Pinkie Pie was going to be ok!

When Raegdan was done with his… unconventional method of helping Pinkie Pie, it was finally time for both groups to offer their apologies and thanks to each other. Raegdan stood before them, his whole being focusing on the bruises he had given them, especially the one on Twilight’s own face. He closed his eyes. Breathed deeply.

“I’m sorry for-”

He didn’t make it any further before their massed attack.

Raegdan stood resolute, refusing to bend or fall under their assault. Twilight had leaped high enough to grapple her forelegs around his throat. Rainbow and Fluttershy used their winged advantage to attack his shoulders and arms. Applejack and Rarity went around his midriff. Spike, with his smaller stature, was able to wrap himself around Raegdan’s head.

It was a hug to be retold as a legend. If only Pinkie Pie was awake so she could join in.

“I guess my apologies are not needed,” he said, subdued.

It was a great ruckus as all six of them tried to make their own apologies heard. Spike was crying and begging Raegdan to forgive him for trying to burn him. Rarity, Rainbow, and Fluttershy were apologizing profusely for attacking him while he was trying to save their friend from them. Applejack was begging him to let her make right by him. Twilight herself was swearing she would never distrust him again.

“Yes, it’s all very tragic. We have all learned a lesson today. Can you get off now?”

They all clamped up on him even tighter.

Luna was chuckling at him as she watched. “My mighty warrior has fallen before the cuddling strength of five mares and a baby dragon. Maybe I put too much faith in you?” she teased him.

“Make no mistake, Luna. I can get out of this at any moment, and when I do you are not going to like it.”

Luna laughed at his challenge. “Oh, do your worst. I know you are not going to perform the slightest offensive action against them. You are trapped.”

Raegdan shrugged as much as he could, shaking Rainbow and Fluttershy as they nuzzled his neck. “Your funeral.” He cleared his throat with a series of loud coughs.

“Gee, is no one going to thank Luna with a hug? She was the one who identified the poison and saved Pinkie Pie from a magic overload after all.”

“No! Raegdan, you traitorous bas- mpfffhhhh!”

“And… free!”

“Dig me out!” Luna’s muffled voice ordered.

A few minutes later, after they had calmed down, Applejack shared a few things with them while Raegdan and Luna sat further away, refusing to take part until they were done.

It was quite the rollercoaster ride for Twilight.

First, it was horror, fear, and sympathy when they were told that this attempt to kill them was just the latest in a long series of them. Then came the pity and sorrow when Applejack described their meltdown, along with some nice salting of confusion, and uneasiness, about exactly how close Raegdan and Luna were. The ride finished spectacularly with the reveal of what they wanted to do about the Elements of Harmony. Horror returned for an encore under the loud applause of concern for their mentality as well as the anxiety about… well, everything would have to cover it. The crazy buckers wanted to destroy the bucking Elements of Harmony.

Twilight’s lips stiffened. She had to make sure she never said something like that aloud. Once was enough for this decade.

It is understandable that Rarity, Rainbow, and Fluttershy shared in Applejack’s feeling of the situation. They were going to help them of course, the girls because they owed Pinkie Pie’s life to Raegdan and Luna, and Twilight because… of a decade of love. She wouldn’t drop him off like a bad habit again. They would fix this situation, no matter what.

Twilight, after her mind had cleared a bit, glanced at the end of the room where they sat. It hurt her to look at him. He had really become a mess in the space of one day. The wounds from the fight, then his scuffle with her friends -thanks for reopening his stitches Rainbow- and then having to bleed himself even more blood to save Pinkie Pie, with a potential second or more times to come. His bruises, scars, and bloodied bandages were highlighted upon his now pale, white skin. There was no blood infusion to help him this time. Raegdan and Luna told them they only had a single bag in reserve, and they used it all up that same day. They had more, they said, but after the assassination attempt before this one, they destroyed them all rather than take the chance that any potential assassin actually had a speck of slight originality or somepony got his hoofs on something with that kind of potential. Raegdan had to endure as he was and hope Pinkie Pie wouldn’t need much more of his blood.

Their path was clear. Step one was to make sure those two did not do things worse for themselves. Step two, find who was trying to kill them. Step three, help them.

Twilight had a step four in mind, but she wasn’t going to tell the girls about that before they all had a good night’s sleep.

Raegdan, of course, instead of resting for the remainder of the night, kept awake in full armor, standing guard outside the room as Luna slept. Luna, in her defense, tried to get him to be the one to rest -stars forbid they both trust anypony else to stay awake and guard them while they both slept- but apparently, even the Alicorn of the Night could not move the block headedness that answered to Raegdan when he truly made his mind.

Twilight awoke in the morning and along with Princess Celestia and Applejack, who insisted she tag along, they went to have a talk with a sleep deprived, hurting, and very pissed Raegdan who spent his night fuming over yesterday’s events. Oh, the fun they were going to have. Twilight longed to wake the rest of her friends to participate in the joy of migraines.

How bad was it? Well, Twilight would have thought she could think up quite a few analogies to make her point. Imagine finding yourself having sleep-teleported into the middle of the Everfree or finding out that the original moustache spell had an extended understanding of lips. Celestia forbid it was as bad as breaking a Pinkie Promise right in front of her. But none of those could give the slightest understanding of the true scope of what greeted her. Just… well, the first thing Raegdan said to them as they came in front of him was not “good morning”, “hello”, or even a simple nod. No, the first thing he said?

“Hey Celestia. I am going to go kill Steadfast Ray in a little while, so can we hurry this up? We can all have breakfast together later.” He even sounded all chipper about it!

Yeah. Such was the great glory that awaited Twilight today. At least, judging from the force that Applejack facehoofed herself with, she would have company in her misery. Twilight swore that everything they had agreed upon yesterday, said agreement being that both of them should try to be a little less reactive, was just going through their ears as a shortcut to the garbage bin.

Twilight put her hoof down and let down a sigh. It fell to her to try to be the voice of reason today. Raegdan spent about twenty minutes insisting that he would kill Commander Steadfast. Princess Celestia spent twenty minutes telling him “no” in no uncertain terms. Raegdan was evidently hearing her say “insist some more and I will let you go murder somepony”. She woke up less than an hour ago, how was she so exhausted already?

“Raegdan,” Twilight told him, “there is no way the Solar Guard tried to poison you as retaliation for yesterday. We went back to Luna’s room immediately after the fight. They couldn’t have done it.”

Raegdan either still had doubts or didn’t want to give up his plan of killing the Solar Commander. “They could have sneaked in at some point.”

Applejack sneered at the idea. “What, they just made it past the two of ya? How? You were up there all day. What were you so busy with that you wouldn’t notice somepony come in and fool around?”

Raegdan scratched at his chin, a small stubble now on it, broken in crags by small scars that didn’t let hairs grow on them. He was thinking over the question. What could he and Luna be busy with-

Twilight’s brain emptied a metaphorical bucket of bleach on itself in an effort to stop any unwanted mental images from forming. Rarity was not right. The rest of her friends were making fun of her. This wasn’t something that was happening.

“We did nap for an hour or so,” he answered. Oh thank Celestia, Twilight thought with a thankful glance at her teacher beside her. “It would take some balls for them to try and get in, true. They couldn’t know if we were indisposed or not. On the other hand, we didn’t notice you coming in yesterday either,” he said with a frown.

“Ok, big fella, but the fact remains that you don’t know. It’s way more probable that some other cretin -begging your pardon, your Majesty- did that while you were out of there. Maybe during the tournament, or sometime before. Am ah right?”

Princess Celestia nodded approvingly at Applejack’s explanation. “Anyway, I do not believe that my Solar Guard would try something like that. They dislike you, even more since yesterday, but I doubt they would turn to underhooved measures. I trust Commander Steadfast to obey my orders not to take any hostile actions against you.”

“Oh, yeah, that worked out great yesterday. Nice job,” Raegdan answered sarcastically, followed with a short clap.

“Do we have to go through the same discussion, Raegdan? I have reprimanded him severely for his choice of actions. Even with his exemplary service so far and the fact that, unlike you, he accepted full responsibility for the outcome, I would have taken away his rank. But I could not do anything like that while Luna kept the other half of those responsible safe from even the slightest repercussion, could I? I wonder, does the phrase “you reap what you sow” have any meaning for you?”

“More than you know. But some people get to reap things they never planted in the first place.”

“Like Heavy Hoof’s daughter? I met with her yesterday, you know. A sweet filly. The last words her father told her was that he would be back soon. She asked me why her dad lied to her.” Celestia sighed. “I am thousands of years old and I have no idea how you answer this question.”

“You don’t,” Raegdan answered. “You just say that you don’t know why and let them find out on their own when they grow up that this is how the world is.”

He huffed and just stared at the wall for a minute, clearly lost in his thoughts. Twilight took a careful look at his eyes. They were bloodshot and large bags of skin were hanging beneath them. But he stood erect and attentive. Twilight remembered her childhood, Raegdan keeping awake over a scared Spike that had a nightmare, his presence giving the small dragon comfort. He would easily make it through the day without any rest, but he didn’t usually go through a gauntlet as he did yesterday. He had to be feeling the effects, but… what was that Applejack told her he said? “If we give the slightest opening we will end up dead.” Is that what this was? He refused to show weakness anywhere near public spaces?

Twilight looked at her surroundings. Maybe the corridor of the Castle Infirmary, outside the door of the room where Luna slept today, was not the best place to have this discussion. Raegdan had refused to move however.

“Ok, I’ll concede that maybe, just maybe, to my eternal disappointment, it wasn’t the Solar Guard behind this attempt.” Twilight held her breath. Raegdan just slipped a little. Luna and he had urged them not to reveal to Princess Celestia that there had been more attempts at their life. They all objected to this; it served no purpose and would only stop them from getting more support from the Princess, but those two remained unmoved. Princess Celestia was to know only the bare minimum. Twilight wondered at the time if they also were allowed to learn only the bare minimum themselves.

Raegdan caught on to what he did. One of his eyes trembled for a half second as he waited along with Twilight and Applejack to see if Princess Celestia had realized what he had potentially revealed.

“Then in that case you will be happy to know that I have ordered the Royal Guard to find our culprit.” Crisis averted.

And a new one just begun. “Oh, hell no,” Raegdan told her in his gentle, polite way that he would prefer another option. “They are staying out this. Luna and I can look into this on our own-” Applejack gave a loud cough full of meaning, “along with some help from Twilight and her friends as they have so kindly offered. Lunar Guard, remember? Just because there is only one of me doesn’t mean that I have less authority in your power structures, especially since I am by default my own Commander. Unless of course, your sister’s decrees don’t have quite the same… oomph that yours do?” Raegdan shamelessly baited Twilight’s mentor.

Princess Celestia must have known she was being played but didn’t seem to mind. In fact, she was smiling. A big, toothy grin that looked wrong on her. “Oh, Raegdan. Somepony just tried to poison my little sister, my student, her friends, and you. Did you really think I was going to do the guilty party the favor of keeping you out of it? You will be right there with them, the Royal Guard will just be doing most of the work. They have the means and experience.”

Raegdan stopped leaning on the doorframe. He did not look happy even with this arrangement and his expression was getting outright murderous. The promise of personally finding those responsible was the only thing that had stopped him from going on an undiscriminating warpath. “I do not trust your Royal Guard. They stay out of this, that’s final!”

Twilight racked her brain to find a way to stop him from digging himself in a deeper hole. Think brain, think! Distract him; how? Sprain your ankle, no, that’s stupid, break your ankle! Then while he is busy fawning over you, punch him on the back of his head.

Maybe Twilight just didn’t have it in her to be the voice of reason. She should apply for voice of panic. Daisy, Rose, and Lily had the role well snagged in Ponyville, but Twilight believed she had the potential to go national!

Thankfully, Applejack managed to keep a straight head, so someone who could actually think, spoke for Raegdan. “How about Shining Armor? Raegdan trusts him, right? Can’t they work together?” She flashed Raegdan a wide toothy smile that said “don’t blow this”.

Twilight couldn’t believe she forgot about her brot- oh shoot, she hadn’t even visited him to say hi had she?

They all turned to Princess Celestia, waiting for her decision.

The Alicorn of the Sun sighed, backed into a corner to make a decision she believed to be wrong. Twilight wasn’t sure if it was the right one either, but there was a limit to how much Raegdan and Luna could be pushed. If she overdid it they would just lock her out and keep everything between them again. Then, one day, she would get a letter from the Princess that wrote that they were both dead.

Dear Twilight Sparkle,

I regret to inform you that Raegdan and Luna are dead. But their memory will live on. The charred remains of my castle and those of half of Canterlot will be a monument that will make sure they will never be forgotten by the few stragglers that managed to survive.

Your crippled teacher,
Princess Celestia

P.S. When Raegdan mentioned a chemical recipe that made a fire that could not be quenched with water, he wasn’t joking.

Twilight suspected she was beginning to develop some serious issues.

“Fine. You will have the personal help of Captain Armor and whatever resources you and him agree to use together. The rest of the Guard stays out of this until you decide otherwise. You will be in command of the investigation officially, as you asked, but Shining Armor has seniority. If he makes any suggestions, I insist that you take them to heart. Oh, and stop petting your weapon. You are not allowed to ask questions with it until you have the actual pony who did it in your hands.”

Raegdan crossed his arms over his chest with a pout. “You used to be fun once. Remember the times you put a sign that read “Complaint Department” around my neck, and had me stand next to your throne on the days you were overflowed with applicants?”

Celestia gave an embarrassed cough. “I, uh, needed to free some time in my schedule to teach Twilight, you know that.”

“Why, yes. It cut down so much of the daily court that we could even head to Donut Joe’s place.” Princess Celestia started fidgeting. “Before you started on the lessons, I might add. We used to have fun together, Celestia. What happened?”

“You came at me with a spear,” she said with a sad smile. Raegdan sighed in answer.

“I miss those days,” he said wistfully.

“As do I. It’s up to you if they will return.”

“I am well aware.”

“How are you feeling by the way?”

“Aw, you care. I’m fine,” he shrugged. “I wish you guys had painkillers that actually worked on me, but I can take it. It’s not like I have any other option anyway,” he chuckled.

“I will brief Captain Armor on his new assignment and he will mee-” Princess Celestia was interrupted by a terrified shriek originating from the room behind Raegdan. Twilight couldn’t believe her ears, but it sounded like… Luna!

Raegdan moved instantly. He grabbed the door handle and only paused briefly to give an order before he went inside. “No matter what, you do NOT come in. Do you understand me, Celestia? Stay out!” He thrust the door open and rushed inside, moving with a speed he rarely displayed, Luna’s screams still echoing down the corridors.

Princess Celestia moved towards the door, but held back from opening it. Twilight moved as close as possible, striving to listen what was happening inside.

Raegdan’s voice was loud and pleading, piercing through the Alicorn’s wails. “Luna, it’s me, it’s ME! Wake up, you are here with me, come on! It’s just a dream, Luna, you are not there! Luna, wake up, please! Please, wake up!”

The screams stopped and were replaced at once with loud, desperate sobbing. Twilight looked up at her teacher and paled at the sight.

Princess Celestia expression was one of grief and disbelief. Twilight had never seen the white Alicorn lose her calm like this.

“Oh, Luna. Why are you hiding from me? Why won’t you let me help you?” she whispered to no one before turning around and leaving, her pace faster than normal.

Twilight didn’t know what to think. She turned to Applejack, her posture asking for some answers. Applejack just shrugged.

Figures.

Twilight tried to emulate Princess Celestia. Keep your expression serene. Look as if you know what you are doing. Don’t allow any of the inner tremors you feel make it to the surfac- oh, sweet, dear-bucking-horseapplesonastick what did she just suggest?

“Calm, remain calm. Lips straight with a slight hint of a smile. Eyes must have an inquisitive stare, as if you see and take interest in everything, but nothing surprises you. Maintain breathing at optimal rate; do NOT hyperventilate,” Twilight chanted the mantra of “Princess Serenity” in her mind. It was working. If only she could consciously control her mane and stop it from slowly spiking in random directions, then she would be just peachy.

She really hoped the girls were buying the act. They were looking at her as if she just told them they should all go and jump onto some nice, not so fluffy, jagged rocks. In a sense, she did.

“Twilight, darling, let me see if I understand your proposal correctly,” Rarity said. Twilight nodded, regally allowing the peasant to continue with her questions. “You want us to, and I have to stress this, deliberately lie to Raegdan that we will be asking around on our own, while in reality we will -I can’t believe this- we will be snooping in their own rooms?”

Twilight nodded again. She did not trust her tongue yet.

Rarity got a fan out of somewhere and sat down heavily. Fluttershy raised her hoof, begging to ask a question.

Twilight discreetly swallowed before addressing her. “You have a question, Fluttershy?”

“Um, yes. I’m sorry, and really, don’t take this the wrong way, but… do you have a deathwish?”

Twilight blinked. Wow, she… she did not expect that. “Rainbow, any questions from you?”

“Oh, no, I think my girl, Flutters, just covered all of my own. Well, I guess I could add, do you think we also have a deathwish? Raegdan isn’t gonna shy away from kicking our butts if he catches us, or worse, soap all of us. Whatever he does to us, he ain’t gonna be gentle. My head still hurts and Rarity is wearing that dress for a reason.”

Twilight sighed. She hoped it would be easier. Just point at a direction and they would follow with no questions. It never happened before, but it was a big universe. Probability had to collapse somewhere, right? At least they didn’t know of Raegdan’s more creative punishments. Then they would have galloped back to him to tattle her in an effort to save their flanks. She threw an epic tantrum once when she was thirteen because he didn’t let her stay up later than usual. She had to spend the rest of the week walking around in pink spotted baby nappies and drink everything from a baby bottle. She only tried to take them off once, but stopped when she saw him grin evilly. At her relief, when Spike laughed at her, Raegdan forced him to endure the same, so he never felt the need to share this story.

The Princess held off any lessons and didn’t meet with Twilight until the punishment was over. Twilight suspected that she heard about Spike’s inclusion and didn’t want to take the risk.

As it was, only Applejack had agreed to her plan. Twilight had no option now but to sin. She was going to bring physical evidence in a debate.

“Ok, girls. I didn’t want to do this, but you forced my hoof. Do you see this?”

Rainbow squinted. “That’s… a list?”

“Exactly. And what does that tell you?”

“That you are an egghead?”

Right. This was getting repetitive, insulting, and something she should have seen coming. “This is a list that I have written. It contains everything we know about Luna’s and Raegdan’s plans, their motives, who could possibly be a suspect for wanting them dead, and everything else we know.”

“Let me see that, please,” Rarity said and pulled the notebook towards her with her magic. She spent a few seconds examining it. “Twilight, the only things you have written here are; Render Elements useless, Render Elements useless, and everypony minus thirteen.”

“Exactly,” Twilight exclaimed satisfied. Finally, they were seeing the point. “We know nothing. We can’t help them like this. I don’t think they have told us the whole story. They must know more about who is after them. They can’t have been living like that for a year and not have a single clue. We have no idea what they are after and thus no idea who could possibly want to stop them. Which I include ourselves in by the way. I can’t understand why they are so dead set against the Elements. I don’t buy in dad’s speech that Applejack told us.”

“Luna doesn’t want them around either,” Applejack added. “She sounded downright hateful about the fact we are connected with them.”

“But this doesn’t make sense!” Twilight was almost yelling in confusion. “She used to be linked to the Elements of Harmony herself. She and Celestia were the ones to trap Discord the first time. The Elements are what cleansed her of Nightmare Moon. Why does she want them gone now?”

“Umm, when I was a little filly, there was a small closet on the wall of my room,” Fluttershy said. Everypony’s attention shifted to her with the sudden change of topic. Fluttershy lowered her head at the attentiveness but continued. “I was… really afraid of it at night. I accidentally locked myself in it once and, afterwards, always kept thinking that one night Nightmare Moon would jump out of there and drag me back inside.” Twilight was instantly reminded of her own childhood fears. “I… told my dad one day, and when I came back home, he had taken off the door and filled in the closet, turning it all into a solid wall. It didn’t matter to my dad if I was right to be afraid of it or not. He just removed it with no questions asked.”

“That’s a sweet story about your dad, Fluttershy, but I don’t understand what it has to do with all this,” Twilight told her friend.

“Maybe… maybe Raegdan is doing the same with the Elements of Harmony? Maybe Luna is afraid and Raegdan wants to...”

Twilight didn’t get it. What the hay was that supposed to mean?

Rarity however seemed to connect some dots while listening to this story. She didn’t look like she liked it though. “The screams you told us about! Twilight… Twilight, tell me, please. Is there a chance… is there the slightest chance, that Luna was conscious while she was banished?”

Understanding dawned like a baleful sun, scorching all her other thoughts, leaving Twilight with nothing but the apprehension of true horror.

One thousand years. One thousand years of solitude. Alone. Completely and utterly alone. No one to talk to, no one to talk to you. No voices, not even your own. Because Luna had been banished. She would have no control of her limbs because there were no limbs for her to control. She had been infused with the moon. All she could sense for one thousand years was just the unmoving surface, the millions of tons of rock… and her own thoughts. How… how did she manage to survive? She should have been a gibbering mess as soon as she returned.

What was she doing during that millennium? Did she try to busy her mind with past memories of her life? Was she trying to find a way to break out without her magic? Did she make plans for her return?

Did she keep screaming with nopony to hear her for one thousand years?

How did her mind manage to stay whole? The amount of mental fortitude Luna must have had to endure this…

It wasn’t entirely enough, was it? The way she screamed a few hours ago. Twilight now knew what Luna had been dreaming of. Raegdan hadn’t been surprised at all. He knew exactly what to do. He rushed in to wake her up. It had almost been an hour since the crying stopped. Neither of them had come out yet. Twilight didn’t dare enter the room before, stout in staying outside because of the way Raegdan forbid them to. Now? She was afraid to have her suspicions confirmed beyond any doubt. How often did that happen? Once a month? Once a week? Every night? Was this the real reason why Raegdan didn’t move from her door, not even a single step down the corridor? Was he waiting for this to happen, for the moment when he had to run to Luna’s aid to comfort her?

Raegdan’s propensity to spend all his time by Luna’s side, practically glued to her, now made sense. He was doing everything he could, fighting to keep her sane in a new world where everypony hated her and ponies wanted her dead.

Raegdan liked very few ponies. He loved even less. Before the last days events she would have limited that list to herself, Spike, and Celestia. She wasn’t entirely sure if Princess Celestia was still on that list, but she believed that she was. Raegdan, for some reason -a reason she was beginning to suspect she knew what it was- was angry, extremely angry with her. If he still didn’t care for her, he wouldn’t limit his displeasure to occasional shouting, snark, and foul language when talking to her, Princess or not.

But this list now included Luna. There was no doubt. Raegdan, somehow, had come to care deeply for Luna, who -if they were correct- was rightfully terrified of the Elements of Harmony. It didn’t matter if they would never use them on her again. Just the fact that they were still out there would be enough to drive her mad with fear. Raegdan knew this. So now, Raegdan believed that the Elements of Harmony were a mental danger for Luna, and a physical danger for Twilight. If Twilight’s darkest thoughts were true, if that was what Luna had gone through… oh, heavens help them, if it was true...

Raegdan would sooner burn the world than allow this to continue. If something was threatening or scaring somepony Raegdan loved… “I am not a scientist. I am no doctor.” That’s what he said last night. That’s what he always said. It really left a lot of options about what he used to be, didn’t it? Even if he wasn’t something like what she feared, Twilight believed it made no difference.

Whatever Raegdan had gone through before in the past, it must have taught him some tricks or given him ideas. Ideas that could be backed up with the magic strength of a desperate Alicorn. Twilight still remembered his claim that if you knew enough, you could cast a spell that could cut through metal as if it was mist. That was an offhand comment. If Raegdan really wanted to, with Luna’s help, he could perform the stuff of nightmares. There was a reason he was extremely careful of what he shared, even if he knew so little as he claimed. The small hints of what he could unleash with some help had panicked even Princess Celestia. She did not fear him just because he broke a lot of bones.

Rainbow spoke in a hush. “I’m… overthinking this, right? It can’t be as bad as I think?”

“Rainbow, dear, I don’t think we can ever come close to imagining how horrible it truly was if that really happened.” Rarity’s voice trembled.

Fluttershy was on the verge of tears. “I just thought that… she was afraid to be away again. That’s- that’s horrible!”

“Oh darn, that’s why your pa… Twilight, Raegdan really meant what he said, didn’t he? We need to tell Princess Celestia what happened to her sister,” Applejack urged. “Those two are really going to-”

Rarity stopped her with a hoof to her mouth. “We are not telling Princess Celestia. Raegdan for once has the right idea!”

“Pardon? Are ya crazy? She needs to know!” Applejack said

Rarity swiped at her eyes with a handkerchief. “Know what? Are you going to tell her that what she thought was an act of mercy -one that she already feels guilt for- locked her sister in a thousand years of agony? How do you think Princess Celestia will feel? We don’t know if she can even help Luna any more than Raegdan does already. He obviously knows what happened.”

“Well, when ya put it like that…”

Rainbow added her own two bits. “Princess Celestia was the one who did this to her. I don’t think Luna would like to talk about that with her anyway. It would be pretty awkward and all.”

“But…,” Fluttershy said, “she seems fine, doesn’t she? She is staying apart most of the time but she joins in and laughs sometimes.”

“I doubt she thinks about it all the time,” Rarity answered. “Raegdan probably keeps her busy to stop her from dwelling on it. But it has to always be there, in the back of her mind. And when she forgets herself, or goes to sleep…”

“That’s it,” Twilight announced, breaking the girls from their own visions of Luna’s suffering. “We are going to Luna’s tower now! Fluttershy, stay here with Pinkie. Shining Armor should be coming by soon. If Raegdan and Luna come out and we are not back yet, stall them. Don’t let them leave before we are back. We don’t want to get caught. Rainbow, Applejack, Rarity, let’s go.”

Twilight scanned the page. Raegdan wasn’t joking. The writing was obviously shifting from one language to another. Not only that, but they were also using different alphabets, Raegdan was radically changing his hoofwriting in random sentences, or he was just plain bucking with whoever would try to translate this, and just wrote it all in gibberish. This seemed impossible. She couldn’t discern a single word that she could use as a starting point. It would take her days to just separate every letter to their possible corresponding alphabet and language.

They had been in the study where they first found Raegdan for an hour now. Well, Twilight and Rarity were. Applejack and Rainbow quickly left to search elsewhere when they saw Twilight gleefully taking a page down from the wall and taking a seat. Rarity was spending her time in front of the extremely large mirror, primping herself.

The door opened and her missing friends came back inside to break her concentration. “Nothing,” Applejack said, “everything’s normal. There was nothing hidden anywhere. Granted, we couldn’t just dig up everywhere or they might notice later, but ah really think we are not going to find anything elsewhere in here.”

“Did you find a second bedroom?” Rarity asked in a sing-song voice while brushing her mane.

“Nope.”

Rarity gave Twilight a meaningful look.

“That means nothing. He could very well be sleeping on a chair, the floor, or they might be taking turns resting. Stop doing that to me, please!” Twilight begged.

“Oh, Twilight. She is a mare all alone, suffering, and has a stallion all day long next to her that understands her and shares her hurdles willingly. It’s only natural that they give in under all that stress and seek comfort-”

“NO! This is not one of your romance novels, Raegdan doesn’t think of Luna like that, and there is no way in Tartarus this ever happened. Now, let me read.”

“Found anything, Twilight? What do all those papers say?” Rainbow was in a room with books and notes for all of ten seconds and she already sounded bored.

Twilight rubbed her eyes. She had been trying to glare the words into meaning by the end. It didn’t work out very well for her. “Nothing. They could have a detailed list of everything we are trying to find out, and I could not read it. I don’t even know where to begin.”

Applejack was trotting along the walls, examining the papers tacked on them. Her frown was deepening as she went along.

“Applejack, anything wrong?” Twilight asked.

Applejack moved to the midpoint of the wall and was looking right and left at the notes. “You could say that, ah reckon. There are only eight or ten pages of notes here.”

Rainbow waved her hoof at the walls that were filled with over a hundred of pages. “You should do a recount, AJ. I think you might have missed a couple.”

“Nope, ah didn’t,” Applejack said. Her frown had been replaced by a self satisfied smirk. “There’s only ten or so, at best. They just repeat over and over.”

Twilight didn’t cast a teleport, but to the naked eye it would make no difference. One second she sat at the chair, the next she was right next to Applejack. She scrutinized every page, looking for confirmation. The page she had been studying was here… and here… and there, there, there… Applejack was right.

“How the hay did you notice that?” she asked with wonder. The pages were so indecipherable, and similar to each other, that even now she could barely notice the repeat. This was expertly done. They had even added some sketches in random points to confuse the eye even more.

“Patterns,” Applejack said. “I’ll explain some other time. Let’s just say that having to check a few hundred of identical trees for signs of trouble every day, tends to leave you with a talent for seeing this kind of stuff.”

Rainbow called out to Rarity. “Hey, miss Glamour, careful over there, ok? If you wear that mirror out, Raegdan will kick your flank.”

“Oh, please, Rainbow. I am not going to repeat dear Pinkie’s mistake. I’m just making sure my coiffure is in place.”

“Yeah, but he- huh, he really cared for that mirror, didn’t he?” Twilight watched as Rainbow was the one to scowl suspiciously now. What was wrong with Twilight today? Did she wake up on the stupid side of bed? Everyone seemed to be noticing things she did not.

Rainbow flew to the gigantic mirror, inspecting the frame. “Rainbow, what are you looking for?” Twilight asked.

“A lever or a button.”

“What for?” asked Rarity beneath Rainbow.

“Every evil lair has at least one secret door. I bet this is it.” Rainbow’s explanation dumped Twilight’s spirits. She had been hoping that Rainbow had noticed something of use. Not go off on one of her fantasies where the world was covered with trapdoors, “evil lairs”, and hidden treasures. Any moment now, she would claim that the entrance to Luna’s real rooms was in the middle of the hedge maze in the gardens and she would demand they march down there to sea-

“Found it!” Rainbow said triumphantly, and with a click the mirror frame swiveled silently on hidden hinges.

Son of a bitch!

That metal sphere… the way its surface was cracked in a grid pattern, the little knob with the small metal loop at the end, the curved lever at its side… it looked so… sciency! Twilight had to grab it, hold it, and analyze it for the sake of scholars everywhere. As soon as Rainbow’s mouth stopped clamping on her tail.

“Twilight, what the hay do you think you are doing?” Rainbow shouted through her gritted teeth.

“I just want to take a look. I’ll put it back later, I swear!”

Rainbow spit out her tail. Twilight did a quick flick to get rid of the saliva. “Twilight, look around you! This is a bucking armory. We shouldn’t be touching this stuff!”

She was right of course. The rooms were completely dark, but as soon as they stepped inside and closed the secret door, magical bright white lights turned themselves on, leaving no trace of shadows. There were rows of what could only be called weapons, judging by the way they were stacked. She recognized quite a few of them. There were the usual weapons, blades, maces, hammers, spears, axes, hoofblades, wingblades, and more. But there were some unusual ones too.

There were some bows for one. Ponies did not use bows. It was easier for unicorns to cast an offensive spell than to try to shoot with one of the ballistic machines. Earth ponies and pegasi did not use them much either. The need to spike them to the ground to use them meant that they were useless for anything except hitting a static target. These ones however, did not have the long spike she knew of. They were possibly made for Raegdan’s use. She had seen him leaving for his hunts with a carved piece of wood when she was younger. She realized now that it was a bow left stringless. He was probably very good with those by now.

There were rows of small, hoof sized metal spheres, the kind that enraptured her before. They were different colors, and some of them were designed slightly differently. Some were shaped as cylinders. A kind of slingshot ammunition maybe? Twilight could detect some dormant spells in them, but couldn’t figure out what the trigger for them was.

Some things she couldn’t understand or guess at all. Like two metal canisters that were tethered together with a kind of netting hanging from them. A flexible long pipe connected them with a peculiar metal tube that had strange bits and pieces extruding from it.

There were jars and boxes scattered around. Near the canisters she found a container with rock oil. Its fumes were making her eyes itch. In a cardboard box next to it she found… soap? There were crystals, probably mined from Mount Canterlot itself. Coils of wire and metal junk had been piled together with them, probably as a project they haven’t gotten into yet. More jars were filled with acids. She found a long roll of parchment, but her excitement faded when she saw it was just inscribed with copies of extremely tiny runework. Why even get into the trouble to do that? Runes were useless on soft materials that could not handle the magic pressures and you could not carve them so small with the attention to detail needed. Mineral samples where thrown around. She found a few a magnets among them. Copper ore was piled in great quantities.

Another box had a note on it. “Find large empty area to mix this.” Inside, she found a bunch of long, empty tube containers, painted red, and a bag of sawdust. There was nothing else.

On a long table there were more metal tubes. It looked like a work in progress. A sketch was on one side. Twilight examined it and saw they were trying to come up with some kind of clockwork that would move small, metal cylinders in sequence, loading them into a metal pipe. They didn’t seem to have a lot of luck with it or just decided to abandon it. Dust was gathering on the table.

On the table next to it she discovered what was probably meant to be Raegdan’s new weapon. It was sparkling new. They had cannibalized rods and wooden handles to make a ragtag, longer, heavier version of his hammer. The end result was blocky and the spike at its side was missing the gentle curve of his smaller one. But with the heavier weight, and greater reach, this would be a true killer.

“Hey, Twilight, come check this out!” Rainbow called from the second room of this hidden compartment. She found all the girls gathered around a pair of armors.

One of them was obviously made for Luna. It resembled her Nightmare Moon assemble, but it would cover her form much more thoroughly. Luna had obviously gone the route that Raegdan preferred and traded speed and movement for more protection. Twilight could detect the starting steps of complex enchantments on it.

The one next to it was almost identical to the one Raegdan currently wore. The plating was thicker and it was a bit wider. Probably in an effort to insert adequate padding between the metal and his body. She noticed that parts that were previously lightly armored now had thick plates covering them too. The sheen of it was.. off, like the one made for Luna. There was no trace of magic on this one, but she didn’t expect to find anything either. Enchanting something that Raegdan would wear was a practise in futility.

She looked to the side. Small rectangles of metal were positioned on yet another small table. They looked different. Twilight moved to inspect them.

“I know he was doing fine with the one he has now, but will be able to even take a step with this one? It looks like it’s twice as heavy,” Rainbow was saying.

There seemed to be two different versions of steel here. Twilight lifted them with her hoofs, trying to judge their respective weight. It was very different. She noticed a metal spike at the end of the table. She summoned it towards her.

“I don’t think he will have any troubles with it,” Twilight told her. “If I’m guessing correctly, that one might even be a little lighter.”

She used her telekinesis to push the spike with as much force as possible through what she suspected was the normal metal they used for armor. It took effort and a build up of speed, but it pierced it. She repeated the process with the lighter piece of metal. It left a very small, shallow dent, but did not manage to go through.

“Wow. What is that?” asked Rainbow.

“I have no idea,” Twilight admitted. “Probably some new steel alloy. It’s very light and stronger than what we currently have.”

“Oh, how horrid!” Rarity exclaimed. Twilight and Rainbow Dash turned around. Rarity and Applejack had opened a cabinet and were reading some papers they found in it.

“Did you find something we can actually read?” Twilight was excited. This could be their chance to find something of substance.

Rarity had become almost entirely green. Applejack also looked sick. “It’s… Twilight, I am sorry, but Raegdan and Luna are entirely mad. If this is what they are coming up with in their free time…” Rarity shivered violently.

Twilight took hold of the papers she was holding. It looked like a plan to kill… Discord? They had noted down different possibilities. From smashing the statue he was currently turned into, to using some of those weapons they had stashed in the other room, to some strangely named spells. A checklist of more things to build was written at the end, but none of the names made sense to her. The last option available, called “last resort before atom split”, was...

Twilight had to fight to keep herself from throwing up when she turned the page around.

They had written down details on how they should cut off Raegdan’s left arm for maximum effectiveness. Schematics followed it, with possibilities of how to use his bones, flesh, and blood to craft weaponry. Fingerbones turned to arrowheads, forearm bones turned to a long blade or daggers, the rest of the bones grinded into small cylinders with a sharp ending. His skin stretched over a small shield, blood stashed into small breakable vials. Muscles and tendons turned into strands of garrote and thin rope.

It was one of the most horrible things Twilight had ever seen with her own eyes, and Raegdan was planning to do it to himself.

She gulped. She didn’t want to find out more. But her curiosity… “Are there… more of those?”

“No,” Applejack answered. Rarity had moved away from the macabre cabinet, refusing to nose around in there any more than she already had. “They seem to have made incomplete plans on how to kill some other things, like dragons, ursas, and stuff, but nothing they paid as much attention to as that. There is also a note mentioning Alicorns, but they got nothing written on it. There are a lot of other papers in here though.”

Twilight started pulling everything out. That was… peculiar and extremely random. Travelogues? Manehattan, Las Pegasus, Vanhoover, Baltimare… what did they need from these? Reports, from- reports? Those belonged in the Royal Archives! She spread them around. They made no sense either. Everything was random. Population census, employment statistics, death certificates, missing ponies reports, trade agreements, immigration, taxes, Royal Guard reports from around Equestria, orphanage listings, Noble houses, land owners. It was a potpourri of nonsense.

Rainbow was checking out another notepad. “Rarity is right. I think those two are pretty insane. These look like they plan to break into a house with a hoofball team.”

“What?”

“Here, check this out,” Rainbow said and shoved one of the papers in question in front of her face. It was a top-down view of a large residence. Circled numbers had arrows pointing routes of entry and movement from different sides. There was a phrase written on top.

“Special weapons and tactics?” she read aloud.

“Maybe that’s what they plan to call their team? You know, something for the Lunar Guard to kick off and relax in the evening. Or morning. I guess they will be working night shifts,” Rainbow said.

“Does it feel to anypony else as if those two are gearing up for war?” Applejack asked.

“They want the Elements of Harmony out of the way, right?” said Rainbow. “This might be what they are planning to replace them with.”

Rarity offered her own opinion on the matter. “If this is the alternative I’d rather stick with my necklace, thank you. The Elements do not kill. Those two instead seem to be going straight for the final solution. This is all too much, and I don’t think they are even half done. Applejack is right. This doesn’t feel as if they are just thinking up defensive measures. ”

“Well,” Applejack drawled, “y’all gotta admit though, they don’t seem to want to half-flank this. Ah mean, if they can find a way to put down a fella like Discord, it would be kinda hard to argue that we definitely need the Elements, right? Plus, if they are willing to go after the nasties in the countryside at least, they got my vote for that.”

Twilight scoffed at the idea. “I don’t think Equestria needs a Lunar Guard to take care of that. Attacks in the wild are really uncommon.”

Applejack stopped her wandering around the room and walked up to Twilight. “Ok, Ah just gotta ask. What the hay are you and Shining Armor talking about?”

“What do you mean, Applejack? I am talking about the monster attacks that Luna and Raegdan claim they want to stop. I have checked the reports. There are basically almost none.”

“Is that what your reports say, Twily? Well, Ah got some news for you. I sell apple pies.”

Twilight blinked and waited. She waited some more. “So what-”

Applejack continued now that she interrupted her. “I sell them at Ponyville, but most of my sales come from villages spread around. It’s actually quite a big income boost which is the only reason Big Mac and I keep doing it. Do you have any idea what we go through?”

“No…”

“Well, let me tell you then. Hell. The roads are crawling with them nasties. Last time, I got jumped by a chimera. Big Mac had to abandon his cart to a wyvern, and it drove us in the red for a week. I’ve seen timberwolves, plain wolves, manticores, chimeras, wyverns, sphinxes, wyrms, you name it.”

“But… did you report those? Didn’t the Guard help?”

“The Guard? Sugarcube, the Guard won’t go against a nest of wyverns unless they know with one hundred percent certainty they killed a pony and have no other choice. That means, if I get eaten while on the road, and nopony sees me actually getting attacked, or find my remains, I get written down as missing. If you wander off deep in the countryside it’s considered your own stupid mistake.”

“This makes no sense, Applejack. Those creatures must be coming out of the Everfree. Things aren’t like that all over Equestria. If it was, how would things like trade continue?”

Rainbow chuckled above her.

“What?” Twilight asked.

“Uh, you do know that it’s the pegasi that take care of that stuff, right? And even we have to form up large groups when carrying a lot of stuff that really slows us down. Most ponies use the trains now anyway. They are safe and they keep the tracks clean. I do some deliveries when I need some extra bits. I’m one of the few who are fast enough to do it solo,” Rainbow said.

“So… they were right about that?”

Applejack nodded.

“I never heard anypony mention that things are so bad,” Rarity said.

“Doubt you would have. City folk probably don’t have to worry about that, and neither do all those who can afford transportation like the train for every little thing. It’s mostly the small villages and those of us who have to cut corners by traveling on hoof that know firsthoof how badly something like Luna’s Lunar Guard is needed. Something pro-active as Luna said. Those who don’t know and try chancing the countryside anyways, well, they go on the missing pile more often than not. I just expected that Shining Armor would know better.”

“If that’s what all of this is for though, why are they hiding it all up?” Rainbow asked. That was the million bit question, right? Why all this secrecy?

They checked the last of the three large rooms that were hidden by the mirror. It was their personal smithy and workshop. Twilight doubted they had gotten anything in here through legal means. In one corner she spotted discarded pieces of Guard armor. A lot of the gear, like the furnace, seemed to have been customized and enhanced with a mixture of magic, strange apparatuses, and materials.

How much did they manage to do in a single year? They had built those rooms, all those strange devices, those plans, they trained Raegdan, forged armors from an unknown steel alloy, and heaven knows what else. Were they sleeping at all?

Luna’s screams briefly echoed in her skull. Probably not. They must have done what Twilight herself did when she had a problem she wasn’t sure how to deal with. Thrown themselves to work, trying to cover everything they could think of.

Twilight went back to examine the armor. They had put on a small show of regretting the use of subpar armor yesterday, and all the while they had this monster hiding right here. Why? What else did they hide? Twilight took notice of the fact that they hadn’t found any spell notes. They must have made something for Luna to use too. The fact that they didn’t feel comfortable writing it down somewhere worried her. What spells had Luna crafted with Raegdan’s guidance?

“There is nothing here that can help us figure out if they have any idea who is trying to kill them, is there?” asked Rarity.

Twilight shook her head. “No. I think they stopped writing at one point or destroyed most of their notes. Paranoia, probably. We might find something if we look harder, but I don’t want to disturb too much.”

“Hey, it’s not paranoia if they really are out to get you,” said Rainbow.

Were they? They had been acting in front of them before. Was it possible that the poison was a part of their plans? Endanger one of them, then spectacularly save them with the resources only they had available? She could almost believe that, if she wasn’t certain that Raegdan would never put her and Spike into a potentially dangerous situation like that.

What if Luna acted on her own though? Would she have done that? Could she slip that by Raegdan? Killing one of them would certainly remove the threat of the Elements of Harmony from her mind. Would she risk Raegdan’s friendship for that?

What about her friends? Raegdan and Luna had considered a lot of options. The easiest way to get rid of the Elements of Harmony, in the short term at least, was to… get rid of them. Raegdan would not want to do that, not to Twilight’s friends, for her sake. But if they ran out of choices… would Raegdan trade one, or more, of her friends’ lives for Luna’s peace of mind?

Rarity interrupted her thoughts. “I believe we may have overstayed our welcome. I vote we put everything the way we found them and hurry back. I don’t want either of them to find us in here.”

Nopony argued with that.

“There are other places we can search later. Raegdan’s old room for instance.” Applejack whipped her head towards Twilight. Did she think he slept at the dungeons before? “There is also a basement below the dungeons that he used to… prepare meat for storage. Nopony goes down there, ever. It would make a good place to stash something.”

The walk back to the infirmary was filled with hushed discussion. Should they confront Raegdan and Luna about their hidden armory? In the end, they decided not to. It would only lead to distrust from them. For now, they had to focus in helping them figure out who wanted them dead. That confrontation could follow afterwards.

They headed to Pinkie Pie’s room first. They all wanted to see if their friend had woken up yet. The sight that welcomed them, before they even headed in, was unanticipated.

Dozens of ponies had gathered in the room, some of them standing by the entrance, looking in. Twilight and her three friends forced their way in and gaped at the sight. Pinkie Pie was awake, leaning on a mound of pillows, awake and paying attention to the armored figure with wide, wonder filled eyes.

The room’s light was off, the curtains closed, casting the room in darkness. The only light came from Luna’s horn as she used her magic to cast an illusion of a dark tower on a barren landscape. Dark, bipedal figures were moving in the distance and two red glares were brightening the distant horizon, the only color in the hellish landscape.

There was something strange about the way Luna shaped the magical field...

Besides Luna, sat Raegdan in full kit. He kept his helmet on, the flickering lights creating moving shadows on his armor, the timbre of his voice changed by the enclosure of metal around his mouth. He moved his arms as he spun his tale, enrapturing his audience with the story he shared. He was a faceless, dark figure, crafting a world before their eyes.

Judging from the way Shining Armor sat in front, his front hooves wrapped around himself as he smiled with childish glee, Twilight knew what story Raegdan told them. Spike was curled up at his side, sharing his excitement.

Twilight spotted Fluttershy in a corner and moved towards her.

“Fluttershy, what is going on here? Why are all those ponies here?” she asked.

“Oh, umm, you told me I had to stall Raegdan and Luna so…” Fluttershy petered off.

Twilight insisted. “How did you talk him into this?”

“It was Pinkie,” Fluttershy explained, a pony shushing her to lower her voice even more. “She woke up and was in pain. She was scared and… she asked if we could bring the Cakes or her parents here. I didn’t know what to do, so I…”

“So you, what?” Twilight had forgotten that Pinkie would be hurting when she woke. They could not cast pain numbing spells on her, not let her drink any potions. The poison was still in her and it still had the potential to grow strong with magic again.

“I asked her if she would be ok if I brought your dad instead.” Twilight blinked. Fluttershy got Raegdan to come and… comfort Pinkie? He agreed? She didn’t know if she should feel disbelief or joy.

Fluttershy kept talking. “Raegdan didn’t want to come at first. He said he couldn’t help like that, but Luna got him to agree somehow. He couldn’t do anything for the pain so he started telling her stories. He really reminds me of my own dad,” Fluttershy said with a smile. “When Shining Armor came in, he took a seat and hasn’t moved since. Luna then told Spike to go around the medical wing and bring over as many ponies as he could. They all seem to like it,” she said with a grin.

Twilight turned back to watch the show. He couldn’t be telling the whole story. It would take him hours. He must have chosen a part of it in random. But it was a good choice. She sat back to watch and listen.

“...the ring’s weight burdened him, but he carried on. He was small, weak, and tired, but still he moved forward. He looked up to the black tower that stood before him. How could he, someone so small and alone, stand before the shadow? His eyes looked at the landscape across him, the black land he would have to cross to reach a destination he would probably never return from. He wasn’t sure how he would manage this, but he would. The world’s hope now laid on the shoulders of a small gardener, surrounded by darkness.” One of the red points in the distance of Luna’s illusion flared. Red streaks flowed upwards to the black clouds.

“His friend,” Raegdan told them, his voice low, as if afraid to speak up. Everypony’s head leaned a bit more forward. “He would not abandon his friend. First he would climb that hellish tower, filled with enemies that would have his head. His friend might be dead, or he might be alive. He would either save him or close his eyes and kiss his forehead goodbye before marching to his doom alone. That was his path. His friend came first, the world after. The ring weighted him down, calling him to use it, but the little gardener ignored it easily. Kings, wizards, and great powers of the world feared that seducting call, but he gave it no mind. He only had his friend on his mind, no temptation of power could sway him again.”

“He charged through the black gate. Fear started to descend upon him. He could hear their grunts, their presence pressing around him. Doubt started to fill him. He would die here. He needed help. What could one as he do? His hand started heading for the ring hanging from his throat.” The crowd was shaking their head, urging the little hero to not give in to the temptation. The illusion had changed. They were now in the tower itself, red flames lighting the room. Broken shadow figures moved on the walls.

“His hand changed direction at the last moment, going to his pocket. From it, he pulled the vial that contained the light of a star of the night sky. Their brightest they had called it. It was now dim, drowning in the darkness and hopelessness of this land. He almost broke at the sight. But then, something in him woke up. The sun, stars, and moon sprang into his mind. The fields and flowers of his home. The smiles of his friends. His little garden. And he did the only thing he could do. On the threshold of the Dark Lord, death, despair, and shadow, the little gardener from a peaceful land started to sing.”

Pinkie Pie broke the reverie, her voice cracked and dry. “What song did he sing? Was it a nice song?” Raegdan didn’t answer immediately. He just looked at Pinkie Pie, his expression hidden behind metal.

Twilight studied her friend too. Pinkie Pie was hurting, but she ignored it as she listened to the story. She was still scared. She could see it behind her eyes. It shook her. Pinkie Pie never seemed to be afraid of anything. Had she realized how close to death she had come? That she was only saved by a miracle?

Raegdan kept silent. The crowd was waiting still. Raegdan nodded to Pinkie Pie and then to Luna. He got up from his seat, towering over the seated ponies. Twilight watched as Raegdan did something he had never done before, not before anypony but her and Spike. He spread his arms slightly, imposing in his dark armor, lifted his covered head upwards, and sang.

He didn’t have a great voice. He could sing if he tried but nopony would call his performance spectacular. Not unless he was doing what he did now. Nopony had ever heard Raegdan speak his language in anything but short bursts. He didn’t speak in the broken way he did Equestrian. His gruff voice rose from his chest and his mouth shaped the sound into soft syllables that ponies did not have. His teeth cut the words with sharp indentations that pulled the ear’s attention. The broken awkward accent was gone, and replaced by confidence.

What ensnared them all was the antithesis in his kind’s songs of what Equestria’s had.

Sang Pony songs were happy tunes. They relied on the ambient magic to enhance them and bring music into their ears. They sang of harmony and cheer, of love and friendship, of good feelings, because that was what the magic responded to. If a song was not somehow positive to the one who sang, it would not exist.

Raegdan’s kind instead took sorrow, pain, anger, and hurt, and made diamonds out of them.

Raegdan’s voice rose as he started his song. He did not have magic to guide him and accompany him. He only had his voice. And he shaped it with his heart, language, and lips, twisting sadness and grief into something beautiful. It was something that nopony had ever thought to do.

Loneliness and longing filled the room, wonder and craving for something lost. He brought all of them into gloom and had them dive into the darkness of despair. For a few seconds everypony knew the loss of hope. But the shadow did not last for long. Assurance and defiance rose up, and at the end a short, bright ray of hope shined. As he weaved his magicless spell, Luna created an illusion of a decorated, round glass bottle in front of him, filled with a dim light, but slowly brightening as he went on.

His voice faded to nothingness. Nopony dared to move. The vial of light was attracting everypony’s eyes until Raegdan brought his hand forward and closed his fist around it, smothering the magic. The only light now came from the entrance, Luna’s still lit horn, and her starry mane and tail. The eyes of some ponies shone wet in the meagre light.

Raegdan slowly sat down. “They could not stand before the light and the song. The enemies abandoned their own tower in a panic,” he whispered. “They did not see a frightened gardener with a short sword, but a brave lord, standing before them with stars woven in his hair and wielding a fearsome, long, silver blade. They ran, afraid and bewildered. And at the top of the now deserted tower, the little gardener heard his friend, alive, singing back to him. They reunited, and together, small, weak, and tired, facing the greatest darkness, they marched on to do their part to save their world. But no longer alone. No longer hopeless.” His arm reached for Luna’s side. “For now they remembered that the shadow was small and brief; for there was true beauty and light above, and stars that would shine forevermore.”

The spell was broken when a doctor came in and turned on the lights. Ponies shook their heads, as if waking from a dream. Shining Armor gave off an audible whine as story time came to an end.

“I’m sorry everypony, but you have to leave. It is time for Miss Pie’s therapy. Come on now, out you go, back to your rooms,” the doctor called.

As everypony left, Twilight could hear them murmur about the story. Some of them were inviting each other to stargaze tonight and share the alien story with their friends. Luna waved them all off. “We hope that you enjoyed this tale, my little ponies. Mayhaps we share the whole tale one night soon, if you are interested.” Most of them seemed accepting of the idea, a few of them even cheered.

“You clever bastards,” Twilight thought.

Pinkie Pie looked much better. The story, and promise of therapy that would lessen her aches, had obviously cheered her up. “What kind of therapy are we doing today, doc?”

“The same one we did last night, Pinkie,” the unicorn doctor answered her.

“Neat!” Pinkie Pie exclaimed. “What do we do?”

Rainbow Dash and Rarity started gagging in disgust.

“Huh?”

“Doctor,” Raegdan called out. He hadn’t moved from his position. He was sitting on his chair, his elbows resting on his knees and his helmet was facing straight down. “Do you think we can do this a bit later? Give me ten or fifteen minutes?”

“Well,” the doctor said, eyeing Rarity’s and Rainbow’s reaction. “It might be better I give you some time anyway to personally explain to Miss Pie what the procedure actually entails,” he said with a grimace. ”I’ll be back in a few minutes.” He turned back and left, closing the door behind him.

As soon as the door closed Raegdan took off his helmet and gently put it down. As he slumped even lower he used his hands to massage his head.

“There is no way I am doing this again,” he told them.

“Come on, big guy, it wasn’t that bad,” Applejack tried to encourage him. “You yarned a fancy tale and that song was beautif..ul…”

Applejack’s attempt drained away at the forbidding look Raegdan was giving her. “You have no idea,” he told her, “how much this hurt. I had this story almost memorized. I knew everything about it. I had even learnt one of the languages some characters in that world speak. And now, I can’t even remember some of the most important names. That song was one of my favorites and I had to replace lyrics with nonsense. Do you know what that felt like?”

“It’s not that bad as you make it, my dear,” Rarity said. “You are making a big deal out of nothing.”

“Not a big deal?” he hissed. Rarity took a step away from him. “I will never read this story again. I have no way to remember what I forgot. I will never hear a real song again that I didn’t wreck myself. And I had to be reminded of everything in front of those.. those… why should they… they are not even…” he growled with intense frustration, failing to put into words what really troubled him.

“I am sorry, Raegdan,” Luna apologized. “I knew you would be uncomfortable with this, but it was too good a chance to pass up. If I had known how much-”

Raegdan cut her off. “Not your fault. It’s been decades. I am an idiot for letting something small like that affect me. Just… I have some bad memories associated with telling stories.” He rubbed his eyes with his palms.

Spike spoke up. “I thought you liked telling them. You never seemed to mind before.”

“I wasn’t… alone, before. I used to… tell these stories to another, before I arrived here, little flame. I don’t like giving this privilege to just anyone,” he reluctantly explained.

Twilight realized her mistake. She never told the girls. Princess Celestia had made it clear to her to never ask him personal questions, especially about people he might be missing. It would do no good and only hurt him. If one of them asked him now-

“Your family?” Fluttershy asked. Twilight closed her eyes. Of all the times Fluttershy could choose to speak up…

She opened her eyes again to see Raegdan staring straight at her. “In a way,” he said.

He emphatically turned away from Fluttershy and towards Luna. “So, did it work?”

“What worked?” asked a confused Rainbow Dash.

Twilight was reminded of Luna’s spellcasting. She had understood halfway during the show what she was doing. She was good, extremely good, to hide spells within spells, especially of such different workings.

“Luna wasn’t casting just an illusion,” Twilight explained. “She was also performing a mind altering spell, wasn’t she?”

Raegdan’s face was split in half by a wide smile. “See, Luna?” He elbowed the Alicorn lightly. “I told you my girl was good!”

“Your girl also happens to know that this is forbidden. Mind altering and control spells are outlawed for a very good reason.” Rarity gave off a very lady like cough behind her hoof. She was right, the pot was calling the kettle black here, but in her defense she was almost crazy at the… time…

Oh, right. She forgot who she was talking to.

Luna defended their actions. “If you had taken the time to analyze the spell I was working, Twilight, you would have seen it was just a light perception change. I merely stopped everyone from judging what they were seeing, hearing, and feeling, by the perception of who was standing in front of them. Why do you think everypony stayed and didn’t run out as soon as they saw us?”

Well, from that point of view, Twilight had to admit they were right. She had marvelled at the turnout at first. She should have asked herself why they were all being suddenly comfortable being in Luna’s and Raegdan’s presence. If all that Luna’s spell did was give them an unbiased chance, she supposed she could keep her mouth shut about this.

“Alright. But this shouldn’t become a habit. You can’t be running around with those spells active all day.” Luna and Raegdan nodded at her. For a second, Twilight’s mind flashed an overlay of the Cutie Mark Crusaders nodding along. She was going to keep an eye out for Luna’s spellcasting.

“Gaaghh, nooooooo! I’m not doing this, nuh uh. Never, no, nada.”

Oh, good. Rarity had taken it upon herself to explain what Pinkie’s treatment was, judging from the green tinge. The next few minutes were not going to be fun.

Raegdan opened the door and called out while unwrapping the bandage around his wrist. “Hey, doctor! I’m ready to serve breakfast.” Not fun for all of them, that’s what Twilight should have thought.

Almost an hour later, Raegdan was being served a breakfast/lunch combo in bed. Rarity, Applejack and Fluttershy had done everything they could to keep Pinkie Pie from throwing up all the blood she had drank straight from Raegdan’s wrist. They still were not completely sure on how his “antimagic” worked, so to keep safe they kept going at it with the most disturbing way they could possibly find.

With no blood reserves, Raegdan was now forced to restore himself naturally. A large meal was made for him, courtesy of Luna and a volunteered Spike, with a wide variety of raw vegetables, fruits, a large serving of meat that Luna cooked herself once more, and plenty of milk. They put him on a bed next to Pinkie Pie and he was expected to sleep a few hours at least as soon as he was done.

They had really overdone it with the food, but apparently Luna was planning to help herself to it. Raegdan allowed Spike to dig in but stopped him from trying the meat, refusing to allow him any until he was of an age when he could safely digest it.

Twilight suspected it he was more concerned about where Spike would get a supply of meat if he developed a taste for it. Something told her that as soon as Spike grew enough, Raegdan would pop in Ponyville to teach him “animal behaviors and woodland ways”.

“Are we blood related now? Does that make us family?” Pinkie Pie asked weakly from her bed.

Raegdan paused, his fork staying midway between his plate and mouth. “I’m sorry, little pink, but what?”

Pinkie Pie gasped excitedly. Some of her old giddiness was returning to her. “It does! You even gave me a little nickname, like Twilight and Spike! I’m your little pink now!”

Raegdan’s eyes widened as he realized what he said. “Oh, no. No, that was just a slip-”

“I’ll be calling you dad from now on!”

“No, you wo-”

“Twilight, hey Twilight!” Pinkie was making an effort to wave at her. “We are sisters now! Isn’t that absolutely fantabulous?”

Raegdan addressed Twilight. “She is not gonna give up, will she?”

“No. And when she is able to move again she is gonna hug you and not let go for hours,” Twilight told him. She should probably keep the “I got adopted” party that Pinkie Pie was obviously planning as she lay in her bed a surprise.

“Ah, sh- I mean… uh, dang?” Luna and Spike chuckled. “I just got drank by the Count there, spare me.”

Shining Armor levitated a chair for himself next to Raegdan’s bed. “I believe we should have a discussion about the case now?”

“Indeed, Captain Armor. Do you require information from us?” Luna asked as she delicately patted her muzzle with a napkin.

“As much as possible. Have there been more attempts? Do you have any suspects? Have you noticed anything strange?”

“No, no and, let’s see... no,” Raegdan answered.

“He is lying,” Twilight tattled. “Come on, it’s Shining! Tell him the truth.”

Raegdan gave off a resigned sigh. “Yes, there have been more attempts. About eleven so far. Everything from poison to spells activated by proximity.”

Shining was shocked to hear that. “How did you manage to escape all of them?”

Raegdan shrugged. “Pretty easy after the first attempt. I just taste everything first and check every room on my own, everyday. Especially if we are both gone from the tower even for a bit. That’s when almost all of them occurred. Magic doesn’t affect me and everything else is treatable.”

“Everything else?”

“Luna knows how to treat almost any poison now. And that attempt with the spring daggers was laughable. I am much taller than you guys. They only got me in the thigh. Now, if I was turned to the side, that would be really bad.”

Twilight tried to work her jaw closed again. Spike was gaping at Raegdan. Luna returned to eating and Raegdan took a break to shovel some more food in his mouth.

“Now, suspects. I guess, everyone? I am pretty sure that at least some of your guards are on a double payroll, if you get my meaning. Servants too. That doesn’t mean anything though, it’s been like that forever as far as I know, but it gives everyone a way in.”

“I didn’t know that!” Shining exclaimed. Twilight didn’t either. Ponies were accepting bribes in Princess Celestia’s own castle?

“Outsider’s view and all that. There’s a lot of cr- things going on that you guys are in the dark about. At least, that’s what I think, but hey. I could be wrong. Love and peace reigns in the land, right? Who would accept money to take a bathroom break on a particular time, letting three certain ponies inside the castle that could be, say, foalnappers?” Raegdan finished with sarcasm.

“Is that what you think happened? That the Guard let them in?” Shining Armor asked with wonder.

“No, they found the super secret passage that led to Twilight’s room, but couldn’t get out from there again because they lost the key. Are you sure you didn’t cheat on your exams, Shining?”

Shining’s face reddened. “Hey, I just never thought about that. I assumed they used some kind of magic to get in.”

Raegdan sighed again. “Of course you did.” He turned towards Luna. “See, this is what I am talking about.”

“Indeed,” said Luna after swallowing, “our ponies’ tendency to consider magic before more mundane ways is quite the blind spot.”

“So you do have suspects,” Shining Armor said.

“I can point at a lot of people and tell you things that would make your mane stand so much on end, Cadence would split with you on the spot. But nothing solid. No. No suspects for this. If you wait until the next one I will point you at Steadfast Ray though.”

“Cadence?” Twilight asked. “Our Cadence? My playmate? Shining?”

“I, uh, I’ll tell you later, Twily.” Raegdan smirked at Shining’s glare. More secrets? Seriously? From Shining Armor too? “So, what we have to go on is…”

“I believe the phrase is “a big, steaming pile of manure”,” Luna said. “The only conclusion we have reached is that there are more that one parties involved, one of them much less skilled. Some of those attempts were downright ludicrous in their execution.”

“Everyone’s gunning for us in the assassination business. Isn’t that nice?” Raegdan said.

Their brief conference with Shining Armor turned to be a waste of time. The only outcome they came to was that they had no idea where to even start, and that Twilight owed her brother some personal time or “Raegdan smash”. Shining left shortly after, intending to ask a lot of Guards certain questions. Before he left, he paused to talk to Raegdan, without anypony hearing them. Raegdan’s response to Shining’s long speech was an intense shake of the head and a chilling exchange.

“All of them. I was very thorough in my questions.”

Shining paled a little but looked grimly satisfied. “Are you sure?”

“I may have even gone overboard a bit.”

“How did you hide-”

“Don’t you have somewhere to be, Shining? You don’t want to know more. Go and find me some suspects. They put your sister in danger. They are dead. You just need to let them know I’m on my way.”

Twilight moved closer to the pair that was whispering to each other as they finished off their meal from the same plates. They were onto something and Applejack, along with other experiences, told her not to let them do something unsupervised.

“What are you talking about?” she asked innocently.

“We are making plans for the afternoon, after Raegdan had some rest,” Luna answered her as she guided the last bite of meat to her mouth.

“Good, good.” Act nonchalantly. “You are just curious,” Twilight thought to herself. “So, any plans so far?” she asked loudly.

Raegdan swallowed and spoke. “We were thinking, since it will be visiting hours, we could make a visit ourselves.”

Twilight chewed on that idea for a bit. She doubted anypony would be thankful for a visit from the two of them, but that was exactly the new view they needed to present outside. That they cared for ponies. Overall, Twilight approved.

“Anywhere in particular you want to go for first? Maybe the children’s wing?” she asked with a smile. This could work. Children would be more welcome than others… hopefully.

“That’s a good idea, but I had another pony in mind. What was her name again?” he asked Luna.

“Leaf Stream,” Luna answered without pausing in her work of halving the cheese that was left in two portions.

“Yeah, her. Good idea, huh?”

There were some cracks in Twilight’s vision. The colors were becoming less intense too. She wondered why.

“Oh, that’s right,” she thought. “He just broke my brain. It was only a matter of time I guess.”

Pinkie Pie called out from her bed. “Hey, dad, do you think you could eat some chocolate before I need to drink again? I didn’t like the taste!”

Raegdan rubbed at his eyes. “It doesn’t work like that, little pink.”

“Why not? If you eat something good, won’t it get in you and change the taste? Maybe we can make you taste like licorice!” Pinkie Pie whined.

“That only works with fruits as far as I know, and it only affects the taste of- This discussion is over! Go to sleep!”

Luna’s shoulders were shaking as she tried to contain her mirth. Twilight wondered what the joke was. “Maybe you should share some tips with them. Or haven’t you had the talk yet?”

“Yes, the alien species is the best one suited for this job. That’s why they had me explain the facts of life to Shining Armor and Twilight. I have no idea what they were thinking. You know, not to change the subject or anything, but where had you and your friends gone before, Twilight? You didn’t go and start snooping somewhere you shouldn’t, did you?”

Oh, look. The cracks returned and they brought friends.

“Little one? Little one! Hey, someone get that doctor back in here, now! She doesn’t look good!”

Author's Notes:

Once again, thanks to Requiem17 for his relentless effort to edit my mess!

I can't help but wonder... did someone get the hint Raegdan gave about something that you can find about him?

He is not supposed to be this huge but you know... scaling, I suck at it. He is about 20% bigger that he is supposed to be I guess on the pic. Or the mane six are too small. You get the point.

Raegdan's song