Chapter 5

Twilight trotted over to her desk. Her assistant was absent, so she’d have to-

“TWILIGHT! Twilight!!!!!!!!!”

A small purple and green reptile burst into the library, yelling at the top of his little lungs. He stopped short when he noticed Fluttershy on the couch, and, more importantly, Connor.

Spike stood with his mouth open, staring at the strange two-legged…thing with the tiny mane on top of its head sitting calmly next to Fluttershy. He would have continued gawking, trying to figure out exactly what he was looking at, had Twilight not rushed over.

“Spike! Spike, what is it? SPIKE!”                                       

Spike pulled himself together. Keeping a wary eye on Connor, he told Twilight:

“Okay, well, I was in Canterlot, and you know how it is there, all the people clamoring for the Princess’s attention- I mean, have you seen them? They’re like-”

Twilight was impatient. “YES, Spike, I sent you there. And I lived there for a long time. I know how it is. What were you going to tell me?”

Spike shook his head to clear it. “Oh, right. Okay, so I was picking up those extra supplies you ordered when Princess Celestia herself appeared right next to me! I mean, she just showed up!!! I don’t know how you magic ponies do that, it’s honestly kind of scary. I mean, what if you just-”

“SPIKE! WHAT DID SHE WANT?”

Spike looked blankly at Twilight. “Oh, well, I don’t know. She’s waiting outside to talk to you.”

The effect this simple, seven word sentence had on the little purple pony was astounding. Twilight made a small squeak and went rigid. She glanced around at the library, noticing everything that was out of place, and tried to clean in every direction at once, resulting in her magic making things slightly worse than they currently were. She galloped around the room, trying to put things back in order, muttering to herself.

Connor watched this display with a mixture of fascination and amusement. He had, of course, never met Princess Celestia; merely heard stories from Applejack and Fluttershy. Apparently she rose the sun every day. Connor had, in fact, never met royalty, as the royal family of Hyrule was often reclusive, and besides he didn’t care much for prim and proper processions. Still, he was put on edge by Twilight’s sudden change in behavior.

Twilight, meanwhile, had either decided that the room wasn’t going to get any better or had somehow convinced herself that what she’d done had actually had a positive impact. Either way, she trotted to the door, magically fidgeting with her mane to make it neater. She opened the door, smiling nervously.

“Princess! I’m so so sorry to keep you waiting! Spike didn’t mention right away that you were here, and then- well- then I- Hi!”

Connor heard a gentle yet powerful voice coming from outside. “That’s perfectly alright, Twilight Sparkle. I’m sorry to intrude on you so suddenly.”

“Oh, it’s no intrusion, Princess! None at all! No, come right in! Please!”

Twilight was practically hopping from her nervousness, and could barely stand still as the Princess entered the library. Spike had gone upstairs, and from the silence above it could be assumed he was taking a nap.

Connor’s first impression of the Equestrian royalty was tall. The princess of the sun was a towering pony, at least two of Twilight high. She nearly had to bend to come through the doorway, and when she was inside, Connor noticed to crown and necklace she wore to signify her power. Then the next most striking aspect of her appearance hit him: her mane.

Celestia’s mane was long, longer than anypony’s he had seen up until now. It flowed down her neck and nearly to the floor of the library, wafting gently as if blown by a gentle breeze. Whereas the manes he had seen up until had been mostly one color (two or so, max) Celestia’s mane was every color between light green and purple on the visible spectrum. Her tail was made of the same royal material. It shimmered and sparkled and certainly gave her the appearance of a goddess, which, Connor supposed, she was.  

That realization led to his final shock about the regal pony standing before him. She had wings and a horn. Connor had heard that the Princess was omnipotent, but to have as much power as that- well, Connor was afraid for anypony who tried to cross her.

Breaking his gaze at the princess, Connor glanced over to see that Fluttershy had gotten off the couch and was kneeling with her forelegs bent. Feeling self-conscious, Connor got off the couch, and, casting about for something proper to do, drew his sword from its sheath next to him and knelt on one knee, leaning on his blade. It was a pose he had seen knights in Hyrule hold, and he decided it would be the best thing to try.

Celestia seemed slightly annoyed, yet unsurprised at the show of reverence. “Please rise, both of you. This isn’t a formal visit.”

Connor rose to his full height, which was about the same height as the Princess herself. She considered him in silence, with eyes that seemed to stare into his soul. Connor squirmed under the gaze, but refused to break eye contact. Finally, Celestia spoke.

“You are the one who came into Equestria? Yesterday?”

“Yes, your highness.”

“And you were the one who appeared in Sweet Apple Acres?”

“Yes, your highness.”

“Your name is Connor?”

“Yes.”

“And you are from…Hyrule? With no idea of how you came to be here?”

“Yes.”

Celestia examined him more closely. Moving nearer to him, she gazed into his eyes. Connor blinked. Celestia raised one hoof in front of his face, and kicked him in the stomach with it, knocking him backwards onto the couch and making the world spin.

Twilight and Fluttershy were shocked. Small cries of “Oh, my!” and “Princess!” rebounded from the walls.

“Son of a moblin-” Connor leapt back up, ready to defend himself, only to find the Princess holding a hoof out, to stop him this time, with a contrite smile on her face.

“My apologies, Connor.”

Connor gaped at the abusive royal pony in front of him. Celestia continued.

“…You see, monsters have a way of disguising themselves magically, so their real identity is indistinguishable from the appearance they have decided to take on. In this way my court has been infiltrated before. However, to surprise the monster, and cause a spike in brainwaves-” Here Celestia glanced at where Connor was rubbing his stomach- “often causes the disguise to shimmer slightly, or become opaque, so as to see through it to what really lies behind it.”

Connor was beginning to understand. He nodded, still breathing slightly harshly.

Celestia smiled at him. “You are who you say you are, Connor. I apologize for my actions again.”

Connor found himself smiling back at the white Alicorn before him. “I understand. It needed to be done.”

The Princess of the Sun nodded. “Exactly. Now, I have come to confirm the stories I have been hearing about two-legged creatures in the Everfree Forest. I see by the one standing before me that they are true. What else can you tell me?”

Twilight, Connor, and Fluttershy briefly explained Connor’s appearance, the bokoblin, and the Portal of Adlez. When they had finished, Celestia nodded once more, and turned to look out of the window.

“I see. I had feared this would happen. I will confess I already know of the Portal, but I had hoped to keep it secret for longer. Ah, well, I should have known my favorite student would have dug something up on it.” Celestia smiled at Twilight.

The lavender mare lapped up the praise, and her smile became even larger than when she had first seen the Princess in the doorway. “Thank you, Princess!”

The Princess of the Sun continued. “You see, a long time ago, when I was still fairly new at ruling Equestria, the Everfree Forest was nothing but a regular forest. Nothing strange happened, the clouds needed pegasi to move them, and the plants grew when the earth ponies allowed them to. However, things began to change.”

Celestia lowered her head.

“…I must confess I didn’t know what to do. At first, it was just an aura of evil that pervaded the entire forest, but soon…creatures began to appear inside of it, attacking the ponies that lived there. I sent a few royal battalions to aid them, and without much trouble the monsters were driven back. Then I myself ventured into the forest, to try to discover what it was that was causing this evil. I finally came upon a…. well, I’ll call it a hole for your benefit. It was a hole in the fabric of reality, leading to another land, another dimension. I could feel the power emanating from it. There was something, some force, directly on the other side, that was feeding its power into the hole, into Equestria. I consulted with some of my magic advisors, and, as quickly as I could, encased the hole in the Portal that stands there today. The cordite that surrounds it is the strongest in the land, and the magic that binds the hole is the strongest I could muster. I added the anti-magic incantation to keep anypony from bothering it and possible unleashing the evil again. The hole was closed, and the Everfree forest returned to normal. The battle with the monsters that had happened there faded into history, and only I and my advisors knew of the Portal. When it was finally discovered, I simply allowed ponies to think it was left there by an ancient race.”

Twilight, as respectfully as she could, broke in. “I’m sorry, Princess, but hold on. The Everfree forest has always been odd and unnatural!”

Celestia shook her head. “No, my faithful student. It has been like that relative to you. About five hundred years ago, I began to feel the evil in the forest again. It grew slowly, however, so I left it alone. Because of the slow change, ponies just decided to move out of the forest, instead of trying to stop it. The forest became the empty den of monsters it is today. Slowly, as the power seeped through cracks in the cordite, the magic of the other land began to corrupt the forest, and it began to behave on its own, as you know it. The creatures of the woods were taken over by it, and some mutated to become monsters. Still I did nothing, because nopony lived there, and nothing ever came out of it. The forest was a self-contained cesspool of evil , but it did not spread.”

Celestia turned to face them. “Until now. Now two legged creatures are appearing from the forest in many places, and, unfortunately, they are all of the monster persuasion Connor and Fluttershy had the misfortune to meet last night. In fact, Connor is the only sentient, kind, bipedal creature to appear. I am afraid the entire woods will be overrun, and soon after, Equestria. I need to find a way to close that portal.”

The princess fell silent. Connor mulled over what he had heard. Finally, he stood from where he had been sitting on the couch again.

“I want to help you stop it. This is coming from my land, and I have a responsibility to.”

Celestia looked grave, but nodded. “Thank you, Connor. I appreciate your help. Perhaps, if we can figure out a way to close the Portal, I can send you through it first, to return to your life.”

Connor’s blood froze. The world turned grey around him as he realized what the Princess had just said. Go back… back to Hyrule… Yes, back to his life. Things would get better, he could live by the Lost Woods again, Castle Town would revive. Life would be good.

But… That yellow mare…

Connor shook off the thoughts that were warring in his brain, and spoke to the Princess again.

“We’ll see. The first thing is to find out how to close it.”

The Princess agreed, then turned to go. “I need to return to Canterlot now, I must gather soldiers. Luckily, I know where the Portal is, so we won’t have to travel overland through the forest; we can fly there. Still, I don’t know how many monsters there may be, especially around the Portal, and we will need protection. I shall return to collect you shortly, at Fluttershy’s cottage, if possible.”

Connor acquiesced, and the Princess took her leave. Connor sighed and turned to the mares still standing next to him, and spoke to Fluttershy.

“Would you like to go now? I suppose I need to get back to your cottage to await the Princess, and I would feel much better if you would come with me so I could be sure of your safety.”

Fluttershy, unexplainably downcast, nodded silently. Connor turned to Twilight, and thanked her for her hospitality and her help in everything. Twilight nodded, and then her eyes sparked.

“Oh! I almost forgot! I wonder if the Princess will need the Elements of Harmony for this! I should ask her!”

The purple pony ran out after the alicorn, leaving Fluttershy and Connor alone. The yellow beauty was still dejected, and even her pink mane seemed a shade darker than usual. Connor reached down to stroke her mane, and smiled at her, prompting a small smile in return. Still, the walk back to the cottage was mostly silent and uneventful, and Connor wondered where he had gone wrong with the pony.

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