A Game of Chess

Canterlot.

A beautiful city, to be sure. The streets were lightly dusted with snow, and large, elaborate candy-canes stuck out of the ground at irregular angles.

But Checkmate wasn't there to see the sights. He wasn't there to see the homes, their outsides decorated with lights, or to see the ponies who were clad in outfits that made no functional sense.

No, he was there to see the palace. Or, more specifically, its interior.

The walk to Canterlot was most certainly easy for him. He had, after all, sprinted across areas that were ten times its size, and much more dangerous. If anything, it was only slightly inconvenient to walk there, and he hadn't broken a single sweat.

The city itself, on the other hand, was rather troublesome to him. All throughout it, he could see the ponies, some looking very wealthy, with clothing decorated with jewelry, and some who looked rather like the ponies in Ponyville, clad in simple clothing. However, they all acted the same around him.

They all stood back, allowing him to pass through the streets, their faces awash with terror at the mysterious stallion who passed them, his face adorned with scars.

Checkmate paid them no mind, however. He didn't care about what they thought of him. If he cared, then he wouldn't even bother going outside, much less traveling to the city containing the wealthiest and most elegant ponies in all of Equestria, who stared at him as if he were some kind of monster. It was rather irritating, however, to see the ponies run away as if he were attempting to kill them all.

He didn't even care as he heard a voice from behind him, cold and sharp.

"Excuse me, sir. We've heard of a stallion causing a public disturbance. Would you mind coming with us?"

"May I ask who you are?" Checkmate replied, coldly.

"We are members of Princess Celestia's royal guards," came a different voice, strong and willful.

Checkmate turned to face two pegasi, one white like a cloud and the other a light gray, clad in golden armor that reached around their bodies, and grimaced. Of course he would look suspicious; he was still wearing his cloak, just as he had been whenever he went out into public.

"And where would you be taking me?" he asked.

"To the royal palace," the first pegasus, with the gray coat and a cold voice that rivaled his own, stated.

"Excellent," Checkmate mused. "That is where I am going right now."

"Really?" the second pegasus's eyes narrowed. "And for what reason?"

"I have been requested by Celestia herself for an audience, apparently," the earth pony replied.

"Indeed?" the first pegasus asked. "What is your name?"

Checkmate met his eyes, giving him a look that could freeze water solid. "Checkmate."

"Checkmate... Vigarde?" the second guard asked, sounding almost nervous.

"Correct."

"And how can we be sure that you're Checkmate Vigarde?" the pegasus with the gray coat asked.

And then, before their eyes, Checkmate threw the transparent blue sword, the Glacius, as it was called, up into the air, catching it in his hoof without even looking at it.

"Is this enough?" he asked, deadpan.

"That should be sufficient," the first guard stated. "After all, a hoof shouldn't bend that way naturally, and that's what we were told to look for, besides the blade that you're wielding. Very well. Come with us."

Checkmate nodded, and began to walk behind them. Around them, the nervousness in the crowd began to die down as they stared after him in awe.

It was rare for a stallion's ability to be acknowledged by the royal guards so readily.

The three stood outside the throne room of the royal palace, the two guards having moved beside the door.

"Very well, Checkmate Vigarde," the first guard said, "the princess awaits you beyond these doors."

"My thanks," Checkmate said, nodding to the two guards. "I'm fairly certain that the ponies were ready to burn me alive out there."

"Not a problem in the slightest," the second guard replied. "Anything for the princess's honored guest."

Checkmate stepped through the doors, entering into the throne room. He stepped up several small flights of stairs, before at last reaching the throne itself.

There, on the throne, sat an enormous pony, larger than even the tallest of stallions, with a coat the color of fresh snow, and a mark that showed, without a doubt, just who she was.

"Princess Celestia," Checkmate said, as he bowed low. "It is a pleasure, I'm sure."

The princess had a warm smile on her face, as she replied, "Checkmate Vigarde, you shouldn't bow to me. It's a pleasure to have you here in Equestria, though. How... how are you?"

It was such a simple question, yet one that carried with it a large meaning. Checkmate was not simply being asked how he felt at the moment, but a topic much more broad than that.

"Good, thank you," he replied, still deadpan, "and yourself?"

Celestia simply smiled. "Checkmate... tell me honestly. How are you feeling?"

"I said that I was -"

"And you're lying. It's alright; You don't have to keep up this facade around me just because you think that your hatred will help Wendigo."

And then, Checkmate sighed. "Really?" he asked.

"Of course. There is nothing for you to worry about here."

And then, the gaze of the earth pony began to soften, as he sighed. "Thank you, Celestia," he replied, his voice quiet. "Are you sure that he can't syphon my hatred, here?"

"No. You're fine. Trust me on this," the princess said.

"Right. I'm sorry," his voice was strangely emotional, with an odd sorrow and tiredness that pervaded it.

"There is no need to apologize," Celestia said, "but... tell me. How long have you kept all of your emotions bottled up inside?"

"As of today?" Checkmate asked. "Eight years, next week. Although I've never been able to hold it all in for long, before it begins to slip out again..."

Celestia stared at him, with an almost motherly look. "You shouldn't concern yourself with hiding everything away, Checkmate," she replied. "One pony isn't going to cut off Wendigo's power."

"I know," he whispered, "although, sometimes, I like to think so. It gives me a reason to keep going. But... I'm sure that you didn't call me here so that we could talk about my feelings."

"You're wise for your age," the princess replied. "I was hoping to ask you some questions... about Darkfrost."

"It's Hell," Checkmate said, simply, "and it's all because of Wendigo. The windigoes on their own are fairly friendly - with the exception of Deun, but even his soldiers are fairly kind -, but Wendigo? He's a monster."

"I know that," Celestia said, gently, "and that wasn't exactly what I meant by 'questions about Darkfrost'."

"Then... what exactly did you mean?" asked Checkmate, curiously.

Celestia paused, just for a moment, as if trying to find the correct words. "How did you escape?"

"Luck," the stallion replied. "Simple, dumb luck. By all rights, I shouldn't be here right now; I should be writhing in agony on that damned Zephyr. But I got lucky, and Wendigo left me alone at a crucial moment."

"What do you mean?" Celestia asked.

"I... I was running, and Wendigo caught me. I was right next to the border, and I could see Equestria - the grass, the clear sky - for the first time in my life." Checkmate choked back a sob at the memory. "Wendigo challenged me... and we fought. He with Conviction, and I with a simple knife. It... went about as well as you would expect."

Celestia gestured for him to continue, and he spoke again.

"I was knocked unconscious," Checkmate said. "I... lost all hope. I thought that I was going to... to die. But I woke up, then, not too long after, in the same position, but with this sword, the Glacius, at my side. I... I picked it up with my mouth, and I ran." He smiled a bit at the memory, tears in his eyes, "I crossed the border, limping and bloody, but I escaped into Equestria. And all it took for me to do it was to be impossibly lucky."

He looked over at her, then, and frowned, as the tears stopped falling. "But here is my question for you: why now? Why wait until almost eight years until I've escaped, and, most importantly, how could you even know that I've escaped from Darkfrost in the first place? Wendigo is not one to announce his failures that easily, unless they hurt some other pony."

The princess smiled, sadly. "I knew that you'd escaped from Darkfrost three years ago, back when Luna first escaped her imprisonment. She told me of a pony - a stallion - who was limping across the border between Ponyville and Darkfrost, who was clutching at a blue sword and was bleeding heavily." She looked away, then. "I searched all throughout Equestria for the last three years whenever I could, seeking you out. I needed the help of a pony, one without magic, who could stop Wendigo. But no matter how hard I looked, I could never mind him."

"Until yesterday, right?" Checkmate asked.

"Yes," Celestia replied. "Twilight sent me a letter describing you. She said that you were cold and dark, and that you carried a blue sword with you, as well" - She glanced back at him - "I-I had to be sure that you were the Checkmate Vigarde that I'd heard about from Luna; that you were the one who had escaped from Wendigo."

"I understand," Checkmate mused. "And I understand why you would call on me now. It's the Zephyr, isn't it?"

Celestia nodded. "Again, yes," she said. "Wendigo has nearly accomplished his goal, and the Zephyr is almost done. When it's completed, it could spell disaster. Not just for Equestria, and not just for Darkfrost, but for the entire world."

"Don't worry," mused the stallion, "I've been planning to kill that bastard for years. No matter the cost, I plan on ending that abomination of nature that he's created, one way... or another."

"You have?" Celestia asked, seeming surprised by this, "and did you know how close he was to its completion?"

Checkmate nodded. "Based on what he told us back when he was torturing us -" he spat, contemptuously "- the Zephyr should, unfortunately, be complete within five months of next week. Unless we can stop him, of course."

The princess of the sun nodded. "And that's the plan. I understand that you were going in on your own to stop Wendigo, and I would like to ask you what day would be best, given your current position."

The stallion mulled it over for a while. "I told Twilight and her friends that I would watch their version of how Equestria was discovered" - Celestia winced at that, but Checkmate continued - "so I believe that I'll go afterwords. Next week."

"I'm sorry about this, Checkmate," Celestia said, quietly. "I don't wish to open the wound any further, but I must do what I can for Equestria."

Checkmate smirked at this. "You have nothing to apologize for, Celestia," he said. "I was planning to go there as soon as I could, anyway. Either way, the only difference is that there is a princess supporting my choice."

"Really?" Celestia raised an eyebrow. "You were already planning on this? If that's the case, then I will be more than happy to provide transport."

This time it was Checkmate who raised an eyebrow at this, stretching his scars. What was it with all of these ponies wanting to get him chariots?

"Very well," he conceded, knowing full well how far it was from Equestria to Darkfrost on hoof. "I won't object to that."

"Also, would you be able to take along...?"

"No."

Celestia blinked. "I didn't even finish my question!"

"I know, but I refuse to take anypony with me who does not already know just how dangerous Darkfrost really is. The same logic applies to your false tale, stating that 'the windigoes were all purged by the fires of friendship 2,500 years ago'." He threw The Adventurer's Bestiary on the ground in front of him, the page opened to the section on windigoes. Again, Celestia winced, and Checkmate's voice turned cold again. "If you do not wish for your ponies to suffer under knowing that there is a monster greater than the most relentless evil in Equestria, then don't break the rules just because you want to stop it."

The princess shifted uneasily at this. "Very well," she stated, "but are you so sure that you can defeat the king of the windigoes on your own?"

"I've made it this far," Checkmate replied. "I didn't have any help then, and I don't need any help now."

"Alright," Celestia said. "I shall arrange a chariot to take you to Darkfrost next week, on the day of the performance of... of how Equestria was founded. Does that sound correct?"

"Perfect, actually," he said. "Then I guess I'll see you then."

As he turned to walk away, Celestia called after him. "Wait! I have... one last question."

"What is it...?" Checkmate looked back.

"Have you ever heard of... Velios?" the princess asked.

"No," Checkmate replied. "Who is Velios?"

"I see," Celestia mused. "It doesn't matter. It was just a question from me to you."

Checkmate shrugged. "Very well. I'll be off, then. I'll see you next week, Celestia. Until then."

And then, replacing his cold eyes and voice, Checkmate Vigarde stepped from the throne room, leaving Celestia by herself to ponder her thoughts.

Celestia simply sighed in relief. So Wendigo had yet to know of Velios. At least that gave her a small amount of comfort. If Wendigo knew of that... that monster, then he would have undoubtedly used that name to torture his ponies even more so than they already were.

But just the thought of Velios, his cold eyes, that monstrous smirk, that dagger made of ice, and his magic that brought death upon the entire world, and that it took so much to simply subdue him...

And, especially, the fact that he was still alive, and out there somewhere.

Thankfully, there were only two ponies still alive who knew just what he was.

She was one, and the other was...

She stopped those thoughts, immediately turning her thoughts to the matter at hoof. Because now, that was not what mattered. What mattered was getting Checkmate to Darkfrost.

And, hopefully, he would make it back alive.