I just got back from the castle, I was lucky that the good General had some spare parchment and an ink and quill to give to me along with a wooden tube to safely store it, now I could finally copy the spell I spent all evening and night making.

I had just finishing memorizing the finished version of the enchantment too, it was going to be costly to cast in terms of mana, but I had just enough for it.

This spell was for all intents and purposes just a desperate prototype made of a combination of other spells and my own knowledge of runes I had from both my studies and from the memories I absorbed, that I copied into the parchment given to me, reading it over and over to make sure the sequence was right.

This was really important, I can't emphasize enough how much could go wrong from a botched spell of this size.

So now I will explain in detail what can happen if someone attempts 'freecasting' spells that aren't properly designed with enough safeguards.

There was a reason why no one made spells for anything they needed on a whim, spellcrafting was like playing with a bomb, luckily a shield wasn't that dangerous, even a city size one, not dangerous to cast is what I want to say.

The truly deadly spells that could end the caster were usually modified teleportation spells with their safeguards removed, or spells that changed the properties like shapeshifting spells, again with their many safeguards removed.

In one you could teleport into a solid object and without a safeguard, you would not be placed nearby, you would instead be teleported inside said object, sometimes this would not really hurt you, like being stuck on a wall wouldn't cut you in half, it would make a hole in the wall that your body would occupy and you would become stuck.

But teleport into something solid and large that can't expand and remained more or less the same shape, one could end up trapped in an airless space, for example imagine being inside solid metal or rock, a hole the exact same size of your body when you appeared, airless, no wiggle room, extremely sharp edges all around that if you so much as a twitch could cut you badly, the material around the point of arrival would be compressed and become extremely dense, as the spell made a you shaped hole an instant before your arrival.

It was possible to survive in theory, but in a vacuum, the lungs get the air sucked out of them and unconsciousness happens in less than a minute with no air, death would happen a few minutes later while the caster passed out, I compare it to being teleported to the vacuum of space, but you are entombed into a solid and in total darkness.

Not a good way to go.

One of the blessings of the laws of magic was the fact that it was not possible to teleport inside another living creature, because as all creatures are inherently magical, even if they can't use magic, their bodies still have all a magical signature that disrupts every type of teleportation from happening directly inside or around them in a good half a meter radius. So safeguards only had to concern themselves with the safety of the caster or the ones coming along, in case of group teleports.

When it came to shapeshifting with magic, a lack of safeguards could just leave you looking like a malformed monster or be lethal, depending on what stage of transformation the spell fails at or is interrupted. I won't go into detail but anyone can probably guess it would be bad to suddenly lose your lungs while they are transforming into gills and end up with neither.

Shield spells have only real dangerous to those within the area of the shield, the most dangerous types of shields were those that expand outward like a pulse and push beings inside the area, outside.

Not only could they injure or kill depending on the speed they push at, they can get someone trapped inside a building or object, then the shield pushes them against said solid obstacle until they either die or break said object, most beings would simply die compressed against a solid wall, but other beings that are denser and stronger could simply break through said wall and only take damage.

Even if you were to survive, being pushed against a wall until either you or it breaks, I shudder in disgust at the thought of what that would even look like if the wall won... At least the effect would stop once the creature was dead.

Shaking my head and stopping the self traumatizing thoughts, I decided I reminded myself well enough about the dangers of casting spells not approved by the SSA (Spellcraft Safety Administration)

Its time to go face the god that will help me save this nation.

I grabbed the Idol from Treble who gladly gave it to me and headed out, walking to the center of the city at a relaxed pace, some griffons saw me and waved and I returned it with a smile and a wave of my own, the city sang a different tune now that they had hope again. But singing was still not allowed so maybe not literally.

The spot was I was looking for was within view now, a large statue of king Grover marked the middle of the city, the statue was very old and falling apart from lack of proper maintenance.

'King Grover, he was a good king, he did much for this city and the griffons, such a shame to see his memorial in such a state of disrepair.' I could only nod in agreement, he looked like an imposing griffon back in his day, if the statue was anything to go by.

'I have a feeling you two would have gotten along well.' Boreas then went silent for a minute and so did I, maybe he is right, but then again...

'Maybe we would, but that's not exactly difficult to do, I have a tendency to get along with anyone who gives me a chance, I mean I got along with you, didn't i?' I say jokingly to lighten the mood.

'My point exactly, you are easy to talk to, you are open about your feelings, usually you share what has you worried. I have the advantage of feeling your emotions when you hold me so Its not exactly a fair comparison but it's one of the senses I have to the outside.' I couldn't deny any of that, I suppose having my emotions bare was helpful to know exactly how to approach me.

'I figured as much, as long as you don't dig into my memories I don't mind you feeling my emotions, in fact I prefer you do because if I'm scared almost to the point of pissing myself, I would prefer you don't worsen it by accident. Everyday interactions would be so much better if others could feel emotions too, there would be less problems with communication and less misunderstandings.' As long as emotions aren't instantly treated as intentions, because I see how it could also get out of hand if now it's suddenly forbidden to feel some emotion.

'Now that you're here, you need to go into my realm to be able to cast the spell, tell me when you are ready and I'll pull you in.' I stopped my previous train of thought, did he just say I needed to go into... His realm? Where was even that? What does he mean by going in?

'I have no idea what you are talking about, what realm? Where am I going to go? Is it inside the Idol?'

'No, it's not inside the Idol, at least not literally, it's another dimension where I reside, it's where my real form exists, the Idol is merely a way for me to interact with the real world, you as a mage know what a scrying eye is, well this Idol is like that, but so much more.' He explains in a vague way that makes me understand without actually giving me much information, well played...

Now was he going to steal my soul once I went inside the Idol and keep my body? was I perhaps being a bit too paranoid?

I wont deny that I was... terrified of going in, I would be at the mercy of this deity, but this was the only way to protect the city.

I didn't have enough gemstones to form a full shield that would protect the city, the gems I had left were not high enough quality to make a double pentagram spell matrix that would work for a city sized shield, the least necessary for a shield this size I would need specially made magic conducting pillars to hold the gems at the same height, if it was done at an angle it would need to be a very strict and exact angle, enchantments for such a size... they were not meant to be done quickly, or by one person, they required precision, a tired little dragon like me definitively did NOT have precision or the patience right now.

I yawned, covering my maw, trying to shrug off sleep off me by rubbing my face, it worked for now.

The Idol is my only choice, and by magic I will make this work! I can't give up on them all!

This artifact was like... an extremely huge shortcut, and something that would work a hundred times better than my other idea.

I made my choice, it was worth the risk, if he wanted to get me he could have done so before, I am not defenseless either way... Right?

'Im ready, what do I do to go in?' I asked, trying my best to keep the fear out of my voice.

'I know I can't really say anything to reassure you, but you will soon realize I am not the kind of deity that betrays their allies, hurting you in any way would ruin my plans too, so please remain calm, I'll send you in now, you will disappear from your dimension, first place the Idol on top of Grover's statue, but keep your telekinesis on it, that way I have a connection to you.' his words reassured me somewhat, but I was still scared, I had no idea what awaited on the other side.

I did as he asked, levitating it up and placing it on the stable surface on the griffons back, as soon as I did I felt the world stretching around me, and then disappearing, I saw multicolor lights flashing by all around before I appeared in a brightly lit room, looking around me I felt as if this room was very important, I knew what it was, I had been in a place like this before, back in Canterlot many years ago.

Its a beautiful throne room, its incredibly tall, a large chandelier hangs from above in the middle, with two more on each to both north and south of the room, they are made of transparent, slightly pink crystal, having magical lights inside them. To both north and south of the room there are large full wall spanning windows that show a beautiful blue sky, various clouds floating by in different and sometimes quite strange shapes. The windows allow plenty of light inside, but the chandeliers still add a mysterious and pleasant light to the area near the ceiling, keeping it from being dark.

The floors are made of white mosaic with blue patterns that repeat themselves with the shape of feathers, they look quite detailed and beautiful, on the ceiling there engravings on the structure itself, I can make out a few runes but I'm unsure what they mean, at least in this context, it is as if someone had infused spells inside the very structure of this place, this was incredible, I moved on and started looking at the other objects here.

Various extremely detailed artworks decorate the throne room, painted on circular protruding shapes on the walls themselves, almost like as if they were meant to be windows to the past depicting what appeared to be different battles, oddly enough featuring the same four characters of different races, and in extremely highly detailed white marble statues of four different creatures were arranged in the room at each corner, as if they were meant to represent a group of equals... because why else would they be one in each corner?

There is a large griffon in heavy plate armor wielding a greatsword, his armor is stylized and looks extremely protective, probably weights a ton as well.

On the opposite corner the statue of a deer stag, taller than mom and more muscular than her wearing a chestpiece seemingly made of plants that covers his chest, sides and back, a quiver of arrows on his right side and even flowers coming out at random points along his living robe, with a bow that is supposed to be floating alongside him if it wasn't a statue, instead is simply coming out of the ground a little distance away, the stag's large antlers have various decorations on them, carvings too.

There was an Alicorn wielding a spear, she was feminine and regal, beautiful as well, she has armor, but lighter armor than the griffon, it covered her hooves, neck, back and sides but left her rear exposed as well as her underside, a bit unsafe if you ask me, but maybe she had other ways of protecting those areas and attacks normally would come from the front during a battle, still she was depicted with a smile, an almost flirtatious expression, and her pose accentuated her feminine features quite well, I had to put some effort to stop looking at her sexy flank, she was very lifelike.

And then the last statue, a dragon that looks about half a meter taller than even the deer's antlers, he is depicted wielding a staff with a large gem on top, he also wears mage's robes, with various accessories: bracelets and what seems like a chestplate, but it has crystals or gemstones embedded in it, all of them, look in peak physical condition, and just a glance tells me whoever sculpted this statues went into great detail about the anatomy, if a part would be visible, it was.

I don't know why I tried to look at those parts, I always keep my eyes away from there when it comes to other ponies or creatures, but because this were mere statues I didn't feel like they would mind me taking a peek.

This was interesting to say the least, and I felt my face cooling with a blush, deciding I had enough gawking at very realistic sculptures I shook my head clear and finally looked upon the large throne that was wooden a light color wood that oddly enough reminded me of the gigantic three where Griffonstone was built upon, the wood was polished smooth and shiny with various engravings everywhere as well as glyphs of unknown meaning upon it, I managed to recognize a few and they were related to the mind, the throne was also encrusted with large sapphires if the most beautiful shade of blue I had ever seen, making my inner dragon salivate.

The throne was facing away for me, and the light of the sun here was coming from in front of me, making it difficult to distinguish the figure sitting on the throne, but from here it was obvious that it was much larger in size than even General Steelwing.

"Hello? I'm Onyx, sorry for taking my time to look around." I announced, trying to sound formal but unsure who I was talking to just yet.

Slowly the chair swiveled around to face me, as if it had a hidden mechanism made specially for that, clever, that way he could always have the sun at his back, although they seem to have been looking out the window when I arrived here.

And a griffon who made Celestia look short was now looking at me, the most striking pair of steel gray eyes I've ever look into, they were piercing and intense, I was unable to look away, I felt myself start shaking like a leaf in the wind, adrenaline starting to get me ready to run.

I need to stop getting into situations like this.

Once I blinked and was able to take my eyes off his, I looked over his form, he was about a head taller than Celestia, his feathers were fully white, with his feline half being the typical lion color of light brown with a tuft on the tip of his tail, he wasn't just any griffon, he is the largest griffon I've met, without any of the colorful feathers, or any other adornments, he is also absolutely jacked, all while still looking perfectly proportional.

He is... Something else entirely, he's a griffon male, no doubt just like his statue in the corner, but the power he exuded is way more than what I could have imagined, more than anyone I've faced before, even Celestia.

I was wrong, he isn't weak, the only thing that was weak is his connection to the griffons in the material plane, but here it's a completely different matter.

It finally clicked in my brain that I was in presence of a god so I bowed low to the ground and stood still with my head lowered, the being before me could crush me like an insect if he so desired.

"I'm the same old griffon you talked to for the last few days, you even joked with me remember? Come on Onyx, I know I may look intimidating but I mean you no harm, I welcome to my plane of existence, the Windstream, where all creatures who have a passion for flight and freedom live, as well as those ambitious ones who always are looking for the next adventure and something exciting to do, for the ones who follow my virtues, but also for those who want to be with me when their time comes." He greeted me finally with a warm smile, he wasn't trying to be intimidating, get it together damn brain... I need to relax, not make a fool of myself!

I let out a shaky deep breath, he's not gonna hurt me, calm down now.

He's not gonna hurt me, why would he? I need to be logical here.

Even his voice had more weight to it here, it was not the same hearing it in person, and while his tone was reassuring he was still making my fight or flight instincts go into overdrive, and my body chose flight every time, I wanted out, but I needed to be logical and not let my instincts control me, dragon instincts were quite powerful, and I was finding that out now.

Seeing I was still struggling to calm down and not have a panic attack, his tone shifted into comforting and softer still, like one would when trying to reassure a scared young child, maybe it was not so much I was a dragon but that I was still not even a teen, instead a child and fear was normal when dealing with a supernatural being who I knew was hundreds of times stronger than me.

"Rise Onyx, please calm down, there was no need for bowing or being scared, I promise I won't hurt you, okay?" I nodded, lifting my head to look out the window at the fluffy floating clouds and bright blue skies outside, the sight made me feel a bit better, enough to gather my courage at least.

"I-i'm sorry, i didn't expect you to be so imposing sir, I was worried you would be angry if... If I didn't bow... I've been punished for not bowing before, i thought anyone stronger than me would want me to bow." I answer with a shudder, I still remembered the last time I tried to be casual about something like this and it didn't go so well, I slowly stood back up and stayed there awkwardly, but I was curious about the outside too.

"You have no reason to apologize little one, I invited you here because the throne is magically connected to the castle, it will work to amplify the shield enchantment you made and I will direct the flow of magic from the griffons in the city, my connection has rekindled every since every griffon saw the Idol, they remembered me, all of them remembered their old god." I nod, trying to relax and get used to his presence, his expression didn't hold any deceit and his tone was serious, so I approached slowly, getting within reach.

"Thank you mister Boreas, I... Am glad that I got to meet you in person, but who are the statues representing?" I asked while right in front of him, swallowing nervously as one of his talons approached me and gently patted me on the head, his talon was big enough to grab my head and crush it, yet he gently patted me instead, I would feel humiliated at being treated like a pet animal if it wasn't for the fact that it felt so calming and soothing, it made me slowly lose my fear of him, and...No one else was watching so what was there to lose? a few headpats wont hurt.

"I won't hurt you, see? You, you are really something special, you returned my Idol to Griffonstone after centuries, its wonderful to meet you in person, young Onyx, something tells me you are in a similar path to them, those statues are of my best friends, wonder how they are now, it's been... A long time, even for me." He had a thoughtful expression on him for a minute, then seemed to realize I asked him a question.

He pointed to the Alicorn mare and started to explain.

"Their names were Faust the Kind, the Alicorn of Harmony herself, she is quite a beautiful mare as you can see, she got her name because of her charismatic and selfless attitude, we as renown adventurers earned quite a lot of bits, and she donated most of her income to the poor and homeless, the lower class, the rest of her earnings were spent on supplies and food for our group, we all had a quota to meet, so we would always be ready for the next job. Well, that is how she earned her nickname." He stood quiet a second, reminiscing about something, before turning to look at the buck with the large and decorated antlers.

"Then opposite to her is Eixær, the large deerfolk buck, he is from a race of creatures that resemble deer, but they are similar to ponies in many ways, except they have a deep love for nature and the spirits that reside within the deep forest, he is a druid, probably the mightiest druid in existence, that I know of." He chuckled, as if remembering something about his friend. "He was quite naïve at times, got his foreleg ripped off by a cragdile once because he wanted to pet it, that really pissed off Faust who had to use her divine magic to regenerate him." I feel my mouth hanging open in shock, i was impressed at first, but something tells me this guy is not the brightest, then again couldn´t complain because I've almost been mauled by a jaguar once in the past, sure I was safe but... I didn't get my limb close to it, and its different than putting your leg near a gigantic crocodile that makes saltwater ones look like geckos next to it.

"The last one is... Inferno, an Arcanist, master of magic and a god level enchanter, in fact he is the one who made my throne and the Idol, they are both technically part of the same system, he also made the Bloodstone Scepter, in the end he left for the dragonlands, where he ascended as the deity of dragonkind, that's the last I know of him, He was... very protective of all of us, he would watch over us as we slept, and would sleep around us when we all had to sleep, keeping us warm and allowing us to not need a bonfire other than for cooking." That is... strangely wholesome for a group of seasoned adventurers that went on to become deities in their own right.

"That's incredibly amazing to learn! I didn't even know that there were sentient deer, I mean I had seen some but... near the frozen north, and an Arcanist? that´s a type of mage? If he made the throne and your Idol... he must have been incredible, no wonder he managed to ascend.
And what about you, mister Boreas? What's your story?" I didn't see a sword, he was not wearing armor or anything either, then again he is sitting in his throne and his castle, why would he need to fight?

"After our adventuring years concluded, I moved back to my homeland after, to the chaotic warbands of griffons where I had been born, local warlords fighting for land and resources just as the day I escaped searching for a better life, it was like nothing had changed in those twenty years we spent adventuring together...
I reached, conquered and claimed the very mountain where Griffonstone would be founded, I planted a primordial tree, an extremely rare tree that was considered extinct, on top of the beautiful hill overlooking the pine forests, and while it grew slowly, I single handedly at first, unified all the warring outlaw bands and tribes and formed the first Griffon Empire."

"As for what I do in a fight? I'm good at fighting with melee weapons, I know a little magic too, I have studied magic enough to know what I'm against, but I just prefer fighting with my greatsword, I wont go so far to say I am the best with a sword but I am pretty decent with one, not as cool or interesting as my friends, aren't I? That's just what being a fighter is like, no matter if I can use magic I much prefer the simplicity of wielding my sword."

"Nothing wrong with being a sword user sir, I bet you are incredibly good at it, I respect you more, because I struggle to learn to properly wield one, its quite difficult, I still have so much to learn...
I thank for you sharing with me more about your past, that certainly has motivated me to grow and become a better fighter, I have so much still to learn... But now I know where to start." And that is enchantments!

He stopped petting me and I opened my eyes, blinking in confusion, why did he stop? Oh... OH! I need to enchant the throne, I almost forgot I was here for anything other than stories.

"I have to enchant the spell now, I'm sorry to ask this but... can you help me by checking the spell is safe and done correctly please? I've checked many times but a fresh, non sleep deprived set of eyes could maybe catch any mistakes." I asked in a pleading tone and offered to him the scroll with the spell.

"Oh sure, I'm probably not as good as you in magic, since I am mostly a melee fighter, but it can't hurt to take a look." He grabs the scroll and starts to look at the sequencing and runes.

I yawn and stretch my legs, I need to get this done quickly or I will really start getting sleepy, I shake my head and slap myself fully awake, catching the attention of the griffon who cracks a smile as he watches me do that. A few minutes later he hands me the scroll.

"I shortened the sequence here, here and here for one rune instead of various for each attack, I changed the runes for other runes that will work better here and added one parameter you have forgotten to take into account, that is you forgot about the wind, you need to give the wind free access to flow in and out of the shield." I facepalmed, having forgotten that, he chuckled at my reaction and handed me the corrected scroll.

"That's everything, you had it almost perfect other than some minor aspects, but with my improvements the shield should be more resilient to siege attacks like large boulders or ballista bolts, it also will draw less energy, you don't need such a solid shield like this against griffons, but I must congratulate you in the safeguards you used, you thought about every single possible danger and accounted for it, some I didn't even know about! How did you manage that?" I smiled and checked the new sequence and replaced runes, this runes I didn't know, maybe they were ancient runes lost to time, but he helpfully clarified what they meant on the paper, the difference was my choices were too specific when he chose runes that would work just as well but less cluttered.

The new spell would work wonders, I couldn't wait to do this! I haven't felt so excited in trying a spell in a while, until now. "The safeguards are very commonplace in modern spells, the credit goes to the mages who designed them, I just took safeguards from various other spells and modified them to work for this enchantment, I made of course my own set of rules for the safeguards, for example this one here will push away anyone in the area of the shield, and this one goes a step further, if anyone gets stuck right on the shield despite having being pushed away, the shield will form around them instead of through them, preventing accidental deaths of griffons or other creatures having their body cut into two pieces, on top of that they will be unable to move inside the shield, the shield will only allow them to move outside, sort of like a one way barrier, this only applies to enemies, as animals like pets will pass unimpeded." I finished my explanation and he nodded.

"Very good Onyx, go ahead now, do you need me to get off the throne? I don't mind, just tell me and I'll make room for you to work." I shook my head no right away.

"No need sir, I just need to touch to engrave the gemstones on the back of the throne, with how many and how complex this is, it may take hours." I was glad he stopped, allowing me to concentrate on the very complex and lengthy spell matrix, the enchantment was made out of various parts put together, but the sapphires the throne had would work perfectly to hold enchantments, they were of exceptional quality.

I try to enchant the spell I made but I get a warning right away.

Your current enchanter affinity level is too low to make an enchantment of this tier and from this quality of materials, you have 0% probability of success.

"WHAT THE BLOODY HELL IS THIS?!"

I wasn't aware there was even a requirement to engrave an enchantment! What the fuck do I do now?! Does this mean I will fail if I try a hundred percent of the time? I wanted to slam my head on the ground in frustration.

"Whoa, what's got you so angry all of a sudden that you would cuss like that?" He asked in slightly surprise, but he didn´t sound angry at me having yelled, just confused.

"Oh, I-i apologize sir, it's... I can't do the enchantment myself, it seems my practice at home enchanting swords is not enough practice to enchant something of this level, I should have realized only enchanting about 5 different items with simple spells would not be enough practice for something of this scale, I apologize... I have failed." I let out a defeated sigh, moving away and giving the god in front of me his personal space back.

"Don't despair young mortal, I'll do it for you, being what I am has a few perks, I usually don't do this, but this is technically my domain and I'm allowed to do whatever I want in here." A pleased smile appears on his face, he puts out his massive talon, as if asking for something from me.

I realize he must want the spell scroll and give it to him right away.

"Good, now how do I put this so it works just right..." He gains a thoughtful expression before nodding to himself.

"I wish that the enchantment spell that is written upon the scroll held on my left talon is applied, with both the necessary quality of engravings, the material ingredients and the writing the closest it can possibly be to perfect, in the correct order and sequence the scroll indicates upon the Sky Sapphires that are encrusted on the throne I am currently sitting upon, all while still maintaining unaltered the original enchantments in the Sky Sapphires." His eyes glowed blindingly blue, I had to cover my own for a second, an enormous magical pressure overwhelmed my magical senses for about a minute, I kept quiet and still, and only opened my eyes with the light and pressure went away.

A very powerful spell was just cast, a spell so powerful it shook me to my core, not in a bad way, it just left my legs feeling slightly wobbly and my mind a bit rattled.

"W-what did just happen? What was that spell?!" I asked in astonishment, not even aware he could use magic, guess I was wrong about griffons, at least this one.

"Something I rarely do, but it's done, the enchantment is engraved and the magical paint is written on it, I'll let you do the honors, give the enchantment the energy it needs to start, at least the first four minutes. After you do, I'll send you back to the spot you came in from." I appreciated the gesture, despite him being the one who made it happen, I felt inadequate... But to be fair I am only eleven.

"T-thank you sir, thank you so much! But what spell did you use just then, to make it happen? I've never seen anything like that, it was incredibly powerful, I felt it in my very soul!" I felt excitement at the notion of magic that could just do something happen, just like that! It felt kinda like cheating, but magic as a whole is already cheating, is it not?

"That is one of the benefits of what I have become, think of it as simply wishing upon a star." He said cryptically, I wanted to protest, to complain and to nag him on until he told me, but I decided against it, I already have made myself look quite foolish in front of a god, I needed to move on and finish the spell.

"Yes sir, it sounds like a very powerful and useful spell, sorry I... I am very very interested in magic, it's a passion of mine, but that doesn't matter now, I'll finish the spell, but why do you need to send me back? I mean... Can't I stay a while longer and explore outside the castle? I'm curious as to what is outside."

His face grew serious and he stared at me intensely now. What did I do?! Did I just sign my death sentence?

His expression softened as he saw the fear on my face, I had trouble holding my composure by now, I wasn't easily scared but just a serious look from this griffon and I was already almost into panic mode. That's just how large the gap in power was between us, my unconscious mind knew that if I antagonized him enough, I was less significant of a threat to him than a baby rabbit was to an adult tiger.

"Didn't meant to give you that look, I just want to discourage you from wanting to explore outside this room, this realm is not meant for the living, the throne room is the exception, it is where I invite important beings when it is needed, and where I help teach and train the chosen kings and queens of the Empire, the Griffon Empire, it has been a long time since then." His answer was cryptic as always, but I felt like I had heard that name before...

That's it! The armor from those undead officers, it was called Griffon Empire, it talked about an empire!

"I see, but what is outside the throne room that is so dangerous? Sorry for my curiosity, I'm still only eleven, but I know when not to do something, and I'm not going to try to go out there." He nodded and relaxed his expression fully back to his neutral face.

"The outside has infinite skies, with the occasional home, there is also various structures that appear at random around, where one can challenge themselves by fighting against both sapient beings and monsters, the beings inside this structures are extremely dangerous so only the most skilled and powerful creatures dare to enter, but the ones who succeed are handsomely rewarded as you would expect, by treasure and fame." Huh... That sounds actually pretty familiar to me. "The fun twist I decided to keep things interesting is that the sapient creatures inside are also another inhabitants of the Windstream who sign up to become opponents, and they get paid a good amount if they manage to repel the challengers successfully, they are all paid per challenger defeated, but nowhere near as much as the challengers earn if they succeed." So... its sort of like a game? fascinating... I already felt excited to try this, but...

"But what if the challengers or the opponents inside are slain in battle? That would be terrible for their families! And is that all there is on the other side?"

"They don't really die, they are all already dead, no one can double die, not by any means available to them. They are trapped for a couple of days as a timeout, at least for the challengers, and then released back, they lose all the progress made towards clearing out the structures as well."

"The opponents, who are inside the structures just get send back home without pay if they die, to be replaced by other awaiting participants, this events are rare and highly showcased, so there is a long wait list for creatures wanting to be in, both challengers and opponents.
There is more to it too! you see this structures also have puzzles, traps and even hidden codes in them that allow for extra paths, hidden treasure, or more difficult fights with unique rewards." He explained sounding excited, actually smiling proud and sitting a bit straighter and taller.

"There is a system to classify the participants, measure their abilities and place them accordingly inside the structures, the strongest participants are the bosses and pseudo bosses, and then there are special enemies, and the weakest are common enemies, pretty much fodder, but the fun thing about this is that no one dies because everyone is already dead, and they cant underestimate even the lowest opponent in the structures, because they all have intelligence, even the monsters." He was really passionate about this, he must really have missed adventuring and fighting if he made all of this for others to enjoy, maybe for himself too.

"And of course its not everything! There are floating cities for those who want to have a more relaxed time and for those who crave... other forms of entertainment, there are race tracks for those who love running, and even water parks, icy slopes in the clouds and many many other things, I cater to all." I was really confused, why would I NOT want to go out there now? I wanted to visit all of those a whole lot now!

"You must be thinking: that sounds incredible! I want to visit even more." He shook his head.

"If you go out there, your soul will become bound to this realm like any other one who died and was accepted in it, you'll be able to stay and you will even keep your body there, like I do, but you wouldn't be able to come back to the material plane, I can pull only your body out of the Windstream, but your soul will stay behind." My eyes widened, now I understood why he didn't like the idea of me going out there to explore.

"Oh that's not the worst part. In case you are wondering, if your soul stays in the afterlife and your body comes out, your body will be soulless, it will not die, but you could become a host for the Hollow. A terrible being that inhabits soulless bodies who were meant to have a soul, it feeds on the pain of suffering and betrayal and subsequently the flesh of those cherished by the host's memories, and from what I know of you, if you were to become a Hollow, you would be..." He paused for a few seconds as if thinking and analyzing me.

"Just imagine an evil being who not only can use magic of the seventh tier, but can also bite through steel and stone with relative ease and knows how to use weapons, and with the strength you posses, and who controls you having no mercy or compassion and feels nothing but hate for the living and hunger for their flesh, your mind and body will become primed to hunt those who are closest to you, It will not hesitate to devour your family and then your closest friends, using your face, your memories and your abilities to their fullest, even tricking them into believing it's the real you to get them to lower their guard. That is why I don't want you to go out of here, even if I know you would enjoy yourself... You don't want to leave it all behind yet, do you? I know you don't want any of that." I was left speechless, trembling and starting to tear up.

I trembled, crying silently while looking into his eyes, thinking I could become such a monster and kill my loved ones... my throat felt dry like sand, I felt almost faint and dizzy, bile rising up my neck, I had to suppress the urge to vomit, not willing to disrespect this sacred room, not in front of its deity.

He noticed and touched me on the head with his talon, a soft blue light washed over me and I didn´t feel sick anymore, my heart was calm, and I was not about to break down either, now it was determination what remained firmly in my mind.

I still had to swallow back the bile in my throat but I only made a disgusted face and moved on, Ill be fine.

This definitively sounds like a good reason to NEVER go outside this throne room, I'd never want to cause something like that to happen over my curiosity, I am definitively never going to explore this place as long as I live.

"I apologize, I will never ever try to leave this room again!" He nods his head with a sympathetic smile.

"Good, because I am not allowed to intervene in case your body is possessed, I may be a deity, but I can't intervene directly on anything outside my own nation, even then I can't simply come out and start fighting on their behalf, that's not how any of it works, now there are things I can do, make deals is one of them, by the way, your soul belongs to me when you die." He said the last part so suddenly I took a few seconds to realize.

I did a did a double take, before seeing the shit eating grin he has on his face, I sighed, releasing the tension that last statement caused, phew! at this point I think one of my hearts will give out before I turn fifteen from all of this stress, I need a break, fuckin hell...

"I only jest, I'm allowed to lie, joke and deceive! But on a serious note, your soul is free, I am not allowed to just take souls into my domain after some creature dies without stating specifically that the deal I made with said creature is for their soul, and I never made a deal for a soul, Its just not my thing, I am after all here representing the freedom that is the right of all living things, It would be... really hypocritical of me to ask someone for their soul in a deal, even if they would have a really good time in my afterlife, not saying its for everyone, ponies most likely would prefer a more peaceful final rest, and so would some other creatures despite their different way of thinking."

"You took me out of the Abyssal Abyss, I told you that you had earned yourself a wish, that deal is already used up, you used it for me to make the enchantment you couldn't, I only helped you because we had a deal, now about you traveling out of the castle..." He had more to say so I paid attention quietly, he had returned the scroll to me by now.

"There is a way to safely do it, but I would need to go with you, and by doing that I would leave the Throne, you know this is what keeps me connected with the Idol, it allows me to both sense and connect with griffons and other sapient creatures in the city, or wherever my Idol is located, and now it also allows me to control the amazing shield you have designed." I nodded in understanding, his reluctance to leave the Idol now that it was back in the hands of the griffons once again was commendable, he could be out there in his realm having fun but chose to look over those who needed him the most.

"It all makes so much sense now that you mention it. But don't worry about me visiting this realm, I'm not ready for something like that knowing the risks, and I have much going on in my own life, not to mention having magic studies, fighting practice, and more that is going to keep me busy." I mentioned, trying not to reveal anything else about me than what he already knew.

"Now it's time to power the enchantment..." Without further ado I start pouring my mana into the sapphires on the throne from a few meters away, an indigo stream flowing from my half open maw and directly into the gemstones, spreading evenly between all of them.

A few seconds later, my mana is empty and I feel the lack of sleep catch up to me as the mental exhaustion of having my magic drained finally registering to my sleep deprived mind, who decided the best thing I could do was go to sleep right then and there.

I feel something is wrong, but I can't focus on that because I am barely conscious as is.

By completely emptying your magic and trying to use even more with a spell far beyond your current ability you suffer from severe magic exhaustion, your mana will regenerate slower and you will randomly lose concentration on any spells that require it, any spell you use will also be weaker and you risk suffering further complications by casting spells higher than fourth tier.

"Am... Sleepy, take me back please." I remembered to ask that before closing my eyes, not able to comprehend what the system just told me, I go to sleep.

Author's Note

They were roommates.