Chapter 2

Empress Corona was decidedly not in a good mood. After a disastrous morning meeting with the Council of Magi discussing the best course of action to take in their current war with Arcadios, a mountainous country existing on a continent mere five klicks south of their own, she walked into her throne room after tea time to discover that her scribe was not present.

"You there! Guard!" Corona barked at a nearby guard who visibly stiffened up as she pointed her royal hoof at him. "Fetch me my lazy excuse of a scribe at once! This is unacceptable!" Making a shooing gesture to the guard, who quickly scuttled away, Corona exhaled loudly before taking to her throne. Five minutes later, her scribe (poor thing) arrived.

"I-I'm sorry, Empress, I -" Dusty Scroll started out with a garbled apology that Corona quickly silenced with a raise of her regal horseshoe.

"Enough excuses, Dusty! This is the second time in a week that this has happened! I don't pay you to be late,  so you'd best come be on time in the future. After all, scribes can always be replaced, and it would just be so unfortunate if you met your sudden and swift demise while being late to your job a third time." Staring at him long and hard to make sure he caught her meaning, she became slightly mollified. "Read out the first item of the agenda for today, Dusty."

"As you wish, Empress Corona." Unfurling a scroll from his saddle bags, Dusty Scroll magically conjured a pair of reading glasses from the Aether. "Ahem. Item number one on the list: Meeting with an ambassador of Arcadios to discuss their terms of complete surrender to us."

Corona purred. She loved the feeling of having a new country under the influence of her every beck and whim. "Excellent. Perhaps their king has finally seen sense and now knows it is much better to be a vassal state to Equestria than to be destroyed by it. What is the next item on the agenda, scribe?"

As Dusty Scroll continued reading items off the list, a small voice nagged at the back of Corona's head. This isn't right. Why am I killing so many ponies just to conquer another country? Why am I even conquering countries at all?. She shook her head to rid herself of these silly thoughts. As long as she could remember, it was her life's purpose to expand the borders of Equestria to all corners of the continent and even beyond. For some reason, however, this small voice inside of her head always tells her that it is not so, that she was not born to be a tyrant and mass murderer for the sake of power. Corona snapped herself back into reality after Dusty Scroll nervously cleared his voice.

"Ehm, Empress? That is all for today," he stuttered. Though he had been in the Empress' employ for the past decade, she exuded an aura of fear that nopony could ever get fully comfortable around. For an excitable pony like him, it was more than enough to make him have nightmares on a regular basis. These mostly centered around himself being launched to the moon or burned to ash on the spot, but there was always the rare case that he dreamed he was being tickled to death.

Corona nodded slowly, eyeing over her subject languidly. She mulled over the items she had heard in her half awareness when one in particular caught her attention. "Did you mention something about a new student for the Institute of Warfare?"

"Uhm, yes Empress. Item Seventy-three: Interrogate and potentially train new student for the Institute of Warfare from the village of Rasaterra, recently razed in a griffin raid."

She raised her eyebrows. From what she recalled, Rasaterra was a village on the eastern border of Equestria by the Sea of White. It was mainly populated by unicorns, although they hadn't produced a single foal of significant magical talent for at least twenty years if her memory served. However, all unicorns knew how to perform some type of magic, and it was hard to believe that the entire village was razed despite this fact. "I must say that I am intrigued. What brought this situation about?"

"Well, my Empress, the report says that Captain Spark Plug of the Equestrian Air Force 5th was sent to combat the invaders on orders from her imperial Majesty Grand General Luna, only to find the village completely destroyed save for the ashes of its remains. None of the villagers lived with the exception of one unicorn colt who was believed to have killed the majority of the invading force on his own." While Dusty Scroll was trained to withhold any emotions, he couldn't control his eyes from widening slightly. A unicorn colt fighting off an entire force of bloodthirsty, murderous griffins? One could only imagine the immense power that colt was blessed with.

Empress Corona also expressed her astonishment despite herself in the form of her eyebrows rising, although it could have easily been caused from skepticism. "A unicorn colt? Defeating how many griffins?"

"Erhm," mumbled Dusty, scanning the report for mortality numbers. "A total of twenty five griffins found dead in the main village area, with five or so corpses scattered around the surrounding forest."

"Could it not have been some sort of freak accident? Killing twenty five of those treacherous beasts is no easy task."

"The corpses were frozen solid , some of them disintegrating upon closer examination. Only an intense release of water magic could have caused this," Dusty replied. "There's also the fact to consider that the colt was found in the very middle of the village, surrounded by the bodies. All the evidence points towards him being the source of their deaths."

Impressive. To think that a backwater village like Rasaterra could still develop such a powerful watermolder. A pity there were no survivors. We'll just have to assess him at the Institute as quickly as possible and determine his eligibility for Magus Apprentice. After all, the current Magus Aquus is so old he could hardly sit upright in his plush chair, Corona mused to herself. "Guard, please retrieve Captain Spark Plug from his quarters and have him report to me in my study at once. Tell him to bring the new foal with him." Rising from her throne, she walked towards the throne room doors before throwing her shimmering mane back to address Dusty. "Dismissed, scribe. Be sure that you are not late at the Evening court later today, or there will be...consequences." At that, she exited the room, smirking at the collective sound of relief that escaped every scholar and adviser who had been on duty while she was there. Better to be feared than to be overthrown, she thought to herself.

Spark Plug was in trouble. Deep trouble. As soon as he had returned to the barracks, he had sent his report to the Empress straight away in hopes that she would request for him as soon as possible. He hadn't expected to be kept waiting for this long, and now the colt was awake and bawling his eyes out again. "Damnation, I wasn't trained to handle bucking foals!" He had tried everything from giving the colt books to showing him shiny weapons and armor, but nothing would placate the lad. He had almost convinced himself to grab the nearest wind mage and cause the colt to fall into a deep sleep when he finally recieved summons from her imperial Majesty. Sighing with relief, he used a wing to aim a quick chop at the back of the colt's neck where the nerve cluster would be. Thankfully, the crying stopped.

Scooping up the child once more, Spark Plug walked quickly through the corridor that connected the barracks with the royal castle. Nodding to a few comrades from the force during his passage, he soon entered the main structure of the castle and found himself making an arduous climb to the study of her Solar Majesty, Empress Corona. He breathed deeply before raising his hoof to the gigantic double doors, forcefully banging his hoof against the intricately carved mahogany wood.

"Enter," came the short reply of his sovereign. Spark Plug readily complied, closing the door softly behind him as he approached and knelt before his majesty as best as he could while holding the unconscious foal.

"Rise, Captain, and speak; your Empress commands this of thee." Sitting tall and regal in her chair, Corona stared down at him with a bemused gaze.

"Of course, my Empress. As I have written in my report, a marauding force of at least twenty five griffins is believed to have attacked the sea-side village of Rasaterra at around noontime. They proceeded to loot the village of it's valuables before burning it to the ground, viciously murdering the former villagers who attempted to drive them away. The casualty report places the number of civilians dead to be around thirty unicorns, the ones in one piece showing signs of magical overload. It is presumed that the villagers died either by being eviscerated or using more magic than their bodies possessed in the defense of their home and loved ones." Spark Plug paused here, carefully considering his next few words. The next couple sentences would determine the future of both himself and his charge, still thankfully unconscious and peaceful. "Casualties also include twenty five or so griffins, frozen and/or disintegrated. Cause of their deaths is believed to be this unicorn colt here," he said, gesturing a wing towards the foal ," who was found surrounded by the bodies of their dead. While I do not know the reason why he was not discovered at an earlier age when the royal Recruitors had last surveyed the land, it is most likely that this young one is the most powerful watermolder to have been born since the times of the legendary first Magus Aquus, Sonus the Persistent."

A silence broke out in the room, Spark Plug standing resolutely at attention while inwardly sweating rivers. Having to report to the Empress was terrifying enough when she was in the throne room, but being alone in the study with just the two of them had him being extra cautious to avoid displeasing her or risk being turned to ash on the spot (This had in fact happened to some poor chap in the past; he hadn't made her tea hot enough, so she made sure he felt supremely "hot" indeed). In fact, he was so concerned with pleasing his deity that he nearly jumped ten feet in the air when she spoke.

"I am quite aware of the incidents that occurred at Rasaterra earlier today, Captain. However, I am still doubtful of the conclusion of your report. A foal taking down a group of twenty five griffins seems almost impossible. It goes against all reasoning for a foal to have that much power, albeit the fact that this colt here is a unicorn. Please set him down before me, so that I may assess his magical energy for myself."

Abiding by his sovereign's wishes, Spark Plug gently set the colt down on the plush carpet before her Solar Majesty, then hastily took a step backward to avoid the burst of solar magic that was emitted from her horn moments afterwards.

Corona stepped forward, bring the tip of her pure white horn down to the tip of the colt's horn. Magic ran down the length of her horn into his as she probed his body for the amount of magic that this young foal possessed. The results she found were nothing short of outstanding. In fact, if the results of the scan were completely true, this colt would change everything from now on. "Leave us, Spark Plug."

The order had been so sudden and unexpected that Spark Plug broke out of his characteristic obedience mode and hesitated before Corona hissed at him. "Now, Captain!" Spark Plug saluted on instinct and removed himself from her presence as quickly as he could backpedal out of a room while being almost terrified out of his wits. Corona sighed. "Perhaps fear isn't always the best tool when trying to run an efficient government. Ponies always misunderstanding you or trying to leave so quickly that they fail to understand what I ask of them," she mused. Quickly reaching out with her horn to shut the doors to her study, she levitated the unconscious colt and brought him to her sofa to examine him closer without having to bend her neck. While she was an immortal goddess, she still had the body of a pony and getting neck cricks were the most annoying pain imaginable. Making sure she was sitting comfortable, she began chanting a long series of spells under her breath that would scan deeper into this colt's body and perhaps glean some memories of how he had slain the griffins.

Starswirl was panting, his body wracked with exhaustion. His father had been a peaceful unicorn who wanted to be situated away from village life, and had built his cottage half a klick away from the outskirts of Rasaterra. To Starswirl's tiny legs, it might as well have been fifty. Desperately gulping in more breath, he ignored the burning sensation of his legs as he continued forth on his mission of destruction and hatred. The only thing that penetrated his mind was the thought of getting revenge for the parents who had raised him, then died in front of his eyes. He felt tears welling up in his eyes before forcing the memories away. Now, he was focused on vengeance.

By the time Starswirl had reached the village, the raiding party was nearly finished looting the houses that still stood before setting fire to them. Still engulfed in the depths of his childlike rage, he slammed himself into the body of the nearest griffin. The griffin screeched, swatting him away. His horn had managed to pierce the muscle in it's shoulder, causing an extremely painful wound that would partially immobilize it. Starswirl flew from the force of the blow, landing with a thud at the center of the village. Staggering to his feet with the indomitable energy of youth, his horn lit ablaze as he shot the globules of water everywhere around him. In flight, they changed to shards of ice that pierced and tore through griffin skin, embedding themselves deep into griffin wings and chests before melting away into water once more.

Still, the spell had been weakened by the exertion caused from his long rush to the village, and he had not used nearly half the force required for the shards to have achieved fatal results. Instead, they seemed to only have enraged the party of griffins, now intent on murdering the one who would dare assault them with his petty water magic. They began to close in on him, like lions circling an injured gazelle before sweeping in for the kill.

Starswirl forced himself to reach deep into his body once more, drawing out his own life energy in replacement of his depleted magic reserves. Yelling out in tremendous pain, Starswirl collapsed as he felt years of his future tear themselves away from him into the spell he had channeled. His horn glowed in a rapidly expanding pinprick of light, causing the temperature within the light to freeze below -273 ºC. All of the griffins were frozen in an instant, with some of their bodies even disintegrating from the sudden loss of heat. As Starswirl drifted into the void of his subsconscious, he could just barely detect the presence of another pony out of the corner of his eye before succumbing to exhaustion and pain.

Starswirl awoke with a start, his eyes wild with fear. He didn't recognize the plush surroundings around him, nor the comfy cushions that buffered his backside. There was also the smell of something he had never smelled before; it was sweet, yet held a tang of freshness much like the presence of an oncoming storm. Slowly orienting himself to his surroundings, he remembered that his parents were dead and sniffled. Before he managed to cry, however, his mouth was forced shut by magic.

"If you dare shed tears on those Saddle Arabian cushions, young one, no amount of magic will save you from my wrath," Corona said ominously, approaching him from behind. He whirled his head, not knowing who the tall and scary figure was in front of him. He did, however, recognize the aura of authority and so bowed his little head as far as it could go into the sofa.

Not for the first time, Corona wished that she could control her aura at will. It seemed to cause kowtowing in every pony that ever met her for the first time, and even for every time afterwards. "Rise, young colt, and face your Empress. I am Corona, Bringer of Dawn, Goddess of the Sun, and Empress of the Holy Equestrian Empire."

Starswirl peered up meekly at his sovereign, slowly coming to a rise before her. While he felt slightly better at this point, it was mainly his fear of what Corona could do to him that kept him from releasing the tears threatening to pour down his cheeks once more. Instead, he stood as still as he could and stared at her face, his lips quivering as he did so.

Well, what a cute little colt we have here, Corona thought to herself, unconsciously licking her lips before shaking her head free of such thoughts. There was a time in the past where she had considered pursuing romantic interests no matter what their age was. Now, she had grown wise enough to realize that colts were not exactly the most suitable dating material for an immortal alicorn goddess that held the fate of an empire in her hooves, and decided to abstain from any sort of relations with the opposite sex until her goals of expanding the Holy Equestrian Empire were completed. Realizing that she  been staring blankly at her subject for a couple minutes, she quickly forced a scowl to come across her face that caused Starswirl to wilt in his spot. He did, surprisingly, still keep eye contact with the Empress.

She  nodded approvingly. "Excellent. It does a mage good to have a bit of clout in him. Most of the battlemages in my employ are prissies, although I can't have anypony to blame for that except myself," she said, eyeing the young colt up and down. "What is thy name, young one?"

"I-it's Starswirl, Empress lady."

"Simply 'Empress' will do. Now then, Starswirl. You have a very rare and powerful gift of magic. How long have you had these powers? I would like to know why the village of Rasaterra had not informed me of your birth earlier."

"I-I just got them today. The entire village thought I would never be able to use any magic, ever. Even my p-parents had given up on me, I think..." Tears came to his eyes. "I want my mummy..."

"Faust damn it." Corona could not have him scarred for the rest of his life for the deaths of his parents. Quickly reaching into her magic, she cast a spell of long-term amnesia on her troubled new asset. There would be time enough for him to learn of the truth after his education was completed. Now, however, he must train his talents for service to the Crown. She waited as a look of vacancy entered the colt's eyes before he snapped back to reality, looking confused. "Huh? Where am I? And who are you?"

"You are in my study, young Starswirl. My name is Corona, your Empress and Goddess."

"Star...swirl?" He seemed to roll the name around on his tongue before deciding that it sounded right. "But what am I doing here, Empress?"

"You are here, young one, because I am going to have you enter the Institute of Warfare to learn about magic. You like magic, don't you Starswirl?"

Starswirl shook his head vigorously. Although he couldn't quite explain it, it was extremely important for him to learn magic. "Yes please!"

She smiled grimly, wondering how he would react in the future when the memories returned slowly as nightmares. "Excellent. You will be staying at a room here in the castle for the duration of your education."

"Really? But where's my family? Why can't I stay with them?" There was something nagging at the back of his head, the feeling that there was a memory that wasn't quite there.

"Young one, all initiates of the Institute stay at the castle, in the Royal Ward. Your family sent you here to do a great service by learning magic. Now, you must be tired. I'll have one of the guards show you the way. You will be retrieved at an hour after sun's rise to begin your classes and meet your fellow initiates, but the rest of the afternoon is yours." Corona gave him a seemingly warm smile that never quite reached her eyes. It always surprised her how easily her subjects believed her act of compassion. Perhaps it was because there was still a piece of her heart that was still the kind-hearted Celestia, unbeknownst even to the terrible dictator.

Starswirl smiled, content with the answers his sovereign had given him. Bouncing towards the door, he turned back towards his Empress. "Thanks, Empress!"

Corona allowed herself a small smirk as a guard came to take him to the West wing of the castle, where the Royal Ward would be. "Ah, the energy of youth. Now then..." turning back to her study with a darkened expression, she glared at the stacks of papers that currently littered her desk. Warfare always seemed to generate an endless stream of paperwork. Tempted to simply reduce the papers to ashes and be done with it, she sighed and prepared for an afternoon session of endless stamping and sealing.