Chapter 18: The Return

The last rays of sunlight fell over the horizon and allowed the silvery light of moon to gleam off of a golden chariot. Twilight leaned over the edge of the chariot and looked down. With the aid of the moonlight she could catch glimpses of lush green trees and rolling hills.

“Ah shoot!” Twilight heard Applejack clack a hoof on the metal floor.

Twilight turned around and found her friends still gathered around Sun Cloak’s little ruby. She walked over to her friends.

“Still having trouble?” asked Twilight.

“Yeah,” groaned Spike. He scratched his head and took the ruby from Applejack. “You’d think that a unicorn who has so much to say, he’d be more talkative.”

“Hm…” pondered Twilight. “Maybe he accidentally made the key phrases too specific?”

“No,” Rarity replied. She shook her head. “Most of the time when we ask him something useful he tells us that we haven’t gone far enough in the treasure hunt yet.”

“Well that’s not very helpful,” Twilight said.

They didn’t say much for a few moments, but instead looked at Spike. He held the ruby in front of him and his eyes were closed. It was easy to tell that he was deep in concentration. Suddenly, he raised a hand to the sky with one figure raised in triumph.

“Ah ha!” He signaled for the others to gather around him and they did so. “Do you guys remember what we found in the Royal Archives? That picture of Sun Cloak?”

“Oh yeah!” Pinkie gasped. “What about it?”

Spike smiled and then spoke. “Sun Cloak, can you tell us about being a professor?”

The crystal lit up bright and beautiful in the soft moonlight. It sparkled in all of their eyes and a cheery humming noise met their ears. Smiles abounded on every face as Sun Cloak appeared before them.

“Ah…Professor Sun Cloak.” The old puzzle lover grinned. “Haven’t heard that title for a while. You see, I was a professor of music theory at Small University. That’s right; I not only attended Small but taught there too! Of course, my schedule changed a little bit going from student to teacher. I coached Merring instead of playing it and graded homework instead of doing it.” He leaned in and began to whisper. “Between your team and me, the grading system at Small is absolutely atrocious! Um, but if the school is still around, don’t tell them I said that.”

Pinkie giggled. Then Sun Cloak straightened back up and continued his recorded speech.

“Anyways, my days as a professor were good. I had many promising students. Of course, I also had some who were not so promising, but that’s life. I remember the first time I helped a student compose an orchestra arrangement. Oh…what was her name?” He paused and thought for a while, scratching his chin but finally gave up. “Silver something or other, I think. Unfortunately the name slips my mind, but her music was incredible! Listen to me though, I’ve gotten myself off on a tangent. That would be the teacher in me coming out again. Bah! Once a professor always a professor.” He laughed and waved a hoof through the air. “But, you know, I also composed an orchestra piece or two of my own, I published some books, and I lead Small to three consecutive Merring championship games! However, that’s not what I remember most about Small. Oh no! What I remember most is…her.”

His eyes looked off dreamily. Perhaps at the time he was recording he had looked at the same silver moon as the one out that night. “She was the best thing to ever happen to me.” He stopped speaking, but continued to gaze at the moon. A tear trickled down his face and splashed against the ground below. “And she was my biggest failure.” Another tear fell to the ground below and the ancient stallion tried to regain his composure. He looked back at the group, blurry eyed. Despite the tears, he smiled a kind and genuine smile. “Yes…those were good days.”

His image faded and he left the ponies.

“Quick, Spike!” shouted Applejack. “Ask him who he was talkin’ ‘bout!”

Spike fumbled around with the ruby, but kept his grip and asked the question. The gemstone lit up again and the ponies leaned in close with expectation.

“I am sorry,” declared Sun Cloak, “but you have not gone far enough in the treasure hunt to hear this information. Please, ask again later.”

They all groaned.

“It seems like every time we get an answer, we come away with two more questions!” Rarity complained.

“It’s like Twilight and those science books she reads!” added Spike.

“Hey!” defended Twilight.

Applejack stepped in between them all. “Alright, I think it’s ‘bout time to call it quits with that thin’.” She pointed at the ruby. “How ‘bout we call it a night and enjoy the rest of our ride home?”

“Sounds good to me!” Spike agreed and plopped himself down happily.

As soon as he sat down, however, the chariot lurched forward and flung him out. He sailed through the air and landed headfirst in a pile of fresh hay.

“Welcome back to Ponyville!” declared Rainbow Dash as the chariot came to a halt on Sweet Apple Acres.

* * * * * * * * *

Morning. Trixie had never been a morning pony. This was even more so when she was stressed, hurt, confused, and had sunlight trying to pierce through her closed eyelids. She turned over grumpily, but the light wouldn’t let her rest. Finally, she relented and opened a half-lidded eye.

The showmare had managed to find a small patch of rough grass in the open plains between Canterlot and Saddleback. Her head was lying on her saddlebag and her hat was lying by her side.

Trixie groaned and slowly pushed herself onto her hooves. She picked up her hat and dusted it off then placed it back on her head. It shaded her eyes and gave some small bit of relief.

Trixie took a good look at the sky. There were only a few straggling clouds here and there and, in fact, the moon was still visible. It must have been even earlier than Trixie had thought. Then, her stomach growled.

“Oh calm down,” Trixie chided her own stomach. “Trixie will eat breakfast soon.”

She flipped open her saddlebag and tipped it over. Some of its contents spilled onto the ground: a few bits, some packaged oatcakes, her cape, and a small diamond. Trixie looked at the small amount of bits disapprovingly, that hospital had been more costly than she was expecting. She looked even more disapprovingly at the oatcakes.

“Joy of all joys,” she mumbled sarcastically. “Oatcakes again…Trixie’s favorite.” She rolled her eyes.

Trixie unwrapped one of the hard cakes and munched on it. It was dry and mostly flavorless, but it was food. As she ate, she pushed her few belonging back into her bag, however, she kept the diamond out. Trixie gazed at the gemstone as it glistened in the early morning light. Finally, her stomach appeased, Trixie swung her saddlebag onto her back and picked up the diamond. She was still feeling wobbly, but she pressed on nonetheless. As Trixie walked, she started up conversation with Sun Cloak’s crystal.

“So, your talk of the Dragon Wars got Trixie to thinking yesterday. You see, Trixie is having a little bit of trouble with a dragon of her own. It would seem that you know a thing or two about dealing with the creatures. Perhaps you’d care to elaborate on dragons? Hmm…?”

The diamond in her hoof brightened and Sun Cloak appeared at her side.

“Dragons?” Sun Cloak asked. He scratched his chin in thought. “Why in Equestria would you want to know about…Oh! Oh yes! The Dragon Wars.” He smiled. “I can probably only tell you as much as a book could. They can fly. Or most of them can at any rate. Their scales are incredibly tough and act as natural armor. They breathe fire. I would highly recommend not getting torched if you ever run into one. That tends to end poorly. Um…there’s not really anything else I know.

There really wasn’t much time to ask them how their lives were going over a cup of tea, seeing as they were sort of trying to kill us and all. Sorry if I’m not much use on this subject but I don’t anticipate you running into any trouble from dragons on this treasure hunt. However, I have supplied you with a handy shield to keep you safe from any kind of mortal danger. But, try to stay out of trouble, hmm?”

Sun Cloak disappeared and Trixie kept walking.

“That wasn’t much help,” mumbled Trixie.

She continued her march toward Canterlot. When Trixie rounded a hill, the white city finally became visible. Trixie stopped to enjoy the view for a second. Canterlot gleamed like a white light on its mountain perch. She smiled.

“At least Trixie is making progress.” She shrugged and kept walking.

The trip was lonely at times, but Trixie was used to it. At least, that’s what she told herself. She had been on the road for a long, long time entertaining the masses. But praises from unknown ponies are only fading memories when on the road and alone. Trixie sighed and pressed on in silence.

The day carried on and she became tired. Tired of the walk and tired of the silence. She found a small pool of water and stopped to take a break. She leaned down and drank the cool, blue liquid.

“Ah!” she sighed happily. She wiped her mouth and then looked back at the diamond. “Trixie wants to hear something other than her own thoughts,” she declared. “Now, what’s a good question?”

Trixie took a seat by the pool and rested.

“Trixie believes you said something about ‘mortal danger’? Care to elaborate?”

The diamond flashed and hummed. That was always a good sign. Soon, Sun Cloak appeared.

“I have made a protective shield for each of the seven teams,” explained the old unicorn. “Should your team get into trouble of some sort, it will hopefully be of assistance. However, my magic does have limitations. The shield will only appear if my crystal senses some kind of threat. If anything moves too quickly toward you, such as a rock being thrown, the shield will appear. If anything of high magic power gets too near, the shield will also come up. A warning message will also be played when the shield appears.

An incredibly important note, the shield originates from your crystal. If you are standing too far away from the crystal, it cannot protect you. Now then, this protection was made to protect all of the teams from the normal dangers inherent in travel and also to keep foul play down to a minimum. If your team is one involved in said foul play, stop it!”

Sun Cloak’s image dispersed. Trixie placed the diamond gently in the top of her pack and then rose to her hooves.

“Limitations to the shield?” she mused.

Trixie leaned down and picked up a small pebble. She hefted it up and down a few times.

“Well, at least it’ll give Trixie something to do for the rest of the trip.”

Trixie then threw the stone as hard as she could. It pinged off the inside of a quickly formed yellow bubble and Sun Cloak’s warning message played. Trixie smiled.

* * * * * * * * *

Afternoon sunlight trickled onto the tired faces of three unicorns. The Society of Sun had just awoken from a rough sleep. The day before, they had marched toward Ponyville at a much faster speed than they were accustomed to. It was well into the night before Chaser had finally stopped them. The three remaining members had slept fitfully at the foot of a small hill. Grallix had landed on the other side of the hill, where he now slumbered peacefully.

“Cumulus, you need to eat.” Sun Chaser held out an oatcake to the stubby unicorn.

The three were seated in the shade of the hill. Chaser and Sight Seer held half eaten oatcakes, but Cumulus hadn’t even touched his breakfast.

“I’ll eat when we get to that Everfree Forest and get Rose back,” replied Cumulus.

“You’ll do Rose no good if you don’t eat,” said Seer.

“You need to keep up your strength,” Chaser added. “We still have a good deal of marching ahead of us.”

The leader gulped down his last bite and then stretched. Cumulus relented and hungrily bit into his food.

“Chaser.” Sight Seer walked over to his leader and friend. “I’m going to scout ahead.”

“Go ahead.” Sun Chaser nodded his head.

Seer cantered over another hill and out of sight. Chaser stood and closed his eyes. A cool breeze blew his mane to the side and he breathed in deeply. Behind, he could hear Cumulus devouring the oatcake. To his left, he could hear Grallix’s heavy snoring. In front, he heard hooves approaching. Chaser opened his eyes and, to his surprise, saw Sight Seer returning.

“What is it?” Chaser asked. “Is something wrong?”

Seer came closer to his friend. He was smiling.

“Nothing is wrong. Quite the opposite. It would seem that we traveled further than we thought yesterday. Just over that hill I caught a glimpse of the Forest.”

Chaser’s eyes brightened at the news and he broke out smiling. “Excellent work!” he praised.

Cumulus walked up to the two, seeing as he had finished his breakfast and didn’t want to be left out of the loop. “What’s got you two in such a good mood?”

“Ah! Cumulus!” Chaser said happily. “Why don’t you go and wake up Grallix for us? There’s something I want him to see.”

Cumulus gave Chaser a funny look.

“We’re getting Rose back today,” added Sun Chaser.

Cumulus’ face visibly brightened at the news.

“Now quick! The sooner Grallix is up, the sooner we get Rose back,” Chaser urged.

“No need to tell me twice,” Cumulus said with a nod. He raced off to wake the great beast.

The stout unicorn rounded the hill they had slept under and found Grallix. The dragon was snoring and pouring out fumes of smoke. Cumulus looked at the dragon, sleeping so soundly, and scowled. Cumulus trotted up to the beast’s face and smacked him across the face.

“Get up!” snapped the unicorn.

Grallix snorted and his eyes flew open. The dragon’s first sight was that of Cumulus glaring at him. Grallix closed his eyes and rolled over. Cumulus snorted threateningly and prepared to give the dragon another wake up call.

“It is unwise to wake a dragon when he is sleeping,” said Grallix without opening his eyes.

Cumulus stepped back. Grallix raised his head from the ground and looked down on the short pony.

“Especially with a slap to the face,” snarled the dragon.

They both glared at each other.

“Yeah? Well, Chaser told me to get you up,” snorted Cumulus. “He said there was something he wanted you to see.”

Grallix rose to his feet and stretched. His spines prickled on his back menacingly and he blew out a puff of hot smoke into the air. The dragon took a look around. There weren’t any other creatures around except for the little pony standing at his feet.

“But while we’re alone,” Cumulus spoke up suddenly. “There’s something you need to know.”

Grallix leaned down.

“If you don’t keep your word. Nothing in Equestria, not even Princess Celestia herself, will keep me from giving you back a hundred times what you brought on Rose. Are we clear?”

Grallix raised an eyebrow at the boldness of this tiny pony.

“I will bring her back when I am taken to the location of the next puzzle,” replied the dragon calmly.

“‘She’ has a name, you know,” snarled Cumulus. “It’s Rose Shine and you’d better not forget it.”

Grallix was taken aback. Never before had he met a pony with such tenacity. Of course though, he hadn’t met many ponies in his life.

“You know what?” continued Cumulus. He began to pace around the dragon’s feet. Never once did Cumulus stop glaring into Grallix’s eyes. “Tell me one thing. Why Rose? Why not me? Why not Chaser? Why Rose Shine?”

Grallix watched the pony pace at his feet. Just to frustrate the irate pony, he didn’t speak for a while. It was actually quite fun for Grallix to watch Cumulus’ temper get the best of him. Finally, the dragon spoke.

“She was a threat to me.”

“A THREAT!?” roared Cumulus. “Rose wouldn’t harm a fly!”

“She de-animated me and three griffins. I wouldn’t exactly call that harmless.”

“De-animated? You think that’s an attack?” fumed Cumulus. “Let me ask you something. Did you feel any pain when you awoke? Did it hurt at all when the beam first struck? Were you injured in any way whatsoever?”

Grallix only snarled in reply.

“Do you even know what she uses Animation Magic for, you big lizard?” huffed Cumulus. When Grallix didn’t respond, the unicorn continued. “She owns a toy store. A toy store for children! She makes the toys come to life. All of the fillies and colts love Rose Shine! She always finds a way to put a smile on their faces!” His voice became much softer as he continued, “And…And she makes me smile too.” Then, his eyes lit up with anger. “And you!” He pointed accusingly at Grallix. “You took all of the joy she brings away! You cruel monster!”

“ENOUGH!!!” Grallix roared into the unicorn’s face. The force of his voice alone shook the ground, but Cumulus remained steadfast. The unicorn would not turn his harsh gaze from the dragon. “I have given my word, pony.” He spit the last word out like it left a bad taste in his mouth. “Now, take me to your leader before I do something that you will regret.”

Cumulus did not move for a few seconds, he would not be intimidated even by a dragon. Then, he turned around in one sharp motion and led the dragon to Sun Chaser. When Grallix saw Chaser smiling, he snarled and blew a stream of smoke into the unicorn’s face.

“Good morning to you too,” said Chaser sarcastically. He brushed the smog from his eyes.

“I have been rudely awakened and berated by your underling,” snapped Grallix. “I hope for your sake that this is important, because you sure don’t know how to get on a dragon’s good side.”

“I assure you,” replied Chaser with utter confidence, “this is well worth your slight discomfort. Come,” he began to walk, “follow me.”

He, the other unicorns, and Grallix all walked up a large hill and stopped. From this vantage point a small pony village could be seen as well as a dark forest.

Grallix pointed. “That village is the answer to the puzzle?”

“No,” stated Chaser sharply. This earned him another snarl from the dragon.

“Then what was the purpose of waking me?”

“For your information, that village is called Ponyville,” Chaser continued like he hadn’t heard anything. “And the large forest you see next to Ponyville is known as the Everfree Forest. That Forest contains the answer you seek.”

Grallix’s eyes lit up and he smiled. “The Everfree Forest,” whispered the dragon to himself.

“And now, you will return Rose Shine to us,” demanded Chaser. He planted his front hoof squarely onto the ground.

“Only after we reach our destination,” Grallix replied curtly.

“But we’re already at our destination,” Chaser chuckled.

Grallix looked around, but they were still on the hill top. “I may have thought that you were an idiot, but I never took you for a lunatic.” However, he didn’t like the way that Chaser was grinning.

Without warning, a bright flash of violet engulfed Grallix and the ponies. The dragon roared and Chaser started to laugh. Grallix swatted the purple light from his eyes and blinked. When he could finally see again, he found himself standing at the edge of the dark Everfree Forest. He blinked and rubbed his eyes.

“What’s the matter?” taunted Cumulus. “Never been teleported before?”

Grallix looked down at the tiny ponies. The tall one, Sight Seer, was pulling in heavy breaths. But they were all smiling at him.

“And now, you will return Rose to us,” demanded Chaser.

Grallix stood still, trying to regain his bearings. He peered into the Forest, but could only see a few feet into the inky blackness. However, something felt wrong about that place.

“I do not sense the unicorn’s magics,” he said at last. “And that forest feels…off.”

“Whether it feels ‘off’ or not, that it the answer to the next puzzle,” Sun Chaser snarled and stepped toward the towering dragon. “We have done what you have asked and now you will return Rose to us. Is that clear?”

Grallix looked over each of the unicorns slowly. Cumulus’ horn was practically sparking with deadly magic already, Chaser looked steadfast but a trained warrior could see the steel in his eyes, and Sight Seer was completely emotionless.

“Very well,” murmured the dragon at last. He pointed a grizzled claw at Seer. “But I will need your help, Teleporter.”

“Hey! That wasn’t part of the deal!” Cumulus snarled and pawed at the ground like he was about to charge.

“Can it!” snapped Chaser.

Cumulus was taken aback and lost his momentum.

“Seer, are you alright with this?” Chaser turned to his friend.

“We’re about to find out,” replied Seer. He stepped up to the dragon and took in a deep breath. “What do you need me for?”

“I want you to think on your friend,” replied Grallix. “Think about Rose and nothing else, is that understood?”

Sight Seer nodded.

“Good.” Grallix grinned.

The beast then took in a breath of air and shot out a green flame. The emerald fire touched upon Seer’s horn and engulfed it. Seer grimaced and lost the balance in his front hooves. He fell down into a kneeling position and screamed as pain surged into his head.

“Seer!” shouted Cumulus in worry. He leaped toward the Teleportation master, but was held back by a hoof from Sun Chaser. Chaser shook his head “no” and Cumulus backed off.

Sight Seer continued to scream in pain, yet he continued to think on Rose Shine. He closed his eyes and remembered her laugh, her smile, the way her soft voice sang the most beautiful melodies he had ever heard, and he found the strength to press on.

Then, a brilliant violet glow erupted from Seer’s horn. The purple magic and green fire intermingled and danced in a glorious display of fire and light. This strange mix of dragon fire and unicorn magic grew upward until it formed a beam of purple and green light. The light flew into the heavens like a spotlight for the stars themselves.

After this, a second beam of light fell down from the sky. It formed a pillar of fire and magic just large enough to contain a pony. From inside this column, Chaser and Cumulus could see the faint outline of a mare forming. The shape was dull at first, but became clearer with each passing second. At long last, the fire went out as did the violet magic.

Sight Seer shakily pulled himself up to his hooves and pulled in raspy breaths. He was drenched in sweat but he couldn’t help but smile at the sight before him. For before him stood Rose Shine. She looked around in utter confusion until her gaze came to rest on the faces of her friends. Her face lit up like Hearth’s Warming Eve tree and she smiled.

“Rose!” shouted Cumulus happily. He flung himself at the mare and hugged her tightly.

She gasped, but then began to laugh. She hugged Cumulus back. The other two came up and hugged her as well. After a long embrace, they all backed off to let Rose catch her breath.

“What happened?” asked Cumulus with worry. “Are you alright?”

“I’m just fine.” She chuckled at Cumulus’ antics.

Cumulus started to rattle off questions at hyper-sonic speed until Chaser stopped him.

“Rose,” said Chaser. “I’m sure that we all have questions for you, but perhaps this isn’t the best place for it?” He motioned to the Forest they were standing by. “How about we find some lodging and take it easy for the rest of the day, hmm?”

“That sounds wonderful,” replied Rose.

The four walked at an easy pace toward Ponyville. But Sight Seer stopped. The others halted as well and turned back see what was wrong.

“Grallix,” said Seer. “Where’d he go?”

All but Sun Chaser looked up at the sky. They couldn’t see heads or tail of the dragon.

“Oh, I wouldn’t bother looking,” stated Chaser. “He’s long gone.”

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