Warsong: Primordial Conflict

Quiet Fire’s POV

All through the morning and afternoon had been relatively a dead end. Scribble and I were careful when asking the villagers about anything unusual with the passing Triads. No pony really questioned the activity and some of the Triad that pass by were residents or locals of Sundew. By afternoon, we met up with Cloudchaser at a cafe for lunch break. I couldn’t help but feel a bit clingy to Cloudchaser, but I made sure I was being mindful about my behavior.

Sometime during the evening, Din began to stir to the point I couldn’t even hear myself think. She was swearing to herself angrily that somepony was copying her power. Scribble and Cloudchaser were quiet as we entered into a secluded area to where I could argue to Din that what she was experiencing was probably something else. I suggested it might be the power of the Phoenix she borrowed or the magic taken from the other dimension. This seemed to convince Din enough, but she still bothered me with how much she was grumbling.

I finally sighed and turned to the others.

“We might as well head back and try again tomorrow.” I said. The three of us headed back towards the west exit of Sundew, heading down the dirt path. The sun was starting to set and I was starting to feel exhausted. Cloudchaser froze in front of us.

“Fire?!” She exclaimed in worry. My eyes shot forward and we could see smoke over the hill. It appeared to be in the direction of the estate. My heart sank and without saying anything, I galloped ahead, Cloudchaser and Scribble right behind me. When we scrambled over the hill, we saw Moochik bawling his eyes out with Posey and Lack-a-daisy tossing stuff into the fire. Our pacing came to a slow as we curiously walked towards them. It looked to be that they were burning furniture for some reason. Is this a fae activity?

“What’s going on??” I asked quizzically. Posey beamed and waved at us.

“Oh, you’re back! Don’t mind us, we’re just doing some extra needed spring cleaning.” She giggled as she then gleefully stamped and smashed a lamp, roaring like a barbarian before tossing the pieces into the fire. Lack-a-daisy groaned in annoyance.

“Can you at least keep it down? It’s bad enough with what happened earlier.” She frowned as she tossed in what appeared to be a suitcase of belongings. I noticed that she had a patch on her cheek. I also noticed that the stuff they were burning were disintegrating relatively instantly the moment they entered the fire. Moochik bawled again.

“N-no! Not that one! Oi spent me loife’s werk gettin’ that!” He cried. Posey blinked and looked at the orb that had a beastial eye inside of it. Eerie whispering could be heard from it. Posey shrugged and tossed it in the fire, causing Moochik to bawl uncontrollably again. Cloudchaser rubbed the back of her head.

“Err, I know this may not concern us, but why exactly are you upset over this?” Cloudchaser asked. I nudged her a little and she shrugged apologetically. Moochik sniffled.

“All me moons collectin’ priceless magical knick-knacks!” He bawled. “Why cruel world, why!!?” Poesy pat the fae’s back comfortingly.

“There, there, Moochik. All we are doing is putting them up for sale on the black market. Think of it as a way to PAY US BACK FOR RUINING MY FIELDS!!” Posey flared angrily, fire comically spewing from her mouth. She shook the dwarf violently, her sudden change in temper taking all three of us aback. Lack-a-daisy frowned.

“Hey, less goofing off and more sugar cubes.” She said, tossing in a suite of armor. Posey quickly returned to her beaming self, dropping Moochik down onto his rump and trot-skipping over to a pile. My eyes then saw Thi Billet dragging a covered furniture out of the gate and over to them. Moochik balked.

“Not Vallion’s Mirror! Twas a birthday gif’! He called out. Thi grunted as she brought it over to the fire and after a quick wipe of her brow, she then spun and bucked it into the fire. When she turned back around, she smiled at me. Something was different about her. Curious and worried, I used Din’s eyes to peek at Thi. No distortion around her. In fact, she did look a bit… shinier? Thi noticed my look and she sighed with a reassuring nod.

“Hope your day was eventful. Spring cleaning is kind of interesting.” She said. I narrowed my eyes suspiciously at her.

“I see… Just to be sure, what was I studying in Mr. Pin-up’s class?” I asked. This question may seem out of the blue, but if Thi isn’t under a fae spell, I can be sure. If she gets it wrong, that’s what I’m expecting and can confirm she’s the real Thi Billet. Yet, what she replied completely took me off guard.

“Mr. Pin-up studied theory magic. You wanted to study up on any magic related to the theory of love and-“

“Ooookay! Ahaha! Not what I was really asking. Can you give us a moment?” I asked the others, nervously trying to play off the sudden reply. I only received amused looks from Cloudchaser and Scribble as I walked with Thi away from them. When we were out of ear shot, I turned to Thi. “What the hell, Thi?! How do you remember that?” I asked. “You never paid attention to my studies!” Thi gave a soft chuckle.

“You’re right. I never did care about what you were studying. But I did care about you.” She replied. I arched a brow and she sighed, sitting down on her haunches. “Fie… believe it or not… I took a long look at myself and realized something. Obviously, I haven’t been the best friend you wanted me to be and I really did get caught up in my antics. I wasn’t thinking about the consequences of everycreature around me and only thought of you. You were the one who stood by me and I didn’t.” She lowered her head. “Sorry is never going to cut it. And I’m not sure how I can fully apologize for all the things I did to you with my absence. But what I can do is look ahead with you. That I should be walking with you and not ahead of you.”

I was speechless as she gave me a sincere smile.

“I really did miss you too, Fie. More than I thought I did.” She snickered and tapped her horn. “From this day onward, I’m going to prove to you that what I’ve said is the truth. And that way, you can boast how proud you are of me.” I studied Thi, dumbfounded. My look furrowed into concern.

“Okay, I’m going to see if the fae can tell me how to lift the spell off you.” I said, quickly turning around. Thi stopped me by tugging on my cloak. I looked over my shoulder and she nodded.

“I need to thank them anyway. They really did help out.” She smirked. “Perhaps Moochik can manage something to allow us to listen to Flipper’s band perform? I’m curious about singing frogs now.” She said, trotting past me. Again, I was speechless. It really did feel like an entire one-eighty with her. I still was convinced the fae did something to her, so I’ll have to be on guard for now. When I met back up with the others, Concierge had trotted up to the estate and smiled at the sight of the fire.

“Ahh, excellent work, girls! This’ll definitely improve Paradise Estate forthcoming!” She beamed. She then noticed Lack-a-daisy and her look instantly went into, what I would guess is “mama-bear” mode. “Who put their hooves on one of my girls?!” She glared. Thi stepped forward and faced Concierge’s glare. She then bowed apologetically.

“Things got a little out of hoof, Concierge. I was helping Moochik organize the attic when one of the artifacts decided to activate and cause trouble. I managed to contain it and resolve the issue. I apologize for any harm on anypony here and will work to ensure it never happens again.” She said. Okay, now I’m concerned even more. Lack-a-daisy stepped forward and pat Thi on the back.

“Not all mortals are bad, Concierge. This one showed a lot of responsibility. And she did save the world a whole load of trouble.” She smiled. Concierge adjusted her half-moon spectacles and looked between the two. She then saw the bawling Moochick, rolling around like a ball. Concierge groaned and rubbed her muzzle.

“Moochik, you and I are going to have a long talk. For now, girls, let’s finish this up and retreat for the night. We have to meet up with a guest in Mushroom Mire.” She said. Posey suddenly slumped and sadly pouted.

“Awww… I hate humidity…” she pouted before turning around and dumping several objects into the fire. Thi then held up a hoof to the passing Concierge.

“Err, hang on.” She said. Concierge side-eyed her. “Thank you for giving me the chance.” Concierge arched a brow.

“What are you talking about? Don’t bother me with these sentimental thanks. I’m not the one you should be thanking. Goodnight.” Concierge spoke coldly before trotting through the gate. Thi hummed before shrugging, turning around to face us.

“So, did you guys manage to find anything out about the Triad?” She asked. I narrowed my look at her. But Thi seemed to wait patiently as Scribble shook his head.

“I am afraid that our search hasn’t been eventful. Everypony we talked to only told us that the Euclidian army come and go as they please. There is a base not too far from us that is used as a check point. The road would lead us further into Flutter Valley.” He said. Thi rubbed her chin.

“Flutter Valley isn’t heavily armed with the Euclidian army. Now that I think about it, when we saw those group of soldiers and the flags, they weren’t Triad at all. They bore similar appeal, but the insignia was different.” She replied. “Maybe the Triad don’t operate in Flutter Valley. My best guess is that we have to head further inland to see any actual Triad activity.”

“Triad? Those pesky ponies that keep haggering us for the estate?” Lack-a-daisy spoke. We looked at each other before nodding. Lack-a-daisy shook her head. “So you weren’t joking about fleeing from the Triad. We had planned to have dumped you over Crystal Cove for even mentioning them.” She said. Thi smiled.

“We are actually trying to find out where they are keeping our friend and the heir to Roam. We were also hoping to find out what’s going on with them.” She said. Lack-a-daisy studied her.

“Well, considering you did us a huge favor, I guess we can tell you that where we are heading will point you in the right direction. Just follow our guests.” She said.

“That easy?” I asked. “What’s the catch?” Lack-a-daisy shrugged as she began dousing the fire with a blanket.

“If the Mush-Lurkers don’t eat you alive, then it’d be the guest’s company, I’d imagine.”

The next morning had me feeling rather tingly. I nuzzled Cloudchaser as we stirred awake. Feeling the passion from last night, I wanted to stay in. Cloudchaser, however, playfully woke me up with an affectionate nibble on my ear. I yawned and stretched before hopping into the shower. Yesterday also had me thinking back to Thi. She certainly seemed different. Yet, I still wasn’t sure how I felt about her situation still. On one hoof, I was hesitant to bring her along. Keeping her here would help keep her in check.

On the other, it seems like what she told me was entirely from the heart and for a moment, I felt that my best friend had come back to me. However, I’ll have to see if that is really true once we arrive at Mushroom Mire. Having dried off while Cloudchaser showered next, I threw my mail and hoodie cloak on and strapped my saddle bags on. When Cloudchaser was dried and readied, we walked out of our room and into the lobby where Thi and Scribble were waiting for us.

Strangely, Thi and Scribble seemed to be playing a card game I wasn’t familiar with. Thi smirked and placed a card down. Scribble, however, stoically placed his card down and Thi balked.

“Hey! That’s not how that works! Is it?” She asked as she then levitated a book over to her and skimmed the pages. Scribble side-eyed us calmly.

“Morning, girls.” He said. “Seems the night was calm enough.” Cloudchaser and I flushed a little. We then noticed the three estate clerks trot by, dawning cloaks. Lack-a-daisy gave us a knowing nod as they walked out the door. I threw my own hood up and looked to the others.

“Let’s follow them. But not too closely.” I said. My friends nodded.

“Oi, before ya’ go!” Moochik said suddenly as he hopped down from the counter. He waddled over to me and held up a magnifying glass. “Keep this on ye. Oi err… managed ta’ erase yer names from tha’ ledger and forged ‘em. Yer free ta’ come an’ go as ye loik here. So long as ye look through yon glass, tha’ gate’ll be there.” I blinked and studied the magnifying glass. I then stuffed it carefully in my saddle bag before having an epiphany. I then passed it to Scribble.

“Here, you hold onto it. I might end up breaking it.” I smiled. Scribble gave me a questioning look before taking it and putting it in his saddle bag. I then faced Moochik. “Why are you doing this?” I asked. Moochik stuffed his hands in his belt and rocked back and forth.

“Oh, Paradise Estate ain’t jus’ ‘ome o’ tha’ fae. Twas used as an sanctuary moons ago. Tha’ girls’ll understand. They taken a loikin’ ta’ ye.” Moochik beamed. I looked to my friends and they shrugged.

“Err… if you say so. Thanks for everything, Moochik.” I said as we turned to head out the door. Moochik waved.

“Give Megan me regards!” He called out. I paused. Megan? Megan Williams? That reminded me of the journal other dimension Twilight gave to me. I closed the door and upon exiting the gate, I gasped as when I thought of Mushroom Mire, I wasn’t thinking about the trees being actual mushrooms. We stared in awe as the sounds of the wildlife were met with the huge mushrooms covering the sky. It was also quite humid and the mud wet and sticky. Cloudchaser scanned the area and pointed.

“There they go.” She said. We followed her hoof and saw the three fae ponies trot over a bridge across a cliff. I studied the area a bit more before nodding. We followed quite a bit aways from them. The three had traversed deeply into the mire. I nearly tripped as my hoof got stuck in mud, Cloudchaser catching me. We smiled before continuing. The three must have traveled for a full five minutes before coming to a clearing and stopping. We managed to take cover behind a bushel of tall mushrooms, peeking out to see the three stand still as statues.

They faced into the humid haze, our breaths stifled in anticipation. What kind of guest are these three waiting for? We got our answer after a few minutes of waiting. It started with stamping. Then, came the clanking of armor. Then, the rolling of wheels. Our eyes widened as a low growl could be heard. From the haze emerged a head of a dragon. Or… was it a dragon? It lumbered on all fours as a second head emerged. What kind of creature is that? A pseudo hydra? What followed next was the appearance of a centaur. Muscular, red upper torso and bulky minotaur arms and a mean looking set of horns perfectly curved to gorge. At first, I thought Tirek had escaped at first, but this centaur was not as big as he is.

Two hulking figures that had the stature of diamond dogs hung back with mean looking halberds, escorting a chariot. On the chariot, which made all of our hearts skip a beat, was General Lilac. The stone cold second in command of the Triad. Somehow, she looked a little paler. Din shifted and growled, yet remained unspoken. Accompanying next to the stoic, cold gaze of the mare was a hooded figure. It was hard to make out any distinct features. Almost like a specter.

The lumbering, two headed hydra beast came to a stop and Lilac and the figure stepped off. The cloaked figure seemed to glide along the ground, the cloak dragging behind in the mud. Who wears a long cloak like that? The three fae ponies stepped forward and bowed. Lilac stepped forward, standing with an air of commanding respect.

“I take it you have what we asked?” Lilac spoke, her voice smooth yet icy. Concierge stood up right and nodded. She then turned to the other two and they rose a singular foreleg and hoof up into the air. A bright light shone and a stack of several Triad crates from the facility appeared. Not only that, some relics that seemed to be super ancient. Thi lowered her head, a dawning realization on her. The three fae ponies remained silent as they stepped aside to allow Lilac to examine everything.

When she had finished her inspection, she turned to the hooded cloaked figure and nodded. It then began speaking, but in a dialect I was unfamiliar with. Din, however, suddenly spoke.

Time is of the essence. The stars are becoming brighter by the second. Let us hurry and begin our worship. Din straightened and narrowed her eyes. The Highest Evil… I tilted my head a little in confusion. General Lilac nodded and whistled. Thi gasped along with Cloudchaser. My heart sank.

Flitter Glider cracked into existence,
Her entire demeanor stiff and at attention. She was wearing what appeared to be a ragged jumpsuit with a strange sleek protrusion on the sides of her face. Three more ponies had appeared in the same manner. Roam’s heir stood by Flitter. Next to the heir was Xena, the zebra mare we met in Vanhoover. Next to her, was Lo Mien. Thi grit her teeth, her eyes darting in thought. Lilac motioned to the relics and crates. Lo Mien and Xena walked over to the crates and put their hooves on them. A loud crack sounded and the mares vanished with the crates.

Flitter and the heir went to the relics, doing the same gesture before vanishing with them. The hooded figure began to speak as Lilac returned to the chariot.

Your patronage is a blessing. For when our savior arrives soon, you will be seated amongst your kin in paradise. Farewell, forgotten ones. The hooded figure seemed to dissipate and appear next to Lilac. I noticed the three fae hold back venomous glares as the estrange group turned and left the clearing. When the coast was clear, we stepped out of hiding. Lack-a-daisy looked over along with Poesy while Concierge remained staring in the direction the group had returned to.

“You shouldn’t be meddling with their ilk. We agreed to keep mortals out of our affairs, Daisy.” Concierge spoke without turning her hooded head to them. Lack-a-daisy gave her a pleading look.

“You know that these are not normal ponies. They are the ones spoken about in the stars. Please, Concierge! We need help!” She said. Concierge still didn’t face them. We exchanged glances before I stepped forward.

“I have no idea what is going on, but if you have personal beef with the Triad and whoever those creatures are, it’s our business too. They have our friend and other important ponies we need to save. Whatever we can do to help, we can.” I said. Thi nodded.

“It all makes sense. At least, part of it. That’s how the Triad were getting the relics and managing to move about in secret.” Thi spoke. Posey and Lack-a-daisy bowed their heads in shame. Concierge remained unmoving.

“I… I’m sorry about all of this…” Lack-a-daisy spoke. “We truly didn’t want you all to be in Paradise Estate. It isn’t a sanctuary for any creature to be in. We only had you along because Moochik expressly told us not to bother you. He said… that you all are going to save the world.” Concierge shook her head slowly.

“Fairy tales. All of it.” She said, finally turning to them. She had tears welling up. “What do mortals offer that hasn’t doomed our kind…” Thi stepped up next to me.

“For one, we have an ace up our sleeve.” She said, nudging me a little. “And two, we are not your average mortals. We’ve had our tussles with gods and monsters. And now that a new figure is in play, somethings are starting to click into place.” She then looked to the two mares. “Where are they camped at?” The two hesitated.

“M-Midnight Castle. It’s an abandoned ruin, but it has been the epicenter of… a lot of things here recently.” Posey said. Thi looked to us.

“Then we know what to do next.” She met my look. I was a bit baffled. It really does sound like Thi got her act together all of a sudden. I still remain to be convinced. Concierge snorted before turning and pushing past us.

“Do what you want. Don’t expect our help any further.” She hissed coldly, trotting back in the direction of the estate. Lack-a-daisy sighed sadly and followed after her. As Posey walked by, she then stopped and took my hoof into her’s.

“Concierge means well. She just needs help. Please… save our friends. Save your friends. For Moochik’s sake. For our sake. And the world’s.” She gave me a sincere smile before cantering after the others. The three faes vanished into the haze, leaving us to ponder what happened. I studied my hoof and flexed it. She had passed me a strange shell. It was nothing special aside from the design of it looking like a horn. I stuffed it in my saddle bag and turned to my friends.

“Alright, it’s time to think of a plan.” I said.

Following the tracks of the chariot, we had made it out of the mire and onto a vast field. It almost looked very closely to Zebrica. However, the wildlife was sparse. Only birds and butterflies as much as I could see even with Din’s eyes. However, nothing could mistake the eye sore of a dark castle in the distance. Just beyond a shoreline connected to a coast city stood on crag like rocks high overhead. The place looked to have seen much better days in the past.

Thi scanned the area, spying the top of the castle.

“Midnight Castle. Where it all started.” She said. Scribble opened his journal and began scribbling down things.

“If I recall, Midnight Castle was the epicenter of a mass of dark magic and foul beasts that terrorized Pony Land. Not much is known about it aside from the Centaur uprising that put Tirac on the throne.” He said before looking up at us. “That’d be Lord Tirek’s great grandfather.” I rubbed my chin at this in thought as we proceeded down the path to the city.

“By the start of it all, what exactly do you mean?” I asked. Thi motioned at the castle.

“Legends are usually spoken after they have happened long ago. This is where Scorpan originated from. At least of what we know. And if you recall history class in CSGU, he’s the warlock that helped Starswirl the Bearded ages ago.” She explained. “This castle is what inspired Starswirl himself to begin his studies on ancient magic and the works of what we know today.”

“Most of it is still being scribed in current language translation to this day, but from what archivists and historians have gathered, it’s all pretty profound evidence that this is the birthplace of the magic we use throughout generations.” Scribble chimed in. Cloudchaser rubbed the back of her head in awe.

“Cool…” she marveled. She then furrowed her look determinedly. “Then there is possibly a chance to free Flitter and the others. Knowing our luck with ancient magic and all.” Thi sighed.

“I wish I could share that sentiment. But the magic spoken about hasn’t been around for millennia. I don’t think Celestia and Luna are able to fully harness such magic if it is still around.” She nodded to her as we began to approach the entrance to the city. “But perhaps they will have something that can help regardless.” Thi yelped and backed away as an autowagon honked and sped by. We did a double take. The road was paved and it appeared that autowagons were heading in and out of the city.

“Seems Equestria still has a long ways to go for autowagon advancement.” Scribble commented. We stayed to the side of the road and entered the city. Octave City as the sign read overhead. Somehow, when we entered further into the bustling coast side city, the air seemed to sparkle and shimmer into a sunset like glow. There were even bubbles that seemed to appear from nowhere. I hissed in pain as a bubble had popped in my eye.

“Aaaaghh! Who thought this was a good idea?!” I exclaimed, rubbing my eye. Thi motioned up on a television screen on a building.

“Who else?” She said. I looked through one eye and saw General Lilac saluting the sky with several faceless Triad ponies saluting to an air ship opposite of her. Cartoonish calligraphy wrote out:

Become a part of the orchestra. Join Euclides in the fight for the light.

The screen flicked, showing the face of General Lilac looking down at the busy bodies of ponies.

“Please, enjoy your stay and relax to the wondrous sounds of the pride of Euclides. Octave City is home to the best and brightest. May we walk in the abyss to guide the light.” Her voice echoed throughout the city. “This message is approved by Grand Orchesteal Conductor General Lilac of the Euclidian six-hundredth and sixty seventh fleet. Please, obey all laws and traffic for a brighter and happier Euclidian city.” The screen then flicked to an advert of Dough-Bun Hunkaroos.

Thi sighed.

“This is as close to dystopia as you can get with the Triad.” She spoke. I looked around. To my surprise, everypony that moved about didn’t seem hindered by anything. It felt like a normal city in Equestria with the added flare of ecstasy. More bubbles flutter around us and I frowned, popping one with my hoof.

“Hmph. A little too much paradisy for me.” I said. Thi trotted ahead and motioned with a hoof.

“This way. Believe it or not, I’ve been to this place before.” She said, pausing in thought. “Before the bubbles and the strange fake sunset.” She added. The more we progressed through the city, the more Thi seemed to sweat a little. Everything had appeared to change for her. Some structures looked crystalized with strange flora that resembled brass instruments. There was even a cross-walk that had an interactive piano that several foals jumped on happily. The sound of orchestral music could be heard throughout the city. It was surprisingly not intrusive and only heard if you listened for it. Thi eventually slumped as we reached what appeared to be the harbor and coast of Octave City.

It was packed with ponies sunbathing and playing in the water.

“This place is a lot more lively than it was previously.” She commented in annoyance.

“That’s because Grand Conductor General Lilac kicked out the previous mayor and took over the city.” A voice spoke. We looked to see a pony couple cuddling together while leaning over the railing. The mare in the sunhat spoke. “She’s the greatest pony to ever grace this city and brought it back from a financial crisis. Businesses are rocketing at an all time high! Isn’t that right, honey?” She turned to a mustachioed stallion, who had a typical elitist guffaw.

“But of course, dear! Otherwise, those peons at EMI would still be wasting away all of Euclides’s favors for that ghastly nation Equestria.” He laughed. The mare joined in. This struck a nerve with us.

“But I thought EMI-“ Scribble quickly covered Cloudchaser’s muzzle and shook his head. I steeled myself, repeating something I never thought I had to do again after leaving Canterlot when speaking to a pony.

“That is quite the achievement for our Euclides. Say, perhaps you would be so kind as to direct us to… a boat to yon castle?” I asked. The ponies looked me up and down.

“I say. For one who speaks like an elite certainly doesn’t show it.” The stallion spoke.

“Of course, dear. They are tourists. Probably from Vanhoover of all places.” The mare said disgustedly at me.

“Oh my! Well, I don’t to be associating with the losing side. Good day, peons.” The stallion spoke as the two scoffed and walked away in the elite like fashion. I could feel a vein pulse as I did my best to not punch them.

“Th-thank you for your time.” I replied, trying my best to keep a friendly smile. When they were gone, I turned around and began kicking the railing. “I hate elites…” I hissed. Cloudchaser winced.

“And I thought Canterlot elites were too high on their horses.” She said. Thi scanned the beach and frowned.

“Well, we better start searching for a way to get to Midnight Castle.” She said, hopping over the railing and landing on the sand. Scribble and I hopped over, following after her. We spent a good hour traversing southward towards the castle in hopes of finding anypony or anything that might get us there. When we reached the bottom of a pier with a carnival above us, we sighed and sat facing the shoreline towards the castle.

I was almost tempted to suggest flying there, but we don’t want to be apprehended by the Euclidian army before we had a chance to explain ourselves. I could tell both Thi and Cloudchaser were getting antsy. I held Cloudchaser’s hoof and smiled reassuringly at her. She smiled back and proceeded to nuzzle me affectionately in an attempt to calm herself down. Thi tapped her hoof in thought.

“Perhaps we can make a raft and get there? If we have to, we’ll have to find somepony in the city, but at this point, we are too deep behind enemy lines.” She said. I had a strange thought. I reached into my saddle bag and withdrew the shell. Posey gave this to me for a reason. Shells are associated with the ocean so… what does it do? I held it up to my ear. I could hear a faint singing from inside of it. Curious, I then put the shell bottom to my lips and blew it. Nothing aside from a faint whistle.

I looked out to the ocean, expecting to see something. When nothing did, I studied the shell a bit more. From my blurred vision, I noticed something poke out from behind a pillar of the pier. Everypony else noticed it too. It was a pony head that was halfway submerged into the water. We exchanged glances before I then looked at the shell. I then blew into it again. The submerged pony head perked up and moved a bit closer. We stood up and readied ourselves.

The pony then rose from the water, revealing an aquatic body with small wing fins on the back.

“A seapony?” Thi began. That’s a seapony? Why does it look completely different to the ones in Seaquestria? I got up and walked carefully to the edge of the shore. The seapony tilted its’ head curiously at me. I then held up the shell.

“Err… my name is Quiet Fire. Who are you?” I asked. The seapony blinked.

“I could ask you the same thing, Equestrian.” She said suddenly. I was a bit taken aback by the sudden voice. “Are you the one who called us?” I blinked quizzically before looking at the shell.

“Err… yes?” I replied, hoping to play off my curiosity. The seapony beamed.

“Oh wow! No pony has ever called us in ages! Hi, new friends! I’m Sea Salt!” The seapony exclaimed happily. Her demeanor allowed me to ease a little. “Say… how did you even get that? Those are given to only the best of friends with Queen Abyss.” I rubbed the back of my head.

“Err… well…” I began.

“One of Queen Abyss’s friends is in dire need of help and we are trusted to go in her stead. We need to help someponies from Midnight Castle, but we have no way of getting over to it.” Thi chimed in. I couldn’t help but smile softly. Sea Salt hummed.

“Interesting. Oh well! If the best of friends think you’re a best of friends, then we all are bestest friends!” She giggled. She then turned to the ocean and in a strange change of voice, she sang:

“Shoo-be-doo Shoo-shoo-be-doo!” We waited for a brief moment. My eyes widened in surprise as several more seaponies emerged from the water, chattering amongst themselves as they curiously looked at us. Scribble couldn’t help but chuckle a bit.

“Incredible.” He marveled. Cloudchaser crossed her forelegs.

“Well, what do you know. Who would have thought a Seaquestria was off the shore of Pony Land.” She smiled. Sea Salt turned us, giggling.

“Sillies. We aren’t from Seaquestria! That’s too long a swim for us! We actually live at the bottom of Midnight Castle!” She replied. Thi rubbed her chin.

“You don’t say. So… by chance have there been some… unpleasant company in the castle?” She asked. Sea Salt nodded sadly.

“Oh yes. Quite a lot actually. Sometimes, the upshorers would toss empty bottles and plastic over the edge. Had to deal with several seafoals getting sick from playing near the surface.” She replied. “Ever since those upshorers took residence, it’s been rather noisy and not fun at all.” She then sighed. “We would do something about it, if they didn’t look so scary.” Thi side-eyed me with a smile and nudged me. I quickly gathered my words.

“Oh, uh. Well, then don’t fret because that is why we are here.” I said with a swing of my hoof. “We are uhh… here to have a nice little chat with the residence of the castle. And now that we’ve heard your plight, perhaps we can put in a good word about you all.” Sea Salt’s eyes widened and sparkled in admiration.

“For realsies??” She asked. I rubbed the back of my head.

“Eeyup.” I replied. The other seaponies seemed to chatter amongst themselves before nodding to Sea Salt.

“Yay! We’ll help new friends across!” She said happily before diving back into the water. The other seaponies did the same, leaving us to ponder what just happened. We waited for what felt like an hour and I was starting to suspect we were played when Sea Salt came around from under the pier, dragging a raft by the rope. She spat the rope from her mouth and smiled. “Here ya’ go! It’s a bit hastily made, but it’s calm waters across the board!” Cloudchaser chuckled.

“Thanks Sea Salt. We owe you big time.” She said. Sea Salt giggled excitably before diving back in. Several other sea ponies harnessed themselves to the front of the raft as we stepped on board. Thi gave a worried look.

“Won’t we be caught by the Euclidian navy or something?” She asked. Sea Salt grinned.

“We go the route they don’t travel on! Just hang on tight!” She said. “Shoo-be-doo Shoo-shoo-be-doo!” The seaponies began to move as we steadied ourselves on the raft. There was something strangely exhilarating about taking a raft ride with seaponies. We moved out from under the pier and began to move further and further out to the ocean. As we went, the seaponies began to sing.

It was strangely catchy that I couldn’t help but tap my hoof to the song. This was a nice change of pace from what we’ve been dealing with all throughout our journey. I almost forgot how fun it is just adventuring.

The sun was starting to set as we approached the bottom of Midnight Castle. The seaponies sped along the water, happily chatting to themselves while I looked up to the massive castle. Din stirred.

She’s here… I can feel her. Din spoke.

‘Din… that figure in the cloak… didn’t you call it the highest evil?’ I asked her. Din shifted slightly.

The aura gave off the impression. I would suspect no less that it has ties with the highest evil. Be on guard. If it was like last time, they truly do not have our best intentions. She almost sounded worried. Now my senses were on high alert. As we got closer to the castle, my heart skipped a beat and I quickly dipped my head into the water and yank the rope hard. This got the seaponies to yelp in surprise. We came to a floating stop as I motioned to the seaponies closer to the rocks.

“Cloudchaser, peek around the corner. I think we got spotted.” I whispered to her. Sea Salt watched as Cloudchaser hovered and floated over to a pair of jagged rocks. She peeked her head over and looked around, including upward just to be sure before floating back over to us.

“I think we are okay. There are Triad patrolling the docks though.” She said. “A lot of them.” Thi looked to Sea Salt.

“Is there another way in the castle? One that uhh… doesn’t involve company?” She asked. Sea Salt tilted her head.

“But I thought you wanted to talk to the upshorers?” She replied quizzically. Thi nodded with a smile.

“We do. Just not those ponies. Those ponies are… not really invited. And if they see us well… they might just think we aren’t the ponies meant to talk to.” She explained. Sea Salt and the other seaponies chattered amongst themsleves. Thi and I exchanged glances before Sea Salt turned back to us.

“I think we get it. We do know of another way! And since you have a pegasi with you, it’ll be easy!” She said as she dipped into the water and harnessed herself to the rope. The seaponies brought us away from the docks and back around the castle. When we made it to the other end, Sea Salt halted the raft and pointed with her snout to the gargoyles. “Your pegasus friend needs to twist the middle one’s head.” She proudly proclaimed. Cloudchaser smirked.

“Got it.” She said before taking off gently and twisting the gargoyle’s head. The sound of rumbling could be heard and I panicked a little. Using Din’s eyes, I quickly scanned the ramparts and windows. Surprisingly enough, nothing was stirred save for the wall that shrunk down into the water, releasing what must have been centuries of cold water being flooded. When the water died down, a tunnel was revealed. The seaponies swam in and I called upon a small flame to light our path. The ocean waves crashing against the rocks echoed as we soon arrived to a worn down and collapsed dock. Thi activated her light spell at the tip of her horn and whistled.

“Must be the first ponies in centuries to breathe this air.” She commented. Sea Salt smiled as she turned to us.

“I hope we can to see you soon! More friends are always welcome!” She said. The seaponies waved their wing fins excitably before diving into the water. Scribble rubbed his chin.

“I wonder how long time flies for them.” He wondered. Thi nudged him.

“C’mon. Time to focus up.” She said with a grin. We stepped off the raft as Cloudchaser tied the rope to a rock and we proceeded upward through the crumbling mess. We trotted down the dark hallway, the unlit wall scones showing plenty of age and weather. When we arrived to an open chamber, we were greeted with a pungent odor that we weren’t sure was just the ancient air or that something was down here. I lit the fire a bit more to show off the room a little further. It was a barren chamber that had stairs leading in different directions.

Cloudchaser clicked her tongue. “Tch, which way do we go?” She asked. Thi turned to us.

“We’ll split up. Cover more ground that way.” She said. I turned to her with concern.

“Are you sure?” I asked. Thi smiled and I shielded my eyes as a bright golden light shone and a shining blade sang as Thi shouldered it.

“Trust me. I’m a new mare this time. I’ll make sure I don’t inconvenience anypony else.” She smirked. “Unless my life depends on it, of course.” I wasn’t convinced. Seeing that blade made Din suddenly escalate a cackle into a laugh.

She’s the one! Ahahaha! Yesyesyesyes!! Aaahhhahahaha!! We’ve done it vessel!! We just need to drag my worthless sister back to the tree and that serpent is as good as dead!! Hehehehe! Din’s excitable exclamation made me uneasy. I studied Thi a bit more.

"Thi... where did you get that sword?" I asked. Thi held up the blade in her magic.

"Err... I guess I inherited it? I'm... really not sure to be honest. A lot of things happened while you guys were out yesterday. This is Excalibat transformed too." She explained. "But that shouldn't matter. Right now, we need to get our friends out of here and stop whatever is going on." I suddenly put a hoof on her shoulder and met her look.

“Thi…” I began. Thi smiled and pat my hoof reassuredly.

“Can you promise me one thing, Fie?” She asked. I was going to tell her how worried I was about her change, but I couldn’t find the right words. I only listened to what she had to say. “Try not to leave us again. If you do, maybe write a letter first.” She smirked. I still couldn’t comprehend this. Was she truly back? I backed away a little and bowed my head slightly.

“I’ll try.” I said with a small sigh. Thi then turned to Scribble and he nodded, the two heading in the other direction leaving Cloudchaser and I to take the other route. As we traversed up the steps, Cloudchaser put a wing around me.

“You okay, Fie?” She asked. I was quiet in thought for a bit before looking at her and nodding.

“I think I am. I just wonder if Thi really did get herself together.” I replied. Cloudchaser rubbed the back of her head.

“Err… no offense but… how can you tell? Thi isn’t easy to read.” She asked. I smiled softly.

“The eyes tell it all.” I simply said.

Thi Billet’s POV

I couldn’t get the look of concern from Fie out of my head. It was if she was clarifying to herself over and over if I was truly her friend or not. And it made me feel awful. How I’ve been around her since the start of this, I don’t blame her for thinking even I was a pre-Chrysalis changeling or something. But I know deep down, I’m me. I’ve always been me. And I have to prove not just to her and my friends, but to myself as well. To show that I am truly a mare that can walk beside her.

My train of thought was cut off as I bumped into the side of a wall. Scribble was studying me as we walked, as if gauging what was going on with me. I’ll admit, the stallion doing so made me feel a bit strange. This was a completely new feeling. My mind shot back to my panicked kiss and I felt a little hot in the face. However, I couldn’t help but feel that I should apologize for my behavior about it. Before all of that, I was being aloof with him, despite him trying to engage in understanding my issues.

It finally built up enough to where I finally broke.

“Hey, egghead.” I began.

“Hmm?” Scribble replied. My mouth opened to speak, only to pause. I then sighed, unable to hide it anymore.

“Out of all the ponies I’ve met aside from Fie, you were always so stubbornly butting heads with me. I don’t know what is up with you, but it was kind of annoying.” I finally said.

“I’m touched.” Scribble simply replied stoically. I frowned a little.

“And that’s another thing. You always seem to disassociate with even the simplest conversation. I’m just curious now. Why did you really come with us? I get on the surface we picked you because you seemed capable. But why did you truly think we were worth the effort?” Scribble didn’t look to me as we continued and spoke.

“I’ll admit, having to team up with two of Equestria’s insanely stupid mares was a disaster waiting to happen. I could have been comfortably camping at an abandon ruin, trying to uncover its’ secrets and mysteries. I could have helped our society take off with new found information. Perhaps invent the cure for Cutie Blight. Or better yet, live a life of isolation and decay ever so slowly in my lonesome life.” He explained. “It all sounded delightful in my head. But, my call to aid for Equestria was surprisingly stronger than I thought. Why waste my brain for my own personal sake than use it to help Equestria?” I narrowed my look.

“You’re really that selfless?” I asked. Scribble shook his head.

“Never said I was selfless. Opportunities just came up. More so when I decided that teaming with a demi-god and an insane terrorist was beneficial for my long standing health and lack of a medical license.” He replied.

“Now you’re just being an ass.” I spoke.

“And yet, I’m still endearing.” He replied. I felt a small smile creep up on me.

“All those books and yet you can’t even treat a mare kindly enough.” I teased. Scribble was quick.

“You’re a mare?” He asked with a stoically raised brow. I snickered.

“You’re right. I mean to say badass.” I pat my chest smugly. This made Scribble crack a small smile. Something you don’t really see from him often. Scribble then gave a serious look.

“Yet, I can’t help but share Fie’s concerns. You sure the fae haven’t done anything to you?” He asked. I nodded.

“All I did was clean and help them empty out an attic. It’s how I found the sword. They didn’t seem to mind me having it so I just brought it along.” I replied. Scribble rubbed his chin as we continued progressing through the castle, having to ascend some steps as we did.

“You mentioned it is Excalibat transformed… how?” He asked. I shrugged.

“Your guess is a good as mine.” I replied. Scribble shook his head.

“Because now it looks awfully a lot like Excalibur’s own sword.” He said. I blinked and called out my sword to show it to him. Scribble studied the blade and his eyes widened. “Because it is… But how…? The fae had it this whole time?” I winced and thought back to my reflection.

“I… think I always had it with me. I just… never knew it existed till now.” I replied, hopefully sounding like I’m making sense. Scribble looked at me stunned. I felt a bit hot in the face again. Why is this feeling popping up when he looks at me like a puppy?

“Thi… you don’t understand what this means.” He said. I cleared my throat, hoping to calm my heated face.

“Y-you’re right. I have no single idea what it could mean.” I said. Scribble stopped, causing me to halt as I reached the top of the stairs.

“Thi… holding Excalibur’s blade… you know of the legends, don’t you?” He began. I rubbed the back of my head, studying the sword.

“I feel like you’ll tell me now. I only know of the fairy tale.” I replied. Scribble nodded.

“Excalibur was a knightly hero. He was chosen by the gods to slay the dragon of malevolence. The tale has some truth to it because this very blade was unearthed in a broken and unrestorative state along with a skeleton they believe to be Excalibur himself. Thi, this blade is currently in the historical museum back in Manehatten.” He explained. I tilted my head.

“Then… I guess the skeleton and blade they found was just a random pony?” I shrugged. Scribble walked past me and reached for a blade that was on the ground of a decayed carpet in the hall. He swung it around a few times before dropping it and taking Excalibur from my magic. He then swung it around, only the sound of the swishing it made could be heard. When he passed it back to me, he also passed the weathered blade as well.

“Swing the broken blade and then swing Excalibur.” He told me. I arched a brow but did as I was told. Swinging the weathered blade felt brittle and light. Like it was going to shatter any moment. I then swung Excalibur and a soothing hum made a distinct difference than how Scribble swung it. I blinked quizzically.

“It’s… singing?” I asked. Scribble nodded.

“Excalibur, whenever he drew or swung his blade, it would sing as if a harmony of angelic voices carried him forward. It’s been spoken in his legend that anycreature who used it wouldn’t have the same effect if held or swung. That sword carried the entire world onto Excalibur’s shoulders. It defined him as the one who could step into godhood and reign over the world as a king.” He explained. “But it’s believed Excalibur doesn’t have any descendants. He never married or sired.”

I studied the stallion. As silly as it sounded, something told me that it wasn’t just for the sake of geeking out. I swished the blade in front of me, listening to the soft hum of it singing as I did. Our conversation was cut short when we looked up and noticed that we were not really in a castle hallway. At least, not the entirety of it. It appeared that smooth floors and built in lighting was relatively new to the ancient design almost similar to how it was back in the Zetecan Temple.

I called away my blade and looked to Scribble.

“Got any spare rocks?” I asked. Scribble didn’t hesitate and brought out a satchel of rocks that I tied to my saddlebag. We then proceeded further into the Triad constructed hall. They must have drilled into the wall and made their way further into the cliff as appeared over a balcony that over looked the ocean. Following the hall again, we eventually found ourselves having to take cover as now we were seeing Triad scientists trotting about and hunched over things.

I scanned the area, seeing plenty of science equipment and partially constructed weapons along with strange tall containers that had several ponies floating in them. My stomach was starting to churn upon seeing the tubes holding the ponies, my eyes then following two Triad scientists trotting over to a table with several colorful crystals that they placed onto a table and rack. Scribble whispered.

“This must be R&D.” He said. I looked around again, trying to see how we can make it through the hall without being spotted by the clear glass labs. My eyes then fell onto two ponies walking out of a room, adjusting their lab coats and allowing three more to enter. That must be the changing room.

“If we can get into that room, we might be able to disguise ourselves. Hopefully, the tracing spell isn’t active here.” I whispered to him. I then studied the stallion and noticed he was wearing a lab coat already. I rubbed my chin and looked down at myself. I then stripped off my denim jacket and shirt and stuffed them in my saddle bag. “Scribble. Perhaps you can get me inside. You are already playing the part.” I whispered. Scribble looked down at himself and nodded. Taking a moment to ensure we were good, Scribble stepped out of hiding and walked with a certain awkward swagger that almost made him look like he hasn’t slept in a day.

I followed after him, keeping my head down and hoping no pony would recognize me instantly. We made it into the changing room with no issues. I quickly stuck to the edge as some scientist ponies were conversing with one another. Scribble didn’t skip a beat and opened up a locker, withdrawing a lab coat and glasses. He tossed me the coat and I quickly put it on before he passed me the glasses. I arched a brow and sighed. Never thought I’d wear glasses. But then again, I never thought I’d look good in a maid outfit. I popped the lens out and put them on.

Scribble studied me before snickering. I frowned.

“What’s so funny?” I asked in a low voice.

“If you weren’t all brawn, I’d say you’d look rather adorable right now. A proper egghead.” He said. I dunno why I felt a little offended, but when he spun me around and pushed me along, I focused up. We walked down the hall, keeping ourselves mindful as we proceeded through the labs. When we reached the back to another door, I froze. Two Triad guards stood at attention like statues. A sign over the compressed doors read:

Research and Development Senior Labs. No Entry Without Authorization.

Scribble rubbed his chin before withdrawing a rock. I looked at him in concern.

“Are you sure about that?” I whispered to him. Scribble nodded.

“While you were searching through the temple, I came across some schematics that was discovered along with that glove we found. I figured I’d do some testing and found I can do certain things with my magical rocks. Lo and behold.” He crushed the rocks in his hooves and stepped around the corner to the guards. They met his look, only to be greeted with him throwing the powder in their faces. I almost missed it by blinking. It was like their specters were separated from their bodies but their physical bodies remained unmoving.

Scribble leaned down and took something off the ground. It wasn’t there a second ago. I walked over to him as he held up the band and the door opened. When we entered the room and the door closed, I finally spoke.

“What just…?” I began.

“Invisibility pollen from the temple mixed with a duplication freeze spell. Their bodies are currently unconscious and invisible to the naked eye while the powder will playback their last actions for the past ten minutes. Which is completely standing still.” He explained. “We have about an hour before it wears off.” I smiled and nudged him.

“You always manage to impress me.” I said. I noticed him shifting awkwardly before we continued forward. Surprisingly, entering the labs was darker than I thought. No pony must be in right now. Scribble walked over to a door and it opened, revealing what looked to be a command post of some kind. A giant television screen making up the wall with consoles and knobs and buttons lining perpendicular to each other in rows on bulky machines. Scribble took a seat at one of the consoles and used his band to get into the system.

It took some doing, but he managed to activate the tall screen and began to tap on the buttons to scroll through files. I made sure to look back every three minutes to ensure we weren’t being walked in on. Scribble gasped and I looked up at the screen. It was an image of what appeared to be an X-ray of a pony. Strange spots were dotting around the skeleton. He brought up more files and began skimming through them. He looked grim as he read more and more. I was unable to follow fully.

“Thi. They’ve been doing more experimentation with the Sombranite. Look at this.” He then brought up an X-ray. “Those black dots are the Sombranite latching onto and causing deformations. That’s the result of a failed experiment. The files read deceased.” He said. My heart skipped a beat.

“So… what about the one Flitter was injected with?” I asked. Scribble skimmed through the files.

“It’s a prototype of the current formula they are using. It wasn’t meant to latch on and be prolonged.” He met my look. “Flitter was supposed to be clear of it after two weeks.” I looked up at the screen.

“No kidding? So, why hasn’t it?” I asked.

“Says here they used actual bits of King Sombra himself to create the formula. The properties were unknown at the time, but it appears that it is a symbiote as it reacted to the archaic crystals around the lab it was researched in.” My jaw dropped.

“You aren’t saying…” I dreaded. Scribble nodded grimly.

“It seems King Sombra is still thriving off a host. The fact it triggers at all means it’s in a stagnant state. But upon more use… I can only imagine King Sombra taking the guise of a Wonder Bolt mare.” He explained. I leaned forward.

“How do we stop it?” I asked.

“Killing the host.” Scribble said without skipping a beat as he finished reading a file. I shook my head.

“Screw that. There has to be a way to better resolve it.” I quickly replied. Scribble hummed in thought. He then perked up at an idea.

“Transfusion…?” He began. I tilted my head. “Blood transfusion. The symbiote is latching onto Flitter in her bloodstream. If we can transfuse the blood to another pony, she’ll be free of it.” He explained.

“Yeah, but that means we still have a similar issue, different pony.” I retorted. Scribble rubbed his chin.

“Maybe… Fie can?” He asked more to himself. My eyes narrowed. “Fie and Din are practically in synchronization and fully compatible with one another at this point. I’m certain if King Sombra wants to mess with a demi-god, he’d be dispelled before even trying. Maybe… Din can take the symbiote’s magical properties for her own use?” He sighed. “It makes sense if you think about it. But I’m unsure how badly it’ll affect Fie. Demi-god or not, she has mortal flesh. We’d be giving King Sombra the ability to destroy everything and anything in his path.”

I bit my lip in thought. I wasn’t liking our options at all. Scribble began to tap at the console, tilting his head.

“Interesting. I can access the databases of other facilities around the world from here.” He said. He tapped on one option and it brought up a password tab. He clicked his tongue. “Figures. Thi, can we check and see if somepony may have left any passwords around we can try?” He asked. I nodded and proceeded to canter down the rows. Bit by bit, I shifted and skimmed through files and notes on employee stations. I eventually wandered into a side room office that appeared to be connected to a generator room. Going through the desk and filing cabinets, I eventually found a couple of discarded notes that appeared to be important self reminders of passwords.

I trotted back over to Scribble and placed it in front of him on the desk. One by one, he went through the passwords, managing to get through to only a couple of data bases. When he managed to get to one, he paused.

“Hold on… this isn’t an R&D file… how did this get in here?” He asked. I looked at the screen as he brought up several tabs that popped up. One of the tabs led to a link. Scribble skimmed the tabs and his look darkened. Without a word, he tapped on the link and a map of Equestria was brought up. It lit up like Hearths Warming Eve. I rubbed my chin.

“What am I looking at?” I asked.

“Sombranite subjects.” He simply said. My jaw dropped again. The dots were all over. From Vanhoover, to Saddle Arabia, to the Crystal Empire, Dodge Junction, Badlands, Manehatten, Appleloosa, Mount Eris, Dragon Lands and even Griffon Stone. They were everywhere. Another tab popped up with a question:

Approve of operation? All authorized personal must unanimously continue. Status: 4:5

“By Celestia… Equestria never stood a chance…” I said. I then felt something cold tap the back of my head and several sounds of arc weapons cocking. Scribble and I held up our hooves as the screen flickered over to a silhouette of a chair facing its’ back to us. Several monitors were displayed behind the chair.

“How magical friendship can be.” A distorted voice spoke. “A value that blinds even the most skeptical. A true mask that anypony can wear. Ones that even your dear leaders of Equestria wear without pause.” I glanced over my shoulder. Lo Mien held her arc pistol to my head, her dead, stone cold eyes meeting mine. With her was Xena, aiming a similar pistol at Scribble. “Would you two be such dears and dispose of the rats?” My eyes widened and as quickly as the command was given, I called Excalibur, blinding the room and the two mares.

Scribble and I shoved them over and galloped out of the room, barreling down towards a set of steps that led upward. Cutting the corners, we burst through a room where several Triad guards looked at us in confusion. We, however, galloped by them without stopping, I used my magic to move objects around to throw what looked to be threats off balance. A quick look over my shoulder had me gasp as Xena and Lo Mien deftly finessed through the crowd. We bolted down a hall and through several conjoining rooms that led into other areas, ending up walking out to a rampart that opened up.

We galloped over to the next far corner entry way in an attempt to keep running when we came to a stop as a massive mechanical claw rose over the edge and hoisted a serpentine body with a sharp and sleek chrome skeletal dragon head that looked down at us with a glowing red visor. We turned around to gallop back, only to see several Triad guards emerge and aim their weapons at us along with Xena and Lo Mien, who pushed themselves through the crowd and walked over to us. They came to a stop just a few hoof steps away from us.

I gulped and gave my best smile I could manage. “Heeeeyyy Xena. Lo. Been… a hot minute.”