“I know I said that I would help you any way I could, but this isn’t exactly what I had in mind… though, I’m not complaining.” I sat there, frozen on top of Celestia, my mind trying to process what was going on. I was basically straddling Celestia on her bed, nestled snugly in between her hind legs. The bedroom eyes she was giving me weren’t helping the situation either.

I… uh, what…? I just continued to stare at her, mouth opening and closing slightly. I could feel my face starting to heat up as my cheeks flushed. Finally, I got my brain working again.

~This isn’t what it looks like!~ I scrambled quickly to get off of her, but was stopped by a hoof against my chest.

“Of course it isn’t,” Celestia said softly, gazing up at me with a seductive look. “We haven’t even started yet.” With that, she darted forward and slowly dragged her tongue across my cheek in a sensual manner.

…

The door to Celestia’s room slammed open and I thundered out, startling the two guards stationed there. They both moved, their horns lighting up and their spears raising to point at me. I froze instantly, slowly lifting up my hands in a submissive gesture. Between the guards and the princess, at the moment I’d take the guards, but the decision was unfortunately made for me.

“No, stand down!” Celestia commanded, stepping out of the room after me. I inhaled sharply as she approached, my body tensing. She looked at me, the predatory smile still on her face. “This one is mine!” The guards’ eyes widened and their mouths dropped as their princess lunged at me, hooves outstretched.

Turning, I sprinted down the hall, the clanking of my armor echoing down the corridor like thunder. Laughing, the princess chased after me, leaving the two speechless guards behind.

This can’t be happening! I thought as I raced down the hall. What the hell has gotten into her?!

“You can run, my little human~,” Celestia called to me in a singsong voice as I ran through corridor after corridor. “But you’ll just be tired in the end, and that’s not good for what I have planned~!” Aw, hell no!

I rounded a corner and saw a set of stairs leading down to the next level. Taking the stairs three at a time, I nearly stumbled halfway down, but managed to keep myself upright. I took a brief second to glance behind me, and groaned as I saw Celestia clear the stairs in one leap, her wings carrying her to the bottom. She saw me looking back and winked, giggling happily as she continued the chase.

I returned my attention to back in front of me just in time to smash into a small pillar with a vase resting on top of it. As I staggered, the vase fell to the floor, but was caught just shy of smashing by a golden glow. With a burst of light, the pillar and vase returned to their original positions.

“I don’t know what you mean to accomplish by smashing my stuff~,” Celestia sang. “But that won’t stop me~!” I just shot her the bird over my shoulder as I continued down the hallway, my boots crashing against the marble with each step. I don’t think she understood the gesture, but it caused her to laugh all the same.

The huge costume restricted my movement, but I was still able to run fairly fast as I shot past the doors and windows that sprinkled the hallway, moonlight illuminating the the area that the torches couldn’t. With all the noise I was making as I ran, I was pretty sure half the castle was awake by now.

I had almost made it to the end of the corridor when I was tackled from behind by something large and furry, “Gotcha!” I landed on the ground with a thud, my armor scratching the marble floor as I slid. My momentum carried me too far, however, and I grunted in pain as I smashed my head into the wall.

As I laid there, dazed, with my head pounding, I heard someone gasp above me.

“Oh no, I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to take it that far!” Shaking my head, I tried to push myself up, but was stopped by the weight of something on my back. “No, don’t move.” A white hoof slid carefully underneath me and tentatively flipped me over. I blinked, staring up into the magenta eyes of the princess. She looked down at me, a concerned expression on her face.

“Are you alright—”

“Ah, Auntie,” a voice said from down the hall, causing both of us to freeze. My blood ran cold as a shiver ran up my spine, causing my already throbbing headache to worsen. That voice… Above me, Celestia’s whole body tensed, her eyes widening.

Craning my neck back, I glanced down the hallway at the approaching pony.

“Auntie, I’ve been looking for you,” Blueblood drawled as he drew nearer. He paused slightly upon seeing Celestia crouched over something, but his eyes lit up when he saw what was pinned under her: me. The smile that spread across his face shall forever haunt my nightmares.

“Ah, what do have we here? Auntie, you do know how to make a stallion feel wanted,” he said, licking his lips. “I remember this human. Did you bring him back here, just for me? He looks a little worse for wear, though.” My heart rate increased, the organ thudding loudly in my chest. I made to move, to get away from the bastard, but a pair of large white wings descended around me.

“I’ve told you before, Blueblood,” Celestia said, her voice cold. “This human is not for you! He… belongs to Twilight Sparkle.” She paused slightly at “belongs”, probably trying not to insult me, but at the moment I didn’t care. I was fine with whatever got me away from Blueblood.

“Then why—”

“Not,” Celestia growled, her wings tightening around me. “For. You.” Blueblood’s smile vanished, replaced with a hard glare. He turned with a huff, stalking back down the corridor. When he reached the end and turned around the corner, he looked back, his eyes lingering on me for a brief second before he vanished from sight.

The white protective shield of feathers around me vanished as Celestia rose to her hooves. Her horn glowed as she used her magic to pull me to my feet. As I stood quickly, the blood rushed to my head, causing my headache to worsen. Groaning, I clutched at my throbbing head.

“Here,” Celestia said softly, leaning forward. Placing the tip of her horn against my forehead, closing her eyes as her horn began to glow. I sighed as a cool, tingling sensation ran through my head, dulling the pain and curing my headache.

I tensed again as she opened her eyes, ready to run if she tried to pounce. Instead, she just gave me an apologetic look.

“I’m so sorry about that,” she said, lowering her head. “Not only for Blueblood, but for my earlier behavior. I realize that the joke was in poor taste, but after seeing the look on your face, I could not resist playing with you a little.” She blinked, before her cheeks reddened as she realized what she had just said. “I-I mean… I couldn’t help but tease you a little—” The blush on her cheeks darkened even more. “W-wait, I mean…”

~You couldn’t help but prank me?~ Celestia nodded, giving me a grateful yet sheepish smile.

“Yes, that,” she said, refusing to look me in the eye. “After all, it is Nightmare Night, and it’s not every day that a human just falls into your lap; especially an intelligent one, like yourself.” An awkward silence fell over the hall, Celestia shuffling her hooves, searching for something to say. I just stared at her, waiting.

“Um, would you kindly explain to me how you ended up in my bed?” Celestia finally asked. I chuckled, causing her to give me a curious look. A smile on my face, I proceeded to tell her about telling the gang scary stories, and Luna’s over-enthusiastic response to the last one. At the end of the tale, Celestia had a smile on her face as well.

“I wish I could have been there to see her face,” she said with a chuckle. “It’s not often that a pony gets one over on Luna like that.” She looked over my body quickly, eyeing my armor, before she looked back up at my face. “How about we get you back to the library before everypony begins to freak out, okay?” I nodded, before my eyes widened as I realized something.

~Wait, you aren’t going to send me back—~ Celestia’s horn lit up, as she leaned forward, touching the tip of it against my chest. I caught a glimpse of a smirk on her face before there was a blinding flash of green and an invisible force grabbed me, pulling me backwards. I was immediately assaulted on all sides by an intense pulling and pushing sensation. I tried to breathe, but couldn’t get my lungs to expand as it felt like I was being forced through an incredibly tight tube.

Then all the pressure relaxed, there was a second flash of green, and a large belching sound afterward. I fell through the air, landing on my back with a thud. I stared up at the ceiling of the library, blinking slowly as the room spun around me.

I can’t believe she did that, I grumbled, swallowing to cause my ears to pop.

Suddenly, my vision was obscured by a mass of pink hair as a yellow face looked down at me with a worried expression on her face.

“Oh… oh dear,” Fluttershy said softly. “Are you alright?” I nodded my head weakly, the world still spinning slightly. With a little help from the soft spoken pegasus, I pushed myself into a seated position.

“Dude, you’re okay!” Spike cried, hopping up onto Fluttershy’s back in order to get a better look at me. “After Luna zapped you, we assumed the worse!”

~I got teleported to Celestia’s…~ I began, but trailed off as I got a good look at what was happening in the room.

Rainbow and Applejack were currently trying to hold Twilight back as she tried her hardest to get at Luna, an angry snarl on her face. Red sparks flew from her horn as she struggled to get out of her friends’ hooves.

Luna was in a similar situation; Rarity and Pinkie were holding the Princess of the Night back as she tried to get at Twilight.

Amidst the chaos, the Cutie Mark Crusaders were sitting on the couch, munching on their candy as they happily watched the scene before them. Their heads turned left to right and back again as they watched the two princesses shout at each other.

“—SCARED YOU LIKE A LITTLE FILLY DOESN’T GIVE YOU THE RIGHT TO BLAST MY HUMAN INTO OBLIVION!” Twilight screamed at Luna, her wings flaring as she pushed against Rainbow and Applejack.

“Calm down, Twi,” Applejack grunted, hooves digging into the floor.

“IT WAS NOT OUR INTENT!” Luna screamed back, trying to climb over Pinkie to get at Twilight. It was only Pinkie’s earth pony strength that was stopping her. “AND WHAT DOST THOU MEAN, YOUR HUMAN?! WE DID NOT KNOW THAT THOU HADST OWNERSHIP OVER HIM!”

“Friends shouldn’t fight!” Pinkie Pie cried, trying her hardest to hold onto Luna’s forelegs.

“CELESTIA SENT HIM TO ME!” Twilight retorted, trying to duck under Rainbow’s leg. “HE’S BEEN LIVING WITH ME EVER SINCE, AND YOU’VE JUST GONE AND KILLED HIM!”

“WE DID NOT KILL HIM! AND LAST WE CHECKED, HE WAS AN INTELLIGENT CREATURE! THOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO LAY CLAIM UPON HIM!”

“DON’T TELL ME HOW TO TAKE CARE OF MY HUMAN!” Twilight shrieked, her voice rising in volume as it neared “Royal Canterlot Voice” status. As the two of them continued to argue, Fluttershy and Spike looked up at me, tense expressions on their faces. They were probably worried about how I would take this particular conversation.

I couldn’t care less, actually. Twilight had been referring to me as “her human” for as long as I could remember, and in turn I had come to refer to her on occasions as “my owner”. Personally, I saw it much like a nickname. I knew Twilight didn’t think of me as a pet, so it didn’t bother me much when she used the term “my human”.

Pushing myself up off of the floor, I shuffled over to the couch. The Crusaders glanced over at me as I approached, their faces lighting up when they saw me. They scooted over, making room for me as I sat down next to them. Sweetie Belle held her bag of candy out to me, a small smile on her face as she offered me some of her candy. I nodded my head in thanks, smiling as I pulled out a chocolate bar.

Peeling the foil off of the chocolate, I munched on the candy as I watched my owner continue to struggle to get at Luna, the Crusaders snuggling up against me as they continued to snack on their treats from the night.

Sometimes a little chaos can be a good thing, I thought as I watched the two mares—completely unaware of my return—continue to fight.

“Is that all of it?” Twilight asked, lifting the stack of paper up in her magic. She flipped through it quickly, eyes scanning the contents as they flashed by. The smile on her face practically split her head in half.

~All of it I could remember~ I signed as I tossed the used-up charcoal stick onto the table. ~My memory is a bit fuzzy, but the majority of it should still be there~ Twilight squee’d, clutching the stack of papers in her hooves like it was a newborn child. Her eyes were sparkling as she looked at me, the joy and happiness practically bursting from her.

“I can’t believe this,” she said breathlessly. “Actual organized moments of the music of harmony… from a different world!” I just leaned back in the chair, chuckling at her excitement. Stretching, I groaned happily as my back cracked several times.

“I’ll need to make several copies and send one to Princess Celestia. I’m sure that she would want to read this… ‘Phantom of the Opera’ musical,” she said, glancing at the front page as she looked for the title. “I’m sure that Luna would like a copy too, especially the part with the ‘Music of the Night’ bit.”

~Looking for a way to make up for that little fight you two had?~ I asked with a smirk on my face. Twilight just ignored me.

“I’m sure she’d appreciate that somepony actually thinks that way about her night; she doesn’t get enough credit for all her hard work. Most ponies just take it all for granted. I still can’t believe that we don’t have something like this here already! It’s quite an amazing piece of artwork. You said there’s more like this, right?” Her eyes focused on me with a predator-like gaze, the hunger evident.

I held up my hands, leaning back in the chair.

~Yes, but calm down. Be happy I was actually able to write that one out~

“Yes, yes… you’re right,” Twilight said, closing her eyes and taking a couple of deep breaths. I shook my head, laughing softly.

I had just spent the past couple of days after Nightmare Night (and my impromptu trip to Canterlot) trying my best to recreate—to the best of my memory—some of the musicals from my world. I had decided to start with The Phantom of the Opera, as it was one of my favorites, and probably the one I knew the best.

It was strenuous work, trying to remember each and every song and plot point of the play, as well as making sure that it was written in a musical manner. I didn’t even bother trying to change everything into pony form, figuring that I would deal with that later. For now, the script would read ‘someone’ not ‘somepony’. If anyone had a problem with that, they could fix it themselves.

When I had first sat down to write out the play, I had told Twilight that I could not, and would not, be able to write out the music itself. I could only give her the lyrics, nothing more. She had said that that would be fine, and that she didn’t need the music to appreciate the story.

Apparently the magic of harmony flowing through the land had other plans.

Twilight had decided to try and sing the first couple lines of the song Think of Me, just because she was curious and wanted to give it a try. After she had sung the first few words, music started playing from nowhere. To make matters stranger, it was the actual music from the play. I basically just sat there, jaw on the floor, as Twilight sang the song perfectly, complete with music and timing. I was about to call bullshit on all of that, but magic is as magic does, and I ain’t dealing with that shit.

Besides, at least I don’t have to worry about the score anymore. And I wasn’t complaining; I could listen to Twilight sing for hours. She has such a beautiful singing voice.

“I’ve got to go make copies before something happens to this!” Twilight chirped, quickly rushing out of the kitchen and heading towards her desk. From my seat at the table, I watched her work. She laid out a stack of blank parchment next to the original, her horn lit up, and somehow the text appeared on the blank paper as if someone had just written on it. As she worked, she hummed happily to herself.

It was basically a copy-and-paste spell, no matter what Twilight said about a Photocopy Replicator Spell. I’m pretty sure she was just making up a name to try and cover up what it actually was: Control + C, Control + V. That was fine by me, however. I didn’t have to write out the whole damn thing all over again.

As I watched Twilight copy page after page, a small smile touched my face. As she hummed, she would bob her head, swaying her flank gracefully back and forth in time with the song.

Laughing softly, I pushed my chair back and rose to my feet. Grabbing an apple on my way out of the kitchen, I bit into it happily, enjoying the wonderful taste.

Walking up behind Twilight, I watched over her shoulder as she finished up with the last few pages.

“There,” she said, wrapping a ribbon around the new stack. “I’ll send that to Princess Celestia along with my newest friendship report—”

knock knock knock

Blinking, I straightened up and looked at the door, the apple stuck in my mouth. Twilight leaned around me, staring at the door with a confused expression on her face.

“Did any of our friends say they were coming over today?” she asked, keeping her eyes on the door. I glanced over at the calendar.

~Nope~ I replied, before pulling the apple out of my mouth. There was a brief second of silence before the knocking resumed again.

“Come in,” Twilight called hesitantly. The door handle turned and the front door swung open, allowing two mares to walk inside.

The first one was a dark gray unicorn, her pink mane cut short, sticking out in the back. It kind of reminded me of Rainbow’s mane, actually. She was carrying a bulky pair of saddlebags on her back, filled with I-don’t-know what. She looked around the library, curiosity in her bright green eyes. As her gaze landed on me, she froze, her eyes going wide.

The second mare…

“S’up, tall stuff. Long time no see,” Avera said, smirking up at me, her blue eyes alive with mirth. She too had a stuffed saddlebag on her back. She slipped past the first mare and trotted further into the library, closing the door behind her. Unstrapping her saddlebags, she allowed them to fall to the floor with a thud.

The first mare just continued to stand there, staring at me with a disconcerting look. She mouthed something, but I couldn’t make out what it was. Slowly, her saddlebags slid off her flank and onto the ground.

“Avera?” Twilight asked, her eyes wide. “What are you doing here?”

“Princess Sparkle,” the black pegasus said, turning to salute Twilight, the smile still on her face. “Good to see you too, ma’am. First Lieutenant Avera Noctus of The Coming Dawn reporting for duty. We were assigned by the princesses to look after the human, Max.”

“Wait, you were one of the volunteers Luna spoke of?” Twilight asked, cocking her head to the side. “Why did you volunteer?” Avera just shrugged, glancing around the library.

“You guys were fun to hang out with, and I had nothing better to do.”

“And who’s your… um, friend here?” Twilight asked, turning her attention to the other mare. Avera glanced over at the mare in question, who was still staring at me. Chuckling softly, she nudged the unicorn with a hoof. She blinked, shaking her head before looking towards Twilight, a sheepish smile on her face.

“S-sorry, ma’am,” she said, hastily throwing a salute. “Major Ebony Rose of the Battlemages, reporting in. We were instructed to check in with you upon arriving in Ponyville.”

“Wow,” Twilight said, glancing between the two. “A member of the Coming Dawn and a Battlemage. I didn’t know Max needed that kind of protection. Is there something Princess Celestia and Luna aren’t telling us?”

“No, ma’am,” Ebony said as Avera chuckled. “Most of the other volunteers were just normal members of the Royal Guard, but Princess Celestia thought it would be good to send somepony who was overqualified, rather than under.”

“I still want to know why she thinks Max needs protection so badly,” Twilight muttered under her breath. She blinked suddenly, her face scrunching up slightly as she looked between the two mares. “Wait, Luna said that there was going to be three of you…”

“The third member of our entourage is part of the Lunar Guard. She’ll be arriving later this evening, after the sun sets,” Avera said. “Until then, you’re stuck with us.” She gave me a quick wink, a smirk on her face. I stuck my tongue out at her before taking another bite out of my apple. At least one of the guards is a pony we’ve met before. Avera’s not too bad, but we’ll have to see about the other ones.

“Well, it seems that the guards have arrived,” Twilight said, turning to give me an amused look. I just chuckled, shaking my head. Looking back over at the new pair, I flinched back when I found myself staring into a pair of large green eyes.

I jumped back with a small yelp, giving Ebony Rose an annoyed look. She just continued to stare at me, a large smile slowly spreading across her face.

“So, you’re the intelligent human,” she said gleefully. “There’s been rumors about you spreading through the guards ever since the human fighting ring was unearthed. Most didn’t believe it was true, but that changed after Celestia asked for volunteers to guard a special human, though I don’t think most ponies know the exact details.

“Oh,” she giggled, her eyes sparkling. “This is going to be so much fun!”

“Calm down, Major,” Avera snorted, flopping onto the coach. “You’ll scare the big lug off before he even gets to know you.” Ebony gave me a sheepish smile, rubbing the back of her head with a hoof. I just stared at her, unsure of what to think. She’s kinda like Twilight when she first learned I was intelligent. I hope I don’t have to answer a bazillion questions again.

“Sorry, got a little too excited there, but just think about it: the first ever intelligent human ever recorded!” she said, backing up several steps. “That’s got to at least intrigue you!” Avera just shrugged, stretching out across the couch. I sighed softly, shaking my head. Yep, exactly like Twilight when she first found out.

I looked at Twilight, cocking an eyebrow as I chewed on some of the apple.

~This is going to be interesting~

“That’s the spirit!” Ebony said, clapping her hooves together happily. Twilight and I both looked at her in surprise.

“You can understand him?” Twilight asked. Ebony nodded her head.

“We were briefed on the situation,” she explained. “Part of the briefing was the need for us to be able to communicate with ‘the human’ as quickly as possible. To that extent, we were all required to learn hoof-language, as well as human body language that indicates if he’s frightened, angry, hurt, or in danger.” After she said the hoof-language part, I sighed in relief. Oh, thank God. I really didn’t want to have to write everything down.

“Although, I think we’ll have to get used to his version of hoof-language,” Ebony continued, rubbing her chin as she looked up at me. “It’s slightly different than the standard version, though the concept appears similar.”

“He had to improvise, as he’s not exactly a pony,” Twilight explained. “It’s fairly easy to understand though, and I’m sure that you’ll pick up on it in no time. All you really have to do is—”

“Before we get too comfortable,” Avera interrupted, lounging on the couch, her hooves in the air and wings spread wide. “We need to know what you’ve decided about our housing arrangements.”

“Housing arrangements?” Twilight asked, giving the pegasus a confused look.

“Yeah, are we going to be staying at the library with you two, or do you want us to find lodgings nearby?” Twilight chewed on her bottom lip, her head tilted to the side.

“Well, the basement isn’t currently being used,” she said slowly. “Max was using it until… Well, let’s just say it’s free. Would that work for you?”

“Where is it?” Avera asked, pushing herself up off the couch. I pointed at the basement door, taking another bite out of my apple. Avera trotted over and opened the door. Glancing down the stairs, she hummed softly to herself before nodding and closing the door again.

“That’ll work just fine,” she said, returning to the couch, upon which she flung herself again. “We’ll just have to do some redecorating and it’ll be perfect!”

“Well, I guess that’s settled then,” Twilight hummed. “Any more questions?” Avera and Ebony looked at each other before shaking their heads.

“Nope,” Ebony said, lighting up her horn and lifting her bag into the air. “We’ll just unpack our stuff and take it down to the basement.”

Nodding her head and smiling, Twilight turned back to her desk. “Now, where was I—”

wapa-wapa-wapa-wapa-wapa-wapa

Everyone froze as we all turned to look at the door as someone on the other side hit it. That doesn’t sound like knocking; it’s more like someone slapping the door.

“Ugh, what is it now?!” Twilight groaned, clearly aggravated. Muttering something about too many interruptions, Twilight stalked over to the door, and flung it open, glaring at the pony on the other side.

Standing there, a blank expression on her face, was a mint green unicorn. Her mane was the same color as her coat, and had a white strip running down the middle. Twin golden orbs stared back at Twilight, blinking occasionally.

She looks familiar, I thought, absentmindedly scratching my chin. Where have I seen her before?

“Lyra?” Twilight asked, speaking slowly as she eyed the unicorn cautiously. “What are you doing here? Last I checked, you were admitted to Ponyville General’s Psychiatric Hospital after being arrested for human hoarding.” Ah, that’s where. She was the unicorn I saw get arrested my first day in Ponyville! Wait…

I looked over at Twilight, giving her an incredulous look.

~And you know that how?~ I asked her. She glanced over her shoulder at me, a sheepish smile on her face.

“I received the report from the local guards. I told them to inform me of any incidents in Ponyville, seeing as I’m currently a residing princess here.”

~Right~ I replied, nodding my head. ~It’s hard to remember that you’re actually a princess sometimes~

“What do you mean by that?” Twilight asked, her eyes narrowing.

~I’ve caught you snuggling with your books before~ I signed, a smug smile on my face. In the background both Ebony Rose and Avera snickered behind their hooves. A small blush appeared across Twilight’s face.

“Quiet, you,” she said before turning her attention back the the unicorn on the other side of the doorway. “So, Lyra, what can I do for you?” Lyra, however, was no longer looking at her.

Her gaze was now locked firmly on me. She stared up at me, unblinking, that blank expression still on her face. Her golden eyes were hazy and unfocused, her pupils mere pinpricks. I felt a chill run up my spine at the look, goosebumps slowly spreading across my limbs. What the fuck is her problem?

“Lyra?” Twilight asked again, waving a hoof in front of the unicorn’s face. She didn’t even twitch at the movement. “Lyra?”

I heard movement behind me, and I glanced over my shoulder, looking for the source. Ebony had dropped her bag back onto the floor, her green eyes locked onto Lyra. Avera had also moved, standing up from the couch, flexing her wings slightly. Both had serious expressions on their faces as they regarded Lyra. Swallowing nervously, I turned my attention back to her as well. If trained ponies are getting nervous, that can’t be a good sign…

Lyra still hadn’t moved; her gaze was still locked firmly on me.

“Lyra, are you alright—” Twilight began, but was interrupted when the unicorn finally spoke.

“... statues ...blood and… flesh to stone…” she muttered, her voice soft and emotionless.

“I’m sorry,” Twilight said, taking a small step back, her wings twitching nervously twitching at her sides. “W-what was that?”

“I have seen the statues. They chilled my blood and turned my flesh to stone,” Lyra repeated, louder than before. Her eyes were still locked on me, unwavering. “White on black; veins of stone, forever staring at nothing and succeeding.” The three other ponies in the library just looked at her in confusion, Twilight taking another step back.

However, at her words, I reeled back in shock. Instantly, an image of a black marble statue filled my head, white veins running through its entire body as its blank face stared into oblivion.

How does she know about the statues? I thought, fear slowly welling up inside of me. I didn’t tell anyone about those dreams!

“Lyra,” Twilight said nervously, still backing away from the unicorn. “Do the orderlies know you’re wandering around? Are you supposed to be out and about?” Lyra didn’t answer her; it didn’t look like she had even heard Twilight speak at all. Instead, she just took a step towards me, her hoof entering the library. Instantly Ebony and Avera were in front of me, Ebony’s horn glowing and Avera’s wings spread wide protectively.

“State your intention, or leave,” Avera growled, lowering her head slightly. Once again, Lyra didn’t reply, nor did her gaze waver: she had eyes only for me. She took another step into the library, and this time I matched the step, slowly backing up. I didn’t know what she wanted, but she was creeping me the fuck out. The little voice in the back of my head was back, and it was currently telling me that now would be a good time to run for it.

“Cease and desist—” Ebony began, but that was all she could say before Lyra moved.

“I CAN HEAR THEM SINGING!” she screamed, suddenly lunging at me. “THEIR SONG BURNS MY SOUL AND SETS MY RESOLVE ABLAZE!” Ebony’s horn lit up as Lyra flew threw the air. Avera leapt towards her, a snarl on her face. There was a loud bang, and the library was instantly filled with a thick cloud of smoke. Coughing, I heard movement all around me. There was a loud crack, followed by a groan as something hit the floor.

Staggering to the wall, I brushed my hand across its surface, searching for a window. Finding one, I threw it open and tumbled outside, into the chilly open air. Coughing as I tried to clear my lungs, I stumbled away from the library, blinking tears from my eyes. Another loud bang came from the library, followed by an inhuman scream. I didn’t have time to wonder what was going on in there before the beast was upon me again.

Leaping out the window after me came a disheveled Lyra, her coat smoking slightly and she had blood smeared across her forehead. I scrambled back, trying to avoid her, but I couldn’t move fast enough. I grunted as her hooves slammed into my chest, their rough, uneven edges digging into my flesh beneath the shirt. Unable to remain standing, I fell backwards onto the ground, grunting in pain as my elbows cracked against the hard ground.

“Their wordless screams, their sightless gazes, their unfeeling minds,” she cried, her face inches from mine. Tears streamed from her blank eyes, dripping down onto my face. “They scream in pain, in fear of the god that has abandoned them to the darkness! Forever lost they remain.” She was so close that I could smell her breath as she spoke, the minty scent tickling my nose and making me want to sneeze.

I gazed up into her eyes, fear gripping my body as her horn lit up, her magic coursing through it. For a split second, the world seemed to freeze, and instead of Lyra standing above me was Darkflare, his face twisted into a demonic grin. Then I blinked, and Lyra was back, her golden, blank eyes staring down at me.

She opened her mouth to spew more insanity, but was stopped when a rainbow blur slammed into her, lifting her off of me. Rolling over, I saw Rainbow lying on top of Lyra, her eyes rolling in her head. What Rainbow was doing near the library this fine afternoon, I had no clue, but I was happy to see her.

“M-max!” Twilight cried, coughing as she leaned out the window. Smoke was still billowing out of the library, wafting up into the clear sky. I prayed that a fire hadn’t been started, as I was pretty sure that tree would be gone in under a minute.

I tried to answer Twilight, but Lyra was already getting to her hooves again, shoving a dazed Rainbow off of her in the process. Her attention was on me again, her horn lighting up with a golden glow

What the fuck is her problem? Staggering to my feet, I barely had time to regain my balance before Lyra lunged at me again. Reacting on instinct, I threw a punch at the unicorn. Before my strike could land, however, my hand was encased in Lyra’s golden magic. There was a bright flash and the next thing I knew my arm was stuck to my side, unable to move.

I staggered backwards as Lyra finally reached me. She jumped up at me, her hooves outstretched, and latched onto my shoulders, causing both of us to fall backwards again. As I landed on the ground again, Lyra rolled off of me, her horn hitting the top of my head in the process. Almost like a switch had been flipped, the pressure around my hand faded and I was able to use my arm again.

I was immediately on my feet again. Not waiting around for Lyra to recover, I turned and sprinted towards the marketplace. The sound of pounding hooves behind me told me that the deranged unicorn was already in hot pursuit.

Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck. I tore down the road, Lyra breathing down my back. I tried to keep her out of my large blind spot, but that was rather difficult as I was also trying to see where I was going as well. When you only have one working eye, your coordination skills tend to take a nosedive. Where the hell are my guards? Isn’t it their job to protect me from stuff like this?!

Rounding a corner, I drew a lot of attention from the gathered ponies as I dashed for the crowded marketplace, hoping to lose Lyra amongst the crowd. Hopefully she would be tripped up by someone, or something, because I really didn’t think I could win this fight. Rainbow Dash I could take; hell, I could probably win in a fight with Applejack on a good day, but there was nothing I could do against magic.

Leaping over a couple of ponies, I heard a loud crack behind me. Instantly, Lyra was in front of me in a flash of light. Her expression was still blank as her golden eyes locked onto me. I tried to slow down before I crashed into her, but couldn't in time. As I tripped over her body, she wrapped her hooves around my leg, pulling me down with her.

My face smashed into the ground, a loud, sickening crack ringing through my head. Pushing myself up, I spat blood out of my mouth, wincing as a tooth fell out as well. Blood flowed out of my nose, running down my face. I barely had time for my brain to register the pain before I was flipped over by a burst of magic. Lyra loomed over me, her horn aglow.

“I hear the ancient voice from the void, whispering softly to me in my dreams,” she whispered, leaning down until her nose was pressed against mine. Pain flared across my nose as she touched it, causing me to wince. She continued, unperturbed by my pain. “Its words chill my soul and turn my loveless heart to ashes…”

What’s wrong with this mare? Is she high or something?! I gazed up at her, confused and afraid, as she stood over me, blocking out the sun. The shadows darkened her face until only her eyes were visible, twin golden orbs staring down at me with such ferocity that I feared I might burst into flame just from the intensity of her gaze.

My heart was pounding against my ribcage, screaming as it tried to escape. My face throbbed in pain, blood slowly trickling down my cheek from my nose. Lyra opened her mouth again, but was silenced as a lasso flew over her head and wrapped around her neck. She glanced down at the rope, a brief look of curiosity flashing across her face before the rope yanked her off of me.

“Whoa there, partner,” Applejack said around the rope in her mouth. “Now let’s just calm down and—” Lyra snarled, her expressionless face becoming aggressive as she turned her attention to the cowmare. “Whoa nelly!” Lyra leapt at Applejack, her teeth bared as the farmer scrambled backwards. A foot from Applejack, Lyra froze in midair, her body surrounded by a rosey glow.

“That—” Ebony growled, emerging from the crowd, her horn lit up with the same colored magic, “—is enough of that.” Lyra struggled in the air, flailing her limbs around as she snarled like a feral animal.

As I sat up and held a hand to my nose, Twilight emerged from the crowd as well. She gasped when she saw me, and quickly hurried to my side, a worried expression on her face.

“Oh sweet Celestia,” she breathed. “Are you alright?” I began to nod, but changed my mind and shook my head instead as blood slowly oozed from between my fingers. I was not okay: physically or mentally. I just had a deranged unicorn chase me halfway across town for no apparent reason, all the while reminding me repeatedly that I had no real defense when it came to magic. I was just glad that Ebony had shown up when she did.

“Come on, let’s get you back to the library and take a look at your wounds,” Twilight murmured gently, slipping under my arm and helping me to my feet. The crowd of ponies surrounding us backed up as I rose shakily to my feet, my hand still pressed against my nose.

“Major,” Twilight said, glancing at Ebony Rose, who still held the struggling unicorn in her magic. “Take Ms. Heartstrings here back to the psychiatric hospital. Make sure your inform the orderlies of what has happened here, and tell them to keep a better eye on her. This type of thing better not happen again.” Ebony saluted before turning and heading off towards the hospital, Lyra floating behind her. The crowd parted for them, ponies giving Lyra nervous looks as she floated over their heads. She struggled animatedly, trying to turn her body around in the air.

“Curse all of you! You are nothing more than pawns! Damned bones and cursed souls, doomed to tread the path to oblivion!” she shrieked, spittle flying from her mouth. “I have seen his hopes and fears and dreams. I have seen the past, the present and the future! I know what is needed, what is required, and what is wanted! The humans are the key!” Her voice slowly faded as Ebony carried her around the corner of a building, her rantings still echoing throughout the marketplace.

I stood there, blood seeping through my fingers as I stared after the raving unicorn, a look of trepidation on my face. Her last words echoed through my head, slowly sending a chill down my spine. The humans are the key! Beside me, I felt Twilight tense up. Glancing down at her, I saw by the look on her face that she was as troubled by what Lyra had said as I was. The humans are the key! The ponies around slowly returned to what they had been doing, chatting quietly with one another.

“Come on,” Twilight said softly, tugging on my hand with her wing. She looked up at me, a concerned expression on her face. “Library.” I nodded dumbly and let her begin to lead me back the the tree.

As we walked, the sky slowly opened up, and snow began to fall.

“Stop fidgeting,” Twilight scolded, dabbing at my face with an alcohol-sodden ball of cotton. I hissed in pain, flinching away slightly at the sting.

We were back at the library after the strange ordeal with Lyra, and I was currently sitting on the couch as Twilight tried to clean the several scratches and scrapes I had acquired when I had high-fived the ground with my face. My nose—which luckily wasn’t broken—had only just stopped bleeding several minutes ago. My whole head felt sore and I had a headache slowly brewing.

I winced again as the cotton ball came in contact with another scratch, hissing through my teeth.

~It stings~ I signed. Twilight reached a hoof out, pushing my arms back down into my lap.

“I know it stings,” she said, a sympathetic look on her face. “But I need to clean out the cuts so they don’t get infected.” She bit her bottom lip as she floated the drenched white ball closer to my face again, gently cleaning another cut with great care. “Um, this might hurt a little,” she said before her horn lit up. Pain lanced through my cheek and I gritted my teeth as I felt something being pulled slowly out of my face. The feeling grew worse until finally a small bit of gravel, wrapped in Twilight’s magic, emerged from one of my cuts. Almost immediately the pain ceased, leaving behind only a throbbing ache.

“Sorry about that,” Twilight apologized, dabbing at the now bleeding scratch with the cotton ball. “Don’t want your skin to heal over that; it could’ve caused issues later.” She gave the cut another once over to make sure she got all of the gravel. Once she was satisfied that it was clean, she did a quick double-check over my face before floating the red stained cotton ball over to the trash. Picking up some bandages off of the coffee table, she began trying to patch up some of the more severe scrapes.

“Hopefully none of these create any scars,” she said softly. Her hooves were gentle against my skin as she worked, placing the bandages on the scratches. “You’ll start to look like you got into a fight with a timberwolf.”

“Not a timberwolf,” Avera groaned. “A demon. An insane little demon from Tartarus.” The black pegasus sat on the other end of the couch, an ice pack pressed against the side of her head, trying to reduce the size of the lump that was currently located there. From what she had said, she had gotten it when Lyra had smashed her head into Avera’s. It had knocked her silly for several minutes and given Lyra an opening to jump out the window after me.

Some guard, I chuckled, absentmindedly rubbing at one of the bandages Twilight had just placed on my face.

“By the Maker,” Avera groaned again, closing her eyes and leaning her head back on the couch. “What was that unicorn’s head made of, steel? I feel like I got hit by a freight train!”

“Oh, suck it up, you big baby,” Twilight smirked, not looking over at the distressed pegasus. “You’re lucky that her horn missed your eyes. If her head had been a few inches lower, it would have been more than just a large goose egg. Besides, you’re a guard; a member of the Coming Dawn. The best of the best. Isn’t it your job to protect Max? What happened?”

“I wasn’t expecting an insane unicorn with a head of titanium to headbutt me at a dead sprint,” Avera growled, cracking an eye open and glaring at Twilight. The was a brief moment before her blue eyes widened and a look of horror crossed her face. “I-I’m sorry, Princess Sparkle, I m-meant no disrespect,” she began to sputter out before Twilight raised a hoof. She just shook her head at the pegasus, a small smile on her face.

“Relax, Avera,” she said. “You don’t need to freak out. Actually, I’d much rather you treat me like a normal pony than a princess while you’re staying here, if that’s alright. I’m still not used to being treated like royalty, and to be perfectly honest, I don’t like all the attention that comes with it.” Avera relaxed, but still looked a little uneasy, ruffling her feathers as she readjusted herself on the couch.

Twilight returned her attention back to me, placing the remaining bandages onto the table, “Alright, open your mouth wide and hold it open, please.” My jaw cracked slightly as I opened it; the whole thing felt sore and stiff. Twilight leaned in, looking into my mouth and studying my teeth closely.

After several seconds, she leaned back, her face scrunched up slightly, “Yeah, she knocked one of your bicuspids out and cracked two of your molars. It shouldn’t be too hard to fix.” Twilight’s tongue poked out of her mouth as her horn began to glow softly, tendrils of magic flowing from its tip towards my mouth. “Now, this might feel funny, but just try to hold still, okay?” As I kept my mouth open, her magic flowed into my open maw. My jaw and gums began to tingle before there was a quick twinge of pain in my upper jaw. Almost immediately, I could feel a new tooth slowly beginning to grow into the empty spot, the feeling of the tooth pushing through the gum causing shivers to run down my spine.

Eventually the feeling stopped as the tooth fit into place with a soft ‘click’. I felt it shift slightly, moving back into the proper position, before two sharp cracks echoed from my mouth as Twilight’s magic fixed my cracked molars, mending them instantly.

“There you go,” Twilight said, stepping back as her horn stopped glowing. “Now, just like before, no eating anything hard or sticky for a few hours and they should be as good as new.” I nodded my head, smiling weakly as I ran my tongue over the repaired teeth.

As I tongued my teeth, Avera continued her conversation with Twilight, shifting the ice pack into a more comfortable position.

“What the buck was the deal with her anyways?” Avera asked. “I’ve fought against many ponies before, but that unicorn was a different story entirely. She acted like a possessed mare!”

“It’s complicated,” Twilight replied, chewing on her lip. “Lyra has always had a rather eccentric personality when it came to humans, but it wasn’t always that bad. Mostly it was just her going around making sketches of them. I’m not sure what changed, but she started to get more and more obsessed with humans. The obsession seems to have grown out of control, because last I checked, she was placed under arrest several months ago for human hoarding. She had a rather large number of them, too.

“It was during the investigation that the guards discovered she’s, well… she’s crazy,” Twilight deadpanned. “I know that’s kind of mean to say, but she is. She claims that she was collecting humans to ‘save them from the coming fire’, but couldn’t tell the guard what the ‘coming fire’ was, or when it would come. At first the guards thought she was just trying to talk her way out of trouble; you know, like saying you were simply holding that illegal substance for a friend? Well, after several days, it turns out that was not the case with Lyra.”

“You say that like there’s a story behind it,” Avera chuckled, wincing as she shifted the ice pack on her head. At the look on Twilight’s face, Avera raised an eyebrow. “Is there?”

“She attacked a guard when he was bringing a stray human in,” Twilight said, her expression blank. “She claimed that the human was screaming to be set free from his torment, and it was up to her to help.”

“Oh, I see...” Avera’s ears splayed backwards as she gave Twilight a sheepish smile. “Well, that would explain that—”

CRACK

Everyone in the library jumped at the noise as the room was filled with a burst of light. Ebony Rose blinked into existence in the center of the library, an exasperated look on her face. She was clutching a hoof to her nose, which was bleeding.

“Celestia damn it,” Avera hissed, holding her head in her hooves. “Warn us before you do that next time!” I nodded in agreement, trying to calm my heart which was trying to burst out of my chest; after today’s events, I was a little jumpy.

“How am I supposed to warn you if not I’m nearby?” Ebony asked, cocking her head to the side as she shot us a confused look, the hoof still pressed against her nose. Avera just grumbled, glaring at the floor with a small pout.

“What happened to you?” Twilight asked. Ebony lowered her hoof, glancing at the blood-soaked fur before returning it to her snout.

“The unicorn kicked me when I was handing her over to the orderlies. It’s nothing to worry about, though; just a little nose bleed. Anyways, the patient is back at the hospital. The orderlies didn’t even know she was missing. Apparently they had let some of the patients out into the yard after lunch and Lyra just happened to find a small hole in the fence that was big enough for her to slip through.” Ebony shook her head and sighed heavily. “The head doctor was very apologetic and told me that something like this will never happen again.”

“Unfortunately, I doubt that,” Twilight said, scrunching up her face. “They’ve had escaped patients before, but the worst was a mare who thought she was a dog.”

“Well, according to the head doctor, Lyra wasn’t even supposed to be allowed outside yet. Apparently there was a mix up with the nurses about her schedule, and she ended up somewhere she wasn’t supposed to be. He told me that they sorted it out, so she shouldn’t have a chance to escape again any time soon.”

“That’s good,” Twilight said, breathing a sigh of relief. “We’re just lucky nopony got too badly injured.” Avera and I looked at each other, eyeing each other’s injuries before we both turned and looked at Ebony, who was still trying to stem the flow of blood from her nose. She looked back at us, before all three of us turned and gave Twilight a deadpanned look. She gave us a sheepish smile in return, rubbing the back of her head with a hoof.

“Glad you care so much about us,” Avera muttered under her breath. I just shook my head, rubbing my right eyebrow with a finger absentmindedly. Ebony just removed her hoof, checking her nose, her eyes crossed.

“Oh, you know what I meant,” Twilight huffed, her ears folded against her head. “Anything else to report?” she asked, turning her attention back to Ebony.

“No, nothing at all,” the unicorn replied.

“Did they happen to mention what is wrong with that mare?” Avera called from the couch. Ebony just shook her head.

“No,” she said, collapsing into one of the chairs. “They just know that there is something up with her brain, but they don’t know what.”

“Probably smashed her head into too many hard objects,” Avera muttered under her breath as she closed her eyes again.

“Yeah, well, whatever is wrong with her, she sure can shout just fine,” Ebony grumbled, rubbing an ear with her free hoof. “She wouldn’t stop shouting the entire way to the hospital. Always the same thing, though. Something about how the humans were the key, or some kinda crap like that.” At that, Twilight and I exchanged uneasy looks, which did not go unnoticed by Ebony.

“What’s wrong?” she asked, looking back and forth between us, her green eyes narrowing slightly. “Do you know something about what she was talking about?”

“It’s not what she was saying, but the context,” Twilight said, sucking on the inside of her cheek. I nodded slowly, licking my dry lips.

“What do you mean?” Ebony asked, cocking her head to the side.

“Well, a little over a week ago, while we were walking through Canterlot to visit my family, we encountered a human that displayed some… non-human-like behavior. Max tried to write it off as a simple territorial display, but I don’t believe that that was it,” Twilight explain. “It’s just unsettling that something like that would happen just before Lyra goes and does this.”

“Non-human-like behavior?” Avera asked, opening her eyes and sitting up slightly, the pain in her head temporarily forgotten.

“He screeched like a banshee before fleeing the scene,” Twilight replied. “However, it wasn’t that fact alone that disturbed us. It was the fact that the entire time he was screaming, he was focused solely on Max. He was even pointing at him.”

“And now the insane unicorn comes and is only focused on Max as well,” Avera said, nodding her head thoughtfully. “Interesting.”

“What happened to the human?” Ebony asked, leaning forward in the chair.

“We don’t know, actually,” Twilight said, shaking her head. “Some of the local guards chased after him, but as far as I know, they never found him. Max managed to get a look at the brand on the human's thigh, so I sent a request to the princesses to track down his owner, but I have yet to receive word from them on the situation.”

“Well, let’s not blow this out of proportion,” Avera said, waving a hoof. “We don’t know all the details yet. There might be something simple that explains what happened. Is it at all possible that the human was infected?” Twilight shook her head, chewing on her lower lip.

“No, he wasn’t displaying any of the typical signs,” she said. “He wasn’t coughing, wheezing or staggering around. His eyes looked normal and there was no sign of any darkening of the veins. I’m pretty sure this was something else entirely.”

“Any idea what it might be?” Ebony asked, her ears perking up.

“No,” Twilight said slowly, rubbing her chin with a hoof. This caused Ebony’s ears to droop and she slumped back in her chair. Twilight didn’t seem to notice her disappointment, however. Her eyes became unfocused as the gears within her head began turning. I knew that look well; it was the look she got whenever she began to try and figure something out.

The sound of the door handle clicking drew my attention to the front door, which slowly swung open, allowing moonlight to flow into the library. There was a brief pause before a mare slowly walked in.

She had a thick gray coat, her fetlocks long and shaggy. She had a bulky pair of saddlebags on her back, indicating that she was possibly the third guard. Her mane was dark purple and messy, hanging around her face in long strands. She was a pegasus, but instead of feathered wings, she had a pair of batlike wings by her side. She walked slowly, a tired look on her face, almost like she had just woken up.

As the door closed behind her, she paused and took a look around with heavy-lidded red eyes, taking in the scene before her: Ebony, sitting there with a hoof pressed against her bleeding nose. Twilight, who was staring off into the distance, a blank expression on her face. Avera, sitting on the couch with an ice pack on her head and her eyes closed.

When her gaze landed on me, with my face covered in scratches and bandages, she blinked owlishly, “What the buck did I miss?”

“Will you stop fidgeting?” one of the guards growled, trying to adjust the strange device strapped to Sunny’s helmet. As he tugged on the device, it pulled on her helmet, which in turn pulled on her head and neck, causing Sunny to wince. “Sweet Celestia, if you’d just stay still, we’d have been done already!”

“Sorry, this armor feels weird. I’m not used to it,” Sunny muttered, ruffling her feathers nervously, the unfamiliar weight of the armor adorned upon her body. The floor beneath her hooves vibrated as the engine rumbled, pulling the train along. As a pegasus, she didn’t like being cooped up in small places for long periods of time, and they had already been on this train for several hours. Her wings were twitching, eager for the open air.

The guard just rolled his eyes, muttering something about “civilians” under his breath before double checking Sunny’s helmet. Satisfied that everything was in place, he released her head and stepped back, huffing.

“So, what is this exactly?” Sunny asked, raising a hoof up towards the device. It looked like a small, clear crystal wrapped around an ebony piece of metal. Every few seconds, a small red light on the side blinked.

The guard slapped her hoof away, an annoyed look on his face.

“It’s a camera,” he growled, reaching up to adjust his own, his grey eyes glaring up at it in distaste. “It records what’s happening around you and allows for the higher-ups to know what’s going on in the field. It’s being transmitted back to Canterlot in real-time.”

“I’ve never seen the Royal Guard use them like this before,” Sunny said, tilting her head slightly as she tried to get a better view of the device attached to her helmet, but it was always just on the edge of her vision. As she moved her head around, she heard somepony clear their throat. Glancing back at the guard, Sunny blushed as she realized how foalish she looked.

The guard just continued to glare at her.

“That’s because we’re not the Royal Guard,” came a voice from behind them. Sunny turned her head and glanced over her shoulder, only to see another guard standing there. She was staring at Sunny with a cold, calculating look in her red eyes. Her light gray mane fell across her face, parting only for her horn. Her coat was stark white, or at least the part that wasn’t covered by her dark gray armor.

The guard who had put the camera on Sunny’s helmet saluted this new guard before turning and trotting away, leaving Sunny alone with this new pony. She shuffled her hooves timidly.

“Ms. Breeze.” Sunny’s eyes flicked up to hers and she swallowed nervously. “I am Second Lieutenant Ivory Pyre, and I’m currently in charge of this entire operation.” Sunny nodded dumbly, not sure of what to say. “We normally don’t allow civilians on ops, but I received word from the Princess about your special… circumstances. That being said, I was hoping that you could give me more information about where we are currently headed and what to expect,” Ivory said, motioning behind her with a flick of her head.

Sunny nodded again, and fell in line behind her, stumbling slightly at the unfamiliar weight on her back. Why the buck do they make this armor so heavy?

Reaching the end of the compartment, Ivory’s horn lit up and she swung the door open before stepping through into the adjacent coach. The door closed behind Sunny as she followed her in.

This new compartment was more roomy than the previous one. Guards sat on benches that lined the walls, chatting quietly with each other. There was even a pair playing with a deck of cards that one of them had pulled from her armor.

Each guard was dressed in similar gray armor. Unlike regular guard armor, which gleamed and sparkled, this armor appeared to have a matte finish. Small pockets covered parts of the armor, filled with a variety of accessories needed to complete any given mission. The cloth under the armor appeared to be a darker gray, almost black. The entire outfit appeared to have been designed with stealth in mind.

As we passed by a small group of guards, Sunny noticed that each of their pauldrons were branded with the black symbol of a sun rising out of the horizon. Her eyes widened in surprise as she saw that. That particular symbol indicated that these ponies were Celestia’s finest; the best of the best. Hoof-picked by the princess herself, they were only known by one name: The Coming Dawn.

Sunny felt her heart rate skyrocket as she stared at the emblem, her head lowering and ears flattening against her scalp. When she had agreed to help Princess Celestia track down the rest of Darkflare’s crew, she didn’t know that she would be working with The Coming Dawn. She felt way out of her league here; they were professionals, and she didn’t have a clue what she was doing.

Ivory lead Sunny over to a large table centered in the middle of the compartment. Pictures, maps, and blueprints of buildings covered the surface. As Sunny leaned over to get a better look at some of them, Ivory cleared her throat. Glancing up, the pegasus felt her throat tighten as she saw that all the guards were beginning to cluster around the table. The guard with the cards was returning them to one of the pouches on her armor as she approached.

Sunny could barely stop her knees from trembling slightly as they closed in around her. Her heart began to beat faster in her breast, and she could feel sweat begin to accumulate on her brow. I’m an ex-convict surrounded by the best guards in Equestria; what’s the worst that could happen?

“Alright,” Ivory began, her voice echoing slightly around the silent compartment. “Here’s what we’ve been briefed on so far. This particular hideout is located several miles south of Dodge City, near the border to the Badlands. Since there is no real town near the warehouse, we are unsure of how Darkflare’s crew were transporting humans in and out it.”

“That’s easy,” Sunny said, trying to keep her voice steady as she picked up a photo and absentmindedly looked at it. It showed a skeletal human, nothing but skin and bones, lying on the bottom of a cage. She shivered slightly at the sight, bile rising in her stomach. How could I have ever been a part of this?

Swallowing, she continued, “The warehouse itself is right by the train tracks. Darkflare just paid the conductors to stop at the warehouse, had them unload the cargo, and then train would resume its journey.” Silence fell around the compartment, causing Sunny to glance up. All the guards were looking at her, their expressions blank. Her ears splayed back as she found herself the center of attention, and she swallowed nervously. Her inner pegasus was telling her to fly, to escape the confining space and soar away from all of the stress.

“W-what?” Sunny stuttered, her eyes darting around at the blank faces.

Ivory motioned with her hoof, urging her to continue talking.

“W-well,” Sunny continued, licking her suddenly dry lips. “W-we… I mean, they used the warehouse as a type of storage building.” That earned her several eye rolls from the guards, and she shrank back a little. “They would house humans there that were either too sickly to be sold, or too violent to pass for pets. I believe that those humans would later be used in fighting rings, although many of the sickly ones never lasted that long.

“The warehouse is also used to store any valuable items we might find—”

“What kind of valuable items?” Ivory asked, her red eyes boring into Sunny.

“A-anything we found that could have been worth a few bits,” Sunny stuttered. The atmosphere was tense, and she wasn’t liking it at all. Relax, Sunny. This is probably the princess’s way of making you pay for your crimes. She wouldn’t put you in a position that would cause you harm, would she? “We spent some time in the desert and Badlands, so we would sometimes come across artifacts that could be worth a fair bit of money. Darkflare would store them here, until such time as he found a pony willing to buy them for a high price.”

“Anything that could be considered dangerous?” Ivory asked.

“There wasn’t anything like that the last time I was there,” Sunny said.

“And how long ago was that?”

“Just over five months ago,” Sunny said quietly, lowering her head and blushing. This caused the surrounding guards to grumble, some shaking their heads while others just sighed heavily. Sunny’s blush darkened.

“So you’ve got no useful information for us whatsoever,” growled the guard who put the camera on Sunny’s helmet.

Sunny lowered her head further, nearly hiding under the table.

“Sergeant Cutter, that’s enough,” Ivory snapped, glaring at the stallion. “We are very lucky to have Ms. Breeze here with us. Any information—any at all—that she can provide is useful and appreciated.” The sergeant grumbled under his breath, and Ivory’s glare intensified.

“I’m sorry, what was that?” she asked, her voice deathly calm.

“Nothing, ma’am,” the guard growled, not looking up.

“That’s what I thought,” Ivory huffed before turning her attention back to Sunny. Her expression softened slightly. “Thank you for the information, Ms. Breeze.” Lighting up her horn, Ivory pulled a large building blueprint out of the pile of paper on the table. Laying it out flat, she looked around at the guards, all of whom were glancing down at the building’s layout.

“Now then,” Ivory began, her tone professional. “We’ll be arriving at the destination in a few minutes. We don’t expect there to be anypony there when we arrive, but everypony be on your guard, just in case. We’re going to want to move fast to try and capture anypony that might still be lurking inside the warehouse, so I want Sergeant Stacker—” she motioned to a gruff-looking, steel gray pegasus standing next to her, “—to take his squad and enter through the upper windows—”

“Um… e-excuse me,” Sunny said hesitantly, raising a hoof up. Everypony turned to look at her, most of them glaring. She could tell they were annoyed at her interruption, and that didn’t help her self-esteem.

“Yes?” Ivory asked, cocking an eyebrow at her.

“Y-you… you don’t want to do that,” Sunny muttered, staring at the table. She didn’t want to look up and see their angry expressions. I really, really don’t belong here.

“And why is that?” Sergeant Cutter growled again, gritting his teeth. Sunny wasn’t sure what she did to anger him, but he didn’t seem to care for her one bit.

“B-because, Darkflare probably has the windows rigged with booby traps,” Sunny stuttered, ears flat against her head. “H-he was rather paranoid, and made sure that nopony would accidentally s-stumble upon the hideouts without some f-form of repercussion.”

“And you’re just telling us this now?” Sergeant Cutter snarled, his eyes blazing.

Sunny whimpered, lowering her head down onto the table. I wish I was back in Ponyville with Max and Twilight, she thought, blinking tears from her eyes. I miss my friends.

“Sergeant, that’s enough!” Ivory roared, slamming her hoof on the table. “One more word out of you, and I’ll see to it you are sent back to Canterlot in a crate!” Turning her attention back to Sunny, she said in a much softer voice, “So, you’re telling me that Darkflare liked to booby trap the windows?” Sunny nodded, still not looking up. “Does that mean that the whole place might be one big trap?”

Sunny shook her head, glancing up at Ivory briefly.

“No, Darkflare despised pegasi greatly, and would set traps that would only affect a pegasus: explosives by the windows, as well as razor wire and nets near the ceiling. Unicorns and Earth ponies would have no problem coming and going from the warehouse without setting anything off.”

“So, how would you have us proceed?” Ivory asked, her voice neutral.

Sunny was suddenly aware of all the eyes on her, and she felt her cheeks warm up again.

“A-as long as no p-pegasi take to air while they’re nearby or in the warehouse, then there shouldn’t be any problems,” Sunny said weakly, her head still resting on the table. “Oh, and make sure to watch any and all cages, especially covered ones. Darkflare liked to keep infected humans as a kind of… security measure.”

Ivory nodded at this, rubbing her chin with a hoof. Turning to Sergeant Stacker, she cracked a smile.

“Okay then, change of plans: looks like your squad is going around the back and coming in the rear entrance,” she chirped. Stacker gave her a brief salute.

Sunny blinked, surprised that Ivory was actually listening to her advice. It seemed that she wasn’t the only one that thought this way either.

“I can’t believe we’re listening to her,” Cutter muttered, grinding his teeth together.

Ivory’s eyes flashed as she glared down at the stallion.

“The crate, Cutter. The crate,” she said, her tone ice-cold. Cutter just growled before slinking off, his tail between his legs. Ivory watched him go before turning to the rest of the guards assembled around the table. A loud screeching noise filled the air, and they lurched forward slightly as the train began to apply its brakes. “Okay, we’ve arrived. Stacker’s squad will be heading in the back. The rest of you are with me; we’ll be going in the front entrance.”

One of the guards leaned closer to the pony next to him.

“That’s the best entrance,” he whispered, earning a snicker from his friend. Ivory’s ear twitched, but she just ignored the pair.

“Ms. Breeze,” she said, glancing over at Sunny. “You’ll be going with Stacker’s squad and providing them with any help you can. I want you to be on your hooves, though. At the first sign of trouble, you are to get the buck out of there as quick as you can. Stacker and his guards will cover you if need be. Hopefully it doesn’t come to that, but it’s better to be safe than sorry.”

Sunny nodded weakly. “Alright then, let’s roll out!”

The train slid to a stop, the compartment’s side doors opened, and the guards began to jump out.

Sunny pushed herself up, off the table, and followed them out.

The sky was overcast, gray clouds hanging low over the land. It was drizzling lightly, the frozen rainwater pinging off Sunny’s helmet and armor. Her breath came out in a cloud of vapor in the cold air. She closed her eyes for a brief second, enjoying the feeling of the chilly wind on her face, before returning her attention back to the job at hoof.

Sunny’s outfit felt bulky and heavy as she moved, more evidence that she was completely out of her element. She followed her supposed squadmates towards the warehouse, circling around the large building that sat right next the the train tracks. It stood nearly three stories tall, completely in disrepair. Some windows were boarded up, while others were cracked or busted. Paint was peeling off of the walls, and half of the wood was rotten. The structure creaked ominously whenever the wind blew, swaying slightly side to side. The whole place looked like it was about ready to collapse.

Everypony was quiet as they stalked forward, using every bit of cover they could find. Sunny stumbled after them, trying to be quiet, but failing horribly as she nearly fell flat on her face several times. The last time, she nearly collapsed because of her armor, but one of the guards grabbed her at the last second, picking her up and placing Sunny back on her hooves. She blushed and hung her head, embarrassed, but the mare just patted her shoulder and gave her an encouraging smile.

It’s nice to know that not all of them hate me, Sunny thought as the guard ducked back into cover.

As they neared the back loading bay, Stacker slipped up next to Sunny, causing her to jump at little. How these ponies could move so silently in their armor, she’d never know.

“Somepony needs to put a bell on you,” she hissed, holding a hoof to her chest as she tried to calm her pounding heart. He just chuckled at that, shaking his head.

“That would defeat the purpose, ma’am,” he whispered, casting a quick glance around the area as he walked. Sunny noticed that, unlike the rest of them, he wasn’t wearing a helmet. Instead, he was wearing a cap, the brim of which came down low over his blue eyes, one of which had a small scar under it.

“Nervous?” he asked, turning back to her. She nodded stiffly, her wings ruffling on her sides. “Don’t worry, ma’am. We know your background; the Princess informed us of that personally. Don’t let that bother you, though,” he added, noticing the fear on Sunny’s face. “No matter what, we’ve got your back. Nothing bad is going to happen to you while you’re with us.” He patted her back with a wing, winking at her. She gave him a small smile.

“Thanks,” Sunny said softly.

“Just stick by us, and if things get hairy, keep your head down and we’ll make sure you get out alright,” he said. His face then became stoic and his eyes took on a steely look.

Motioning to his troops, Stacker moved to take his place beside the closed bay door. “Breaching position,” he hissed to the rest of the squad and they all formed up around the door.

Nervously, Sunny fell in line behind them, trying hard not to get in the way.

“Wait for the signal,” Stacker muttered, holding up a wing as he grabbed the handle. There were several seconds of silence before a shrill whistle sounded from the front of the warehouse. Stacker slipped the door up several inches before slipping in a small cylindrical device. He closed the door quickly and there was a loud thump from inside. Stacker paused briefly before flinging the door open with a grunt. Two guards slipped inside the room before the door had even finished opening.

“Clear,” one of them called out. Stacker motioned with his hoof, and the rest of the squad slipped into the warehouse. Sunny moved to follow, but Stacker stopped her with a wing. She looked at him, confused.

“Count to ten, then follow us in,” he said before following after his squad.

Sunny stood there by the door, silent and alone. From the front, Sunny could hear the sounds of Ivory’s forces beginning to search the place.

Sighing heavily to calm her nerves, she hung her head, closed her eyes, and began to count, “1… 2… 3…”

“Spread out,” she heard Stacker bark from inside, his voice muffled. “Search for anypony that could still be here. Once this place is clear, we’ll do a room-by-room search for anything important.” There was a collective murmur of understanding from the guards.

“7… 8… 9… 10.” Opening her eyes, Sunny straightened up and slipped inside the warehouse. By the time she found the guards again, it was all over.

The guards were quick and professional. They had managed to search the entire warehouse and had given the all-clear by the time she had entered the building. Once she had regrouped with Stacker’s squad, they were headed into the main room. Ivory Pyre was standing in the center, barking orders at her guards as they milled about, searching crates and boxes. As they approached, Stacker gave her a brief salute. “Back rooms are all clear, ma’am. No sign of anypony or any human.”

Ivory returned the salute, nodding her head.

“Very good,” she said, looking around the warehouse. “It appears that nopony has been here in a while, if the inch or so of dust is anything to go by.” Sunny looked around and saw that she was right; nearly everything was covered in a thick layer of dust and cobwebs. As Ivory and Stacker conversed, one of the guards ran up, saluting.

“Ma’am, we found seven humans on the second level, all in cages. Five of them appear to have died of starvation, but two are still alive and very weak.”

“Have the medic take a look at them. If they can be saved, get them onto the train and start caring for them immediately. If not, put them out of their misery as quickly and painlessly as possible,” Ivory said. The guard nodded before trotting off. Ivory sighed, removing her helmet and running a hoof through her cropped mane. “It appears that there is nothing left here that could be valuable,” she said tiredly. “They seem to have cleaned this place out before moving on.”

“Orders, ma’am?” Stacker asked, still at attention.

Ivory sighed again, before placing her helmet back on her head and tightening the straps.

“Get everything that could be considered useful back on the train, double-check each room thoroughly, and then burn this place to the ground. No point in letting them keep any place that could be of use later on.” She had just turned to walk off when another guard approached, this one carrying a small dark box in her magic.

“Ma’am,” the guard said, saluting. “We found this on the third floor inside of a broken safe located in an old records room. We’re not exactly sure what it is, but it looks like it could be important.” Ivory’s horn lit up and she took the box gingerly in her magic. Moving it in front of her face, she cast a scrutinizing eye over it.

Sunny leaned in close as well, trying to get a better look.

The box appeared to be made out of a dark wood, silver trim running around the edge. It had a steel clasp on the lid, keeping it shut tight, although there didn’t appear to be a lock. The box itself seemed to be in good condition, compared to the rest of the warehouse.

“Why would they take everything else, but leave this behind?” Ivory muttered, her brow furrowed. Raising her voice, she addressed the guard, “Has anypony tried to open it yet?”

“No, ma’am,” the guard said, shaking her head.

“You think it could be booby trapped?” Stacker asked, staring suspiciously at the box. Ivory nodded, rotating the box in her magic. As Sunny watched it float in the air, she frowned, something nagging at the back of her mind.

That box looks familiar, Sunny thought, rubbing her chin with a hoof. Where have I seen it before?

“What do you think we should do with it, ma’am?” Stacker asked, tilting his head to the side. Ivory was silent for several seconds as she thought.

“Get it on the train and get a magical dampener on it,” she finally said, levitating the box over to him. “We’ll have the unicorns back at Canterlot take a look at it. Hopefully they can determine if—”

Reaching out, Sunny grabbed the box out of Ivory’s magic, ignoring her protest. Stacker jumped forward to stop her, but was too late. Sunny grabbed the lid of the box and, with a flick of her hoof, flipped it open. Both Stacker and Ivory flinched, but nothing happened.

“What the buck were you thinking?” Ivory hissed, glaring at her. “What if that had just exploded in our faces?” Stacker nodded in agreement, giving Sunny a hard look.

She just ignored both of them and looked into the box. It was lined with crimson velvet, a small, strange object resting in the center. Reaching tentatively into the box, Sunny picked the object up in her hoof, examining it closely.

“What is it?” Stacker asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

“I don’t know,” Ivory answered softly, cocking her head to the side, a small frown on her face. “I’ve never seen anything like it before.” They both gathered around the object in Sunny’s hoof, all three of them staring curiously down at it.

It was a small, black rectangular object made out of a material Sunny had never seen before. The surface of the object was slightly glossy, almost like a mirror. A long, thin crack ran across the face of the object, splintering off into small cracks near the edges. The sides of the object were silver and had small ridges and bumps running across it at random intervals.

Flipping it over slowly in her hooves, Sunny saw that the back was made of the same material as the front. It was in slightly better condition than the front, however, as there was no cracks on it. Two small circles were located in one of the corners, one slightly smaller than the other. Engraved onto the back as well were some words in a language she had never seen before. The one symbol she could make out, however, was a silver apple that had a bite taken out of it.