his usual manner. It had taken him quite an effort to pry the little dragon from Haven’s clutches.

“I swear, the guards were giving us some weird looks after that.” Poor Hitch lamented as he nursed his own drink.

“She must miss the old times when her daughters were just fillies.” I patted him sympathetically on the back.

“Perhaps…” He mumbled after taking another sip.

“Hey, Sparky.” I turned to the little dragon currently occupying my lap and hungrily devouring all the threats within reach of his little arms.

“Grrru?” He growled with his mouth full.

“Who’s the best princess?”

“Grrah! Rrrgr, brrbgra!” He answered energetically.

“Heh, damm right she is.” I rewarded his enthusiasm with a few head rubs, sending the little reptile into a giggling fit.

“You understood that?!” Hitch demanded within his own frustration of being able to understand all of the critters except this baby dragon.

I nodded nonchalantly and let the issue hang in the air for a few moments until the ponies couldn’t bear it any longer.

“And what did he say?!” Now was Sunny who asked.

“I could answer that, but it would make a lot of ponies mad,” I explained without a fuss. “So, you’re free to guess.”

Izzy’s muzzle scrunched in confusion. “But why would ponies be mad? I think Zipp and Pipp are both amazing princesses.”

“Who said I was talking about them?” I raised my eyebrow mysteriously, leaving the ponies even more baffled.

The double doors of the lounging room burst open suddenly, making us slightly jump in our seats. Two different guards entered first, taking positions at either side of the opened doors after a quick look around the room. The Queen of the Pegasi entered next wearing a tired look. The reason for such sentiment came in the form of the two princesses bickering back and forth, muzzles almost pressed against each other, protesting about decorations being too overloaded or attires being too flashy or whatnot. The usual.

“Girls! That is quite enough!”

Haven’s sharp call made both pegasi flinch and immediately cease their bickering, their heads and ears lowered in shame. In a way only a mother can muster, her scolding leer instantly morphed into an inviting smile when she turned to address us.

“Good afternoon, darlings. My daughters have told me what a great time you’ve had in the city!”

“Oh, it’s been wonderful!” Sunny raised from her place at my side with a vigorous jump. “U-Uh, your Highness.” She quickly caught herself and respectfully bowed.

“Oh, please, none of that, my dear.” Haven waved her foreleg dismissively. “My daughters’ friends are my friends too, and I won’t stand for such formalities between friends.” She half asked half pleaded to her, but addressed all of us present.

Smiling sheepishly, Sunny complied and raised her head again.

“Great news, everypony! Everything’s reeeadyyyyy~!!” Pipp loudly announced in her singsong voice, flapping her wings and striking a pose in the air.

“Indeed, my dear.” Haven lovingly nuzzled her daughter as she landed back on the carpeted floor. “I’ve cleared the rest of my schedule for the afternoon, so we can head over to the great hall and get the party started!” She celebrated in a youthful display of energy.

Those particular words made my head snap around the room automatically in search of a certain pink party mare.

“What are you doing?” Sunny noticed my strange gesture.

“...Nothing, just… force of habit.” I eased her worry.

‘If there's a pony who could pull that off, it would be you, Pinkie…’ I mulled melancholically.

Nopony protested the Queen's proposal, the room instead filling with vigorous cheers as everypony who wasn't standing up did so, and, with both guards leading, headed for the great hall where the party would be held. I, too, stood up and made for the exit, but an outstretched wing from the Queen held me back.

“A word, please. If you’d humor this old mare.” Haven petitioned.

“Pfff, if you’re old then I’m a fossil.” I joked, earning a polite giggle from her. “I know a couple of mares who would die to look as you do in their forties.”

“Oh darling, my youngest was right, you ARE a charmer.”

After everypony had left the cozy room, we followed in tow albeit far enough for our conversation to remain private.

“I know I’ve already asked, and Pipp has talked at length about your little adventure this morning.” She began as we walked side by side through the tall corridors within the western wing of the palace. “But I wanted to hear it from the stallion himself. How did you find my city?”

Smiling to the mare with a sideways glance I spoke honestly. “Simply amazing, Haven, worthy of being called a major city of the Equestrian kingdom. You and your family have done a fantastic job given the circumstances.”

A sigh of profound relief left her nostrils. “You have no idea how relieved I am to hear that, darling. My ponies would never speak badly of their Queen, but hearing it from you soothes my worries.”

“Why is that?”

Haven’s knowing look betrayed her thoughts. “Please, my little Pipp tells me everything, including the particular arrangements of your presence here. Hah! It seems you DO outrank me.” She revealed with a tiny giggle and a wink.

“Of course she would.” I cast an annoyed leer on the ceiling. “Especially when I asked them explicitly NOT to reveal who I am to others.”

“I’m sorry, dear. You might be in her close circle of friends, but I’m her mom.” She went as far as giving me another wink and a hip bump. Another sigh filled the wide corridor, this time from exasperation.

“None of that now! This is a wonderful opportunity!” Haven cheered in an attempt to lift my spirits. “I’m sure your friends will have already asked too many questions, but I can’t help but feel curious myself. We have quite a large collection of books down in the archives, but I can’t possibly read them all, not with all the work that needs to be done.” Haven lamented with a tired groan.

“I’ll be happy to tell you whatever you want to know when you have a moment.” I offered without hesitation. “Although you say you have a library somewhere?” My curiosity was definitely piqued; it could present a huge breakthrough in my investigation.

“We certainly do, but almost nopony bothers to check it out. The tomes in there have been collecting dust since the old times when the city was first established. Well, the original tomes, anyway; we’ve made sure to transcribe them as many times as was required, we never knew if we might have needed them in the future so we planned accordingly.”

“That’s a smart move.” I congratulated her on their initiative. “Make sure to digitize them too, just in case. They deserve to last longer than their physical limitations would otherwise permit. We started doing that on Earth with our oldest written records, to help preserve them for the future.”

Haven took my proposal in earnest. “I’ll be sure to notify the archive caretakers.”

“Would it be okay for me to check them over at some point? Perhaps there’s something that might help me.”

“You’re welcome anytime you wish, just make sure to let the guards know that you have my permission.” She offered with a warm smile.

Rejoiced by her complete willingness to cooperate, my stagnant investigation was now presented with a potential new opportunity to advance. I only prayed that whoever had written and rewritten those books had done so without a biased point of view. If there was something I’d learned to recognize across many examples of Equestrian scientific literature was how on numerous occasions biased opinions stood in the way of the content, which was childish and unacceptable in a healthy scientific community.

Our combined steps bounced alone over the painting-covered walls, now far behind the rest of the entourage of ponies. After a sharp turn to the right, I caught sight of a small terrace that served as a makeshift garden too, where potted fruit trees threatened to shed their leaves in anticipation of the approaching autumn.

My feet carried me out following the sudden train of thought that erupted in my mind. Resting my hands over the railing, the now familiar sight of the city stood before my eyes. The pegasi citizens were now reduced to specks flying back and forth, enjoying the few remaining hours of sunlight before the cold embrace of night urged them to return to their homes. A golden shimmer painted the surrounding sky in its brilliant colors, reaching us through the sparsely scattered clouds swayed by the ascending air currents crashing against the mountain slope.

Haven followed me, puzzled yet not speaking a word. She joined me over the railing, raising herself on her hind legs and resting her forehooves over the painted metal bar.

“Do you know how this city came to be?” I spoke after a minute of silent contemplation.

“My, that’s a complicated question, darling.” She returned with uncertainty. “It’s been so long that everypony just assumes it’s always been here. But I do know that it was built during the time Equestria was united.”

I wetted my lips against the chilling breeze that sought to dry them. “Back in those days, over eighty-six percent of all Equestria’s pegasi lived within the magnificent cloud city of Cloudsdale.” I narrated for the pegasi Queen listening attentively. “And, since it was literally made out of clouds, only pegasi could truly reside up there, unless you were trusty enough to wear a cloud-walking charm around your neck every hour of every day.”

Her amused chuckle reached my ears. “Oh, that would definitely be a hassle.”

“It was. While the rest of the settlements around the country could be enjoyed equally by the three races, Cloudsdale had always maintained that ‘pegasi-only’ demeanor. Since aaaall the way back to the time it stood as the great city of Timbucktu, before the Era of Unification.” I squeezed my brain in search of those history lessons Twilight had unceremoniously shoved inside during my early days with her. “Always so proud, the pegasi. Strong-willed and prone to battle, constantly ignoring the sister’s attempts of annexation until their kingdom became overrun by changelings. That spirit remained up to the recent days of the Diarchy.”

A couple of pegasi flew close to the terrace, waving their hooves in a friendly manner at me, and immediately bowing in the air in the presence of the Queen. “Hmm, that doesn’t sound healthy for the cohesion of the country,” Haven commented.

“It wasn’t THAT bad, but the crown thought they could do better. So, to keep pace with population growth, it was decided that new settlements were to be founded, but the pegasi were reluctant to leave their fluffy cloud dominion. They could just expand their city indefinitely since it was made out of clouds.”

A sad smile grew on my lips. “There’s only so many clouds you can stick together without bringing forth some very nasty weather if you know what I mean.”

Haven’s eyes narrowed in contemplation “I… believe I do.”

“So the crown offered an alternative which would satisfy the pegasi who would miss living in the sky, yet offering a chance to anypony to inhabit it if they so wished.” A wide motion with my arm swept across the city on our feet.

“Oh…” Haven’s eyes widened in realization.

“And then I came by.” I continued, spinning on my heels and then resting my back on the railing. “The weird alien with a head full of ideas and crazy knowledge from his home world. Those crazy ideas manifested in the form of the ISIT program, whose resounding success drew the attention of powerful investors and ponies involved in the development of the new settlements.” I couldn’t help the proud smirk I threw at her. “An Inter-Species Integrative City. High on the clouds yet firm on solid ground. Designed and built with the new developing technology in mind, fully functional without a smidge of magic, yet able to meet any and everypony’s needs.”

Haven’s ears stood straight at attention, her features betraying her bewilderment.

“ISIC-1. The first of many, we had hoped. Following the example of the ones I had shown them through the pictures of my home world. Modern, better, perfectly timed to meet the beginning of a new age. For everycreature around the known world to see.”

Blinking hard, Haven regained her voice. “My word, darling, I’m afraid our records fail to mention this.”

Albeit disappointed, I couldn’t say I was surprised. “I feared that would be the case. But what I just told you isn’t this place’s true purpose.”

“It’s not?!” Haven inquired, taking a step closer and readjusting the crown on her head after her outburst had dislodged it.

A stronger breeze crashed against the palace’s walls, making us both shudder. I tried to keep it short from that point forward. “When the Unity Crystals threatened to cut the ponies’ connection to magic, precautionary measures had to be taken. Magicless pegasi cannot live on clouds, so an emergency plan B had to be devised.”

My gaze returned to the brimming city below me. “The original designs were altered to host as many pegasi as could remain on the continent, which I can now see weren’t that many. And we had to make sure they could live in it without making use of their wings and cloud-walking abilities at all.” I swallowed hard to wet my dry throat. “I wasn’t there to see it built though, but now you know why Zephyr Heights exists in the first place.”

Silence fell over the terrace while Haven did her best to assimilate my words. However, she was denied the chance to do so when a couple of guards startled us, agitated after realizing they had misplaced their Queen on our way to the great hall. With calming gestures, Haven defused their worries and agreed to resume our way to the great hall. The ponies would have arrived by now and might start getting worried if we took too long.

“Thank you for telling me this,” Haven spoke softly as we re-entered the humongous corridors.

“You deserve to know.” I gave her a thankful smile of my own. “And thank you for keeping this place up and running, even after so many centuries of isolation.”

“Ho ho! It’s been my family’s task since time immemorial, my dear. But one thing I can tell you. It’s NOT been an easy task.” She jokingly complained.

“Ruling is never easy.”