The Lost Warrior

“SPIKE! Have you found the book yet?” Twilight's rump was up in air, and her front half buried by a pile of books. Occasionally, one would fly out of the pile wrapped in a purple haze and slide into a bookshelf. Mutters of frustrations drifted out from the pile every time a book would head off to its home on a shelf.

“No, it's not upstairs, and I didn't see it in the basement either. Maybe you lent it out, this is a library after all.” Spike appeared at the top of the stairs, carrying a stack of books over twice his height. He struggled as he slowly waddled down the stairs, his tower tipping precariously with every step, threatening to spill themselves all over the library floor. “We don't lend out a lot of books, and you use this place like your own personal stash of literary works, but we are technically a library.”

Twilight pulled herself out of the pile and turned to her assistant. “Spike, you know that's—” She narrowed her eyes. “What’s this? Something’s coming, go grab emergency kit ‘C’.” Her eyes suddenly got bigger and she inhaled sharply. Casting her magic into the air around the room, she tested the spell to see if she could discern what it was. “Wait this...it feels similar to Starswirl’s time travel spell. Switch to emergency kit ‘T’.”

She looked around and saw a light slowly forming in the center of the library. She quickly tried to clear away the furniture and books around the intensifying light, however the ever-brightening glow forced her to stop and avert her eyes. The air around the light began to warp and distort as a high pitched whine permeated the library. Flattening her ears to her skull, she covered them with her hooves and closed her eyes, trying to block out the light and sound. Then, as quick as it had begun, the whine crescendoed and vanished with the light.

Silence overtook the library, while the world seemed to hold its breath. With a deafening bang and a blinding flash, the silence was violently shattered, and Twilight was tossed against the wall behind her like a ragdoll. Blinking several times and shaking her head, she unsteadily rose to her hooves. The room swam into focus and with it, a creature, lying in a newly formed hollow in the floor.

The librarian slunk over to the new arrival, readying a spell as she approached. As she grew closer, her breathing quickened and sweat broke out across her brow. Once she reached the edge of hole, she tentatively poked at the unconscious form lying within with her hoof, jumping back immediately and lowering her horn in defense. After several seconds with no reaction, she relaxed, and released the breath she had been holding. Fairly sure it was safe, she approached again to inspect it.

The creature was apelike in appearance, with a stocky frame and sharp facial features, indicating that it was most likely male. Even in his recumbent position, Twilight could tell he was tall; she doubted her horn would reach past his chest if he stood beside her. He appeared to be bipedal, with long arms that ended in something like the hands of a minotaur, but with longer fingers that looked capable of far more dexterous movement. The left hand had two digits missing from the middle, while the right was covered in horrible burn scars.

His robe was tattered and burned in several places, with the right sleeve missing completely, allowing Twilight to see the disfigured appendage in its entirety. Covered in a massive burn along its whole length, it smoldered slightly, wisps of smoke curling along the charred skin. She gagged as the smell of burnt flesh filled her nostrils and quickly moved on. The chest had several oozing wounds, and smoke slowly curled up from a few burns across his chest. As she scanned over his torso, she noted several more oozing wounds. A gash running down his side bled profusely, and a handle of some sort protruded from his right thigh.

Twilight paused her observation and turned to the uneasy dragon. “Spike, go grab my medical kit. He's seriously injured. Also, grab my burn kit and then go inform somepony from the hospital. I won't be able to treat him properly here. If you can, find Fluttershy as well. I would like to see if she might know anything about what he is.” She turned back to the creature and resumed her observation.

The right side of his face was obscured by a large black mask. Located roughly where his eye should be, sat a white sigil in the form of a stylized crescent moon, giving the mask an appearance not unlike the cutie mark of a certain lunar princess. There were short hairs all over his chin, and his dirty blonde mane extended just below the shoulders. Twilight couldn’t see much of the left side of his face through his hair, so she gingerly reached forward to brush some of it to the side.

As her hoof made contact with his cheek, his eye snapped open. The slitted pupil made her scamper back a few steps, visions of Nightmare Moon flashing through her mind. She watched him as she charged a spell, ready to blast him if he made any move.  His chest started to shake and a low chuckling sound filled the library.

Twilight shook her head and took a step forward, faltering for a second, before slowly approaching the creature. His gaze seemed softer now, the slitted pupil now round, much like a normal pony’s eye. The eye was a beautiful cyan blue color that reminded her of her speedy friend. He stared into her own violet eyes for several seconds before suddenly wrapping his uninjured arm around her neck and pulling her close ecstatically.

“Twilight! It’s really you! Finally its you, I am finally at the end of my journey.” His voice was unsteady as emotion overwhelmed him. Twilight tried to jump back from his attempted embrace but failed. She put her hoof on his arm to push it away, but paused when she felt something warm and moist running down her neck.

“Um, should I give you two a moment?” Spike chuckled from the basement doorway, carrying a small box marked ‘Medical Kit.’ Twilight rolled her eyes and motioned him over. Suddenly, she felt the visitor’s arm around her neck drop away.

“Spike, is that you?” Slowly, the visitor swiveled his head to look back at the baby dragon. As his gaze fell over Spike, he jumped to his feet and bolted towards the baby dragon, grabbing him with his one good arm, and drew him into a tight hug. He turned back towards Twilight, letting Spike down from his grasp. “If only I could stay, but I cannot. I must go and deliver my message so that I can finally be free.”

Twilight tilted her head to the side, furrowing her brow.“What are you talking about?”

She watched him with an air of confusion as he approached her, backing away and lowering herself closer to the ground the closer he came. She flinched as he gently placed a hand on her withers and gave it a small massage. His hand started down her back gently, teasing her with a gentle touch that she could barely feel. Halfway down, he pulled his hand away, and her skin twitched as if trying to prolong the contact. He moved his hand to her head and scratched her poll for a second before pausing and taking a deep breath. “For now, you don’t need to know. The longer I linger here, the harder it will be for me to leave.”

Twilight turned her head, opening her mouth to ask more questions, but stopped as he left her side. He walked up to a cane in the hovel he had arrived in, stomped on the tip, and flipped it into his waiting hand. The cane was waist high for him and dark brown, with three chromatic gems encircling it a hoof’s length below a larger gem that adorned the top. A deep green light danced up and down the cane, forming arcane writs that looked like fairies dancing about as they headed for the floor. Spreading from the tip of the cane, the runes encircled him before flaring with a dark green light, temporarily blinding the library’s occupants.

Twilight blinked several times and rubbed her hooves to her eyes, opening them to to find an empty room. “Where did he go?” Her eyes fell to a small splotch of blood on the floor. “Did he teleport!?” Her eyes went wide as the realization hit her. “Spike, grab a quill and some parchment. Princess Celestia is about to have a guest...I think.”

~ ~ ~

The sun was lowering behind the white spires, casting the gates in a golden glow. Two unicorns in golden armour sat in front of the gate, inattentive of their surroundings, swapping stories of the perks they had received because of their job. The occasional boisterous laughter echoed down the street from one or the other.

“So, I told the barkeep that I was testing brews for the Gala and—” The larger unicorn guard jumped as his story was interrupted by a flash of forest green light. When the light faded, a tall creature stood before them, holding a cane in his mangled hand. He smiled at them as he spoke.

“I must speak to the Princess at once, it is of the utmost—” The creature coughed, pitching forward, blood splattering on the ground in front of him. The two guards darted forward to catch him.

“Are you...” The larger guard trailed off as the creatures mask pulsed with a green light around the edges. He turned to his partner with a quizzical expression and jumped back: the smaller guard’s appearance had changed. Lime green goo slowly slid off of his body to the ground, revealing a black form reminiscent of an insect, but pony shaped.

“What’s wrong?” The changeling looked down at himself. “Oh. Sorry about this mate.” He lunged at his partner, stabbing him through the eye, trying to interrupt the signal flare spell, but it was too late. Turning back to the one who had dispelled his disguise, he hissed, “I don't know what you are, or how you did that, but I am going to have to kill you. It's nothing personal, but I can’t risk being exposed.” He began charging a spell, but gagged instead as he found his windpipe being crushed by the tip of a cane, cutting the spell off and ending his life.

“Buck! I don’t have time for this.” The creature looked up, narrowing his eye. Several guards were charging down the street towards him screaming. He crouched low as green lines of looping symbols traced from the tip of his cane to the ground below his feet. The light flashed as he took a step forward, the ground splintering under his foot. He shot forward through the gates, taking a moment to look behind him, and cursed yet again as he spotted several signal flares lighting up the sky behind him.

He put on a large amiable smile as he came to a halt at the front doors of the castle proper. Seven guards—six of whom holding weapons in his direction—stood before the door, barring his entrance. “HALT IN THE NAME OF THE ROYAL GUARD! Please state your name and business, intruder,”  barked a burly earth pony guard as he stepped forward, a hoof on his still sheathed weapon

“I have a message for the princess. It is imperative I deliver it.” His chest shook as he coughed up blood that splashed against the earth pony’s front hooves.

The guard commander grimaced. “You will not pass here. You will come with me so we can determine your true motives.”

Supporting himself with his cane, the creature looked at the guard. “I’m sorry but I do not have time for that. I must hurry so I will be leaving now.” Runes drifted down his cane as he spoke, gathering at the tip. Smiling coyly as he finished speaking, he lifted his cane slightly and tapped it to the ground in front of him—cracks radiating from the point of impact—and launched into the air. While in midair, he crossed his arms in front of his face and pulled his knees to his chest, bracing for impact. With a shattering sound, he crashed through the window above the door, rolling to his feet as he hit the floor, and took off down the hall.

The startled pegasus guards could only stare, mouths agape, as he launched past them. Screams from their commander broke them from their stupor and they shot through the shattered window. Meanwhile, the doors below burst open as another group charged in with the commander.

“What in the name of Luna’s plot? Where is he?” The earth pony in charge bellowed to the nearest pegasus, “Inform Captain Shining Armor that it got past us.” The guard snapped a salute and took off, while the commander’s eyes drifted down to a blood spot on the floor and he began chewing his lip. “What the buck was that thing?”

After a few turns, the visitor found himself before a set of massive golden doors, emblazoned with a sun inlaid in nacre across the center, seamlessly connecting the two halves of the door. He took a trembling step forward, towards the only thing between him and the end of his journey. He found himself at a loss for words before the majestic door, thoughts of being free of his burdens twisting his heart in joy and sorrow. A cough tore out of his throat, followed by another. He placed a hand on the door as he doubled over, splattering blood over the stark white inlay at the doors center, staining it with dark crimson droplets that ran down the smooth surface in small macabre rivers.

A hoof fall echoed up the hall, causing him to flinch. A tear hit the floor as he stood up straight and turned to meet the approaching pony. Their eyes locked, holding for what felt like an eternity, before he slumped back against the door. The pain was too much. “Please let me by, Shining. Please. I mean no harm to your ruler, I only want to deliver my message so that I can finally be free.”

Shining narrowed his eyes and lowered his horn. “How do you know my name?”

Tilting his head back and biting his lip as it quivered, the intruder spoke nostalgically with a cracking voice. “I knew you a very long time ago, but that is not a story for now.”

“I can’t let you pass.” Shining pawed the ground, his horn taking on a glow as he did. “Since you arrived, we have had a guard die, and a changeling has been found. I can’t let you see the Princess: there are too many unknowns and you seem to be in the thick of it. Relinquish your cane and come with me.”

“Then it would appear we are at an impasse. I cannot stop now. I am too close to completing what I have started.” He began to turn around, only to be slammed against the door by a bolt of magic.

Shining growled and took a step forward. “Then so be it. I will forcibly stop you.” He released another spell from his horn and charged forward. The spell slammed into the creature like Applejack’s hooves bucking a tree, throwing him through the doors. He flew several feet before hitting the ground and sliding, coming to rest at the base of the throne.

He tilted his head back, fighting to stay conscious, and took in a sharp breath. The stories he had heard of her before did little justice to the grand mare sitting above him. Her soft purple eyes gazed down on him, holding his gaze with curiosity. He coughed a few times before speaking. “Celestia, please hear me. I have a message—” He was interrupted as several spears poked into his arms menacingly.

With a scowl, the creature tapped his cane to the floor, creating a soft sound that echoed through the room, and wave green energy bloomed from the tip of the cane as it hit. As the magic passed over the ponies in the room, several collapsed while others began to shimmer. The room grew silent and the wave dissapated. About the room now stood several black insect like ponies, all hissing and dropping into defensive stances. The room grew thick with sounds as guards barked orders and weapons drawn or readied.

“ENOUGH!” Celestia flared her wings as she bellowed her command. The room fell completely silent, and she stepped down from her throne, turning her eyes to the dying being at its base. “What is your purpose here?”

“I have a message to deliver, then I will be gone from here. Please forgive my sudden intrusion.” He chuckled and placed a hand over one of the numerous burns covering his body. Digging his fingers in, he opened the wound wider, letting the free flowing blood collect into his other hand. Once full, he threw it out over the floor like an artist smattering paint over his canvas. He repeated it once more before picking his cane up again.

Touching the tip of his cane to the splash of blood, a spark jumped from the tip into the crimson puddle. With a flick of his cane, the small flare took off, tracing an intricate pattern in the puddle, with tiny looping symbols forming in its wake as it created several small circles that interconnected and crossed. The resulting design was that of several interlocking circles that formed one larger circle.

“That is my message.” With a smile, he closed his eye and went limp, sending his cane clattering to the floor before it rolled away and vanished with a puff of leaf green smoke. A small flash illuminated the room and the Element of Magic appeared, hovering a foreleg’s length from his now still chest. A green vine-like tendril of magic grew from the corpse’s chest and flowed into the element. The vine seemed to be carrying the very essence of him with it into the amethyst gem, tinging it with a green glow, and as it separated from his chest, his body vanished completely, sending the element clattering to the floor.

The changelings saw their chance. Several jumped the guards nearest them. Others found their time better suited for making a quick escape. Several scuffles broke out across the room as the guards tried to subdue invading insects attempting to flee or attack. Meanwhile, Shining walked through the room, blasting the occasional changeling away from a guard, or into the wall to be arrested by a guard.

He walked up beside Celestia, looking down at the arcane writings and the vestiges of the intruder. “What was that thing?”

“I do not know. I have never seen anything like it before.” Celestia turned and looked at the ancient script now decorating her floor. “This day has been very eventful, and there are many questions to be answered.” She looked about the room. “And there are many worrisome things that have had light shed on them as well.”

“Shall I have it copied and cleaned, Princess?” Shining looked back at the Element of Magic. “And should I send my sister a letter, letting her know that her element is here now?”

“No. These are very likely dangerous. Go and fetch my sister; I will inform yours.” Celestia stared at the runes, and then turned to the puddle of blood that the Element of Magic was resting beside, the green tinge slowly fading from its gem like it was falling asleep. She grabbed the element in her magic and shook off a few drops of blood with a grimace. “This is quite concerning, why did it leave its bearers side? There are many questions to be answered. For now though, there is the issue of all these changelings.”

The guards stepped back as their Princess turned to the room, casting it in a golden glow. The magic collecting around her horn flared, and the changelings were flung against the walls, tossed like so many ragdolls in a dryer. Those that missed the walls went through the windows in a glittering display of shattered history. Celestia turned and walked away as guards filtered into the throne room to begin collecting the prisoners.

~ ~ ~

Fluttershy walked into the library’s anteroom with a steaming kettle of tea. She approached her five friends, pouring each a cup of tea before taking a seat herself. They all looked to Twilight, confusion painting their faces as they mulled over what she had just said.

“So, he just up and vanished. Where did he come from in the first place Twi? You said he just appeared like you did with yer time spell before.” Applejack and the others stared at Twilight, hoping for answers.

“Yes, and I don't know. He acted strangely when he saw me. He seemed relieved, talking about finally being done. He seemed to so happy to see me and Spike, but he really wasn’t very forthcoming with information.” Twilight shifted, her eyes drifting to the deppression in her floor. “He was so excited about seeing me, and how it meant his freedom. That vanishing act, I have never seen anything like it. The magic was unlike anything I have come across before.”

Spike's stomach rumbled, grabbing every ponies attention. He blushed. “Sorry guys—UUURP.”

A green flame roared from his mouth and coalesced into a scroll that was quickly grabbed by Twilight's magic. She unfurled it and read it over a few times before racing over to a shelf. Pulling on an unmarked tome roughly in the center of the shelf, it swung out and revealed five Elements of Harmony and an intricately carved box.

Twilight gasped and sat down with a loud thud. She turned to her friends shakily. “Girls go pack. We are heading to Canterlot in one hour. The Princess said it was urgent, and that it pertained to my mysterious guest. Pack for a long trip; I think we might be there for a while.”

Her five friends left quickly, and she turned back to the shelf and chewed on her lower lip. She unsteadily gathered the five elements and placed them on a table. Grabbing the box from in the compartment, she placed each element in it’s corresponding slot. They shrank to fit in their corresponding slots, and as each element was placed, a lid slid over the slot, concealing it. When Twilight finished, one compartment in the center of the box remained empty as she closed it. She turned away from the bookshelf before making her way across the room to the stairs, the bookshelf swinging closed with barely a whisper.